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Falling in a Ditch by Sanjay Gupta

I was in my vehicle – a two-wheel drive Mahindra Skorpio – and using my GPS system to navigate the backroads of the South Maharashtran Coast. The lady’s voice on the GPS sent me onto a dirt road. It was fine at first, but then the road started getting muddier and muddier, and more and more treacherous. Unfortunately, at one side of the road was a dangerous cliff. Soon, my tires were completely stuck, and the car wouldn’t move. Then the rain started, and the sun was going down quickly. I looked at my cell phone, and saw there was no signal. I didn’t know what to do. Heavy rain. No phone. Darkness. A disabled car. I tried to start the car again, but it wouldn’t budge, the back tires revolving furiously in the mud. As my panic grew, out of the brush appeared a posse of Maharashtran saviours, six men who put themselves to work finding large stones to place under the wheels as leverage to get the car moving. After about 15 minutes, they succeeded! I wanted to pay them something for their kindness, but knew that was out of the question, as they might be insulted. Instead, I smiled and thanked them, and it was clear no more was required. Great guys! Only in India!

By Sanjay Gupta

 

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