Family of Strangers

This was the title of a documentary I saw long ago. It talked about people who see the same set of people everyday but still are strangers. It talked about a set of people taking the same bus everyday but never even said hello to each other.

The reason is that if you do it once, you are morally obliged to do it again and engage in a conversation, however short, when you meet.

I have seen the same tendency in the peopel in Bombay. Once I said to a friend of mine "I have noticed one thing that people don't notice anyone or anything". In Delhi people are too judgemental and they will judge you for what you are how you dress etc. Bombay is the complete opposite of that, people walking on the street desperately avoid eye contact and you may be wqalking dressed like a clown and be sure no one is going to notice you.

There is people in my building who are an extreme example of it. I have seen on many occassions that I am getting in a lift and someone else coming for the lift will see me. Instead of taking the lift, the person would stop dead in his tracks and go to the other lift even if it means waiting longer.