[dreadknight5]

Originally Posted by subbaramu

At least half of the people who driver recklessly or cut across would have driven in the West or at least been to West. They are well aware of all the rules and just would not follow them.

Only rule they follow: Rules are to be followed only in West where the laws are stringent, "Chalta hai...." attitude when back home.

Yep, I agree with your sentiment. Case and Point is the live example I saw in the airport. A family of 4 was in Bangalore airport. I observed them dirtying the airport facility, by not throwing garbage in the garbage bin.
The Garbage here is Soft drink bottles, chocolate/ biscuit wrappers etc

I saw them board my flight which goes via Singapore to San Francisco. I was very interested to see them in Singapore Airport ( well I was hoping that they get caught throwing garbage and get fined for it) .

Singapore Airport : The entire family of 4 did a complete U Turn. None of them even contemplated leaving garbage around. They even went looking for a bin to throw the Garbage. 3.5 hours ago , they were uncouth and in Singapore they were a family that could do no wrong. They ended up in San Francisco airport and they continued their Singapore Habit.

That's when I realized that we Indians don't respect our country's laws. Its Chalta Hai in India and follow rules to the dot in other countries. We whine and cry about India, and in the same breath never try to be part of the solution. I observed that we Indians love to be part of the problem.

[W.A.G.7]

Thanks for starting a "different" kind of thread, it made me smile. I also love driving in India, simply because I love driving. In the last 12 years I have learnt to be more patient, drive with a smile, not get into arguments etc. etc!

Originally Posted by Simple_car

If people were even a little disciplined or for that matter if they even stopped to think for a second, everybody would clear that junction in 2 minutes.

This point I feel is applicable everywhere, not only traffic jams. If people are a little accomodating everywhere or if they stopped to give someone else a chance or if they think about it for only 2 minutes, then most of the problems we face daily in our day to day life would be reduced a lot. Not gone 100% but definitely much more less.

[arsenal.arun]

2. What do you love the most about driving in this country?

Its kind of strange, but the best thing I like is this is the only country which gives you an opportunity to feel like God / Saint on the roads. Whenever you give way to a honking car, an ambulance or allow a pedestrian to cross (even if there are 100 cars honking behind you), forgive a biker for scratching the bumper, stopping at a red light before the zebra and not on it etc etc., you feel like you have done something very good in you life, something like charity or a noble deed even though you are just following the traffic rules.

[abirnale]

This is a different kind of thread. A lot of positivity in there just because the way you narrated it, Simple_car Moreover a very noble thought I liked - instead of complaining, why dont we enjoy it? They say every cloud has got the silver lining but in this case we have to reverse the phrase - the cloud itself is silver, just few black spots on it!

Although I cry foul of city traffic (never openly though), I extremely love my highway drive! I have done so many drives along the NH4 that i can remember every pothole from Bangalore to Goa or Bangalore to Sangli! The best thing i love about driving in this country is - freedom to drive. From the non-existent roads to the best highways and literally crawling traffic to average 80Km speed on NH4. If you are a responsible drive, all other conditions in this country favor you. And the extent I love highway drive, everyone in my family knows how and why I avoid booking train tickets in advance and come up with creative excuses for not using public transport for long drives! Now with the new addition in the family, we are four and capacity of my car is full, doors shut. Lets drive. So I can claim that every drive of mine is value for money

[Blow Horn Ok]

My city can be be called as Cattle City. You would see hundreds of cows and buffaloes roaming all over the road blocking the traffic and creating a jam. They are everywhere. Even on the highways. They sit in the middle of a busy road, pass a busy junction in herds and leave huge lumps of dung behind to let you paint your car and let that biker slip.

Are they at fault? A big NO. Their owners are at fault who consider the entire city as grazing farms for their cattle.

[Top-Gear]

Simple_car, you had me in splits. I mean, the very question "Do you love driving in India?" had me . Even if I were to take the question most seriously, it appears to me as a rhetorical question . Let me split the question...

"Do you love driving......" YES
"'....................in India?" WHAT??!? You must be joking!

But seriously, Simple_car, you've turned the whole thing topsy-turvy. Your brilliantly perspective on the Indian road will at least make me smile a little more the next time I am a part of the madness, hopefully make me wince and curse a little less and laugh a little more at the absurdity. Thank you for that.

