Koo Jhik Jhik

Indian Railways is an experience in itself. That can be understood from people liking it even though the only travel they made is as small as Mumbai-Pune or Bangalore Mysore!
I am proud of the fact that I have travelled most of the sectors except the North east Frontier and Mumbai-Delhi track! ( But that too i travelled form Ahmedabad to Abu Road) . The best track of course was of Konkan Railway. It s scenic beauty even puts hogwarts express to shame!
But my best experiences and most travelled route is Nagpur-Howrah. And it was all 4 of us (Mom,dad, me n bro) together! Our last meeting together has been exactly 1 year back, second week of july,2005.
Ok enough of it, lets start off! Timeline - Around Summer of 1990
5 pm. All packed up. But dad has not yet come from the office! No phones to contact him . Me jumping with tension. Finally he comes at 5:15 and the last minute packing starts. We are going to Kolkata - our Mamabari in beleghata n own house in barasat. Heera Sweets special kalakand is packed though sweets are anyday better in Calcutta. Rishi Autowala is supposed to come at 6:00 pm! But it is 6:15 pm and yet no sign of him. All the neighbours have come down to bid us good bye. Shanta kakima, Latika Kakima, shondhya kakima, rinki, babuji, mana, bonty didi all have come but no sign of autowala! Fnally he comes at 6:30 and gets a scolding form everybody above! We start off amidst all the bbyes. As soon as we are out of sight of those people, maa starts wondering, gas to off kiya naa, latch theek se lagaya naa. Me on maa's lap but wanting to go to dad's. But he is too tired after hectic day in office! But finally bends to the continuous pestering and takes me. Rishi the autowala talks occasionaly and suddenly the auto makes sounds and rishi says we have to get petrol. Again tension, kitna late karega. Maa telling dad in hushed tone, agli baar se isko nahi bulayenge (but obviosuly same story next year too).
Finally around 7:15 we reach station. Train will come only at 8:05 pm. We all go to the wheeler bookstall. Mom buys a womans magazine, Dad gets an India today. I eye for The costlier ones, chacha chaudhary Digests which are 20Rs while noraml chacha chaudharies are just 5 rs. But father presuades me to look for something else. Finally happy with a 5 rs champak, i walk back. Bro obviously has to do something elderly. He eyes for sportstar and gets it.
We eagerly wait for announcements. And finally it comes.

Pravasani Krupya Lakhshyazave, gaadi no. Don aath Paanch Nau
Mumbai Howrah geetanjali express platform kramank ek var yet aahe.

Yaatrigan krupya dhyaan dijiye, gaadi no. Do aath paanch nao
Mumbai Howrah geetanjali express platform no. ek par aa rah hai.

Passengers, Attention please, Train no. two eight five Nine
Mumbai Howrah geetanjali express........................(voice dies down in the jhuk jhuk sound)

We all rush to S2. It's a crowd of people there cramming to get in first. Dad with 2 suitcases, Mom with a heave side bag, bro with same, and me with the Kool Keg (5 l water storage) also doing dhakka dhakki. Dad is shouting, arey pehle utarne waalon ko utarne dijiye. But nobody liking that obviously! And finally after 10 minutes everybody is in. But people have already occupied full luggage space under the seats and sitting on our seats also! Dad does some jhagda and then finally we all settle down. Me almost into tears and asking maa " Dad itna chilla kyon rahe hain" and maa says, "nahi tho koi uthta hi nahi aur hum baithte kaise?". Finally everything settles down and train is yet to leave. Dad goes out. and comes from outside towards the window and starts talking! And me crying, "baba, bhetore esho, train chere jaabe( come inside, train will leave)". But he wil come only at the last moment.
The train has finally started. And immediately me and bro put a series of questions to mom, "mummy, joota utar loon?","mummy, khana kab khana hai", "muumy haath dhoke aaoon kya".Even the walking in the shaky train was fun. But she replies , "we will do all after Kanhan."
So me n bro start waiting. With our hands cupped on the window to see outside in the dark. Meanwhile dad has started conversation with the same people with whom he was arguing for seats sometime back. Mom keeping a dignified silence, and me and bro, still looking out.
And then it comes. "Ghadang ghadang ghadang ghadang Ghadang ghadang ghadang ghadang Ghadang ghadang ghadang ghadang." The great Kanhan river. We have a hearty laugh as the river is almost dried up and how can they still call it a river.
Finally the river crosses away. The Hawai chappls are taken out of the bag and shoes and socks tucked under the Lower birth seat. We all wash hands and come. Mom takes out the 4 dabba ka tiffin box. Hmmmmmmmm, the mutton smell comes out. (This was before mom had stopped bringing non-veg in trains). Poori n mutton is what we have! And has to end with a sweet. As usual I crib about brother getting bigger pieces than me. And they give me the odd logic of he being elder so he has to eat more.
Anyway after that again jhagda between bro n me. As to who gets to sleep in the middle bunk, generally we always got 2 upper and 1 middle, one lower. This middle bunk fascination i guess was just created by me n bro, i never heard any other 2 kids cribbbing about it. Whatever, seeing our jhagda, some other passenger generally gives up his middle birth and we both are made happy. So we sleep. Even before bhandara has crossed.
Morning i wake up, i generally wake up very early in trains, and so did my bro. Though mom was awake below, we have to peep through the 3 inch view which u can get from middle bunk. It was divine, though what was divine about it i myself don't know, but surely enjoyed it a lot. The sun rising slowly behind the fast changing landscape.
And then chaiwala comes. Chai chai chai chai. Soon it will change to just cha cha cha( As bengal approaches) . Mom n dad get their cup of tea and we good boys, don't have tea. Especially not before going to Relatives for whom we are even better. My report card safely packed in the suitcase to show my Grandpa my 1st rank.
Anyway, we get hungry. Though mom has loads of biscuits and sweets, we want breakfast especially the terribly costly and unworthy train wala cutlet and bread jam. More so when somebody nearby is having it. But dad convinces us that we will have better food in Rourkela Jn, just 1 hour away.
Now another drama starts. Who gets the window seat. I don't know why mom n dad never intervened but it was always bro who won because his being bigger than me. Though a little while later, the kind person in the next window seat will give away. And i will go there and sit and try to showoff as i am seeing much better than my brother.
Rourkela comes, we have breakfast. Bread-omlette ya Puri Tarkari(they don't say bhaji there). Again eyes glued to window. Train gets a bit late, but we two hardly care much. Still ogling at the outside world. After sometime i get bored sitting alone, and i go n sit in brothers laps. So we both can share the same window. And mom sits in the other. Reading her "Shanonda" and dad doing justice to India Today. Suddely bro cries out-"Train benkche train benkche" meaning train is along a curve. We had made a logic out of it also. U can enjoy the maximum view only if you forst let the full frontal part diaapear from your eyes an then only look at the back part of it. But impatient me has to look at both ends.

