First drive on the Mahindra Thar

 

India, A million mutinees now by V. S. Naipul

A common thread to be observed about anything you want to read and watch about India is that the sources are from people outside India. It is like we Indians lack the ability to look inward. We are so used to see the other state, the other country, the other city. We know so less about ourselves, our locality, our country but somehow we seem to know a great deal about he "other". It is a shocking and fascinating thing. So when Naipul came to India, he saw what we ourselves dont want to see. He saw that we dont want to see. He saw a million mutinees for which the people opened up. There are other trillions which people did not open about. There were several of his mutinees he couldn't prod further because people wouldn't. They wanted him to leave it as it is. If knowing about a country is knowing about its extremes, then to know India, you should be reading this. Indians should read this book. Every Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist & the other plethora of unscientific societies should read this book. It is like a mirror held up to them. People visiting India should read this book. They know the extremes and they know that safe zone now. India is easy to travel an move about in that safe zone.

I loved the book. It is well written. It is well researched. And majority of the people he has talked to are real people and somehow he has made them comfortable to talk about things which people dont talk in their normal sense of mind. It is not a secret. It is just that we dont want to talk about it. He has understood that modern India as it stands today would have been a million pieces if not for the modern advent and administration of the British. But at the same time he has laid bare the brutality, unjustness, usurping, Plundering, Caste politics, Famines and many other synonyms related to these words. What I liked about his choice of interviewees is their innate purity. Everyone wants to be good. Every one wants to do good. But they are result of circumstances. Circumstances are staged by one group and the results spread across the community creating chasms between individuals. These chasms then end up in physical barriers. These then extend to fighting for rights. This then gives rise to leaders, sects, followers and what not.

I loved the way the history seamlessly gels with the present in Naipul's India. The transition from historical perspective to the present is one of the best I have read in any book. It is like India itself where the old co-exists with the modern seamlessly. I love this flow. It just shows how beautifully the author has envisioned India in his travel. Once he catches a thread, on a majority of cases he has followed it on his own because he was not ready to be biassed. This though is awesome. Once he sees that a particular individual is pushing certain things down his throat, he will take only what he thinks applies and then travels around to confirm or negate it with completely unknown individuals.

When you talk about India, foreign nationals and the commercial media is bemused by the mystic rather than the core India. They are also interested in the destitute. So here again, the author has added sufficient amount of both these aspects. But I did not mind much since he tries to juxtapose the mystic, the destitution, the middle class, the affluent class, the billionaires in a complete round up. So if any reader is expecting just "slumdog millionaire" he will be disappointing. This is much more. The narrative is not linear, and I liked that style of writing. It is like when you start to have a preset image of India, he will stop you and take you on a different ride. Only this time, your thoughts change to something else and when you come back to the same topic, you no longer have that previous notion.

The book is thoroughly entertaining and bold in certain aspects. The bold aspects are cleverly hidden and is available only to the more interested and demanding reader. It is not a book to finish in one sitting. It has to be savored. It has to be understood. Ultimately the author is happy with how India has turned out. The last few pages become dull after so much action in the majority of the portion. It appeared as thought the author was finished. He was tired and he couldnt find anything more interesting. And one more noticeable thing is the coverage of south India. Normally majority of the authors stop at the middle and the northern part of India and dont look south. But the author here has spent sufficient amount of time in the south also. There is good work on periyar of Tamilnadu and the wodeyars of Karnataka. All in all, the book is a testament to the never die spirit of India.

Finally caught up with "Catch 22"

For the past many years I always wanted to read catch 22. Somehow I was thinking the book will not live up to its hype. Why were my thoughts like this I cant tell because, I don't know. Now, why am I not knowing the reason? Why is that i was not reasonable in taking up this book and start reading. Why couldn't I find a reason to read the book. Why did any other give me a reason for reading it or for not reading it. I don't know the reason why I left this book alone. Why is reasoning so hard. For the want of a reason I did not take up this book for reading. I wanted to read this book but wanted a reason, which again was not coming by. Oh, whatever....

To start with, I came across a new style of writing and was just thinking why others had not copied the style. The style is unique. The chapters are named after key characters. Every chapter describes the character in detail with an introduction/brief to the next character. In the mean time the story is taking its course. I fell in love with the style immediately. The words describing the harsh situations become "harsher". All the characters are crazy. Seeing the characters and comparing with present ones and the past ones, I thought there is no human in the world who is sane. The sanest person is the most insane. I don't know how sanity and the other side are related but they are definitely related. Do I know how they are related, I don't know. Now, don't get me on the reason for me not knowing the difference and I dare not ask you.

