I hit bed around 3.30am daily after working till 2am. The sounds that accompany me to the bed are of trucks rushing through the road nearby and the occasional chorus music of stray dogs.
Around 6.30am, it will be the milkman calling out at my neighbour's gate and the thud of newspaper bundle that bangs against my door.
Sometime later will be the racket of children going to school and motors pumping water. Direct water is available only from 6 to 8 in the mornings and evenings.
By 9am or so, it will be some construction work in the neighborhood -- drillingof walls, workers carrying some heavy material, breaking concrete, etc. I'll be lucky if I catch some sleep for three hours without any disturbance.
I start for work around 4.15pm. The rickshaw ride to metro station is with the accompaniment of incessant honking of vehicles. I look forward to the 8-minute journey by Metro that's less noisy. But then there will be a co-passenger who opts to watch a video without headphones or a bunch of college kids chattering away next to me.
At the exit station, there are electric rickshaws vying for space. The rickshawallahs call out for people and once they get five passengers, it is the struggle to get out of the area. As one rickshaw is filled, others look to push their vehicle to the spot closer to the metro gate, banging against other vehicles in the process. And a heated exchange between the two rickshawallahs ensues.
The 5-6 minute ride may take longer depending on the traffic. Other than Sundays, the erickshaw makes its way through a sea of vehicles, with the engine noise and honking reverberating in the air.
At workplace, the chatter of colleagues, occasional burst of laughters, shouting across desks during peak hours, and what not. When I call it a day, my brain would be buzzing with all the sounds it had to process during the day.
And I search for my silence...
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