Why Malleswaram Railway Station Still Feels Like Home

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Malleswaram Railway Station — a place that never felt like “just” a station. A few months ago, someone forwarded me a video of an elderly lady speaking about the charm of Malleswaram Railway Station. She mentioned how, whenever her children visit Bangalore from Canada, one ritual remains unchanged. Her son insists on visiting the station, picking up idly from Raghavendra Stores, and eating it right there on the platform. I smiled when I heard that, because for many of us who grew up in Malleswaram, the railway station was never just a transit point. It was a quiet witness to our growing up. Even now, if I close my eyes, I can hear the metallic rhythm of trains slowing into the platform, the echo of announcements bouncing off the tiled roof, the smoky sweetness of roasted maize drifting from the bridge, and the soft warmth of idlies wrapped in paper from Raghavendra Stores. The station was never silent — but it always felt peaceful. For nearly a decade, ...
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Ties and Knots

A day prior to the career fair, we had to get our bearings right. This was our only exposure to the industry world through the school. So, off we went to JC Penney to buy formal trousers and neckties. I somehow have this fancy for ties. They look so colourful with a tinge of cushion protruding at the end. Myself, Samarsen and Karthik Sadanandam took a cab and we expected to come back in about an hour's time. Samar and I had a tough time selecting our trousers. Trousers that suit our waist size along with perfect length was tough to find. There was not many a choice to make the selection. We roamed around the store for quite sometime trying out various combinations to select the best fit. After a great difficulty, both of us ended up getting the right colours and the right fit. Then, we had to go to the ties. When I saw the ties from a distance, I thought that it shouldn't be all that difficult to get the right tie. But only after I started seeing the ties did I realise how difficult it is going to be to chose the right one. Samar and I explored various available ties and trashed everything with some explanation or the other. Oh! This is too dark. No, this is too light! Come on, the pattern on that tie doesn't look too good! This has no stripes! Oh! That has too many stripes! It has stars! This is good but it wouldn't go well with the shirt! It has this and that and what not! Karthik was a silent spectator to this mental onslaught. We had to make the decision and it had to be quick. Finally, both Samar and I picked up ties of our choice. We were still not sure. Is this better or that stayed in our minds for quite some time.

At the end of it all, we were fed up with our selection policy, and headed back with what we thought were the best ties that could be picked up from the store. I never realised that shopping could be such a nightmare. Thank God my mother did the shopping for me when I was in India!

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