20 minutes in Bangalore's Traffic.

Let's just say, SPEED thrills and KILLS.

She was seated comfortably on the window seat of a rickety BMTC bus. As much as she loved travelling, she loved imagining what people were like behind their vicious daylight facades. Her eyes were fixated to the numbers engraved on an empty billboard. Evidently some advertising agency was thriving on its last legs. As she turned up the volume of her favorite classical track, she felt a cold drop on her arm. Before she knew, the city was accosted by a windy drizzle. Some of those who were crossing the road looked displeased with life, yet some others, were excited like they had not seen it rain in decades. The bunch of graceful young ladies across the road smiled endlessly as they unfolded their fancy polka dotted umbrellas. An old man, 50-something, beside them had a side of his lungi stretched up to his head, attracting the expected repugnance by the womankind. A gang of young 20-somethings, formally attired, ran for shelter to the nearest shop. Before she could blink an eye, they lighted up some cigarettes and in the smoke of relief, began their IT gossip. A middle-aged mother waited for a bus with two toddlers playing peek-a-boo with her shabbily tied sari. She looked apathetic and tired with their childhood. Trucks, cars, cows and what not sped across the two roads with an I-don’t-care-if-you-die attitude. Just then she saw,across the road, a truck rammed into a car one fourth its size. Her bus halted; a crowd gathered; an injured lady was rushing against her death clock. The two drivers furiously slammed doors and walked out as though they could scratch each other’s eyeballs out. They bantered aloud in Kannada as they engaged in the worthless tussle. She saw two cops standing a foot or two away, sipping teas obliviously. The careless truck-driver, even more carelessly paid the car-driver off, and the traffic flow was restored. The shards of glass and pool of blood left unattended. The lady counting her minutes down left unattended.

In those 20 minutes, she saw, life came to a transient halt; progressed to an infuriating commotion; people argued, some others entertainingly watched, some were oblivious and yet some other pricks were photographing the incident and sending it across whatsapp. It made her wonder, was life of such little worth? Was life such a big commotion,that lasted less than a few minutes?

Word of the Day

Bala Says:
Sure they say ignorance is bliss, but remember, they never said the road was your playground.