In Delhi this time of the year never before I had seen or boarded the metro though I was in Delhi previously. Staying in East Patel Nagar guest house of my company with good food and accommodation I felt lonely. Without friends and nowhere to go and see, waiting from morning for a friend I left in the evening outside the guest room for exploring the vicinity which lead me to the park nearby and watching few beautiful older ladies walking to reduce their obese bodies and younger ladies to spend some time outside their comfortable homes with their friends. There were also older men and women sitting in groups gossiping usual topics of neighborhood, sarees, politics, economy and finally America.
I left that place after sitting idle watching kids and their mothers controlling them. Finally I left that place for something better, but only to my disappointment as there was nothing unusual. Strolling on the wayside I went upto the metro station where I thought of boarding the Delhi metro once again. For a second I thought where to go and it immediately struck me that I have to buy a ticket on Tuesday for Kullu which was to be bought from the Himachal Bhavan which was near Mandi station. Therefore I bought a ticket to the Mandi station and boarded the train for Mandi.
I got down at the Mandi station and headed towards the Himachal Bhawan where I got to know that the counter will be closed by 8PM. I just then hoped that they accept card for the purchase of ticket and moved towards the counter where the man behind the counter said they don’t accept cards. As it was already near to 8pm I thought it was useless to fetch for an ATM and returned to the platform of Mandi station with a ticket to Rajendra Place.
As soon as I boarded the train I noticed a beautiful lady sitting in front of me along with a lady who looks like a typical south Indian lady whose husband is also sitting beside her whom anybody can recognize as a south Indian with his typical Tamil style of putting the Tilak or Vibudhi. Coming to my beautiful stranger, she looks fair and of average height, her special attraction was her nose which is long, thin bulging slightly at the end and straight, her facial features and her skin colour and brownish hair one can easily identify her to be a Sindhi. She was wearing a dark green Punjabi salwar kameez holding two mobiles. Her beautiful eyes have captured my attention to her and she was looking me eye to eye. I started responding to her contact, while she was still talking over phone. We exchanged looks many a time. I still don’t understand what we conversed silently but I felt bad since she was a stranger to me. All the time I was in the metro I sat and stood to give way to an old lady and her husband I felt happy for I had done something good. She has noticed that and I was leaning to a pole while a small kid was playing naughty all the while.
As we were busy exchanging looks my station has been announced and I had to move towards the door. Still managing eyesight like a kid I was watching her while she was talking over the phone. All through the phone call she was watching me. I felt happy and at the same time bad for I have to get down at the coming station. The station has arrived and I had to get down and was waiting for her to see me, but there were people obstructing our vision. This went on till the train left. As I was used to the Hindi films I waited for some more time until two trains coming form the opposite side left the station as if she would be returning by some other train back to talk to me.
My instinct was otherwise and waiting there was literal waste of time so I took another train towards that direction. I thought this is the time to do something different. Alone in the train again passing through the metro stations, I suddenly noticed the green salwar lady on the station which might be the fifth one in that direction. There was not enough time for me to confirm but i just got down from the train and started to move in her direction. She was on the escalator talking to the south Indian lady with her husband beside her. Once outside the metro station, they headed towards the bus stop where they were discussing about something, still following them from behind I stood for some time in the shadows of the street. After sometime they took a bus, I just followed them. After travelling for another half an hour the south Indians got down the bus and immediately I occupied a seat, this time just behind her and she noticed that.
After 15 minutes, the bus was nearly emptying and it was almost 9PM and I landed in a place which I do not know much about. She was walking towards her home and I was following her to catch up with her pace. The street lights were throwing occasional beams of light on the road. It seemed to be a newly developed colony and very few people were on the roads and it is very cold. Silently walking behind her she was looking back at me whether I am following her or not. I smiled at her hoping she would smile back and in return she stopped after a while turned back and asked me straight in the face why I am following her. I liked her gesture and retorted that I liked her in the first instant and thought that she also liked me because she was noticing me from the metro. She did not say a word and just walked on without even replying me why she was noticing me. I wanted to ask her why is she not saying a word but she did not give me a chance, silently strolling behind her she entered into a house which is looking very old. There were many families residing in the house.
I entered into one portion of the building after several twists and turns landed up in a corner of the building which bore a name plate Mr. Rajesh Dandemani. She rang the doorbell and there were shouts of small kids who have opened the door. A little girl and a toddler were at the door. To my shock they started shouting maa. I was taken aback and for a minute I just forgot everything. The lady immediately offered me water and asked me to come inside the house. I sat in the chair and she offered me tea.
She told me her name is Meenu and I introduced myself. She works for a company in the other part of Delhi and daily commutes by Delhi metro. I got curious and shot a valley of questions to her. To which there was a cute smile from her. She immediately took me inside the room where in there was a person lying on the bed. She immediately called Rajesh and the man responded with a whine, I was shocked to see him. He was a man of 30 years and badly affected by paralysis stroke. She introduced me to him as a friend from her company. His features barely resembled somebody I could identify with. After that I got out of the room still with few questions unanswered. She started telling me that she and Rajesh were in love and married against their parent’s wishes. Everything was fine until Rajesh got bedridden due to paralysis and she still loves him so much and she was very much hopeful that Rajesh could be treated. Within few minutes I realized how courageous this beautiful stranger was.
Silently I started to move with a satisfaction and appreciation but I had still a doubt in my mind which was eating me away. She had recognized and got up and went inside. I was about to go into the room when she appeared suddenly and asked you might be wondering why I brought you here, saying this she put a photo album in my hand. The moment I opened the album I was shocked to see that face which I can recognize very well. It resembled me.
With a big sense of appreciation, satisfaction and happiness for what life has given to me I took leave of my beautiful stranger and her happy family after playing with the kids for sometime. She offered me food but I said I had fulfilled my hunger. She asked me where I go in this night; I told her that I have to get to the guest house for tomorrow I am leaving Delhi for Kullu. I bade goodbye and left into the darkness of night.
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