Madam Rides the Bus
Valli's dream
Explain how Valli planned her first bus ride.
About the story. 'Madam Rides the Bus' is by the Tamil writer Vallikkannan, translated by K. S. Sundaram. It is about an eight-year-old girl's first bus ride, and how she meets 'the mystery of life and death' on the way.
Valli at her door. Valliammai, called Valli, is eight and 'very curious about things'. There are no children her age on her street, so her favourite pastime is standing in the front doorway, watching the street. To her it is as good as any game.
The bus. Best of all is the bus between her village and the nearest town. It passes every hour, once going and once coming back, each time with new passengers. Slowly 'a tiny wish' grows into 'an overwhelming desire': to ride it, just once.
'Proud! proud!' When a friend rides the bus and describes the town, Valli is too jealous to listen. She shouts 'Proud! proud!' in English. Neither she nor her friends really know what it means.
Collecting facts. She listens to neighbours and asks a few 'discreet' (careful) questions:
- the town is six miles away;
- the fare is thirty paise each way;
- the trip takes forty-five minutes;
- if she stays in her seat and pays again, she can return on the same bus.
So: the one o'clock bus, town at 1.45, home by about 2.45. She plans and replans.
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