I ride my bike to work. Having nothing better to do on my way way to office in the morning and on my way back home I started noticing the vehicles on the road, the people riding them, the style of riding or the lack of it. Most days it is mildly amusing to see the different kinds of the people from the shop keeper on his bike – usually a Bajaj M80 or a TvS XL – which is almost fully engulfed under the cardboard boxes which are tied to the bike and the shopkeeper himself just barely seated, to, the Honda Civics and BMWs which zoom past, traffic permitting. Although every person on the road is unique, broadly speaking they do come under some categories, myself included.
the-spitter : There is joke in one tamil movie – if all the spit that we Indians spit on the road is collected and let out for irrigation we would be less dependent on seasonal rains and there would be lesser Dam disputes!!
We Indians love to spit, we use it in a multitude of ways from showing disgust to exercising our vocal cord and spitting the resultant saliva or in certain cases mucous liquid . It also comes in other colors, add a bit of pan beeda you get the green color, to it add some lime and we get the famed red color with which govt office staircase, rail coaches, cinema theatres and in unfortunate cases your own sparkling white kurta gets a spray down. The Ghutka gives the color a bit of flavor as well. We spit while walking, we even spit from a running bus, a car or a train window. If only aircrafts had open windows, we would have taken it to air and and given Indian Army a new air to land missile which not only causes visible irritation but can also be shown as an unspoken word as to what we think of the enemy. Spitting has become so common that the sound of spitting has percolated into our vocabulary. The sound ‘thoo’ indicates a close friend or associate that this is what we think of his idea. One of my friends brought it to my notice sometime back. Why do people have this uncontrollable urge to exercise their throat muscle and spit out on the road everytime they stop at a traffic signal. And I am not even talking about the guy who spits by slightly raising his helmet while traveling at 60 km/hr. A traffic signal is probably the yuckiest place on earth considering the math. The dialogue from the movie Anniyan when modified for this situation fits in- One guy spitting once on the road on his way to work is not much, but consider every guy on the road spitting at every signal and then consider the number of signals we have just in Bangalore!! Its not that traveling in a bike or car gives one a controllable urge to give a bit of ourselves to our homeland. I cannot sweat for my homeland atleast let me spit 
. The sad part is very few of these people on Bangalore road are illiterate people. It is only the mindset. Would the same person spit on his yard or balcony ?
the-youth : They usually zoom off on their bikes and cars and are usually way faster than I am, whatever be their bike a splendour or a pulsar. I meet them only at signals and at times when there is so much traffic
the-not-so-youth: Like uncles dying their hair black to remain in middle age the-not-so-youth were once Youth. Yes I fall in this range too. I get amused the most or irritated the most with them. Most of the guys do not use their rear view mirror unless its to comb his hair or worse they would have removed the company fitted rear view mirror as it affects the aesthetic looks of their bikes! You will know someone is the not-so-youth type when he keeps looking side ways to see if some car or bike is too near him. The rear view mirror might not be giving you the complete picture but atleast you can see the big garbage truck coming your way without having to crank your neck! If you go fast enough you won’t need a rear view mirror is what my friend used to tell me. But the not-so-youth is not that kind who zoom past you, they can hardly keep their balance at slow speeds without dragging their feet. If they are not able to balance how did they manage to ride the figure 8 required to get a license? The not-so-youth do not believe in helmet rules. “No saar, it is heavy, hair loss you know, head itching, summer time Saar sweating, I can’t see on my sides Saare”. When they were in their actual ‘youth’ the helmet rule was not applicable in most parts of India so they learnt riding their bikes without one and now they find the helmet which protects their thick head too heavy so they balance it on the petrol tank until the next signal or hanging from the rearview mirror making a radical use of the mirror not thought of by the manufacturer. Even if they did wear one the strap would not be locked or there will be a cellphone stuck in between the helmet and the ear.
the-beedi boys: If there is one thing which irks me more than seeing a biker riding with his helmet hanging from the rear-view mirror it is when I see the reason for him not wearing a helmet is to have a smoke while riding home. I do understand that smoking is an addiction, but is it so much of an addiction that one cannot smoke before getting onto bike or have one after reaching ones destination? Or is it that thrill of riding a bike one handed without a helmet in peak hour Bangalore traffic?
Civic sense and common sense : one, we choose to ignore, and the other, ignores most of us. If most of us had at least one of these riding in Bangalore traffic would be much less painful !
