November 16, 2008As my first trip home comes to an end, I am reminded of the old saying ‘All good things come to a good end’. Well, not so sure about which is the good part of the end, as it brings only sadness every time I think of all those eyes with tears in them, wanting me to stay back and be with them for just that one more day. But, I being the dedicated worker had to bid
adieu and return. Okay! I am not trying to be a cry baby and I’ll talk about some good things that happened.
Well, talking about good stuff, or let’s say, the interesting part, the start of my journey home was surely nothing short of adventure and drama. It could well have been part of a plot for a Bollywood Masala Movie.
Flashback:
November 9, 2008As it was Sunday, both Sarit and I were lazing around since morning not caring for either breakfast or bathing. Some time close to noon, we realized we needed to get going as I had to catch the Falaknuma Express to Kolkata at 4 p.m. So we quickly decided on our immediate course of action, fixing our favorite ‘Maggie’ as our breakfast-lunch-combo-meal and also confirmed the timings of the 3:15 p.m. MMTS local train to Secunderabad. The clock showed 2:00 p.m., Sarit was downloading something from the internet and I climbed on to our stair-less terrace by hopping up the walls to retrieve a chain, which was used to lock our water tank, as I reckoned it could be used to lock my luggage in the train so that I might peacefully utilize my time sleeping through my journey.
2:35 p.m.:
We needed to get a move on, if we had to catch the MMTS. Sarit rushed into the kitchen to cook maggi, while I took my bath. Little did we know what adventure awaited us next…
3:05 p.m.:We gulped the boiling hot ‘Maggie’, almost burning our food pipes. In the next four minutes we were rushing towards Seetaphalmandi Station, walking along the tracks, taking turns in holding the extraordinarily heavy luggage bag.
Seetaphalmandi Station, 3:12pm:Ah! We made it. Reached the station on time and now we would reach Secunderabad on time to catch Falaknuma. The elation disappeared as soon as it came as we realized
that it was not worth waiting for the MMTS since it was once again living up to its reputation of being late and Sarit suggested we take an auto to the station. As we prepared to move, we heard the whistle of an approaching train. It was not the awaited MMTS, but a ‘Nandeo-Secunderabad’ passenger train.
Sarit, the ‘Senior Traveler’, confirmed that the train was going to Secunderabad Station and who could defy that logic, as it read so. We happily hopped on to the train.
3:20p.m.:The engine whistled and the train kept moving. Little ear did we lend to the sound made by the train while it shifted to parallel tracks, till we realized that the train was now taking a different route. “Maybe, passenger trains take a different route to the station”, Sarit said, throwing to the wind the sounds of the alarm bells that ought to have been ringing loud and clear. For, surely, this train was headed nowhere near our destination. The fact dawned upon us only when the train at its full speed took a right turn taking us away from Secunderabad station. Both Sarit and I began calculating the Plan Bs, ‘I will have to take a flight home, if I miss the train’, I told myself and suggested a rather insane idea – “Shall we jump?” “Are you nuts!”, came the reply from an unusually calm Sarit, who was contemplating saner options like pulling the chain.
The train threatened to take us all the way to Nandeo as it continued picking up speed and my watch already read 3:27p.m. Thankfully, the Lalaguda train gate passed by and we heaved a sigh of relief as the train stopped for two minutes. We quickly jumped off and started running on the stone-laid side of the tracks, half-standing half-falling, only to realize we were on the wrong side of the train and we could have very well taken the marbled platform of Lalaguda Station! With no time to discuss, I quickly scrambled to catch hold of Jayeeta’s favorite hyderabadi auto and even in this situation of emergency; I thought I should bargain the fare as I was a bit short on cash. This act of mine infuriated Sarit and I was not only given a piece of his mind, but was also laid off from the search for an auto. Sarit fixed up an auto for forty bucks and we were off again.
3:45p.m.:Stuck in a traffic jam (to add to our woes), we were cursing the
autowallah for not taking the route we’d suggested, when in a sudden rush of adrenaline, the driver put his foot on the gas pedal and started snaking through the snarled traffic in a way that can only be associated with Rajnikanth or James Bond.
With just ten minutes remaining, I decided that it was time for the final run and no sooner than we had paid off the auto, both of us were running through the over-crowded station road.
When we finally entered platform no.1 at the station, the clock read 3:53 p.m. and it seemed like the perfect end to a one day cricket match when things go right down to the wire and the batting team needs six off the last to win. Both Sarit and I were in a fix like the no. 10 and 11 at crease trying to achieve the almost impossible task of hitting the six. We needed to get to Platform No. 10 in 5 minutes, which is easily a matter of not less than 15-20 minutes. It was now or never. We decided it to be NOW and me picking up my suitcase on my shoulders, we started running up the stairs of the over-bridge pushing and kicking others. Once on the bridge, I passed the suitcase to Sarit and sped to find my coach – S13. Coming down the stairs of the bridge, I saw we were near S6 and it gave a bit of hope and relief to me, as we had finally reached the train and in doing so, we had kind of created a world record in Secunderabad station of reaching platform 10 in less than 5 minutes! Now we relaxed a bit and eased our way through people greeting goodbye to each other and as the train blew the departure whistle, we settled my luggage under the seat.
Both of us knew it was crazy but still we said with a stupid smile on our faces: “We made it!”
