I remember I was standing on the assembly stage, giving a “one minute speech” (the most disliked tradition of the school) on “cycling to school”. A huge applause followed the speech, reinstating my belief that a bike ride to school was the best expression of that 5km ride. That was then. After a few years, now being a part of the corporate world, I would still prefer to utilize my time of commute to work in the best possible way, but cycling does not appear to fit into the equation anymore.
With the grace of God and the will of the corporates who decided to make a hub in one section of the sprawling megalopolis, I travel a distance of over 100 Km a day, accomplishing the seemingly unachievable task of crossing three states twice every day in order to earn a living. Well frankly, I feel that this in itself is a job and I should be paid for it! But alas, my recruiter does not echo my sentiment! Nonetheless, I still muster courage to pick up those heavy bricks, essentially known as laptops, along with a few metaphorical loaves of bread to keep me thriving during the day, and get on my way to work. This is where my brain and my body begins the game of “Optimal Commute” which involves complex decision making and an immaculate execution. In this algorithm of “Best way to office”, there are certain input factors like time of commute, ease of commute, physical & mental health and off course, the money involved. The first function in this algorithm is the decision on the mode of commute – whether to drive down or take a cab or some public means of transport like bus or metro (the advantage of living in the capital city). Well generally, considering early morning hours are convenient as far as traffic and hence time of travel is concerned, I prefer to take a cab (I realized driving 100 Km per day is not my cup of tea as it wearied me in the first week itself). But again, since I fear slipping through the ‘hole in my pocket’ courtesy cab rides, I need to hop aboard the metro each evening.
Well, getting on board for the morning journey may sound easy, but trust me it’s not! For some reason, the bevy of dear drivers refuse to travel this long stretch and hence, picking “the one” who is ready to go, becomes a task. Next are few questions about which way do we take (having too many choices can be a pain sometimes); is the driver following the google maps or not – for even a delay of 5 minutes can degenerate into the ‘loss’ of half an hour during the office hours (the varying patterns of traffic movement never ceases to amaze me). The constant honking and the wonderful habit of every person leaving their traffic sense at home before getting on the road, makes the mundane journey no less than a disco party. The last and probably the most important thing, which simply is beyond my control, is the ambience of the car – every taxi will have its own “sweet” stinking smell which may make you feel like there are only bursts of air supply available and the “beautiful” filthy interiors which may make you feel that taking a bath was just a waste of time today!
The journey back makes the phrase “rat race” come to life. Long queues of people standing before the metro gates, large waves of commuters surfing through the stairs, the escalators and the never ending platform, maelstrom of crowds which takes you in or out of the train without the requirement of you walking – this description befits the metro travel without fail. The struggle begins with figuring out a small place to stand in the train. A seat during office hours is a luxury, attaining which requires analytical skills – analysing which person may get up next, depending on the luggage they carry or their attire or even their body language at times!
Juggling with so many conditions, I reach my destination, with my legs creaking under the weight of my own body and refusing to walk any further! Generally it is said that the more you make your mind and body work, the more fit you become. But frankly, I am not very sure if it holds true in this case. On the contrary, I sometimes get the feeling that this might be leading to early aging for me! Maybe the only thing I am happy about during this routine is the practice of reading in the middle of all the chaos.
This is not just my situation, but that of all the people participating in the rat race! Travelling long distances seem to have become a way of life for many of us. Needless to say that this ensues deterioration in health and loss of productivity at work too. In fact, search for good work has led to migration as well, which may again create multiple challenges at family front. The Economic Survey of India 2017 estimates that the magnitude of inter-state migration in India was close to 9 million annually between 2011 and 2016. Creating industrial hubs may not be a very sustainable model in the long run. There is a need for urbanization to reach the lower tier cities in order to avoid underutilisation of a vast expanse of the country at the cost of overcrowding of few areas.
Another problem is the obfuscation of reasoning. Sometimes I wonder why I go through this torture. There can be other means to my end as well. All I have to do is make the choice, but instead I keep waiting for the fortuitous incident which will change my life. We usually go out of our way to fulfil some dreams, but the sad part is that we fail to realize where the finish line is. As soon as the ball appears to be hitting the goal post, we start aiming for the next goal. We may want to take a break, maybe once we become rich beyond the dreams of avarice, if only we understand what that is. We need to stop merely existing, strangled in the web of quotidian tasks, and start living. We burn ourselves to run the rat race, only to later heal the caustic burns with the prize of the race. It seems we have developed a penchant for making the plot of our lives convoluted, come to think of it – can’t see why?!