One most painful thing about Mumbai is or rather "are" the cab and the rickshaw wallahs.. Is it me or is it them? I am still trying to figure out the cause of the problem.. Have you noticed off late how difficult it has become to get a cab/rickshaw driver to agree to take you where you want to..and how grumpy they have become? I would say they are getting grumpier by the day!
Where in the name of god do they really want to go? I wonder how on earth do they manage doing good business? All they do is just sit and refuse potential customers all day long. I guess they must be making a lot of money by just chilling in their respective vehicles.
And do you know what bugs me the most? It is the fact that they behave like they are doing a big favour by helping us travel. Their expressions or the lack of them are worth a watch. Example: I say,"Churchgate station" (mind you If you are at Andheri (east) and you want to go to anywhere near Seepz, Chakala etc you are soooo doomed) ; the response, "..." (Point to be noted: Here, "..." means no response & when I say no response I mean zero, zilch, not even a slight nod & no, not even a murmur). Oh yes! How could I forget to mention that a few of them actually did a favour to me by either nodding, or by pointing to the other cabs. Well, and they show no mercy to anyone..age no bar, sex no bar, colour no bar (wow! Atleast they are not racists :p). The other day, I saw a poor old lady trying to catch a cab and no one even stopped at her calls leave alone taking her.
Well, its not not like I haven't had my share of good cab rides in the city. There are days when I get really lucky and the first guy I ask actually says yes (Yeah, I sound like some guy I asked out has said yes, but believe me the joy I get is definately comparable ;p). Sarcasm aside, I have come across some very sweet cab drivers who have helped me out when I was lost with the routes, or who havent insisted on change or those who have even let go of a buck or two 'cos I could'nt shell out change.
But overall, I do wish that the system gets better and these drivers show some consideration towards poor us mumbaites.
P.S: I think I sound as grumpy as them in this post. So please excuse the tone. Just had to let out my frustration somewhere, sometime. Cya!!
