He was our driver who'd take us from Bagdogra station right up to Gangtok.
We four of us clambered into the Maruti van. Tired after the overnight journey, we just wanted to reach our destination, that too real quick.
He was a slim, young, wheatish complexioned guy.
"Kitna time lagega?" we asked him.
"Paanch-cheh ghante to lagege, Saab." he replied.
He began driving and soon we were on our way. Scenic, picturesque beauty unraveled bit by bit before our awestruck eyes. Tall, green trees stood neatly on either side. The roads were narrow, calling for some real bit of expertise from our driver.
As we began clambering up the winding roads, the air began getting thinner and it soon got chillier. Gangtok is on quite a high altitude, I learned.
"Aap kab se chalane lage, is route pe?" Hubby needed to know.
"Saab, hum to yeh route roj chalate hai. Raat ko bhi koi dikkat nahi hoti," he replied.
From his speech, it seemed he could drive with eyes closed.
All went well, till we suddenly noticed, he was dozing. At first we thought it was just our eyes playing tricks with us. But then it happened again. His head would snap toward his right shoulder, every now and then. Yet, he managed to keep his hand firmly on the steering wheel.
When it began to gather momentum with alarming regularity, we spoke up. "Aap neend me to nai?"
"Jee, nahi, Saab," he protested.
Finally, he stopped at a roadside shop, bought some tobacco like substance, swallowed it and was on his way again.
He kept dozing lesser, but still did. Our hearts in our mouth, we continued making small conversation with him, just to keep him awake. The most amazing thing was his skill. He negotiated the turns with such finesse, he could well have been a Formula 1 driver.
I glanced at the watch. Still some time left. We tried to deliberately take our eyes off him, to gaze at the awesome beauty spread around us. How serene! What artistic strokes of class by the Master Artist! I couldn't help wonder.
Finally, we reached Gangtok. What a relief to reach in one piece!
And to think how terrified we were midway, our hearts in our mouths, when we watched the guy doze off every minute.
But still, we had to admit.
He was the surely the sleepiest, but yet one of the most skilful drivers we've ever seen.
