Bus Lyfe!!!

Many of us travel in RTC buses. Some of us find the journey in RTC buses infuriating. Some of us find it comfortable and safe. Some like me are destined to make RTC bus journey despite the emotions that it carries. I travel on bus about 40 Kms a day that lasts around 3 half an hour for attending my college! Although my college route has service of large number of buses, horrible traffic never gives a feel worth travelling for studies :P. Despite several stops in my route, buses will have to break their pace at several signals that reduces average speed to 10kms an hour. So literally, one can reach my college faster by running than by bus. However, bus journey is one of a kind. Even though life doesn’t give much of a choice, buses leave a choice on choosing one of our kind. My journey  covers different style of places like Begumpet airport Runway that amuses at some instants, Balnagar Vimal cinema if one wants to buy some entertainment, Kukatpally malls for burning a hole in one’s pocket…There are several movie posters that glimmer for every kilometer which keeps us busy in thinking about movies thoughout. Some posters grab attention at ease; especially female models on them leave us a feel of infatuation for sure. I can’t stop appreciating bus journey in terms of comfort. I must have had to work my ass off to drive on those shitty roads of traffic if I had to travel by my own vehicle. Smokey road-way will turn us into pitch-dark in one go, no matter how angelic one is. One has to pay the price if they desire to make journey on bike. Sometimes sitting on bus I find it funny looking at some motorists who work hard more on their brakes rather than on accelerator while I’m on the other side putting my headphones on in a giant vehicle listening to favorite music and given a choice of sleeping.

 Of course, the pleasure is all yours given you got the seat. On the other side, the unseated journey has a long way to go. It becomes a deadly battle if one chooses to make a standing journey. Standing against the bus jerks is hard enough; standing against the push of crowd becomes impossible. Unfortunately, congestion in buses is inevitable that reveals India’s overpopulation at many places. Everything seems to be troubling on a standing journey including the conductor who seethes past us several times for ticketing while standers have to shove aside their earthily bodies. Of course, this case applies to all bus journey, but my bus journey has to pick out the most skillful drivers otherwise at least one accident would be no surprise. Because my route has the most unusual road twists and many bottle necks. There is a killer turn near Bowenpally charastha that normal drivers cannot make it up so easily. Road authority couldn’t take up any action on broadening that turn as it is actually along side a Muslim burial land and any change in construction would raise up a new issue. There you go, when people suffer, officials barely respond to issues, when added a religious issue to it, they never dare to resolve them. I wonder if we are controlled by religions in India. I also wonder if my bus topic can slide to religious discussion further and turns me into a critic. Let’s get back to square one!

My two years of commuting on the same route has changed my approach towards co-passengers. I cannot look at them like strangers. Every person I watch seems to be one I had travelled with before one time or the other.  Some bus conductors made permanent impressions in my mind and their exclusive encounters out of bus rings a bell instantly. I wonder if a few of them remembered me too, given I hardly socialized with anyone of them. However, the crowd ceaselessly gets about on bus without leaving a loss to RTC unless it’s a special day like bandh. Along the way I get off the bus near Kukatpally housing board Colony that ranks the largest colony in Asia which also tops in terms of air polluted areas of Hyderabad. Its also holds as centre for my college haplessly…which I visit honestly and return home restlessly. :p

That’s all about it. In fact, there is so much one can experience throughout bus journeys. Once in a while each one of us goes about these kinds of insights that stick in mind for ages. Don't they??