Cindrella auto rickshaw-wallah

 

Saturday night on the way back from town after meeting an old colleague, my rickshaw wallah is driving at break neck speed. It's raining, the wind feels great but it's dangerous as wet roads are slick and slippery. I ask him to slow down and say I'm in no hurry, he mumbles something and slows down fractionally as we are almost on the service road. But instead of slowing further he hits a pot hole and my arm swings and bruises slightly.

Now I raise my voice and sternly ask him, why he isn't slowing down despite asking him to? 

He: Internet khatam ho jayega. 

Me: What? 

He: (again) Internet khatam ho jayega

Me: What's that?

He: Bara bajne ko hai. App nahi chalega. Map nahi chalega. Hum ko pata nahi hum kahan hai.

(It's close to midnight. The app will not work, the map will not work and I don't know where I am) 

This sounds so bizzare, so Cindrella-ish! The rickshaw turning into a pumpkin and the rickshaw-wallah's shoes turning to ordinary flip-flops. Maybe, the phone will turn to a piece of cardboard. I put a firm hold on my imagination and ask him what exactly he means. 

Image: Auto turning to pumpkin at the stroke of mid night. The image is generated with Canva AI.

A few more minutes of this and I discover that he has not recharged his phone. He says he forgot and at the stroke of midnight his connection to the driving app will be disrupted. Without the data he can't recharge and he doesn't know the routes. I said I'll help you recharge once you drop me and you can pay me back. He doesn't have cash to do that. 

So now I am the navigator. I tell him the directions as we carry on and reach my place. Then I recharge his phone. Once it is working again, he deducts the amount I owe him and sends me back the rest of the money.

As I am walking away, I think of how we are such weird creatures that we talk about safety and security and use established cab companies but what about these loop holes? Half my ride, I had no contact with the cab company. But neither did the driver who was completely unfamiliar with the place and the basics of keeping his link to security and safety established.