Bengaluru man shares how Rs 12 bus ride took him back to school, college days

A Bengaluru man spent around two hours trying to book a Rapido bike, auto or cab to get home. He was even willing to pay Rs 150 for the journey, but nothing worked.Bengaluru man shares how Rs 12 bus ride took him back to school, college days (Photos: Pratej/Instagram) In a city where app-based cabs, autos and bike taxis have made commuting easier, a bus ride in Bengaluru left a man reminiscing about simpler times.Pratej, a digital creator, had spent around two hours trying to book a Rapido bike, auto or cab to get home. He was even willing to pay Rs 150 for the journey, but nothing worked.After walking nearly 800 metres to Madiwala, Pratej decided to take a bus instead. But what started as a last-minute travel option soon turned into a nostalgic trip down the memory lane.The moment he sat inside the bus, memories of his school and college days came rushing back - walking to bus stops, waiting for buses with friends, fighting for window seats, chatting about nothing in particular and searching for change to pay the conductor. He recalled how much the experience had changed over the years. The arguments with the conductor and the hunt for loose change had given way to scanning a QR code and paying through UPI. Yet, sitting inside the bus, he felt that something about the experience remained exactly the same.The biggest surprise came when he realised that the journey from Madiwala to Sony World Signal had cost him just Rs 12 - far less than the Rs 150 he had been prepared to spend. “But somehow, those Rs 12 gave me something Rs 150 couldn’t. Peace. Nostalgia. Memories,” he said.The frustrating wait for a ride had suddenly given way to a sense of calm. Instead of worrying about reaching home quickly, Pratej found himself looking out of the bus window and remembering a version of himself who travelled everywhere by bus and walked without complaining.“Maybe the ride didn’t happen because it wasn’t supposed to,” he wrote, describing the bus journey as a reminder of a simpler time he had not realised he was missing.Watch the video here:His post left people nostalgic, with several users sharing memories of their own bus rides and childhood and college journeys.“Money can buy convenience, but it can’t buy nostalgia,” Pratej wrote, summing up the lesson from his Rs 12 bus ride.- EndsPublished On: Aug 11, 2026 16:52 IST