A cup of Tea, Mumbai Local, and a ‘Dilruba’

Early morning Borivli railway station was jam-packed, not an unusual sight, for it was an everyday story. I was at platform number 6, I had just arrived in from Delhi by Rajdhani train. Before exiting the platform, I headed to ‘Suresh Bhai Tea Stall’ and ordered a Masala Tea. Even though the tea made at home is tastier but no one can beat the taste of Tea at any railway station in India.

I took my cup of Tea and started looking around, observing, to be precise bird watching. Just then the 8 am local train arrived on the platform. Like a swelled-up river, the daily commuters rushed out from the train and with an equal force, a batch of commuters rushed inside, like a huge wave reaching its peak and then retreating. I smiled at the analogy I had drawn.

‘My Local…’

I heard a loud shout as a girl rushed by, and leapt like a deer to get into the local train which had already started moving. After getting inside, she turned and flashed a winning smile, our eyes met and I gave a thumbs up to her. She returned the gesture by showing a victory sign, and the cup of tea slipped through my fingers and spilled all over my shirt. The picture frame simply froze for me, her smiling face, hair floating in the air, I could hear a violin, I could smell the fragrance in the air, and my heartbeat pounded aloud; I kept looking at her till the train was out of my sight.

‘Saheb, are you all right?’ Suresh Bhai the tea seller shouted. I returned to reality and looked at him. He smiled at me as if he understood what happened a few minutes back. I ignored his smile, paid him and left.

The whole night I kept thinking about her and as soon the first light of sun rays stuck in, I got up from the bed and rushed to the railway station.

Suresh Bhai smiled at me as I reached his tea stall. He handed over a cup of tea without me even asking. I did not want him to make up any kind of assumptions, I said, ‘I have come to pick up my brother.’ He nodded with a broad smile and got busy with his other customers. I pretended to wait for the train and kept praying to see one sight of her. Soon the 8 am local arrived, on time, as they say, Mumbai local trains are never late!

Restless, I looked for her as the train started moving.

Suddenly she arrived from nowhere and sprinted to get into the moving train. My excitement reached from ground zero to rocket-high in just one second, like a losing team suddenly turns winner on the last ball of T-20 match. Her long hair floated in the air as she smiled like a winner, our eyes met and again the cup slipped through my fingers, and the tea spilled all over my shirt. I hardly cared.  I did not want to lose her from my sight.

Soon it became a ritual, every morning I would go to platform 6, and take a cup of tea from Suresh Bhai’s Tea Stall and would wait for her. Sometimes she would come on time and a few times just in time. Many times our eyes met, many times the cup of tea fell, and many times I was left disappointed when she did not even look at me.

I never got the courage to talk to her, even to ask her name. To console me, I remembered what Shakespeare had said, ‘what is in the name ?’ I decided, ‘How does it matter what is her name, I will give her one name…!’ and from that day, I started looking for a name for her. I searched all books, all over the internet, to find a name for her.

One morning while waiting for her, Suresh Bhai had put an old Hindi movie song, “Dil kee yeh arzoo thee koi dilruba milen…” (My heart always desired for a Sweetheart.)  

l almost scolded him, ‘Suresh Bhai, why do you play such old songs?’

‘Come on, this is from my all-time favourite movie ‘Nikaah’, one day you too would realize the importance of such lyrics..!’ and he laughed out heartily.

He was right. The song stayed with me, I kept humming it the whole day. Out of the blue, it struck me, this is what I was looking for, her name… ‘Dilruba’. Suddenly I felt the name very close to my heart.

My closeness to her grew multi-folds. Like a true Romeo, every day I would reach the platform for 8 am local, and wait for Dilruba. Some days I would be lucky to receive her smile, and many times unlucky. I never cared to know daily where she goes on that local train, or what time she returns. For me, every morning, to watch her getting on the 8 am local train had become like a daily morning worship ritual.

That day also, I arrived at platform 6 on time, and as I took a cup of Tea from Suresh Bhai, he said in a low saddened voice, ’she will not come from today..’

I pretended as if I did not understand, and taking a sip of tea, I said, ‘I don’t understand what you mean ?’

Suresh Bhai gave me a hard stare as if saying, ’ who are you trying to fool? For last a few months, my tea stall and this platform are sole witnesses to your Romeo-Juliet story..’, He gave me an envelope, and said, ‘She asked me to give it to you.’

I felt caught red-handed and lowered my head in embarrassment. I saw it was a marriage card titled “Pinky weds Rohan”. So her name is Pinky? I don’t care whatever was her name, for me she will always be my ‘Dilruba’. With a heavy heart and tearful eyes, I tore the card and threw it in the dust bin. I paid the bill for the tea and came out of the station.

While returning home, I kept thinking about her and realised that I was not at all unhappy about losing her. Why? Last three months I had lived my life. She was my Dilruba.. I was happy watching her getting into the local train. For me, those moments mattered, I never imagined beyond that…..

I smiled and felt happy again.

The next morning I was again at platform 6. Suresh Bhai looked shocked, as he hand over the Tea to me. With a smile and twinkle in my eyes, I said, ‘One train has left, but many more would come!’

Suresh Bhai grinned and switched on the music system, I could hear…. “Dil kee yeh arzoon thee koi Dilruba milen…”

Rakhi Sunil Kumar