Types of People We Meet In Mumbai Locals

Mumbai locals are the lifelines of Mumbai. There are BEST, Metro, Mono, Ola, Uber, Private Rikshas & Taxies, etc., still locals are the best among all when it comes to dumping people from one place to another. Only we can understand the efforts the players put while playing the rugby game. I wonder why we are lagging in the world ranking in rugby. (I thought we would be out of 100, but Google says we are at the 77th place. Not bad, actually!)

Traveling by locals at rush hours (Morning 7 to 12 and evening 6 to 9) is not less than being at war. By the way, the definition of rush hours will change according to where do you live. Of course, most of us (or none of us) do not enjoy traveling by locals, but we do not have a better choice. It does not mean that life is boring in local trains. The people in it make it interesting. Every day you see typical people in local trains. I am only talking people traveling by general dibba (coach). Let’s meet them one by one.

Musicians (Bhajan Mandals)

Bhajan Mandals are an integral part of the local culture. There is at least one dibba reserved for them (by themselves and not by the rail authorities). Sometimes you will find their musical program irritating; still you can’t do anything fearing that you may be tagged as an anti-religious person. That’s why most of us bear them by showing divine expressions on the face. It’s not that all of them sing badly, but most of them. A local coach is not meant to display your musical talent. In the future, you may get to see a musical band playing a rock or pop song in a local train. You never know with we Mumbaikars! 

Last word, some of them are really good singers and instrument players.

Door Keepers

Every day they fought very hard so that we can stand on our feet safely inside the coach. They got all the superpowers to take on the pressure put by all people but hold the door. A few of us stand on the door because we don’t get entry inside. However, most of them love to stand over there, and even if there is enough space inside, they will still hold the door. It shows their commitment and love towards their job.

Sadly this is a risky business. I would prefer the door gets closed once the train leaves the platform. But every time the train enters the platform, people rush into it like there will no other train. We can’t blame the railway for this as Mumbai’s population is at its peak.

4th Seat Occupier

Mumbaikar invented the concept of the fourth seat. At other places, people might find it really difficult to make a request for a seat when already three people are occupying it. But, not in Mumbai. We have passed the law and made changes in the amendments (of Mumbai locals). I am sure most of us have achieved this feat at least once in life in Mumbai. When the local is packed and suddenly, if you are getting a chance to sit on the fourth seat is not less than getting an entry in heaven.

Tip: The fourth seat is not actually a seat. It is 10% of the part of the entire seat.

Romantic couples

They do not care what is happening around them. During the rush hours, ladies avoid traveling in a general coach. Obviously, during these hours, coaches are overcrowded and may not be safe for ladies. However, we must salute the courage of a girl to get into the general coach with her boyfriend. They mostly stand in the space near the door.  It is the duty of the boy to protect the girl from people who are standing around them. They behave as if they don't care about the crowd present over there. However, their awkward position creates more trouble for people who want to get down at the next station.

These couples should understand that there are better places to meet and discuss than holding each other in a local train coach that too at the time of a rush hour.

Movie watchers

Due to the entry of Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hot star in the Indian market and ever-evolving smartphones, many people are watching Hollywood movies, web series while travelling in the train. If you live at Virar, Badalapur, Karjat then you can complete at least one movie in a day. I think,  movies, YouTube videos, TV series helped people to forget the time they spent in a local train. People who live places like Karjat, Virar actually work for 8-9 hours at their workplace and spent at least 5-6 hours traveling from home to workplace and again workplace to home. 

Back travellers

These are the ones who travel back from the nearest station to the main station or (destination station) so that they get a chance to occupy the seat. If someone is standing at the Mulund station and wish to travel to the Dadar station then instead of catching the train which is going to Dadar, the person will catch the train which is going to Thane. Because the same train will go to Dadar after few minutes. By doing this, the person gets a chance to sit in the train which is otherwise impossible if he tries to catch the same train at the Mulund station.

Sellers

You must have heard this line from sellers in the local train; Aap market me jaoge to iski kimat 50 rupaya hogi, lekin company ke promotion ke liye hum ise 20 rupaye me de rahe hai (Meaning, the price of this object is Rs. 50 in the market, but I am giving it for Rs. 20 to promote the company). The height is, people like to bargain with these sellers too. I guess there will be more fun in the ladies compartment.

Running Train Catchers

These are the ones who reach the station at the time when the train is leaving the platform. These guys run like they are participating in the 100 meters race and hold the pole present in the middle of the coach and jump inside.

Don’t know why they do this? Either they don’t love themselves or they are only busy people in this world.

Fighters

Fights are unavoidable in local trains. When trains are overcrowded, it is obvious that someone will get pushed. Most people understand this situation and bear with it. However, some guys are not ready to hold their anger. Sometimes I feel that they needed someone to bring out their frustration about their job, personal life, etc. Most of the times, these fights end without hurting each other as people over here like to fight using bad words. In our culture, we really have some excellent bad-mouthed phrases.

Readers

You can see these types of people in the morning time. They catch the train from the starting station, occupy the seat and read the newspaper. Slowly, reading news on mobile is catching up.

Music listeners

They will outnumber movie waters in the local trains. Gone are the days when only the young generation used to listen to music. Just look around, you will see that many guys from various age groups with their headphones plugged into ears and listening to music.