I don’t know why, roads have always fascinated me. No, I didn’t mean from a traveler’s point of view. Rather, my view towards roads is quite ‘static’ in nature. Thanks to my infamous sutta-breaks, whenever I get a little time-break (not that I’m always busy otherwise), I keep staring at the roads and marvel by the sheer beauty of it.

Take today’s example. I was idle for some time and I thought of spending those moments with Classic Regular and road in front of my office. So I neared the road, and started listening. Yes, I started listening to the half-sentences that I could gather from the people, racing past me on foot or on their bi-cycles or motor-cycles. I’m trying to pen them down as I could remember (I don’t guarantee absolute continuity though, thanks to my horrible memory). So the words flowed like this –

‘Barish ka alag hi maza hai’

‘Bhopal kaafi badal gayi hai yaar’

‘Shala, main toh kehta hoon har roj party karni chahiye’

‘New Market me dukan hai mera… stationary dukan.’

‘Aap toh sir milte hi nehin.. kahan rehte ho aajkaal?’

‘Mera ek bhi kapda nehin sukha… eh walla bhi bheegi hai’

‘Is walle road pe jam abhi kam ho gaya hai’

‘Chutiya kyun bana raha hai.. Chinese model ko asli Nokia bata raha hai!’

‘Mummy, fridge me jo cake tha, who khatam ho gaya hai kya?’

‘Dhatteriki… eh bike hamesha ghar ghar awaz karti hai…’

‘Jo ulta kaam karega who kuttey ka maut marega.. mera kya?’

‘Tum parso milogi na? pakka promise?’

On a casual note, these sentences or half-sentences might not make any sense… but kindly read them back and try to feel how life is moving on around us. Who are we? Why are we so caught up amongst ourselves? Why can’t we see the lives around us as they are? Why are we so oblivious of the lives around? Is my life the end of life to me? Can I always stand alone and live by myself, without any heed to the lives around?

I don’t know whether I’m making any sense. Basically, I don’t even care.

But what I mean to say is, pick up any of these sentences and try to complete the conversation. What if those words were told to you? What would’ve been your response to it? What end would your conversation have reached?

Streams of life flowing around us and we’re so isolated within our self-confinement of I-solation…

I wish, I could reach out to those people and be a part of their lives. But alas, my cigarette was over…