Making new bonds, forgetting et al

I am not for lavish weddings, I cant stand the flamboyance there. I still stick to it. I could argue, scream and fight about the money spent at it. I could stand upside down and protest against the wastage that happens. Plastic, clothes, food, water, power , MONEY! I can go on. The reason i cant get out of this topic is that its happening all around me and am not able to escape all the thoughts it kindles. Especially after having witnessed one so closely. I thought weddings are just plain waste of a lot of things and nothing more. I would change a little at that now.

The occasion sure causes a lot of unnecessary expenditure and uninhibited wastage of things for which you would have no control(when i say this i stick to a typical, traditional, family & friends type wedding) , but there really couldn't be a better occasion to meet new people and connect with the old ones.
Meeting long and literally lost relatives. School friends whom you see unbelievably changed. A congregation where you are immersed in a sea of known unknown people, when you just don't go into reality of the relationship and nod and smile to every human around. A lot of whom you sure wouldn't meet for a good ten years to come and the instant thing to reconnect would be "Aah! i met you at her wedding." Its an event that etches different memories for each one of them there and it sure is a family affair!

Now what do i say is the best part of it?

The beautiful 'Uunjal' songs that we get to hear mostly only then? The fact that you experience meanings to words that you just heard and read till now? The one time that you get to look beautiful whatsoever? That everything on that day boils down to the one moment you wait for, no matter how much you knew its coming and however long the boy and girl knew each other? Or the reality that however planned you are or you decide to be, you are sure to mess up things on that day and it doesn't even dawn on you at the moment!A moment long after the when you hit yourselves saying you are relatives now?

Or just that one emotion that brings in both laughter and tears, when things just stall and resume, when you are uncontrollably happy and giggling while the nadaswaram takes over with that mellifluous tune i love!

The Pros definitely did take over the Cons. Or may be there is a way to work around both. To keep all the good things there and still make a wedding that is so worth it, where people care about what they are doing, where they are spending and say a big NO to wastage of any sort.
There sure is a scope for something like that. When we find a balance where we dont contribute to flamboyance and still live the tradition that is beautiful and is so worth preserving!

Forever - Veiled

The place was almost packed. People belonged to all kinds, race, size, nature.
She slowly struggled her way through the crowd getting crushed and squeezed on her way,then finally found a place to sit. What a relief, the window seat was a bonus.
She pushed opened the glass window with her tender slim hands and maximum force that she could give it and sat back. The cool tender morning breeze making its way through the window grills, dried the sweat off her face. she could almost smile at it. She looked around. There were more than a dozen pair of male eyes gazing at her. She wished she could get up and burn all those eyes off, scratch their faces, like they were never there. But, the least she could do is ignore. Look elsewhere. Act like she never saw them. She pulled out a book from her bag and started reading. She carefully lifted one of her legs and crossed it over the other, pulled her blue kameez down to comfort. Her pink churidhar was matching her pink earings, pink dhuppata and pink footwear. Her bindi had traces of both the colours and so did her hair pins.
She was reading her book with all the attention, may be she had an exam/test in college or she was just reading to divert herself from the people around her.
After a few stops, traffic signals and jams the bus finally was approaching her stop. She got ready to get off. She pulled out her bag, placed the book in it and removed a piece of cloth from inside. A Blue one, to match her kameez.
Without the slightest hesitation, she folded the cloth into two and wore it down from her eyes, the other half was hanging down. She then took it up from behind and used it to cover her hair. Within a minute it was done. she had a blue cloth all around her face and hair. All that could be seen of the pretty face that was there till now was the confused pair of eyes and the double coloured bindi. Wearing her bag around her, she again pushed herself through the crowd and got off to go join a dozen other girls waiting for her, like her, veiled.

Adding to the Morbid Confusion

The choking and suffocating roads are already cutting our throats enough, the BMTC drivers are only adding more and more to it.
Any regular commuter in the BMTC bus will be able to understand the situation. I am not a regular commuter, but i try my best to take a bus rather than an auto when i have to use public transport. While doing this can give a hand to the environment and traffic issues in the city, the lethargy and bad attitude these drivers makes me wonder if its really worth it.
It was around 9 30 am on a weekday morning. After a 5 minute wait, a bus dragged itself to the stop. It was comparatively empty, but pushed itself into the narrow road, which was already flooded with vehicles in a turning. Firstly, the bus does not have a conductor. Second, The driver conveniently halts the bus on a side, occupying 3/4th of the turning, giving out tickets to people who were boarding the bus. Two more buses reach the stop and start honking incessantly , which was quite obvious at that time. After 2 minutes of hearing the horn, the driver slowly moves ahead, still distributing tickets. He actually, steers with one hand and gives tickets with the other hand. A traffic cop at the spot came to the bus and started tapping the bus , signalling the driver to move. But, even that did not make a huge difference to him. Though this site kinda gave me shocks about the way he was driving, it was pretty normal to everyone in the bus as they keep seeing such instances every day. They were jus used to this behavior.
The amount they charge for the ticket purely depends on their mood and the person. I end up paying anywhere from 6-9 rs for the same distance, on different days in different buses. You really cant question if you aren't sure about it.
The Volvo buses are surely a relief. They are convenient, friendly and comfortable. A definite boon to people travelling to ITPL and EC. But what about other commuters who want to make use of public transport? Forget the convenience and comfort, the least they could get is cordial drivers. I dont blame all of them. I myself have met a couple of sweet people on bus. But i kinda feel the majority have a negligent attitude. Alright they have a boring job. Accepted that it is horrible to drive on those roads. But that doesn't mean they add to the pain where they spend most time of their lives. What did the poor commuters do?