The characters are simple, straight forward and crazy. The situations are crazy. If you are crazy enough you can see the funny side of it. If you are sane, you will immediately throw the book into a parallel universe. Uh. Oh, you don't believe in parallel universe. You are not crazy enough. Stop reading right here, right now. And again, don't ask me the reason for it. You are not crazy enough. Am i crazy enough. Dont ask me about it. The combat sequences are explained beautifully. You definitely enter the war field. You suddenly know that flying a fighter aircraft is not for the faint heart. With nowhere to go and nobody to talk when communications are cut, it is a flying coffin. The dangers of flying a war plane are depicted beautifully. I don't think the author has left any use case.

The author intervenes in the novel at all times throughout the novel in the way of the protagonist. I liked the name of the protagonist. How he came about that name would be very interesting. To reason out this with the author would be very interesting. We are again back at reasoning. What is it about this word when we are talking all about craziness and lunacy. The protagonist is etched out beautifully and his relationship or its lack off, is nicely depicted. I many times thought that the author was not happy the character is coming up and he puts in lots of hyper which he himself would have dreamt of. But the way the author holds all the other characters with the main character as the binder is awesome.

It has been one hell of crazy &(*)(_(%% ride. I have curtailed myself from using many number of explicits. Why, Because I don't have the freedom, the author had. Why, This is not a book. It is about a book. So, how does the author get all the freedom he likes while we readers have to be careful. I am trying to reason out ........

First 500 Kms on a Royal Enfield Classic chrome 500

1. The weight is well balanced with a very low CG
2. The seat height is OK. Can be reduced, if  possible with foot rests placed a little ahead, Might be a design disaster but can be tried?
3. The handle bar should be rotated a bit towards the driver's side to allow a little slack in the arms. On sitting at the sweet position on the front seat, the arms are fully stretched out.
4. Vehicle steering lock on the side adds to the retro feel of the bike. I remember the same setup on my old bicycle.
5. The look of the tires is good and road grip is good on asphalted roads(Not yet driven on any muddy roads)
6. The cables positioning and routing can be looked into. They are too naked to my liking. Yes it does add to the retro look, but this is one aspect which can be given a modern touch
7. The front brakes are good. The rear brake's travel is too high(To be reduce by adjusting). The seat height, the front foot rest pedal and the brake lever travel and positioning do not match. The sitting posture is totally disturbed when I try to brake hard as I have to move forward on my seat.
8. Waiting for fuel pump to start, on every ignition switch off and start, is a negative in heavy traffic. Be ready for a lot of honking if you wait for the last second before turning on the ignition key.
9. The feel you get the moment you turn the throttle to put the traffic behind you is in-expressible.
10. The sound of he horn is appropriate though I have used it only once in the first 500 Kms.
11. Mileage is approx 30 Km/litre driven only in city conditions(smooth rides in the morning with heavy traffic driving in the evening)
12. Have a good watch with vibration resistance. Be careful with your smart watches.
13. Nothing can beat the comfort of an open face helmet on a bullet. Yes lots of dust attack your face, but, a pair of aviators can be the ultimate style statement, which will also protect your eyes(Go for glasses which can be used both in the day and night). Couple these two accessories with a good cotton jacket(Not the ones they sell at RE with all the nylon nets and all, you are not a formula 1 racer, well if you are then you are on the wrong blog...he he...) and of course good pair of boots(Again don't overdo it), Liberation.........
14. The petrol reserve indicator is finicky. It gets switched on at occasional intervals when you brake all of a sudden which makes all the fuel in the tank to move to one side. It is a good indicator when your bike is exactly on a horizontal surface. Whatever be careful with the quantity of fuel and the distance you have travelled. Better to keep a record.
15. The default lengthy muffler is good, but, I am a fan of the swept back silencer(Which is still the photo of the classic 500 on the official website)
16. The rear view mirrors, my God, are a tragedy. They vibrate like crazy. In the night, a two wheeler behind you will appear like a four wheeler.
17. The engine and the muffler heats up quite quick. Be careful with your leg wear.
18. PLEASE dont change the default mufflers. The city is already polluted with sound and exhaust, please don't add to it. RIDE the bullet, don't SHOW it.
19. No grip bar on the right. Very bad design considering Indian women's pillion etiquette.
20. No hook for hanging a cover or a bag. It is criminal to not provide one. All the bikes have one.
21. Remember the tires are not tubeless ones.
22. Don't give it for a wash to your local cleaning fellow, There is a great possibility that you might damage few wires.

