The things we make of what we have! An auto designed to fit three is remodelled to fit eight - I travel in one of these for my weekend trips back home and its awesome fun. Observing the expertise with which the driver catches his Savaari could make an enlightening case study in sales. Its equally hilarious to watch the reactions of first timers, used to the luxury of putting their whole body in an auto (here you should thank yourself if u can manage anything more than half a butt inside it). 'Bhaiyya, jagah kahaan hai?' has become so common that the driver doesn't even bother to reply.
Almost 600 people depend on these share-autos for their roti-kapda-makaan, ferrying thousands of the burgeoning middle class who have shifted out of Delhi into the expanse of trans-Yamuna and Indirapuram - the residential brother of Gurgaon. The porosity of the Delhi-U.P. border also means that traffic rules change practically every month. The poor auto-wallahs have to bear the brunt, with vehicles being hauled off the road every other day. Cell phones prove to be a big boon in such situations and one can occasionally find detours being taken when news comes of cops being on the job a few 100 metres ahead.
Similar stories can be seen unfolding on the roads of Gurgaon, Noida and the wonderful walkway from Mall Road to St. Stephen's and beyond. These autos may make for ugly road traffic and may be responsible for the 8 o'clock jam on the highway, but they are the lifelines for thousands. Like many other things Indian, the autos of NCR continue at their improvising best - connecting people and places.
Almost 600 people depend on these share-autos for their roti-kapda-makaan, ferrying thousands of the burgeoning middle class who have shifted out of Delhi into the expanse of trans-Yamuna and Indirapuram - the residential brother of Gurgaon. The porosity of the Delhi-U.P. border also means that traffic rules change practically every month. The poor auto-wallahs have to bear the brunt, with vehicles being hauled off the road every other day. Cell phones prove to be a big boon in such situations and one can occasionally find detours being taken when news comes of cops being on the job a few 100 metres ahead.
Similar stories can be seen unfolding on the roads of Gurgaon, Noida and the wonderful walkway from Mall Road to St. Stephen's and beyond. These autos may make for ugly road traffic and may be responsible for the 8 o'clock jam on the highway, but they are the lifelines for thousands. Like many other things Indian, the autos of NCR continue at their improvising best - connecting people and places.
3 comments:
Very nicely portrayed! This is probably my favourite post on your blog so far. Mostly because I identify with it totally - remembering the Dayschi days! Good to see our class photo here btw :)
Ranga..i read this blog..and swoooooop...went down the memory lane!! Hitchhiking was a daily affair during my B.Tech days at Nirma Institute, Ahmedabad. Now, my college had a fleet of 'swanky-yellow-coloured-turbo-powered-schumaker-type-driver-driven' buses to deport us back to our lovely hostels n houses. But, it came with a clause: "COMRADE, THY SHALL TRAVEL IN THE BUS ONLY AT THE DECIDED HOUR", which for compulsive bunkers like me was too late in the day(6pm!!). I never stayed that long in the campus for i had other commitments to fulfill(;-))). And thus began the saga of raising the right hand far n wide with the thumb doing a solo-act to fetch me a lift. And then began days where i squeezed myself in the trucks with other half dozen villagers who had managed to get in earlier, and the jumbo interstate rickshaws known as "chhakdaas" in gujarat fit to seat 8 but engulfed in 20, and the usual motorcycle drivers with a seat left behind for their spouses werent interested anymore or viceversa!! But of all, my best memory has been when a cute(read as hot!!) classmate of mine used her thumb to get us a lift, and thomp thomp....an E Class Merc came to a grinding halt!! I thought, maybe the driver wanted to take a turn but to my wonderful dismay, spotting the opportunity this cute(read as really really hot!!) friend of mine went right inside the Merc leaving the door open behind(aka bollywood ishtlye :-))). And i chose the obvious.
autowalla 1: kahan
me: gargi college
autowalla 1: jolts his head meaning to say 'sit inside'
me: meter se chalo
autowalla 1: (just drives off almost crushing my feet beneath the wheels)
me: (cursing and swearing and waving to 2nd auto after a wait of either 2 seconds or 30 mins)...bhaiya gargi college
autowalla 2: baitho
me: meter se chalo...(exasperated)
autowalla 2: madam meter kharaab hai
me: kahan kharaab hai bhaiya yeh sab aap logon ki badmaashi hai...acha kitna loge?
autowalla 2: pachaas!
me: bhaiya meter se tees bhi nahi bante hain...zyada se zyada paintees...
autowalla 2: nahi madam...chalo paintaalis de do
me: humaara desh aap jaise logon se hi badnaam hai...(walking off)
autowaala 2: acha theek hai aao baitho
me: (sitting with a foul mood)..aaraam se chalaana koi jaldi nahi hai aur peeth pe chot lagi hai
me: (reaching destination and paying him 100 rupees)
autowalla 2: madam khulle de do.
me: khulle nahi hai, pehle bolna tha. acha main dekhke aati hoon kahin se.
autowalla 2:acha ruko..dekhta hoon. (takes his hand into a tiffin full of money and takes out khulle)...
me: ab kahan se aaye khulle
autowalla 2: ignores and drives away..
And this was repeated everyday twice for all the days I went to college...and more...
But...the first time I went back to India after 10 months, the first thing I did was to go and touch an auto! Such is the love n attachment for all the absurd and chaotic experiences of life in Dilli :)
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