For me, metro trips mean a lot more than travelling from one place to another. These are blissful journeys that I hold close to my heart. These are so much more than commuting from home to college or exploring the corners of Delhi. I would not be joking if I said I wait all day long for these 3 hours to cherish every bit of them. Metros stimulate an emotion of bonding and a feeling of communion. It’s like a medium—a medium through which a million stories travel together, daily. Different people, different stories, different emotions; all on board, together.
There’s true joy in relishing that bedlam of voices. There is a delight in realizing how each person travelling with you has a life story. Each of those people has thoughts hovering in their minds; thoughts that we can’t hear. Those people have secrets we don’t know about and emotions behind the smiles and tears that we can’t see. Each passenger carries with them a story. Some are deciding on their next meal and some are brainstorming ways to get their leaves approved by bosses. Some are missing their pet dog, and some are rehearsing their speeches. Some would just be sitting back while listening to their favorite music, perhaps imagining their special person sitting right beside them.
Metros are so lovely. Everyone travels together. Nobody knows who the other person is. No questions, no answers. But even when there’s no visible bond between the travelers, there is a palpable connection. On some days, I would just read a novel while travelling back home and I would notice how a little girl sitting right in front of me would be sneakily eyeing the book cover, perhaps wanting to know if it was the same one she liked too. There is something comforting about a metro trip. Sometimes all you have to do to enjoy your ride is to sit idle (only if you’re fortunate enough to get a seat though), let some music pour in, and think of yourself as just another tale trying to reach its destination.
There’s a certain magic in these journeys. Maybe it’s the hum of the train or the rhythm of the track, or maybe it’s the peace in the anonymity of travelling along a sea of strangers. Each passing moment on the metro is a sweet reminder of how, at times, our lives get intertwined with fleeting passengers who are complete strangers, but unknowingly, we all become a part of a larger journey. We travel our parts and get off to our destinations. When one gets off the train, it seems as if a story has been pulled out of this woven trail. But then, just as one would get off, two more stories would board. And that is how it never ends. There is nothing like a metro, a warm space accommodating different voices and emotions — stories we sometimes hear, sometimes not.