My experiences while buying the Mahindra scorpio SLE

Since the day, Mahindra put up the advertisement of the Scorpio brand, I was hooked to the vehicle. Whenever it passed me it would definitely get a lookup. What were the factors for my fascination for this vehicle?
1. Awesome bullish looks
2. Amount of space in the cabin
3. Various seating arrangements, that too, factory fitted
4. The name of the car is spot on.
5. Horse powers at our disposal
6. Indian car
7. The longevity of the brand. It has never gone out of style
8. The cost, Simply perfect
9. No other SUV in the segment



                   Called Anant cars and was given an option of the test drive at my convenience. The car for the test drive was a fully loaded vlx with captain seats. The first and primary requirement was to check the park ability of the vehicle in the front of my house. I just requested the driver to park in the space provided. It is a space between a tree and the wall of our house. The tree is not to be disturbed. I was shocked that the car could be parked. I was parking a Maruti swift in the same place. But, I thought the driver was more elegant in parking. I did not take the risk of parking it and I don't think the driver would have allowed me to try with the test vehicle. Let us see how I will do in the parking test once I take the delivery of my car.

                 Once the parking issue has been resolved, the next thing was the amount of air/space in the vehicle. My son was absolutely elated with the amount of space in the car. He was used to sitting in one single position in my swift. Here, because of the captain seat layout, you can literally walk throughout the length of the car. The captain seats are very comfortable. It is like having 4 driver seats in the car. The hand rests on the seats add to the comfort feel. Once you feel tired of sitting it is time to have a nap on the fixed third row seat. All the baggage can be put up at the back of the third row or important ones can be accommodated in the area between the captain seats. The seating position of both the drivers and passengers are optimally high. Provides a clear view of the road. The drive was comfortable and the horse powers are just waiting to be utilized. The road presence is next only to the fortuner.

Once the test drive was over, the captain seat configuration was chosen. Now to plan for the finances

                Planning for the finances took a month. Then called the sales rep for booking the car. A shock awaited me. The scorpio SLE is not available with the captain seat configuration, bummer. I was completely bogged down with this piece of information. Immediately my mind started thinking about the second hand car market and to buy a second hand vlx version. But then, the sales rep called some people in his showroom and told that the configuration can be setup once the car arrives at the showroom and it will be done by the service team right here. I did not want to go into details about how this will be done. So, the bottom line is that you can get an SLE with captain seats if you want one. Now, People at Anant cars, on Mysore road are sitting ducks. They could not answer a simple question related to the seating arrangements. They were not clear whether the captain seats can be slid along the length of the vehicle so as to adjust the leg room on the second row.

                  It was now time for accessories. My first requirement was the roof mounted blower. Here the sales rep appraised me that my seat configuration does not require this accessory since there is a gap in the second row and the AC vents are ample enough. I saw the logic in this and removed the accessory from my list. I would suggest this accessory for anybody going for the 8 seater version. It is required. Anyhow, just for information I asked him the cost and wait............. INR 30K approx. OMG...........

                   Next came the seat covers. Genuine leather was out of budget, so out of question. I settled for fake leather which was in my swift and is still going strong after 5 years. Color of the seats will definitely be beige based and still have not decided about going for two tone or a single color. Anyhow, color department is headed by wifey, so I will not discuss more about it. Seat covers with a millimetre of foam was selected. The design had lot of diamonds in the back support portion which provided air gaps. And of course, it is gsport.

                   I have been accused of creating imbalance in my music system on my swift. I had Blaukpunkt headset and JVC speakers. They were out of sync. High end music processor, Lowest end speaker setup. This time, I told the sales rep that I want a balanced, middle of the road combo of head unit and matching its capability speakers. I am not interested in the fancy lights, touchscreens and the 2 DINs. They are too flashy and not worth the money in these days of cheap android tablets. So the HU selected was PIONEER 4690-BT. It has front aux-in, front USB, Bluetooth with profiles for music playback and Phone calls. Other options available are MTP connectivity/Ipod Iphone connectivity, which in my opinion is a joke.

