Sitting in the aisle seat of the Howrah-bound Shatabdi Express, and wondering if romanticising about the scenic countryside that Indian Railways makes you go through, if put into words, would even justify the elation it offers, I finally decided on penning the words, after a long pause that I had as writer’s block. While one would definitely think, that the occasional stops disturb the flow of thoughts, and untapped imaginations, They actually serve as a pitstop to the plethora of possibilities.

With railroads, you won’t really find any dumb moments. One moment you’re looking at a kid catapulting himself into a makeshift swimming pool meant for irrigation, and the other moment you’d see him pushing his friend, and the next moment, they both swim and laugh in the end. Indian Railroads, would give you stories, as a reflection of past, and a reminisce of what you were once. Stories of romance, friendship, childhood, life. All that you think to have forgotten in the racing life to the death of yours.

Railroads are like the meditations you don’t opt for but never knew you needed badly.

@kaushikthinks

Of all the modes of transport, the reason why Indian railroads always stick with you is not because of the fact that they are medieval and run on the same tracks, It is because It has grown with you. With your habits, with your age, with your interests. From counting the fading sleepers when the train hits speed, to getting lost in the thoughts of them as the country passes by, It has seen you, and you have seen it being the quietest vocal friend you could ever have had.

Railroads don’t leave you a lot of stories that you’ll remember after the journey, just like the nirvana of the Vista dome when the train swiftly cruises between the night lights to the darkness, like a flare of hope you were waiting for long. I’ll leave the rest for you to remember, it’s yours too.