Flight offers no escape from the internet

Hand baggage tucked away safely in the overhead counters. Seat belts fastened tight. And…. as soon as the flight takes off, get ready to bring out the laptops, smartphones, tablets…… there is no escape from the internet even in the skies. The web keeps widening its grasp (soon we might be discussing connectivity on Mars!)

If not twiddling with the internet, or texting to your friends below, then of course, you could choose to sink yourself in your seat, remote in hand, shut the world out with your headphones and get immersed in the world of movies or music. However, before the times when we were not so inundated with these technological necessities it was quite possible to strike up an interesting conversation with your co–passenger, while sipping on a chilled glass of pineapple juice. You never knew whom you could meet!

Like this unforgettable journey I had on a flight, when I was around 15. The entire one-and-a-half hour trip was over in a jiffy, thanks to a wonderfully engaging conversation with an elderly gentleman, seated beside me. He skilfully narrated the story of an Indian movie based on the intriguing real life incident of a toddler trapped in a manhole and how she was subsequently rescued by a team of engineers, fire fighters and the police, after a hugely risky operation. He explained in detail the anguish portrayed by the mother, the commendable acting abilities of the child artiste herself and how the well-made movie keeps you on the edge of your seat, till the end. After the narration was over, I could not help asking whether he was a member of the film fraternity. “I’m a lawyer”, he said simply and told me his name.

Later, it was my mother who pointed out that he was an eminent judge in south India, often quoted in the newspapers. For a long time, I was in awe of the simplicity of the man and the unassuming manner in which he had carried on a lengthy, friendly conversation with a teenager.

Connected

One could look forward to an opportunity to learn about different perspectives, get a peek into the human mind or take time to reflect upon life, all in a span of two or three hours, with an acquaintance you made on board. Of course, on some occasions, your fellow passenger may turn out to be irksome.

Yet another time, my companions were an interesting mother–daughter duo. The mother, who was a successful gynaecologist, chatted incessantly and told me about her great professional ambitions for her daughter. But, all the child had to say to this was, “I want to enjoy my life”.

Such joyous in-flight conversations and the practical insights they offer are hard to come by these days, when everyone is so engrossed in typing furiously on their laptops or staring endlessly at the screens of their smartphones. This frenzy to stay connected even when we are not even connected by land only gets a break when the food trays are handed around, of course. Then, suddenly everyone stirs up and comes back to life and all you can hear for some time is the comforting clinking of cutlery.

For several years, I had got used to enduring these monotonous plane journeys and no longer looked forward to meet someone intriguing, with whom to have a friendly conversation to remember, while watching the aircraft cutting through dense clouds.

However, on a journey from Dubai to India a couple of years ago, I found a welcome surprise awaiting me. I discovered that my friend Ashi was travelling by the same aircraft and a little talk with the stewardess ensured that we were placed next to each other. And from there, the conversation simply flowed. We caught up on girly gossip, discussed all that was happening in our lives and even considered some viable business propositions.

Later, while wheeling the luggage trolleys out of the airport doors, my friend turned to me and said, “How nice that you were on this flight”!

I couldn’t help thinking about how, after a long time, I myself had loved having a face to face conversation with somebody and enjoyed a truly unwinding journey by being wired into life itself.

Fyna Ashwath is a writer based in Dubai.