THE BURNING TRAIN!!! If I survive today, the world would discern what I was made to go through. Money is the thing, which forces us to break emotions, to seek happiness, to hurt others, to make separate ways for one`s loneliness! It was only money which compelled me to take metro thus saving those 22 BRLs (Brazilian currency) as taxi costs 25 and metro costs 3. My Office metro station was in solitude that evening for unknown reasons to me, when I reached there at 6 pm. May be around 5-10 commuters were there. All was hunky-dory that day, as I worked good, I took food, I communicated good, happily coming out of office after those sweet cheeks to cheeks, refusing another proposal of getting a lift in her car, if could wait for another 30-40 minutes. To my surprise, the route inside platform which I usually take was barricaded. In ignorance, I stood there waiting it to open but it dint. Out of frustration, I tried entering that barricade gate, but was pulled back from a force on my neck, as if I was jumping from a tenth floor of a parking building to death. It was a cop. Despite my best efforts, I was not able to communicate that I want to catch the train to my place (due to language barrier) and I am sleepy, I am tired, I am hungry. A sudden thrust pushed me over the barricade along with a mob of 100s. I fell down. They walked over me. They ran over me, but I did not shout, I did not scream. I stood up, I ran along them too. I reached to the platform to find this mob is not for the train. They were screaming, shouting, sloganeering, running and being chased. So the mob disbursed but still 5-10 commuters , including me were still keeping hope to get train, though it was a RED light signal in the incoming and outgoing route. I waited for another ten minutes. Patience. I opened Google translator to ask a beautiful woman in Portuguese “if this train would go to my place?”, But before I could understand her reply, the train came. It was not that crowded, at least the boogie which I boarded, but 62 commuters were restless on those 30 allotted seats. Many were standing, I got a seat. Another lady entered and she asked the same question to me which I wanted to ask her, “If this train would go to my place?”. I replied her the same sentence which I had crammed for every Portuguese interaction, “Eu Nao falla Portuguese, voce falla English? “She smiled and sat along my side. For past few days, this has been the most discussed, most debated topic in the Brazilian TV channels other than football, FIFA, NeyMar transfer. Now I have seen the arrangements of Law and order in a city like Pune on a country`s most controversial Ayodhya verdict (We worked from 6AM to 12AM to avoid any non-sense) And there was nothing to worry about, No mischief that day in India. That thought persuaded me that Sao Paulo is a Pune-alike city and educated people lives here. Wish I could redefine the term “educated”. Again a thrust came all of a sudden from nowhere in the platform. There were people at the front, they were at the back of train, even some lying on the rails. “Let them do what they do”, I felt and kept on sitting on my seat without showing a surprise. Also, I was tired, so casually I slept. Slept only to find the doors of the metro are getting locked and the train is about to move after 30 minutes of high voltage drama. I opened my eyes from the inertia of rest in a mild sleep to find, the lady sitting side to me, has disappeared. The train started moving and I felt an explosion, a blast coming upwards, down from the wheels, which shook my legs, waist and chest. Somebody had put stone on the rails and that jerk waked me up completely, with some fear. There was a screen, on which I could see smoke, blasts, and stampede. And that fear graved my thoughts deeply. An unprecedented terror ran across my veins, “What if this is My Last…” “What if all ends here.?” “What if I had enough of happiness?” “What if they have implanted a Bomb in this train?” “What if they have slacken the nuts and bolts of the wheels in those 30 minutes?” “What if this middle aged man sitting in front will never reach his destination?” “What if the couple at my diagonal end is enjoying the last kiss of their Life” Terrified, Horrified , I could see the reflections in the eyes of those 61 commuters in my boogie, but the Train was still running Elephantly, a speed much slower than usual. Though I feared for my Life but I took out my pen and diary to write down my final Journey of Life. I would have only penned down till my happiness of cheeks to cheeks and all of a sudden 50 sniper rifles had fired 20 bullets in a flash. And everybody in the boogie was on the floor of the moving train, one over the other, including me putting my laptop bag on my head. Gosh!! Those were only stones, but well enough to mark a crack in the thick glasses of metro window. When I realized, I am alive, I again started writing it down, hurriedly, in bad hand writing just to complete every description, thinking “Yess!! This is the End!” and I should capture every moment before I depart. My hands were shaking. And the stones were hitting the window, as frequently as 50 seconds, with a sound which can Kill a weak Heart before physical death (n I am a weak heart). Shivering, trembling, I kept on writing my diary, lying on the floor of the moving train. It was only 8 PM in the night but the Protestors had manifested their anger in every major part of the country from Brasilia, to Rio de Jenario to Belo to Sao Paulo. The screen in the boogie was constantly showing live pictures of Tear gas, water cannons, Gun fires, Smoke and the stampede in other parts of the City. They have bombed few places. Few trains. If I can recall, Baba RamDev`s RamLila maidan scene was just a microcosm of all that was happening in the screen. Inside the boogie, there were women crying in big tears, Gents worried, silent without tears And the Couples had already given away the thought of Living anymore, so they Kept on tightening their Lip Locks without a worry. Luckily, there were no children in the compartment, but still I was hearing those baby cries who will born once these beautiful couples would marry. I dared once to see through the thick glass walls of window, but the stones were coming hard. Heads down, we 61 commuters inside the boogie, reached to the next station. The train did stopped for 2minutes but the Door did not open for a second. Form inside, I could see how much the null, the numb, the lull a metro staion could be. The train moved on (May be the security person and station manager checked out that this place is not safe to board, so did not open the Door.) Today only, I have called my home, talked to dad about happy Life, Good going in Job. Some how missed to talk mom, as she was not around when I called, but the only emotional thought which came into my mind was from her only ”Come home Son”!! Stones Kept on coming from outside with a fear of Bomb every time and the train kept on moving station to station without opening the exit door for another 2 hours. They have captured the whole metro route, standing shouting everywhere. I could see the empty freeway parallel to metro route at 10pm which is normally the time to start the happening Night Life here. I kept on watching everything numb and dumb as to write it in my notebook, till another explosion, another lightening, a thunder to assume, but it was Bomb in the city and stones over the metro window. It kept on going for 1 hour more and I realized its 7 stations away from my station where this metro has finally stopped. The public exploded out of exit door at 11 pm. I was the last to realize I am alive. The Police and Ambulance vehicle dropped many of us near to respective places. I reached safely to think about my other colleagues who left the office at the same time in different metro routes to find out if everybody is safe and the reply was. . .SO JAA RAAT K 3 BAJ RAHE HAIN!!
Posted on: Wed, 19 Jun 2013 04:35:28 +0000
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