I DON'T HAVE TIME
- Madhukar Dama
- 6 days ago
- 4 min read
The Most Dangerous Lie Indians Tell Themselves Every Day
PART 1: THE ARTICLE
A DISEASE CALLED HURRY
INTRODUCTION:
In modern India, “I have no time” has become the new national anthem.
It is sung in traffic, in marriage halls, over skipped breakfasts and over-salted biryanis, in unread WhatsApp groups and prayer apps.
But what it truly means is this:
“I have no time to live.”
Because people still have time to:
Scroll for 3 hours
Watch 6 reels in a row
Sit in bank queues for new gadgets
Attend 4 weddings a month
Gossip over chai
Watch entire T20 matches
Discuss actors’ divorces
Stand in sweet shop lines before festivals
But they have no time to:
Cook real food
Walk in the sun
Sit with their thoughts
Bathe slowly
Sleep on time
Heal from trauma
Say “no” to chaos
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CHAPTER 1: “NO TIME” FOR WHAT?
1. No time to fast.
Because breakfast is non-negotiable. Even if it's 3 biscuits and a complaint.
2. No time to exercise.
But they’ll bend to pick up fallen chips 17 times.
3. No time to breathe.
Except when sighing dramatically.
4. No time to cook.
But 45 mins to scroll Swiggy discounts.
5. No time for silence.
Because they need constant TV background noise.
6. No time for family.
Until someone dies.
7. No time for self-education.
But 30 mins daily to check what Kareena wore.
8. No time to rest.
But all the time in the world to fall sick.
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CHAPTER 2: WHY IS THIS THE MOST DANGEROUS LIE?
Because it pretends to be noble. ("I’m too busy working for my family.")
Because it makes disease feel accidental.
Because it erodes dignity. You age faster, ache earlier, and panic forever.
Because it allows addiction to fester. (“Just one cup of tea. I don’t have time for lunch.”)
Because it kills love. You can’t love deeply in a rush.
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CHAPTER 3: THE COST OF “NO TIME”
Back pain by 30
Diabetes by 35
Anxiety meds by 40
Marriage crisis by 45
Isolation by 50
Dependency by 60
Regret by 70
And still no time to reverse it
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CHAPTER 4: THE REAL MEANING OF “I HAVE NO TIME”
It means:
“I don’t know how to say no.”
“I’m addicted to praise, approval, or panic.”
“I am afraid of sitting still with my truth.”
“I’ve outsourced my life to expectations.”
“I don’t believe I deserve peace.”
“I have time, but I waste it, and I can’t admit it.”
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CONCLUSION:
The truth is brutal:
You were born with time.
You spent it on things that made you sick.
And now you have “no time” to undo it.
You don’t need more time.
You need more honesty.
---
PART 2: THE HEALING DIALOGUE
Scene: A Sunday morning. Madhukar the Hermit sits on a stone, slicing guavas. The birds chirp.
Characters:
Raghav (45) – Senior manager, always in a hurry.
Neha (42) – His wife, prediabetic, deeply tired.
Tanvi (16) – Their daughter, always online, “has no time” for family.
---
Raghav (panting, checking watch):
Madhukarji, sorry. We're late. We had to stop for petrol. And chai. And—
Madhukar (smiling):
You had time for that?
Raghav:
Not really. We’re drowning. No time to breathe. We just needed help.
Madhukar:
If you have no time to breathe, how did you survive this long?
Neha:
We just need tips to be healthy... without changing too much.
Madhukar:
You mean: “Cure me without me participating.”
Tanvi (half-looking):
I’ve got ten minutes. Then I have to post a reel.
Madhukar:
So. Ten minutes to fix what ten years broke?
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THE TRUTH ARRIVES
Madhukar:
Let me ask you all:
Who made you attend 47 social functions last year?
Who signed up for the EMI of a sofa that never gets sat on?
Who said yes to deadlines, phones, and panic calls?
Raghav (quiet):
Me.
Madhukar:
Then why are you blaming time?
Neha:
I guess… we thought we were being responsible.
Madhukar:
Busy is not responsible. Busy is obedient to pressure.
Responsible is being well enough to carry what you choose.
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THE TURNING POINT
Tanvi:
So what do we do?
Madhukar (firmly):
You don’t need more hours. You need to stop renting them out to nonsense.
Here’s your homework:
Cancel one commitment per week.
Sit in silence 10 mins daily.
Say no. Without shame.
Fast. Not just from food. From noise.
Remove 10 apps.
Sleep before ambition.
Reclaim your morning.
Choose rest like you choose drama.
---
Neha (teary):
What if we fail?
Madhukar:
Then at least fail honestly, not while pretending you’re too busy to try.
Raghav:
We’ve missed years.
Madhukar:
Then don’t miss today.
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PART 3: CHARLES BUKOWSKI-STYLE POEM
“NO TIME FOR TRUTH”
---
you weren’t born busy
you were born breathing
but somewhere along the line
you started calling panic a schedule
and decay —
a salary.
you keep saying
“i have no time”
as if time
is a train you missed
and not a life you traded
for WiFi, WhatsApp,
and weekends spent
avoiding yourself.
you say
you have no time to stretch
but you had time
to read arguments in comment sections.
you say
you have no time to cook
but you waited
22 minutes for a soggy burger.
you say
you have no time to heal
but you remember every sale,
every cricket score,
every rumor about someone you don’t even like.
you bought EMIs like dreams
ate biscuits like breakfast
blinked —
and 10 years stank.
now you sit there
your body whispering
in inflammation,
in constipation,
in exhaustion
“why did you leave me?”
and still you say
“i’m too busy to fix it.”
no.
you’re not busy.
you’re afraid
of who you’d be
without the noise.
you’re addicted
to urgency
the way alcoholics crave
numbness.
you thought
hurry made you important.
but it just made you
forgettable.
because no one remembers
the person who was always
too busy
to love,
to rest,
to live.
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