The bicycle makes a full circle

The local cycle “mart” used to be a permanent fixture in any locality in the city. It essentially rented out bicycles by the hour and undertook their repairs. These one-man establishments employed young boys as helpers who were asked to fetch tools hanging on a wooden board or fill air into the bicycle tyres. A big clock hanging on the wall was referred to periodically to record the time the bicycle was rented and returned while an old radio on a shelf blared old Kannada songs. The mart’s bicycles leaned against each other in front of the shop and came in all sizes in colours. From the small ones for little boys who rented them to learn cycling to the big Herculeses and Armstrongs for the regular customers, cycles bore the name of the shop in initials and the cycle’s serial number in red on the rear mudguard.On extricating his cycle from the row, the customer checks the tyres and brakes, signs in the register, notes the time and mounts the cycle and is off and away. It takes a while for him to get used to the cycle’s behaviour. A crooked handlebar keeps dragging him to the left while the seat tilts to the right. A twisted rim makes the bike wobble and except for the rattle when the bike runs over a bump, the bell makes no noise. The cycles seldom have lights and hence have to be returned before dark. Cycling without lamps was an offence and the police too took serious note of violations, unlike today where nobody, not even the policemen give, the cycle a second look. The customer, who rents the bicycle, either keeps glancing at his watch periodically or checks the time with passers-by. These marts were to be found mostly in the little village pockets like Yediyur, Domlur and Thippasandra, which got overrun by the city.After an hour’s ride, the cycle is returned to the mart where the helper checks the time it is rented for and collects the fees. The customer, after yielding to the cycle’s drag to one direction for an hour, now has to get used to walking, as his body still leans to the right, trying to counter the cycle’s pull to the left. His palms and fingers are usually black with grease from having to fix the frequently slipping chain to its gears. The bicycle, which had been losing favour over the years, is again making a comeback with people fed up of the toxic air, traffic, tariff hikes and their tummies.

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