Cameo #2

She sat crouching slightly towards the window, the air felt great. Especially, when she had to breath in the stench of the local train.In between the chaos of hawkers, wailing kids, arguing co-passengers, and the engine, she picked up the familiar vibrations of her mobile.She was glad.Someone had thought of her.Reading the message, a slight smile crossed her face.It somehow formed a protection of a familiar arm around her amidst the compartment full of strangers.She read and re-read the message and finally was forced to put it back.A sigh and a look across the whole crowd.Everyone was busy, either in a slumber, or looking vacant, or looking out.A pair of eyes met her from across her seat.They were of a nine or ten year old.But, they were most unlike the eyes of a child.The look had a gloom, a blurred something that was disturbing to the core.She gazed out of the window.The landscape had been similar throughout...endless fields of paddy, banana, wheat, mudhuts,thatched roofs,cattle and clay, with the dirty factories now and then.The train halted at some non-decripit station.The seat beside her was taken by the mother and the child.He kept looking at her while playing with the pallu of his mother's saree.At length he spoke.


"Do you want popcorn?".

A little taken aback, she replied in the negetive.Returned to the window.

"You know you are unkind."

Someone needed to fix cheeky kids.

"Really?"She said with a well meaning smile.



"You hate everyone here,don't you...you think you are some queen."

"Not really.I am quite ordinary",she said maintaining good humour.

"But, you have a dirty, cruel mouth."

"As you say".Why was the mother sleeping??

"And you have menacing eyes."

"Listen boy I need to rest.So, mind your business."She began gazing out of her window determinedly.What was with children now a days?

He turned away from her.He had left the pallu.Looking ahead he began to whisper.

"I know your secret.You want me to tell them?"

WTF,to put up with demented kids as if the croweded train wasn't enough.She had this impulse to wake his mother and complain.But, it was childish.

"You think you are some James Bond thingy haan?"She didn't expect him to know James Bond.

"I am Joy Bannerjee."Whatever.People had no business producing kids if they didn't know how to bring them up.

"And I do know your secret."

"If you don't stop lisping I'll call your mother now."

"Try doing it."Complacency is something undesirable in children.They should be afraid of authority.

She woke the mother up only to hear.

"Just a child.Let him play.He won't bother you."

"I told you."

"Shut up!"

"You know you need to be punished."

"If you don't stop this nonsense what you'll get is a tight slap."

He looked indifferent and solemn.

"I will marry you one day.Then you will have to stay with me.And Maa can punish you."She didn't know why she should be perturbed by this double faced,sleek-tongued ,whispering,little imp.But,still she was already trying to dial some number to avoid him.

"The next station is where I get down.Should wake her up."He lovingly jerked up the dead-with-sleep lady.

The train halted and mother and son walked out. What a relief!

"I will meet you again.And the next time be nice and say yes to pop corns....coming Maa"

She was left gazing out of the window, watching the two figures descending.