Originally Posted by Simple_car

1. Do you love driving in India? IF YES, then continue,
2. What do you love the most about driving in this country?
3. What has driving here, taught you?
4. Bikers and off road enthusiasts. Please do tell us, what is unique to Indian driving conditions. I am not into biking and off roading.
4. Feel free to describe some your best memories while driving here. I don't want to hear your travels (that's already covered in the travelogue section), just the good times.

Coming to your rather difficult questions, here's my take on some of the things I (ahem!) like:

1. I can sharpen my mind reading skills:
In fact, I cannot tackle many motorists, especially autorickshaw drivers without that. Example - a rickshaw driver going slow on the right lane means he is going to turn right soon. (Needless to say, using indicators is not something a rickshaw driver is wont to do).

2. Anticipation is the name of the game:
Closely linked to the first point is that I as a driver HAVE TO anticpate events on the road. Example - if I see an autorickshaw (hey, I'm not picking on them!) on the side of the road, I can expect him to suddenly decide to take a U turn and come right into my path!

3. I can get the amusement park like thrills without paying for the tickets:
Yeah, just have to drive down a gloriously pot holed road and many of the rides in Esselworld will pale in comparison!

4. I get to do shopping at traffic signals:
Toys from China (like the solar powered 'nodding' flower plants that were very popular not so long ago), car accessories, why, even mangoes in season, can be picked up on the way home.

5. I can assuage my guilt of travelling comfortably in a car:
...by giving alms to a beggar. Or, for that matter, propitiate some mysterious, unknown force by giving (alms, hafta, what is it??) to a eunuch.

6. I can admire the beautiful faces and get to learn about all the local politicians and their myriad hangers on, thanks to the ugly posters and banners put up on the road sides and along road dividers. Never mind that sometimes, even the traffic light gets obstructed....but then, how does it matter? I seemed to be the only one following the traffic light anyway, when there is no cop.

7. Get entertained:
Messages behind trucks, comtemplating the true meaning of "Horn OK Please", watching funny habits such as rickshaw drivers (AGAIN?!?) in Ahmedabad, I guess, giving turn indicators using their FEET (it happens only in India!), bikers 'walking' through traffic (when bikers wiggle their way out of traffic slowly I find it funny -it' as if they are 'walking'),......so many myriad ways and means of getting entertained!

These are some of the things that readily come to mind. Let me hit the road now and look for more things to like!

[Simple_car]

Originally Posted by dreadknight5

Yep, I agree with your sentiment. Case and Point is the live example

Dear dreadknight5 sir, thank you for agreeing with my sentiment. I kindly request you to just keep this thread on a positive side. I know of such examples within my own family, but I think we have enough threads on team-bhp to put in those rants. I, for my part rant everyday in the Mumbai traffic thread.
Hope you won't take my comment as an offense, I didn't mean any. Just a simple request.

Originally Posted by Blow Horn Ok

My city can be be called as Cattle City.
Are they at fault? A big NO. Their owners are at fault who consider the entire city as grazing farms for their cattle.

Dear Blow horn Ok sir, I kindly request you to keep this thread on a positive note. It's a sincere request from me. We have enough threads here on this forum where one can rant on these issues. Instead, I would like to hear, whether inspite of the cattle in your city, you enjoy driving in India? Surely, you must have seen some hilarious incidents involving cattle and humans in your city? Do share them here.
I apologize if I have crossed a line.

Originally Posted by subbaramu

.... "Chalta hai...." attitude when back home.

Dear subbaramu sir, again a sincere request from my side, please do keep this thread on a positive note. I agree with your sentiment, but I would like to hear whether inspite of all these, do you enjoy driving here in India? If so, why?
I apologize in advance, if you find my comments offensive.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Buddy.
What you've done for me is the action of a good friend.

Cheers to you too sir, and here's wishing you a healthy and happy life.

Originally Posted by vb-san

Very interesting thread. Appreciate the amount of research to come up with this well-written piece.
But the last point – carelessness, is something which I still detest. I don’t feel anything positive when I see .....I have given my views on this point along with my response to thoma sir

I see this in a different way. I don’t see the chaos...Sir whatever suits you, is always the best. I have decided to take it in a humorous way since my life as it stands now is otherwise dull. Hope to reach your zen like stage as I grow older.

