Upside-down

Taking the bus on a weekday in Bangalore during the peak office timings is like a curse. Having led a pampered life in Dubai and a relatively slow life in Bhopal, this is a very new experience for me. Although it does make me feel independent and strong, the experience in itself is like a two hour long physical and mental workout. The buses are so packed that the conductor literally has to exit from one door and enter from the other to be able to sell tickets to the passengers packed inside the bus, pushing and shoving until they find just enough place to stand. Standing on the first step of the bus, hanging on for dear life while the bus driver ensures that the entrance door of the bus misses hitting every other vehicle on the road by only a couple of inches, has now become a routine experience (and I've been here for only two weeks!!). However, these are hardships that every person who cannot afford a personal mode of transportation must endure everyday, multiple times a day. This, like every other hardship, leaves a mark on each one who endures it religiously, be it a bruise from bumping into the handrail everytime the bus starts or stops moving, the wrinkle on the forehead from fighting with the conductor who did not bother to return your change or the scratch marks from the fight to occupy the seat that just got vacated. It's been two weeks and counting, and not once have I seen a smile in the bus. Be it the morning, the evening or the night, every passenger carries with them the burden of life. A thousand frowns and a thousand slumped shoulders-if only they could turn upside down. Every face you see is unique, every expression thought-inducing. It makes you wonder what story lies behind each frown and each wrinkle. My frown is only two weeks old and perhaps the older seasoned travellers see me and think-here comes another amateur waiting for a smile, waiting for a miracle in life. Whether I find my miracle or not, I'm glad that they look at me, smile and think to themselves, let's see how long before she stops giving up her seat to others and starts the fight.