Biswajit Nath - A Bus Ride and Other Short Stories

and other short stories

BISWAJIT NATH

For you... Dear reader

Copyright 2019 by Biswajit Nath

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the writer

I love travelling, especially via train. Its not that I dont have problem with the unhygienic sanitary system or the overcrowded bogies of the Indian railway, yet, I love travelling by train rather than the other transportation systems.

I stepped into the crowded compartment and my father followed. At first, I thought, it was going to be a tough journey. In that crowd, it was nearly impossible for us to find a seat. Luckily my father managed one. He adjusted himself and I got comfortable on his lap. With two loud whistles the train began moving.

I scanned the other passengers around us. Two fat ladies sat in front of us. Two gentlemen and their three sons sat next to them. Their sons were like me, of the same age, or maybe a year older. I mean, they were definitely thirteen or above. All three were focussed intently on their smart phones. They were playing some kind of video game.

Two men sat next to my father. Their faces were blank. They were lost in some thoughts, unconscious to the world around them.

I took out my half-read novel, Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie, from my bag. As I read through the pages, I felt something strange. It made me awkward. I looked up to find that all eyes in the compartment were focussed on me. Some mouths were wide open. The three kids in front of our seat had paused their video games just to look at me. For a few dumb seconds I stared back, confused.

What the hell is going on? Why are all these people looking at me in such a way? Even the newly married couple in the nearby seat had removed the headphone they had been sharing and was staring at me.

Unable to guess the reason, I looked at my father for answers. He had understood the whole situation and a smile played on his face. He replied to my silent question, You are reading a book! Isnt it strange enough?

His answer made it crystal clear for me. There was nothing to be surprised about. These days every book lover has to go through this kind of situation.

I know, the term every book lover nowadays is limited to a few writers and a handful of readers. If one dares to open a book in public, people judge them in a different way. The look on their face said they were feeling, as if, someone from another planet had just landed amongst them.

My father used to say, When I was young, while travelling most of the people used to bring books with them, to pass time. Only few passengers used to while away time by chatting or playing cards. As time has passed, the demand for books has decreased at such a rate that people dont even remember when was the last time they had read something.

I agree with him. We cant blame anyone for this change in peoples interest. Since technology has reached this new level, people can now easily entertain themselves and spend their time by watching videos and accessing almost any information. Why would anyone bring a book?

Not many kids are interested in reading. Most of the students in our school prefer playing video games instead of reading novel or playing outdoor games. Even their parents dont force them much.

But I am different. I am the kind of boy who is addicted to reading books and not playing video games. I fall in love with books so fast and so deeply that I can read a thick book in a few sittings. I can read faster than my teachers, even our principal sir (he hardly reads anyway!). Our subject teachers and my school friends often ask me a question, How do you read so many books in such a short period of time?

The point is not So many books but Book. If you want to read many books, youll have to start with one book and to read that book, one needs to have interest in reading.

Since my childhood I have seen varieties of books in my fathers old library. From mythology to fantasy, romance to detective stories, the library was full of books.

Each time I complete reading a book, my way of thinking changes. My prospective towards the world becomes fresh. I find myself becoming mature. I start thinking. I start getting ideas. From the first time onwards, the habit of reading became permanent in my life. As a result, here I am reading a book in a packed passenger train and every passenger was watching me, making me awkward.

Our train stopped at Jamshedpur Railway Station. My uncle lived 15 km away from the station. We picked our bags and started walking through the highly crowded platform.

I have some special connection with this platform. We have visited many places and witnessed much larger platforms, but this one holds a special place in my heart. The reason is Rama Bookstall. Like most of the Stations, Jamshedpur Railway Station also has a book shop. Rama kaka, a sixty-year-old talkative man is the owner of the shop. With paan in his mouth, he tells details of each book that his customer picks. No doubt, he is an avid reader. He loves books from the bottom of his heart, and has knowledge about authors and their works in detail.

Being a human its not possible to read each and every book that is there to sell at his shop. It was his narration skill that made the audience believe that, whatever Rama kaka is telling about the book was true and they purchased the book without a second thought. From his marketing skills one could definitely make out that not only writers and publishers, but contribution of book sellers matters a lot in making a book bestseller.

His presentation skill was magical, and it was the only marketing skill that he mastered in his entire life.

My father and Rama kaka knew each other since the time my father was a student in college. They had this crazy habit of discussing books. Since my father was a bookaholic and used to read a lot of extra books, he had to face a major problem of purchasing new books with little pocket money he received from my grandpa. One day he decided to meet Rama kaka, and they made a deal. It was a simple deal. As my father had no money to purchase books, Rama kaka would let him to take books of his choice to read. My father would have to give back the book after he completed reading along with a brief summary of the book. By doing this both benefited. Rama kaka understood the story of the book in detail without reading it. It helped him to sell that book in more quantity and my father got to read for free.

In this manner their friendship grew, and they became close to each other.

Times changed. My father got a high paying job in a different city as soon as he completed his masters degree. He moved to another city leaving behind all his family and friends. Amongst all his childhood friends and close relatives, the one whom he missed the most was Rama kaka. The day my father took the train to Ranchi was the saddest as well as the happiest day for Rama kaka. He brought his little child Ayushman and his wife to meet my father. He was happy that now his book lover friend was going to be a big man. Like a real big man. The one with luxurious life. Literate and wise.

Years passed by. Everything changed. New technology started arising like never before. Peoples interest started changing in unbelievable ways. The ones who used to read books now found more entertainment in phones and other gadgets. Book sales started decreasing. With the little income from selling newspaper and some magazines it became a major challenge for Rama kaka to manage his family smoothly. In spite of all these changing circumstances the bond between my father and Rama kaka remained same. Every time father visited Jamshedpur he spent some quality time with Kaka discussing books and other related stuffs. He knew about the suffering sales and the low profit margins of books, so he used to help kaka with money whenever they met.