Not fully aligned to this point. With or without speed limits, stick to sane speeds...Your point is valid. Completely agree. I, on my part definitely stick to sane speeds for most part, but in some states, even those sane speeds are illegal. But, I get what you are trying to convey. Will keep in mind during my future road travels

In general, I fully agree on what are trying to convey – avoid negativity and enjoy the time on road

Thank you very much for your kind words.

Originally Posted by thoma

how to take it positively. What thought process you go through, to see those positively? How do you train your mind on that?

And please no sirs here, at least not me

Dear thoma (as per your request),

I fully understand your dilemma. I, too was in the same position just a few months back, when the idea of this thread was seeded in my mind. But for answering your question, I'll have to state the philosophy behind this thread. I have just stated this philosophy in a way which we as petrol-heads on this forum will understand and relate very easily.

Few months back, when standing at a signal, a maruti omni casually came besides me on the leftmost lane. I requested the driver to allow me to go ahead first since I knew if he went first he will scratch my car door. Please do note, he won't suffer any damage since he had one of those bullbars across his headlamps. But as soon as the signal turned green, he just acclerated past me, and left me with a nice big scratch. I was enraged, and I slammed on my accelerator, and blocked him and the entire traffic too. Long story short, I ended with 2 small dents on my door along with a scratch. It wasn't my first road rage, but I noticed that I was getting more intolerant as the days passed by. Here's the link to the car in question: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...automatic.html

That night, I pondered on a question. Should I give up driving? Do note, that this incident was a trigger to a lot of other things going on in my life, not just driving. My love for driving is one of my most treasured passions, superseded by only 2 more things. So, I took a call that night based on a simple philosophy:

"Let others lead small lives, but not you. Let others argue over small things but not you. Let others cry over small hurts, but not you. Let others leave their future in someone else's hands, but not you."
- Jim Rohn
I decided, I want to become a great man. That's it. Once this decision was taken, my life is slowly but steadily becoming a pleasure to deal with. This article, just encompasses this philosophy from the point of view of a driver.

I hope, I have satisfactorily answered your question. Here's wishing you a happy and cheerful life, and may the road rise to meet you

Originally Posted by Diesel_convert

Brilliant thread


Driving in India is never boring, always something to see or to avoid
This has been happening more and more often these days, so things are looking up if you ask me.

+1 sir. It just never ceases to amaze me.

Originally Posted by Arch-Angel

Simple_Car, ...because we have a lot of good things here which many countries lack i.e freedom.

Wholeheartedly agree with you. Cheers!

Originally Posted by urajkumar

... with the owl getting drenched by a moron! The look on the owl face is hilarious! its the same feeling a lot of us go through @ work / roads etc when dealing with other people & I could not stop smiling. Good find!

1. Do you love driving in India? [b]Absolutely yes

Dear urajkumar sir,
You just put in words, my original article. The one you see here has been edited extensively by me and the moderators keeping in mind the rules of this forum.
Hope your love for driving never fades and grows stronger as you age!

Originally Posted by guunbuu

there is never a dull moment on the road.
it includes everything in between and more.

+1 to your thoughts sir. Good to see another person who conforms to my line of thinking.

Originally Posted by longhorn

...For eg as you approach a toll booth, you look at the queue and the types of vehicles on various lanes to pick your lane. Don't be fooled by the length of the queue...

Totally agree with you. I follow the same line of thinking and strategy while negotiating toll booths in Bombay as well.

Originally Posted by JohnyBoy

Simple_car, many thanks for initiating this discussion. I am also tired of hearing the rants and 'badness'

Thank you very much for your kind words sir. Appreciate your thinking and your take on driving here. Thank you once again.

Originally Posted by Maverick5490

As for the 4 points:
1. Do you love driving in India? Absolutely yes
2. What do you love the most about driving in this country? Keeps your senses super active, as there is always something new happening every square km!
3. What has driving here, taught you? Inner Peace! Kungfu Panda Style
4. Feel free to describe some your best memories while driving here: Would be the time spent travelling with my wife listening to good music, keeping each other updated on the happenings, etc!

Thank you for your kind words sir. Happy to see you enjoy your daily drive with your colleagues now. I hope and pray it stays the same in the future as well. Cheers!

Originally Posted by W.A.G.7

Thanks for starting a "different" kind of thread, it made me smile. I also love driving in India, simply because I love driving. In the last 12 years I have learnt to be more patient, drive with a smile, not get into arguments etc. etc!

100% agreed sir. Beautifully explained. I also take this time spent on travelling to some much needed daily introspection.

