“It’s half past seven, school starts at eight. My school van would arrive any time now! I have to wear my shoes and finish my breakfast. I have to eat fast! Oh no…” the eleven-year-old was thinking, until he was faced with one of life’s most arduous decisions: “…I feel like I have to use the washroom! Do I ignore it? No! It will make matters worse. But how do I do all of this in two minutes? Van uncle will come and start honking.”

And right then, he becomes The Flash! He winds everything up and the second he is done, the van arrives.

“Just in time!” whispers his mother, relieved.

Do you know what else is relieving? The cacophony of the home-time bell! Commuting to and from school classified students into three categories. Firstly, we have those who walked to school. They lived right next to it! Such students were so relaxed that they wouldn’t mind waking up just 15 minutes before eight.

Next, we have the car kids, who considered themselves more sophisticated than all the others. Agreed, it is nice to reach school in a private vehicle, but that is boring. Therefore, there are the ‘van kids’, which is what this essay describes.

These are classified as the commando students, and wherever you see them, you know the party is about to get rolling.

There are walkers. There are car kids. And then there are van kids — the loudest, busiest and most unforgettable group of all. Welcome aboard a ride full of chaos, laughter and memories

The first thing that tells them apart is the separate line during home-time that they have to join, or an area to sit in, different from that of the car kids with either their drivers or parents picking them up. These lines are usually longer than a million miles, and the area where every van kid is gathered transforms into an airport.

In many schools, there is a person assigned to hold the microphone and shout his lungs out as the vans arrive. This is the time when the canteen’s business blooms and everyone is ‘waiting’. Some schools even have a different exit for the van kids. That exit is a portal to a ‘Van Port’ (yes, I made that up), and once you enter it, you are exposed to traffic, dust, noise and a convoy of vans parked with discipline.

Just like in a plane, your aim is now to secure the window seat, if it is not already ‘owned’ by you. For some, it is the daily race to get the backseats, where they chill, tease, or gossip; and for others, it is the window seat. This seat summons the ‘Main Character Vibe’, feeling the sun’s warmth, facing the wind, seeing the same valleys (streets) repeatedly, and taking a deep breath as if you were coming out of captivity. This is the chilling part of the window seat!

The thing is, that is everyone’s bounty, with only a limited number of window seats available. To execute this, you need a strategy! In the last period, you finish your classwork quickly and correctly, and pack your bag five minutes prior to the bell. Once the chime assaults your ears, you rush downstairs carefully, sit near the exit and ensure that you are the first to join the endless van line. This worked like a charm for me, but sometimes there was always someone there before me. So in such situations, just make an agreement: “We will sit at the window on alternate days.” Good? Well, just don’t let any third member enter the covenant.

The van does not leave the school until everyone is seated, and if you are the first one to get in, you may reserve your seat by placing your bag and stepping out. Then you can while away the time and have some delicious snacks. You will find a handful of stalls and carts serving corn, cotton candy, ice cream and gola ganda. In the winters, a cart selling hot sweet potatoes with chaat masala also appears.

These stalls add to the existing liveliness, especially on Fridays. Caution: avoid overconsumption of these foods due to health risks — but when it is Friday, it should feel like one, and of course, you would not get sick by eating them once a week.

Being a van kid gives you the opportunity to expand your network because your contacts include both class friends and van friends — some of whom may even turn out to be your neighbours! This means you can play with them in the evenings too. Though their ages may differ, it is beneficial, as you can learn from your seniors or get votes from your juniors when you are standing for the student council.

Personally, the best part I enjoyed as a van kid was the memorable conversations. In the morning, I used to pick the front seat just to have a nice talk with the van driver, who is universally known as ‘Van Uncle’. It was usually on random topics — almonds, cricket, or how some car companies charge tonnes extra after just changing a bumper!

In the afternoon, however, I usually sat at the back or in the middle with my friends, where we talked about cartoon shows, movies and video games. Surprisingly, most of the business occurred here too — trading games, toys and Pokémon cards. Sometimes mini-games were also played, such as head-tails (cricket) or chopsticks.

However, inter-van wars also arise, and students often find themselves throwing paper balls at each other’s vans and roasting one another, which sometimes gets serious enough for a mediator to be needed to cool things down. And that mediator is none other than the Van Uncle! He settles disputes and unites them.

Some drivers are nonchalant, always smiling, never complaining, while others are always in a rush to reach school one minute early. One van may carry more than twice its student limit, while another may have just three students. And there is always a van that is relatively luxurious, air-conditioned, spacious and with comfortable seats.

Moreover, some van uncles are always angry, often because their students are the most troublesome, throwing paper balls at pedestrians through the window or sprinkling water on other cars from their bottles. He warns them with the threat of complaining to their parents, but such blackmail never works. This type of fun cultivates wonderful memories, but one must recognise the delicate boundary between fun and mischief, by making respect for ‘van uncles’ our top priority.

Published in Dawn, Young World, January 24th, 2026