I returned to the plains of Ganges, to the place I was born after a long time. It was a misty cold day.. and we left early in the morning. Yes, it was one of the hundreds of trip to Muzaffarpur, a sleepy small town in Bihar, from Patna - the capital of Bihar. Still, this one was very different as I was going through this route after a long long time and that too by a private bus.
The day started early with my mother, uncle and I getting ready for the small journey at day break. I expected us to go in uncle's car and only realized that we would rather be going on a bus when we crossed the garage, crossed the lane where I was staying and moved to the main road for taking an auto. I decided to enjoy the trip as it made me nostalgic about the times when we used public transport in lieu of our private vehicles many many years ago.
The weather was cold. Since I was a bit underprepared for the open bus and auto ride, I wrapped my shawl tightly around myself.. ready to face the cold winds. We reached 'Gai Ghaat', a place near the bank of ganges from where the buses for Muzaffarpur start. To my discomfort, while climbing down the auto I realized the floor of the auto was not less than 2.5 feet above the ground. Rather than finding a footing for myself while getting down, I found my feet falling towards greater depth and almost stumbled and bumped my head in the process as well. Well.. so much for the start of an amazing journey.
As soon as we climbed the stairs to the bridge across Ganga, we found a 'Video Coach' waiting to leave for our destination. But to our disappointment, the seats were all full and there was enough place for only one person to sit. We decided to wait for the next bus which was by the way no where in sight. While we were still mulling over us being late, the conductor yelled at us 'Aa jaiye, du tho seat aur hai.. bus tanik kasht hoga bench pe baithne mein' - translated as -'Come here, two seats are available, just that it will be a bit tough to sit on the bench'.
'Bench'?? My mind raced - how come a 'bhideo coach' had bench instead of normal seats. The conductor was perceptive enough to see my confusion and clarified -'We have put a bench in the aisle. Once the bus starts, it will only stop in Muzaffarpur. So, you two women can sit on the bench'. WHAT?? An almost 2 hour journey on a bench in a crammed space?? Heck - Why not??
My adventurous spirit was excited - wow - an experience of a lifetime is what you will get. Do not let this opportunity pass and I asked my mom and uncle to board the 'Bhideo coach' with a bench.
We were the last people to board the bus and to my horror and amazement, the bench occupied almost the whole width of the aisle. There was hardly any space to even put your legs. I decided to mount it by keeping my two legs at both sides where as my mom sat gingerly and uncomfortable with both the legs on the same side.
The bus started its journey from the 'Gai Ghat' bus stand on Mahatma Gandhi Setu. The bumps that we felt in next five minutes are worthy of hours on camels or horses or on even jeeps plying on roads with only potholes as the sole feature. And every time the bus jumped, our bench moved an extra inch in both sideways and upward direction. That was PAINFUL but exhilarating.
Seeing the plight of two women, a young and another one old, few generous men asked us to come to the comforts of back seats and took our places on that rickety bench. We initially refused but they insisted -'Ladhiej logon ko kasht ho raha hai, hum kaise aaram se baith sakte hain'. I was touched by their genuine concern. We exchanged seats and now my mom and I were seated in 5 seater with 7 people on it. But the cold made it bearable and we did not mind the crammed seatings.
We crossed the Ganges in the mean time. It is still as beautiful as I remember it from my childhood - Vast, serene, hazy in the distance, bending into beautiful curves like a belly dancer. I was mesmerized by the width of the Ganges. Its water was overflowing and the river looked like a part of horizon itself. No wonder, it is a revered river in India. The feelings it evokes can only be felt in the presence of something holy.
The MG bridge is one of the longest bridge in India. Infact it is the longest bridge in India on a river. Crossing the Ganges, we reached Hajipur - a place very famous for its banana. I am yet to taste a banana more filling and sweet as the 'petbharua kela' of hajipur or as tasty as 'Harichhal kela'.
While crossing Hajipur, I was my chattery self. I was amazed at the progress that has happened in the area in recent years. Nitish Kumar has surely brought a lot of changes in Bihar, and it was very apparent from the state of the road connecting Muzaffarpur and Patna that he has delivered on his promise to a great extent. I started talking to my mom about the way Nitish Kumar has earned respect from not only biharis in and out of bihar but also all over the country. Two people joined me in my talks and expressed their views on politics, bihar, Lalu, Nitish and the current state of things.
There was one thing clear to me - Politics evokes great emotions in the people of bihar and now they are ready to accept and vote for a leader who can work for them and not just uses them. All the men around me had huge respect for the current CM of Bihar and they were full of hope that they will see their motherland progress a great deal in years to come. I liked their energy, their passion and love for their land. I felt at home - with my own people. I only realized that I was as involved as the men sitting beside me, when the conductor informed we have reached Ramdayalu, the bus stop where we had to get down. It was hard to believe that a journey of one and a half hour was over and it seemed not even half an hour to me.
I bade farewell to the two gentlemen and thanked them for discussing their views with us. It was very refreshing to come back to my soil, my people. I was finally HOME.. a child with dreams and hope twinkling again in her eyes.
