This story is about
various problems which one can encounter while travelling by trains; especially
during a long distance journey. More often than not, the train never runs on
time. A slight disturbance in weather causes inordinate delay in train timings.
The lack of concept of ‘customer service’ among the railway staffs, vendors,
railway police, etc. further compound the problem and take the joy out of
traveling. There are two key protagonists in this novel. One of them is a
middle class person while another is a migrant laborer. Both of them face
almost similar problems but each of them has his own way to visualize and
tackle a particular problem. But the migrant laborer faces more problems
because of his socio-economic status. But the same socio-economic status
enables him to derive more pleasure from mundane things. Both the protagonists
are travelling by the same train but are travelling in different classes. Both
of them get almost similar pain due to inordinately long duration of the
journey. However, both of them keep on their nerves to withstand the agonies of
the journey and finally end up as satisfied passengers when they reach their
final destination. One of the protagonists is a middle class person working at
middle level position in some private company at Delhi. Another protagonist is
a migrant laborer from Bihar who lives with three other friends in a slum in
Delhi. The first protagonist is traveling to Bihar for the festival of Holi;
along with his family. The second protagonist is also traveling by the same
train and for the same purpose but he is going to meet his family. The first
protagonist is going by the air-conditioned class while another guy is going by
the sleeper class. Both of them face difficulties while getting confirmed
tickets for the journey. However, availability of a travel agent makes it
somewhat easier for the second character. The train is running behind its
schedule and hence both of them are forced to wait for their train for about
ten hours on the waiting lounge of the railway station. During their journey,
they face numerous other problems; in the form of shoddy quality of food,
greedy railway staffs and further delay during the journey. They make many
friends during the journey and share their thoughts, happiness and sorrow with
their fellow passengers. They get to interact with some of the unique
characters during their journey. After going through all the trials and
tribulations, they successfully reach their respective destinations. The train
takes more than thirty hours to complete its journey against the stipulated
schedule of about twenty hours. If waiting period is included then their tale
of horror lasts for more than forty hours. This story tells about the numerous
difficulties faced by common people in their day-to-day life. We should not
forget that we are living in a country where a simple task like crossing the
road can be life threatening.