Originally Posted by arsenal.arun

Its kind of strange,..

Not at all strange sir. I practice the same. Another point which should be put up in the original post. Thank you very much for sharing and here's wishing you a happy drive in the future as well.

Originally Posted by abirnale

The best thing i love about driving in this country is - freedom to drive. From the non-existent roads to the best highways and literally crawling traffic to average 80Km speed on NH4. If you are a responsible drive, all other conditions in this country favor you. And the extent I love highway drive, everyone in my family knows how and why I avoid booking train tickets in advance and come up with creative excuses for not using public transport for long drives! Now with the new addition in the family, we are four and capacity of my car is full, doors shut. Lets drive. So I can claim that every drive of mine is value for money

Thank you for your kind words sir. I follow the same thing as well. I just refuse to travel anywhere without a car. It's another thing that my parents don't listen to me as well, and leave me alone. He he..

A heartfelt thanks to everybody who has and who will post in this thread from me.

Thank you so much,
Simple_car

[Vihari]

[I feel that my earlier post at post #14 is some what out of context. I am sorry if it is. Being a newbie, this happened.

Mods: The post #14 can be deleted or moved to any other relevant thread if any exists. Sorry for the trouble.]

As for Simple_cars questionnaire:

1) I dont love but at the same time I dont hate, driving on Indian Roads.

2) Well, the thought that no one from any part of the world, other than India, can drive with such skills, brings a smile to my lips. The driving skills cover all the aspects, right from the worst roads to worst driving manners (if they can be called manners).

3) Actually I was carried away by this question which is the reason for my earlier post. Driving on the Indian Roads/traffic has taught me one important virtue. that is Empathy. Empathy not limited to any person or group but towards everybody. To empathise with the rash driving Auto wallah, with the Biker, a fellow car driver, is a life saving aspect when it comes to driving. If practiced, it actually percolates into your daily life style and makes so many things which we beg to differ, which we do not like, which are not to our liking - easier to accept.

4) N.A.

5) Once when I was about to park my car in one of the shopping complexes at Secunderabad, one smart alec just swung into the space where I thought of parking and I felt bad, but immediately a loud thud is heard. Both the front tyres of that car, were inside the ditch that was dug for cables but was filled with loose mud. I immediately felt happy for what happened - which was wrong - since later on I realised that I was lucky for missing that mishap and that chap has 'helped' me.

-Sai

[EagleEye]

I am also one of those people who thoroughly enjoy driving in India. Mostly on the highways though, and if the roads are good, nothing like it.
Having spent the better part of my life abroad, I feel that driving in other countries is too routine and too boring. In India you can be guaranteed all sorts of emotions ranging from joy to rage whenever you sit in your car. Better than catching a movie.

In your first post you had mentioned that you are so skilled that you can clear a junction in very little tine without breaking any rules. Pray tell how, so that we can also learn.

[samish_g]

Originally Posted by Simple_car

Dear samish_g sir,
I agree to everything you say. I kindly request you to post only what you 'like' about driving in India.
Please, it is not my intention to hurt anyone, just that I wish this thread remain a little positive. I, for one, too face similar situations everyday of my life. I created this thread only, so that we learn inspite of our troubles.

I apologize, if I have crossed a line.

Thank you for reading,
Simple_car

No offence taken at all.
Your thread really deserves the five star rating it got. Your endeavor of bringing some postives inspite of our daily ordeal is praiseworthy.

[Shiv_1984]

Originally Posted by EagleEye

I am also one of those people who thoroughly enjoy driving in India. Mostly on the highways though, and if the roads are good, nothing like it.
Having spent the better part of my life abroad, I feel that driving in other countries is too routine and too boring. In India you can be guaranteed all sorts of emotions ranging from joy to rage whenever you sit in your car. Better than catching a movie.

In your first post you had mentioned that you are so skilled that you can clear a junction in very little tine without breaking any rules. Pray tell how, so that we can also learn.

100% in agreement with Eagle Eye, i mean look at U.S. I was driving from Mtp, Illinois to Michigan state Univ to meet one of my cousins and it was super boring with nothing interesting en route, your speed limits will be an addendum to the ordeal. Super smooth roads, powerful v6 accord but rest all is not worth a mention.

