Pritam's Blog
๐๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฒ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐๐ผ๐๐ป๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ผ๐๐๐: ๐ ๐๐ผ๐บ๐บ๐๐๐ฒ๐ฟโ๐ ๐๐ผ๐ป๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฟ๐๐บ ๐๐ถ๐๐ต ๐ฎ๐ป ๐จ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฟ-๐ฆ๐บ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ด๐ฎ๐น๐ผ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐๐๐ผ๐๐ฎ๐น๐ฎ๐ต
I came out of the office at around 3 pm today. After being rejected by a few autowalahs, a kind one accepted me on Uber. I checked the map - he was almost 4 km away. I thought he would definitely cancel the ride like others do. So, I kept trying to hail an auto from the road, but in vain.
A few minutes later, I checked the app. The Uber was approaching. Unbelievable. Why would a Bangalorean autowalah travel 4 km, a 60-buck distance, to pick up a passenger for a 78-buck ride? What is in it for him? Is he crazy? I wondered.
He reached the opposite lane, just across from where I was standing, and called me, โSir, can you please cross the road? Otherwise, I will have to take a U-turn to pick you up, and thereโs traffic.โ
He was referring to the U-turn at the Manipal signal, which I know is a difficult signal to cross. But he would have to take the U-turn anyway to drop me at Brigade Road.
I thought he was probably going to take a different route to avoid the traffic. So, he didnโt really have to drive an extra mile to pick me up when I could cross the road, which is less than 30 meters wide.
I agreed and climbed the partition to cross the road, which was difficult due to my back pain. Anyway, I got into the auto, shared the PIN, and the trip started.
To my surprise, he then took the U-turn, crossed the same spot where I had been standing, and took the route I initially thought he would take to Brigade Road. Why then did he ask me to cross the road? It pissed me off.
But then I realized why he asked me to cross the road even though he planned to cross the pick-up spot anyway. The 78-buck fare was calculated from the pick-up point to the destination. If I crossed the road and got into the auto from the opposite lane and he still took the U-turn, it would mean I got in the auto a mile before the pickup point, increasing the distance and the fare. This annoyed me even more.
For a brief moment, I considered confronting the autowalah. But then I reasoned: parting with the extra money wouldnโt make me a beggar; it wouldnโt make the auto driver a king either. I decided to be the bigger man and let it go. Anyway, I was mainly pissed off because I had to climb the partition with my back pain, but itโs okay, I told myself.
I reached Brigade Road. The fare was almost 120. I paid him without saying a word.
But it kept bothering me. And then I realized I chose to be the bigger man not because those extra 40 bucks didnโt matter to me, but because I was scared of pissing him off and getting the ride canceled. I dreaded having to look for another auto.
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