1. The Lady to Libya

“After 6 months, I will get a family visa, I can bring my children also…” She is a nondescript woman in salwar-kameez on her way to Delhi. It’s her story that merits mention. She is headed to Libya, as a nurse in a government hospital. The agency that arranged for her job and visa will pick her up in Delhi. “There are six of us from Kerala, some others from other places. The important thing is to somehow get through the first six months. After that I can bring my family.” Her husband and two children, aged three and one-and-a-half, will manage on their own till then.

“I have to go there and learn Arabi. Don’t know what the food will be like. But what bothers me is how the children will live without me.” Her soft eyes fill up in a moment, but then the tears go back in.

2. The Serious Young Lad

He sits clutching his bag, trying to be casual, preoccupied with something. “There was a death in the family – illness and old age, so nothing unexpected, but the date was unexpected. So I had been running around a lot for the arrangements.”

He has spent six years in the same company, a bank, after graduating with a degree in Math. He likes his life – a 9-5 job, some football, some volunteering – he is glad that he has a life outside work. “My job is changing now, I have to get sales and not just make sure that things are running smoothly.” He is with a group of management graduates now, who have experience in other banks. “Those guys are paid more simply because they have an MBA. What do they do differently?”

3. The Studious Cabin Attendant

She is studying for an exam on flight safety. As a cabin attendant, she has to give an exam every six months. The tests are more than academic. “We have to watch our weight – we can’t be overweight. We can’t be underweight either, because then we might fall ill. They give us time to come to the right weight, so it’s ok. It’s difficult when you eat food like this all the time,” she says, pointing to the sandwich.

The job pays well, but “the glamor is not as high as it used to be.” It is hard work as well, with 25-30 flights a week on average. “After five years on the job, you are not allowed to be a court witness. Because when you take so many flights, you tend to lose your memory. Your memory becomes unreliable.”

4. The Loving (?) Mother

The mother, the 6-year-old son and the 8-year-old daughter have all got middle seats. The children have settled down nicely in their seats, but the mother is restless. “Do you mind shifting? My daughter is very uncomfortable sitting alone. She wants to sit with me.”

The son stares at the mother across the aisle, with an uncomprehending look. The daughter turns back from where she is sitting with an open paperback novel – her discomfiture arises from the loud voice of her mother and the embarrassing topic of conversation. She wishes her mother wouldn’t make a scene, it’s only a couple of hours after all. But sometimes mothers miss their children more than the other way round and possessively try to allay imaginary worries.

5. The Entrepreneur’s Daughter

She is like any other college student, living with friends in a hostel. But her sights are set high. “I want to do an MBA abroad and then return to work in the family business.” Her father built up a pharmaceuticals company, and the responsibility to run the business will soon be on her shoulders.

The expectations are high – the father has won an Ernst and Young Entrepreneur Award for his work. The Award that let her spend a week at Stanford learning about running the family business. And made her more confident of her decision to learn business right after undergraduate studies, unlike many of her classmates. The father is an entrepreneur, but the daughter has to be a manager.

P.S.: All the above are snippets of conversations with fellow travellers on flights…

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