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The nicest thing about this video is that it’s just 10 seconds long, so it doesn’t take ages to load! Have a laugh at the crazy denouement! I’m not sure whether it just happened accidentally or it was planned! Some people think it’s fake – a video that was mixed on something like Sony Vegas Pro. What do you think? Whatever it was, the end result is hilarious!
© Sosha Srinivasan
By Jove! Or should I say “B(u)y Zeus!”?!
We’ve seen it all… First it was “definitely male”, followed by unbridled “Passion” and open “Ambition”. I expected liberation from the name games Indian 2-wheeler manufacturers play, but had to be content with “Libero”. Finally, we were expected to take a “Shine” to a recent offering!
Last month my husband literally took the “Heat” – bought the latest 125 cc bike from the Suzuki stable – I lost no time in teasing him mercilessly about being in the hot seat – enough to get him hot under the collar – I backed off when I thought I saw steam emanating from his ears!
But “Wind”, I think, takes the cake. The producer of the mobike obviously hasn’t thought of the other connotations of the word. And if it weren’t enough, tacking the number 125 onto it! A 125 mph gale force wind? Breaking – er – news?!
© Sosha Srinivasan
Wearing a helmet wasn’t as bad as I’d expected, except on our Indian dog days (“agni nakshatram” in local parlance – literally translated as “fire star” – 4th May to 29th May this year) when the peak temperatures remain in the 40s. The biggest advantage (other than the safety factor, of course) is that I can wear my contacts safely behind the visor.
The helmet rule - or rather misrule in this case – was implemented with well over 90% observance of the law – for exactly two days . The state government bowed to pressure and relaxed the law for women and children riding pillion (as if their skulls are somehow shockproof). A week later, those driving are also doffing them – the police look the other way, and the issue has descended to the level of a farce. My husband continues to wear his.
I resent the implication that a woman’s life is worth less than that of a man and have decided to continue to wear a helmet as a matter of principle and as a show of protest. But many women have dumped theirs – sacrificing equality and safety on the altar of comfort and convenience. This, in the land of the Mahabharat in which Gandhari was said to have blindfolded herself on marrying the blind king Dhritirashtra. That the intention was creditable if slightly misplaced is another matter altogether (I would have rather she had retained her sight and been his eyes) But if she could give up vision for a lifetime, cannot modern woman share her husband’s discomfort over what are, after all, short rides?
It isn’t over yet. A local lawyer has sent a notice to the Director General of Police, threatening to initiate contempt proceedings for not implementing the law.
© Sosha Srinivasan
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