Mornings…….

I have always loved the early mornings. Its calmness, its energy, is infectious. I cherish the darkness of the mornings, the fresh air. There is a great feeling to be awake right before the world rises. Giving you company are the sleepy watchmen’s cuddled in their shawls trying to catch up on their sleep. The milkman ridding on their cycles trying to reach the homes of their sleepy customers. Streets are dark, shops are closed, the only shop that is all lit up and open is the milk dairy. Some early joggers are strolling towards the park. The only thing open is the milk dairy where the owner seems to be screaming at the worker over some matter. The chaiwala is also pumping the stove to prepare his first cuppa of chai for the day. Often I have seen these chaiwalas pour a glass of chai on the street once it’s prepared as an offering to earth

As I stroll through my building as workers near a construction site bathe in the cold of the darkness, I look at my building which seems so calm with hardly any lights on and sound of alarms ringing and probably a mixer churning some juice.

After a quick breakfast at 7:30a.m I leave home for work. As I get into a rickshaw to go to the station, I look at the school children waiting to be picked up by their buses or rickshawalas. Mothers giving children some last minute instructions or revising a test lesson or running back home to get a copy of a book the child may have forgotten is a common sight.

But now comes the chaos. As I come close to Kandivali station, the peace seems to have been disturbed with the traffic jam, thanks to dug up roads. I run over the bridge to catch my train. However the compartment is overcrowded and I have still not got a hang to push my self in .Mind you it not really the rush hour, finally at 8:01, two trains later I finally get in. The train compartment is an experience in itself. You get to see all kinds of people; some people have their own groups and thus something to always chat about, not to forget t the dabbas of mithais and snacks that open up when there is a special celebration. Married women discussing the vows of married life, weekend plans, a sick relative, college students discussing their gawky professor or the miseries of chemistry or algebra. Young women blabbering on their cell phones. Minus the pushing and no space in the compartment the train compartment can be as interesting as a gripping novel or juicy soap opera.

Well as I get off the train at one of the most crowded station of Mumbai- Dadar, My attention is captured by the small breakfast shops outside the station selling vada pav, to poha to bhajiya pav. The flower market and vegetable market of Dadar is something you just can’t miss. As I walk outside the busy street and take a cab, it’s back to by inside world my office, where I don’t have to worry about the heat and the sun, all I am bothered by is the AC duct which is right above my desk