Wise Men Say Only Fools Rush in

It’s Sunday noon.

I’m riding my scooter from Silkboard to Marathahalli. I stop to fill petrol in HSR layout and quickly get back on the road. The road is empty – regular Sunday scene.

If you are not someone from Bangalore, you may be wondering what the importance of these names like Silkboard and Marathahalli is. These are outer ring road locations connecting to some of the most crowded IT Parks in the city. On weekdays, this stretch of road will be completely packed with bumper to bumper traffic and on weekends, it’s completely the opposite.

As I climb Sarjapur flyover, I realize I never felt like this before while riding on this road. It’s not about the emptiness of the road, or the absence of the incessantly blaring horns, or even the mild chillness in the air, or the cool breeze that’s gently whizzing past my ears.

It’s something about wholesome comfortness. I feel like I’m riding in heaven. I have never felt like this before. Why? I think.

The situation warrants a song, doesn’t it?

Like a river flows surely to the sea

Darling so it goes

Some things are meant to be

Take my hand, take my whole life too

For I can’t help falling in love…

I find myself humming this classic Elvis Presley song under my breath as I ride.

Again, I speak to myself: I never felt like this on this road before, something is different, something is so good today and man, do I not love this?

A Sunday noon bang in the middle of January must be the best time of the year to ride a two-wheeler in Bangalore.

In the distance I see a white and khaki figure emerge from a nearby bush. A traffic policeman is coming out of his hideout. Crazy guys, why do they have to hide themselves and then jump in front of oncoming vehicles like thieves?

But I don’t need to bother. I have all the papers. Elvis Presley now needs a twist!

Like a river flows surely to the sea

Darling a policeman is waiting for me

He’s going to waste his time, what a waste fellow

For I have all the papers

I can’t help falling in love with this

I’m getting closer and closer to the traffic policeman. I look behind to see whether there are any visibly open traffic offenders following me – none. The traffic policeman is now standing in the middle of the road with both his hands and legs stretched wide apart.

“Stop” he shouts.

I bring the scooter to a halt.

“It must have been so good, isn’t it?” he asks with chuckle.

How does he know?

“What sir?” I ask

“Riding without helmet”

Oh gosh!

“Saaaaaaaaaar!” I almost fall on his feet.

After removing my helmet in the petrol bunk, I had forgotten to put it back on – that’s why I have been feeling something different!

But it transpires that not wearing helmet isn’t the only offence I committed. I have also been over- speeding!

I settle both offences for 400 rupees after some haggling and begging. He gives me a receipt. My 7 year old daughter always complains that I’m a very slow rider. Today she’s going to be proud. Probably she’ll tell her friends, “You know what, my papa got caught for over-speeding” and they will be like, “Oh wow!”

Eventually when I’m allowed to ride on, the ‘love’ has already evaporated in the heat of the moment, and I can’t help but sing the first line of the same song:

Wise men say only fools rush in…