Alter ego and altered ego

Before the scorching summer made its way into the city (read as Chennai), I made it back. It has been four weeks since I moved to Chennai and I feel really happy to be back in the city that I dearly call my home. One of the perks of moving back home is that I get home cooked nutritious meal for lunch.

My office is on IT Highway (OMR- Old Mahabalipuram Road) and at this place called Thoraipakkam. From being a battered IT park to being a Battery park today, OMR has come a long way. Suburban trains to share autos to air-conditioned Volvo busses and from Kanakambaram to Victoria Secret everything is available on this side of the city.

I was still new on the IT highway so I decided to drive the first day to work and find out about nearest the rail station, bus station and best time to leave work to avoid traffic. It took me an hour to reach work in the morning and it took me 90 minutes to reach home that evening. With summer around the corner commute will soon get from being a pilgrimage to sweatgrimage. But nevertheless home is home!

Alter ego!

The next morning I was at Mandaveli train station at 8.30 am and the crowd was nothing compared to what you see in Mumbai suburban train stations. But nevertheless people were impatient and formed a circular queue around ticketing kiosk (I call it the Standard Indian Procedure). I let the guy go ahead of me, but I put my hand on his shoulder and asked him to wait for a second.

I said, “I think I know you from before.” I tendered the exact change the clerk behind the desk pushed my two-way ticket through little crevice like an automated machine. He froze in awe, while he patiently waited the sweat came trickling down his forehead.

I said to the guy, “Come let me tell you an interesting story on the way to the platform.” I have a twin brother and he was bully right from the very moment we came to life. He used eat all my food and breath all oxygen and watched me turn blue and hungry. He even used to kick me and give me no space to sleep comfortably in my mother’s tummy. And finally he even managed to journey ahead of me through the birth canal.”

The guy looked surprised hearing my Kahaani, but the delayed train gave me all the chance to make this story longer and scarier. I absorbed his emotions and started again, “But you know, my twin still continues to be a bully. He looks exactly like me, bald, but very cold and bold and he earns me a bad name all the time. Once he even slapped the auto driver for overcharging and kicked a man for jumping the queue. So watch out for him and don’t jump the queue. If you jump the queue next time and get whacked from behind, remember, it is not me but him.”

There were no kirtan singing groups in the train to do the background score for my story. The guy turned blue and flew towards the end of the platform when the train touched down Thiruvaanmiyur. Before he vanished I said “I am a nice guy, but watch out for my twin-brother (this sounded like twin-tower to him)”. Not sure if it is the elevated train, but this experience gave me a high from creating my alter-ego and altering my ego.

Altered ego!
As soon as one exits Thirvanmiyur train station what hits you is not the mega Tidel Park, but the movement of people towards the IT Park. Nobody seems to care about traffic rules and signals and the crossing of the road looks very similar to herd movement in Masai Mara. It is a sight to watch a wall of IT people suddenly move towards the median making every motorist on the road merciless hit on their breaks while traffic cops helplessly watching their movement. None can come between them and their IT dreams!

The next journey on the amazing race to work is the commute by share auto. I have never before in my life shared an auto ride with strangers. It is exciting to get new co-passengers for every ride.

The two tier seating arrangement in the auto almost resembled the steps to the river bed and traffic outside was flowing to the brim. With 8 people cramming on the rear seats, it looks like a horizontally moving elevator. And sometimes one gets ride with down to earth men on women who bring in our daily lessons.

That morning the share auto drive was very soon to become a care auto drive. Within minutes after crossing the toll gate, the girl besides me spotted an old man faint on the highway. She screamed at the auto driver to stop and pulled out the water bottle from her bag and ran towards the old man. The others in the auto had disconnected long back from the immediate world and busy surfing net and talking to their loved ones on the phones (including me). The auto driver peeped out and assessed the situation to see if he should wait for her and keep the auto going. She sprinkled water on his face and then got a few passerby men to help nurse him back to consciousness.

And finally when she made it back to the auto I didn’t know if I should congratulate her or stay away from her. Should I admire her kindness and courage? Isn’t it common sense to help a person in need? But then why did I not exhibit that behavior?

In a world where we get carried away by looks and perceptions, this girl definitely made me a fool. Now I examined her face and qualities in close proximity. Her face was devoid of sunscreen and age-defying creams, nails naked and natural, while their unpainted, unpermed and un-straightened hair laced with a feet long jasmine pollinates the polluted air in the city. Her forehead was decorated with streak of viboothi and small red kumkum spot, and unadulterated warmth and kindness in her gesture quickly intoxicated your heart with respect.

When I finally managed to speak to her, I found out that she was from Kancheepuram and she had just moved to Chennai. No wonder she pounced out of the auto to help. Why do city bred men/women shy away from helping people in need and why do we mind our business even at the time of emergency? Who is to be blamed, us or the city? Aren’t we all landscaped personalities? I was feeling numb and lost that day.

This train and share-auto journey was enriching me with basic human values, and keep me connected with the world around me, rather than driving by myself in an air-conditioned car, boorishly honking and living in a fort of comfort. From playing up my alter ego to an ego altering experience that morning, life became a full circle.