Comedy of errors

Nolan Pinto talks about his long drive to Mysore on a dark cloudy night

What could happen on a drive back home on a normal night in the city, a distance of 140 kms to be covered in two and a half hours? Good clean, straight road, with a few speed breakers. And on a decent night in Bangalore, the roads are near empty and the weather is just right for a long drive.u00a0



A perfect drive one would say, but one never knows. I sat behind the wheels in my Indica Xeta and began my drive from Bangalore to Mysore. It was my first drive on this road. I do drive lots in Mysore but then again, there is not much traffic over there when compared to Bangalore. Getting permission from my mom was a daunting task, which was achieved after much pleading and debating. The day was Thursday and I had work till about ten thirty in the evening. My brother had the car till then and I had absolutely no idea what I was getting into. When I did manage to speak to him, I had requested that my mobile charger be dumped in the car to which he readily agreed, as my phone was almost running out.

I was filled with anticipation; a feeling one gets when one is young and probably meeting a girl for the first time.
Wow, I get to drive on a long journey with nobody to tell me if I am driving fast or slow or if the music is too loud or soft or even the taste of my music. I kept glancing at my watch on my office desk, and the moment it started to get dark, I was just hoping the time would fly by quickly. Finally, time to leave the work place and head to my car. My brother had parked it at his work place and was waiting for me there. I reached at 11.15 and what do I see, the shiny red all turned brown. I was stunned. He looked at me and said, "I cleaned it, but it rained." Just fantastic, I thought, I get to drive a dusty car, looked like lady luck was not in my favour. But I took it in my stride and the moment I was about to take off, my brother told me that one of the rear wheels was flat and he had fixed a spare. I usually do not drive without a spare but this time, I decided to go ahead.

I had just driven for half an hour and I could feel the car shaking. I stopped and checked to see if the tyre was fine, but it was short of air, nothing bad but just that it needed some air. So, I proceeded and tried searching for petrol bunks to fill air. To my dismay, either they were closed or the ones opened, were not filling air at that time of the night. There was no other option but to go on. Half way through the journey, with no shops open and no spare wheels, my car tyre began to lose more and more air. I just drove as fast as I could, at times touching 100 kmph, which is very dangerous. To my horror, the weather played spoilsport. All of a sudden, it began to blow and then it began to drizzle again. And as luck would have it, it poured and with a flat tyre, the car was swirling on the road. It took half an hour for the rains to stop and by that time, I was only left but to wonder, what next.

My car badly needed rest, but I had to pull on. So, I didn't give up. I could hear the engine groan in anger at me for doing what I was doing. Now, amidst all this, I failed to check the fuel gauge. The fuel was nearly empty and there was not a single petrol bunk in sight. Twenty minutes later, I find one open, but they had only speed petrol. As beggars are really not choosers, I saw myself spending the money withdrawn for the journey in the noon and was left with just Rs 200 on me. But I had no way but to spend it on the fuel to reach my destination.
Back on the journey, I could now get a slight burnt smell. The tyre tube was fuming and I had no clue what to do about it.

I reached the outer ring road of Mysore and now the rim began to touch the ground. I could not take any more chances, so I parked the car in the dead of the night at the side of the road. I tried calling the helpline number in case of a breakdown, but the mobile was switched off. I got off the car, locked it and checked if I did that five to six times before I proceeded walking on this dark road. Not a soul awake, I couldn't even hear birds chirping or the sound of crickets. It was completely still and scary. I walked a large distance and reached a signal junction. But I did not panic. I knew a person who used to work for us earlier, did some odd jobs and now drives an auto rickshaw. I had his number, so I decided to call him knowing pretty well that he would fetch me in an auto. Well, my mobile phone sometimes records a number twice for the same name, so I dialed one and there was no reply from the other end. I did not bother to check the other!! What horrible luck again? One lone auto comes by and I flag him down. He demanded Rs 200 and I had no option but to give in. What else could I do at 2.30 in the morning?

I reach home haggard. I did not know whether to be angry or just smile at what happened. I had no spare tyres left, had another flat tyre, was short of cash, called a wrong number to get help and was drenched with the heavy rains on the way. I've learnt my lesson and will always be prepared for the unexpected.