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Apr 10, 2007

24 hours free service for Delivery

Trying to get an auto on Bangalore streets can be a harrowing experience. Especially if you are a northy. Never mind which part of the country you come from, anything above the Vindhyas is North.

Some of the autowallahs will not even bother to say no. They just drive on. Some smirk and some ask a volley of question and then refuse. Either way all you can do is just give a mouthful.

And there are some common experiences which we all have shared. Some take the route that they want and virtually threaten if you argue. Some stop in the middle of the road and say they wont go further and ask you to take another one.

So when i saw "24 hours free service for Delivery" written at the back of the auto I wanted to stop the guy and talk to him. And I remembered that Autowallahs are also humans. I salute this guy for his creativity.

I wish he has a phone number too written on his board so there can be a way he could be contacted under the said emergency. But I have to give it to the man for being ingenous. Because in Bangalore most Autowallahs are not human leave alone being ingenously human.



Indian Tuk Tuk
Graphics © Kaushik Som

13 comments:

Shuv said...

ambulance service for maternity hospital?

kaushik said...

nops

Scout said...

pizza

ghetufool said...

my sole reason to buy a bike was to avoid "twenty rupees extra" and "double meter" here. good sketch shuv.

kaushik said...

Good sketch Shuv?? Maane?? Kaake mon nei mone hocchey

Shuv said...

typo correct korte typo..'kaake' na 'kaaje'..

gr8 sketch..but it should be the sign off to the post..delete the last paragraph or move it before the sketch.

Gypsy said...

i sooooo agree abt the autowallas in blr! i have sweared n cussed n abused their whole profession n as ghetu said...i actually did buy a bieke to avoid speaking to autowallas...
but im damn curious abt the "24 hours free service for Delivery"...

kaushik said...

Shuv: I debated about the same where the sketch should fit in.. I agree with you.. Its done..

Gypsy: My wife used the autowallahs as an excuse to get us to buy a car.

Scout said...

i agree with all. bangalore made me glad i had a car. (altho i do love to drive!)

ghetufool said...

oops sorry!

Vincent said...

I envy your drawing abilities but my intention to come and see you all, especially Ghetu, has been dampened by the irrational fear of being bullied by taxi-drivers. Will I as Anglo-Saxon possibly prosperous-looking tourist be subjected to merciless begging, extortion and cheating by everyone I meet (barring your good selves, obviously)?

kaushik said...

Yves: Why bar us - the good selves? Each day as I work for my Danish clients I see even 'us' begging. The color of the skin is very important in this part of the world where one of the most frequent keyword in a matrimonial ad is 'fair'.

But you can do away with your fear by paying the 'unknown tax'. Its always a 15-20% extra that I budget for being taken for a ride in a new city.

Alteast that helps me to concentrate on the sights of a new and different city without having one eye on the meter and my entire mind worrying about whether I am being cheated.

Apocalyptus said...

Yes...I've seen an auto like that, too..although not quite sure if it's the same one...if I remember correctly I saw it somewhere near Commercial Street... and about the Bangalore autowallahs in general, well...I have to use this cliche... "99.9 % of them give the rest a bad name".
These khaki-clad dacoits should be kicked in public and stripped off their licenses.