Time goes by, a bit of champak , a bit of scenary, a bit of talking with new people of the train and here comes Tatanagar. Sun going high up and things get really hot. Time for cold drinks. Oooooo. What a thrilling word. Generally cold drinks was restrcited to just 1 during the journeys and 2-3 in durga puja. That's all. SO then i kept on shouting LIMCA LIMCA. Bro took a Maaza.
And i obviously the limca. But oh gosh. After one sip i hand it over to dad (its so strong) and eye for Brothers Maaza, but that he won't give.
Its lunch time now. And as you can't keep food for long, lunch has to be bought. And how we used to like that railway food. It was pathetic, but still we liked it. The 1 inch thick pooris which took away all the energy to tear and the tasteless Dal, but that was heaven. And especially the mix veg pickle. But it was too much for me, though i cried for a full lunch pack for myself, which they never bought, after 1/2 poori and a few morsels of rice, i quit and mom has to eat it all.
Meanwhile scenes are fast chaging outside. From the dry and yellow landscape of Bihar, we enter lush green west Benal, with green fields, lots of coconut and khajoor trees and water bodies along the tracks. Vendor comes saying "Mudi Mudi Jhal Muri". And this was the first thing mom demanded on the train. We all get 1 each. One with no mirchi especially made for me. It is just awesome. U have to eat it to believe it.
And now comes the penultimate stop. Kharagpur Jn. The world's longest platform. Heard of IITs just a few days back and IITKGP was just next to the station. Bro saying "how i want to come here." Mom beaming at him, and me thnking what's so great about it, i will go only to IITK. (Well those dreams were i guess not that early, i was just eight then but they came pretty soon, when i was in 5th and all. Whatever those dreams never came true and now nor do i care)

Now train leave sthe platform and we all get eager. Just two more stops. With every 5 minutes "Maa aar kotokkhon (how much more maa)", we get desperate and a different question comes now. "Shall we wear the shoes,Should we comb the hair, should we wash the face." And she says -Let Roopnarayan pass. And then after an hour from kharagpur-
"Ghadang ghadang ghadang ghadang Ghadang ghadang ghadang ghadang Ghadang ghadang ghadang ghadang Ghadang ghadang ghadang ghadang Ghadang ghadang ghadang ghadang Ghadang ghadang ghadang ghadang."
This is a much bigger river and full of water too. As soon as it passes, we start gettng busy. Just an hour more. Go to freshen up, wear the shoes, mom combs our hairs. And now mom occupies the window. After all, kolkata is just a fun place for us, it was where she stayed for years. And she gets the first peek at the great HOWRAH BRIDGE. Howrah bridge mein jo baat hai, woh much biiger and beautiful hote huye bhi 2nd Hoogly bridge mein nahi hai.

And then turn by turn we alll take a peek. But cug chug chug. Train has stopped in Santragachi. Line not clear. Each minute seems like a day. But finally at snails pace, train enters the platform. Me and bro, face stuck to the windows, see who has come to receive us. Oh Its Boro mama and choto mama.
The train finally stops!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!