"Andheri East" Blues

Its almost 2 months now since i hav moved to my new workplace in andheri east n it has been an experience in itself in these 2 months

right from d moment i get out of train n reach d office it has been a project in itself for me so far....

i knew things wud b bit tough, but it wud test me so much was beyond my imagination

i had got feedback from my friends of d harrowin experience of traffic in andheri east....how u sit in d rick / bus but then d vehicle jus does not move n how ppl on d road always get past u more often than not n to add to ur disappointment n frustration...

as soon as the train passes vile parle station, u will find ppl gettin up...n u r still wonderin there is still some time for andheri to come n why d hurry when u anyways hav to stand for 3 minutes more !!!

but then after a week or so i realized y u need to get off the train ASAP.....one reason is there r lots of ppl who wanna get in d train....other is d stations in andheri r not tht wide enough...so in case there is another train which also comes at the same then its like a sea of ppl who wanna get on the stairs....a couple of times i got caught in d middle and u jus hav to stop walkin as u wil b carried by d crowd.....d other day, i jus was abt to reach d stairs and then d other train came...ppl alighted n then d typical dhakas started....n then d uncle in front of me got agitated thinkin i m d one who is pushin everyone......mast filmi style main he had is arms up in d air n before i could react his hand was around my neck pushin me to go fwd if i was in such a hurry.....took me a minute to realize what's happenin n i cud jus mumble...its not me...its not me...fir uncle ne pyaar se haath nikala.....n me managed to save my neck !!!

d first struggle seems to b thru n now u r on road....so now u hav to reach ur office......i was under the impression tht ricks usually in mumbai r well managed especially in crowded areas...u will always hav a policewalla to regulate d ricks....ensure that all come in a line.....ppl also queue in a line........but then tht was my pressumption n not reality....there is no sign of any traffic police guy anywhere in d east.......its a free for all jamboree......n its a simple demand supply situation....d ricks r in short supply....demand is huge....no line....no system......ricks r only interested in goin long distance....n koi bhi close by places ke liye straight na bolta hai....fares of Rs. 20 ke liye koi khada bhi nahi karta tumko.....all wanna go to Saki Nakka, Powai , Seepz n for ppl like me whose office is at Chakala.....its a plain simple NO even when u offer to pay 10-15 bucks extra over the ricks....my colleagues in office even at times offer to pay double d meter but still tht at times is not good enough !!!

such is d situation tht those who r standin will ask d lucky ones who managed to get rickshaw fellas to agree to let them sit, where they r goin n can they join....some good samritans allow ppl to join them but then those ppl r few

so ricks r out of question....next was bus.......there r n no. of buses which go from here to seepz, kurla, ghatkopar, mulund vikhrole, thane etc etc which all start from andheri east...agarkar chowk....lookin at the number of options, kissiko bhi lagega atleast u can get thru any of the bus n go....but then itna simple hota to kya prob tha n y i wud hav written all this na....d bus q is like a long serpentine...jus goin n goin....u will never know here they end.....in fact this week i saw d Q reachin half of the railway over bridge for one of the buses......atleast unlike d ricks, here d buses r well managed...u hav a Q, lots of TCs who ensure those in Q only get thru, conductors givin tickets when ppl r standin in d Q......but then when d bus is abt to start ya kabhi koi nahi ho then mast scene hota hai....all try to jump as if d first one who get thru will get n award ya prize......n then it does not appear a civilized world.....full maar pit types scene hota hai....my friend has coined a new word for it....usually v used d word local for trains where such scenes r common in long distance trains...n here its "busocal" where ppl r standin on d gates....4-5 of them at d gate standin wit jus one foot / toe in d bus n rest everythin in air.....

ricks r out / buses r out...so with nothin else left, its me n my "do paiyon walli gadi".....n haan....ye bhi nahi simple hai.....since road par bhi utni hi junta hai jitni train / bus main hoti hai......n again on d roads u hav to jump d potholes , dug roads / footpaths, d work for Metro.....signal tak pahuchne ke baad road cross karne main aur dar lagta hai.....since cars / buses / bikes all drive there if they were on a F 1 circuit...prob gets accentuated with cars tryin to go pass u from front n also from d back.....i had come close twice in these short duration of almost being run over by speedin vehicles on the road since u look in front of u n then someone is wizzin u past u from behind....

every day i pray to god that i reach office safely n then thank him before sleepin after comin home in one piece.....

in my earlier office, 2nd n 4th sat were holidays.....here all the saturdays r workin....but then saturdays r the only days when i feel like goin to office...now dont get tht impression tht i hav become sincere ya main sudhar gaya hoon....saturdays r d days when SEEPZ main all those IT cos r closed....as a result from station to d bus to d roads, everything is relatively empty...u dont see those traffic jams at chakala signal....vehicles do move.....u get a bus n if its ur lucky day u will get a seat in d bus.....

atleast my office is located jus after chakala....so atleast its not tht bad but then i can empathize for those who work in Saki Naka n beyond...it wud b a harrowing experience n d saddest part is u hav to go thru this day in n day out !!!

i m sure ppl who work hav to go this ordeal on a daily basis will b cuttin short their lives by atleast a couple of years ---courtesy d mental agony, d physical exertion walkin it down and then breathin more CO/CO2 rather than Oxygen....

so for all those who work in Andheri East...u better start workin on change in job unless u wanna Die Young