Where as in India, you have so many diverse experiences, all sorts of activities, livelihoods on roads, Transgenders, those toy sellers are a world in itself. A 150cc Bajaj Auto will drive as on a Track day topping his vehicle with a stolen Skoda logo. Those 100CC motorcycles beat the superbikes by miles when it come to city driving.

Animals specially cows sitting on the middle of the road enjoying the traffic snarls caused by her and the a lady passing passing by suddenly touches her and prays.

All this is completely Indian and will remain Indian forever.

[abirnale]

Originally Posted by Simple_car

Thank you for your kind words sir. I follow the same thing as well. I just refuse to travel anywhere without a car. It's another thing that my parents don't listen to me as well, and leave me alone. He he..

Errr...! Sir? I know I am older than you but Sir? Please don't make me feel my age, I am still as young as you I see that we both joined almost at the same time to this forum and you are all over the forum already! So thank you 'sir' for starting these thoughts.

Hey by the way, yesterday while returning from work at a four road junction where there is no cop or signal we had a signature mess. Having effect of this thread, I dared to hold one side of traffic by saying at the entrance of junction to let other side clear. 2 mins it took. People kept on honking but I felt good as the mess cleared much sooner than expected. Hope no one reports my car sticker sighting as person blocking traffic!

I generally don't do this but just slip through the mess skillfully. But yesterday I felt skills put to a good society use as well So of course credit goes to your thread! Keep it up.

[subbaramu]

Originally Posted by Simple_car

Dear subbaramu sir, again a sincere request from my side, please do keep this thread on a positive note. I agree with your sentiment, but I would like to hear whether in spite of all these, do you enjoy driving here in India? If so, why?
I apologize in advance, if you find my comments offensive.

Simple_car

Agree to your point, taken constructively. Yes, I do like driving in India inspite of all the crazy driving around us. Most importantly, it gives me the patience to watch when others are in a hurry flooring their pedals, but I still catch up with them in the next signal .

In a very short time, I have learnt to watch around for others rather than see the roads.

[Arch-Angel]

On a related note, i hope i don't sound sexist here but the very nature of the incident that happened today morning has made me lose all of the respect i had for drivers of the fairer sex especially on 2 wheelers.Let me narrate what happened:

Today, just like any other day for the past few weeks had been pleasant and as usual, i had hoped to enjoy my drive to work. The road i go through is known to be congested at any time of the day, be it people or the occassional bullock cart and the all too familiar vehicles with wheels. It went of quite normally as well, except that while waiting for the signal to turn green(i have to take a right turn to reach my workplace), this woman who has shades on and a dupatta to add, which was wrapped around her head like a crepe bandage on a sprained ankle, comes in all wobbly and turns sharply toward my ride (and let me add; this turn was for no reason as the traffic was reasonably clear), hit the right side orvm and just moves on like nothing happened. Fortunately, nothing broke(even if it did, i wouldn't argue with a woman lest someone give me a sexual harrassment case with my name in cursive letters). Believe me thats the last thing i do: Argue on roads.


What happens inside a woman's mind is everything but clear to me. I wonder if their sense of decision making tapers off wildly towards the lower ends once they leave their households for work...This, obviously isn't a big deal but the only question is "WHY?". It is not just this incident, rather an unusually frequent number of run-ins with these women on wheels has left me rather surprised with their decision making skills (or rather, the lack of it). The worst part is that prior to this incident i had another female motorist who just had to take a left cut and veered off wildly towards her direction of travel right in front of my car. Believe me, i had seen every single bar of jail in those fleeting moments in what i believed was to be an imminent crash. Luckily the disks saved me from that risk . The woman then proceeded to turn left, stop and give me a look that made me lose all my self esteem and confidence that i had built upon my driving from the last three months. This isn't a rant, but definitely i wonder what women are thinking while they are driving. Maybe, just maybe, they left that milk kettle on the stove before leaving.

[arsenal.arun]

Originally Posted by Arch-Angel

On a related note, i hope i don't sound sexist here but the very nature of the incident that happened today morning has made me lose all of the respect i had for drivers of the fairer sex especially on 2 wheelers.Let me narrate what happened:
=================
This isn't a rant, but definitely i wonder what women are thinking while they are driving. Maybe, just maybe, they left that milk kettle on the stove before leaving.

I think its just a coincidence that the drivers were women...
Come to Gurgaon and I am sure your sentence "What happens inside a woman's mind is everything but clear to me" will change to "What happens inside a human mind is everything but clear to me".