It would make so many people happy if I started this post with the words - DEATH TO THE AUTO-DRIVER! The chant would probably go viral and someone somewhere may even start a song with the chant as it's theme, maybe along the lines of Bhaag, Bhaag, Autodriver! Or maybe that's just me being foolishly optimistic. But let's face it, every person who has traveled in an auto in the city has, in fact, come across nice autodrivers at some point of time.
As I am someone who swears by the Metropolitan Transport Corporation bus service I rarely find the need to use the tiny-taxis to get about, unless I'm late for college or if I'm carrying something unbearably heavy and in my case, that would mean industrial boards and stretched canvases. Haggling with the autodrivers about the fare (because NONE of them, not even the nice ones, believe in using their meters), sizing the autodriver up to see if I'm going to be ogled at from his side view mirror and remembering my mother's strict instructions of - Never trust a standing auto- can get horrendously exhausting to keep in mind without snapping at the poor guy (or girl) at 7.45 am.
So when I do get a nice autodriver (AD from now on, since it's getting cumbersome to type the entire word out) it tends to warm the frozen cockles of a girl's heart quite fast. The niceness I'm speaking of may be routine behaviour in some other cities but in mine, it's a rarity. The nice AD would charge a fair price, not ogle and even drop you off at your exact destination, not across or at the beginning of the road and ask you to cross/ walk the extra distance. Some of them are even nice enough to help you with your stuff without charging extra for it. And a very few of them, probably one in a hundred, are even nice enough to help out an old blind couple get to their destination, help them out of the auto and hold their hand, walking them to where they have to be.
In a day and age where people are too busy running their own lives to notice others in need, maybe it's time that we gave the good guys some credit. Even if they are autodrivers.
As I am someone who swears by the Metropolitan Transport Corporation bus service I rarely find the need to use the tiny-taxis to get about, unless I'm late for college or if I'm carrying something unbearably heavy and in my case, that would mean industrial boards and stretched canvases. Haggling with the autodrivers about the fare (because NONE of them, not even the nice ones, believe in using their meters), sizing the autodriver up to see if I'm going to be ogled at from his side view mirror and remembering my mother's strict instructions of - Never trust a standing auto- can get horrendously exhausting to keep in mind without snapping at the poor guy (or girl) at 7.45 am.
So when I do get a nice autodriver (AD from now on, since it's getting cumbersome to type the entire word out) it tends to warm the frozen cockles of a girl's heart quite fast. The niceness I'm speaking of may be routine behaviour in some other cities but in mine, it's a rarity. The nice AD would charge a fair price, not ogle and even drop you off at your exact destination, not across or at the beginning of the road and ask you to cross/ walk the extra distance. Some of them are even nice enough to help you with your stuff without charging extra for it. And a very few of them, probably one in a hundred, are even nice enough to help out an old blind couple get to their destination, help them out of the auto and hold their hand, walking them to where they have to be.
In a day and age where people are too busy running their own lives to notice others in need, maybe it's time that we gave the good guys some credit. Even if they are autodrivers.
And the ones who talk to you about life, politics and everything else and the ones who wish you luck with your studies and exams. ^^
ReplyDelete^ True that. But then again, I've come across some extremely annoying ones too. Like the ones who overcharge because of the institution you're standing in front of.
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