The art of driving in Mumbai- Part I

Tags

Accident, adrenaline spurts, car, driving, Matiz, Mumbai, Nirvana, owner, patience, peace, road rage

OK, I admit it is a nightmare. It escalates blood pressure, boils blood, creates stomach ulcers, gives visions of bloody murder.

I am now trying to achieve Nirvana while driving. Here are my pointers.

1. Start early. Nothing like those extra 15 minutes to soothe fragile nerves.

2. Dont make it a competition between that I-have-a-deathwish taxidriver and the Why-the-hell-do-girls-drive testosterone bravados. In my early nervous stints at the wheel (and even now in unexplainable spurts of adrenaline), I do press on the accelerator.

If you cannot control the competitive urge, make it a different type of competition. I pat myself on the back and say “I won’’”, if I do not give in to that adrenaline surge, if I ease on the accelerator and allow the idiot to overtake.

Those 5 seconds honestly make no difference. Invariably, we end up side to side(or bumper-to-bumper) at the next red signal!

3. Listen to fabulous music. It is the magic elixir to shorten and sweeten any journey.

4. Anticipate the sadistic tendencies of truck and taxi drivers. They almost always turn left after giving a right indicator, take a U-turn if the parking lights are blinking and veer into your lane with no intention of acknowledging ur existence.

5. Remember, you always appreciate patience in the driver behind you; but never in the driver ahead of you.

6. Indicators are genuinely meant to replace horns (in daytime). So dont use them as synonyms.

7. Never admire another bigger, better, newer model. Just like you wont admire a younger, slimmer, prettier girl in the presence of ur current one.