Traveling teaches you lessons for life. I always liked traveling to different places, meeting new people, understanding their work culture. I was working as product manager with a private firm on pan India basis. So the traveling was major part of my profile, I was given South India as my region. Working under a area sales manager I had to tour frequently to get new business leads or to revive old customers. The experiences I had in various cities was already very bad. After getting down at stations, the most.difficult task was convincing autowalas and taxiwalas to take you to your booked hotel. They give you all type of reasons why the hotel you have booked is not a good and also a costlier deal. These are a few tricks they try to speak you into. On the other hand being from Mumbai, you understand all these cheap tricks and come out of the trap easily. This story is based on a journey and the most unexpected incident that happened in my own city - Mumbai. Anyone who travels knows the importance of ending his tour and reaching his home, its a feeling that can't be expressed but only be experienced.
Out of many trips I had been to Chennai for work this was altogether a different trip. After completing a weeks visit I was returning back to Mumbai. My office had booked the tickets of the slowest train to Mumbai from Chennai. It was a very tiring journey but two things I liked the most about such trains was I could sleep for longer hours and other was if not sleep I could read at least 2 novels in the journey. Reading was the hobby I had just started developing. I reached Dadar station at around 1:30 in the afternoon, the heat was very bad. I was tired and drained after the 25hour long journey. So I got down at platform 6 at dadar station and started walking towards taxi stand. Then I would come to Chembur within 20 mins. This was my daily routine. That day was different, a new experience was on its way. As soon as I got down a sardarji - taxi driver came and took my bag in a very friendly manner and placed over his carrier even without asking where I was heading. That was the 1st hint I had ignored. I sat behind in the fiat as he started the engine. "Sir kidhar jaana hai?" He asked. Chembur was my instant reply, one thing I noticed was that his meter was covered by a cloth or rather a packing was done. He showed my the meter reading which was regular and we left dadar. He was driving very well cause I didn't feel any rashness, it was a very smooth journey indeed. Once reaching Chembur he showed the meter it had reached Rs 220 and I was alarmed. The daily fare I was paying via taxi between Chembur and dadar was exactly half. I felt cheated and I started arguing with the taxi driver so he learnt he couldn't charge me anything extra and took his daily fare of Rs 100 and left as I made my way home. Yes, this happened in my very own city, Mumbai in heart of Mumbai I.e. dadar. I was shocked by this incident.
Days passed by and I was again on chennai trip and while returning to mumbai I met two guys from mumbai. They had been to Tirupati temple to seek the blessings of the famous Tirupati. So we decided I drop them at wadala where they stayed and then proceed to Chembur. Previous taxi incidence was very much fresh in my mind. Once we got down at dadar at 3a.m. we started towards the taxi stand. An elderly taxiwala approached us an took a bag with him. All the actions were same, there was no difference with the previous incidence. I was replaying everything in my mind. Even the packing over the meter was the same. I took the front seat and my friends sat behind. We had reached wadala in not more than 10mins when my friends got down. I wanted to understand the meter issues that were covered so as my friends got down I started chatting with them on random issues so once done I could check the meter. Even with the night charge the meter would have been Rs 40 but instead it was showing Rs. 129. Then I called out my friends who were heading towards their homes to ask them dadar to wadala fare and even they were shocked. The taxi driver knew what was coming as I was already out of the taxi with my language in my hand, he drove as fast as he could after snatching 50rs from my hand. I then took another taxi home from wadala that had a proper meter and then I learnt from him that its a regular scene at dadar station. People who don't know are looted while some fight back. These people repeat it throughout the day, every day.
Lesson learnt - Things can happen with you where u least expect them to happen, so be alert. If you get such a cab driver at dadar try to avoid him and come a bit ahead where you will find a genuine taxi and if its after midnight you can walk to the main road where you find taxi within 2-3 mins coz mumbai never sleeps.
Out of many trips I had been to Chennai for work this was altogether a different trip. After completing a weeks visit I was returning back to Mumbai. My office had booked the tickets of the slowest train to Mumbai from Chennai. It was a very tiring journey but two things I liked the most about such trains was I could sleep for longer hours and other was if not sleep I could read at least 2 novels in the journey. Reading was the hobby I had just started developing. I reached Dadar station at around 1:30 in the afternoon, the heat was very bad. I was tired and drained after the 25hour long journey. So I got down at platform 6 at dadar station and started walking towards taxi stand. Then I would come to Chembur within 20 mins. This was my daily routine. That day was different, a new experience was on its way. As soon as I got down a sardarji - taxi driver came and took my bag in a very friendly manner and placed over his carrier even without asking where I was heading. That was the 1st hint I had ignored. I sat behind in the fiat as he started the engine. "Sir kidhar jaana hai?" He asked. Chembur was my instant reply, one thing I noticed was that his meter was covered by a cloth or rather a packing was done. He showed my the meter reading which was regular and we left dadar. He was driving very well cause I didn't feel any rashness, it was a very smooth journey indeed. Once reaching Chembur he showed the meter it had reached Rs 220 and I was alarmed. The daily fare I was paying via taxi between Chembur and dadar was exactly half. I felt cheated and I started arguing with the taxi driver so he learnt he couldn't charge me anything extra and took his daily fare of Rs 100 and left as I made my way home. Yes, this happened in my very own city, Mumbai in heart of Mumbai I.e. dadar. I was shocked by this incident.
Days passed by and I was again on chennai trip and while returning to mumbai I met two guys from mumbai. They had been to Tirupati temple to seek the blessings of the famous Tirupati. So we decided I drop them at wadala where they stayed and then proceed to Chembur. Previous taxi incidence was very much fresh in my mind. Once we got down at dadar at 3a.m. we started towards the taxi stand. An elderly taxiwala approached us an took a bag with him. All the actions were same, there was no difference with the previous incidence. I was replaying everything in my mind. Even the packing over the meter was the same. I took the front seat and my friends sat behind. We had reached wadala in not more than 10mins when my friends got down. I wanted to understand the meter issues that were covered so as my friends got down I started chatting with them on random issues so once done I could check the meter. Even with the night charge the meter would have been Rs 40 but instead it was showing Rs. 129. Then I called out my friends who were heading towards their homes to ask them dadar to wadala fare and even they were shocked. The taxi driver knew what was coming as I was already out of the taxi with my language in my hand, he drove as fast as he could after snatching 50rs from my hand. I then took another taxi home from wadala that had a proper meter and then I learnt from him that its a regular scene at dadar station. People who don't know are looted while some fight back. These people repeat it throughout the day, every day.
Lesson learnt - Things can happen with you where u least expect them to happen, so be alert. If you get such a cab driver at dadar try to avoid him and come a bit ahead where you will find a genuine taxi and if its after midnight you can walk to the main road where you find taxi within 2-3 mins coz mumbai never sleeps.