                Just imagine browsing the gigantic collection one has on the iphones/androids throgh the arcane interface of the HU(Such a wastage of money for these options). Speakers are JBL CS63SI for the front and JBL GT949 for the rear. WIth scorpio we have issues regarding the placing of speakers. The front speakers are all right. They go into the front doors. Trouble start with the other two speakers. The options available are to place the two speakers individually in wooden housing in the luggage area OR place the speakers in the rear door. Since the luggage area is minimal in majority of the 7 or 8 seaters. It was decided to put the other speakers within the rear door. But if the rear is slush with luggage, I dont know what will be the speaker output.

                 The next accessory is the Rain visor. This will cover the sides of the windows allowing the occupants to open the glass a little during rainy days. The visors create a problem if it is put for the rear window also. The rear window opens "out". It is not of the sliding type. This opening out of the window is obstructed if a rain visor is put for the rear window also. So, ruled against it. It was chosen only for the front and the middle doors.

              Being a Mechanical Engineer, a NO-NO for bull bars. The bullbars nullify the impact absorption capability of the vehicle. People should know, they are more safe if the vehicle completely crumples in the front portion during any accident. This shows that the impact of the accident has been absorbed by the crumple zone structure. The bull bar does not absorb any of the shocks and are directly transferred to the inmates of the vehicle, hurting them more.

             Now comes an accessory which is going to take everybody by surprise. The decal sticker on the vlx. The race chequered flag inspired graphics. Wifey was adamant and particularly wanted that on our SLE. The cost, wait for it................. is INR 7k. Well, that was the only demand from wifeys side, so ,it had to be met.

           Now, comes the Car Loan portion. I was very clear in my mind that the loan would be from a Nationalized bank and the same was conveyed to the sales team.

1. CIBIL score. This will be used by the bank to know your creditability.
2. If your CIBIL score is bad be ready with the documents for both husband and wife.
3. Normally loan will be disbursed with the capability of the applicant only, if there is a good cibil score otherwise, husband and wife will be made joint applicants. Better to be ready with documents of both.
4. Let us see what were the documents given
a. Form 16 for the last 2 years
b. IT returns for the last 2 years
c. 6 months bank statement
d. 3 months pay slips
e. Address proof
f. ID proof
g. 7 - 10 photographs
h. ID of your present profession(Both for loan and for availing corporate discounts)
i. If u have any other loan
i1. If completed, a certificate from the bank of loan closure
i2. If loan still in force, a loan statement, which shows ur monthly loan payments with loan account number for every transaction.

                   Once the loan is sanctioned you will be hunted down by the sales people to complete the sale. The salesman visited my home in the evening of my loan disbursal and requested me to pay up the remaining amount. I was ready with the amount. The amount was counted and ........... wait for it.......... He has not bought any book or slip to acknowledge the amount. A frenzy of phone calls started. Providing me with personal guarantees, this and that and this........... The ordeal went on for 2 hours. During this time I contacted ICICI for getting a quote. In 10 minutes flat I got a quote which was 12K less. So, I showed the chat history to the sales guy and told him that I would buy insurance from him if they bettered this deal. If not I want the Engine number and the chasis number. In the mean time all the permutations and combinations were tried and then, they decided that they would get me a receipt at another showroom approx 10Kms from my house on the busy mysore road. At night 8PM I was requested to accompany the sales guy for paying the remaining amount at this showroom. The sales guy had bought a verito. In peak hour traffic we went to the showroom where there were nobody except the cashier waiting only for us. We completed the transaction and headed back. The ordeal took 1.5 hrs.

                 Next day, ICICI bombarded me with phone calls for insurance. I again called the sales guy to give me Engine and chasis number. No reply uptil 3.00PM. I had committed to the ICICI guy at 3.00 PM. Since I was not getting any response I called the senior sales guy. No reply. Continuous 5-6 rings. He shutdown his phone(And this from somebody who told that he can be contacted until the lifetime of my vehicle, Sales strategy have not changed much, have they. In production we under commit and over deliver. But I think the sales function is still traditional). Now, I was a worried man. I remembered that I had got a call from one more person making a similar claim to the senior sales person. 4 calls no reply. After 5 minutes got a call. I went all guns blazing on him. Then calmed down knowing that he is bed ridden. From his bed, this guy got the data in 5 minutes and I received an SMS. Kudos to him. In the meantime the insurance team in the showroom could not match the quote I received. That too, the insurance provider was the same in both the cases. Came home completed the insurance formalities online aided by the ICICI guy over phone and chat. Immediately the policy was sent to my mail-id. There ends my tryst with insurance.

                While studying the handout given to me during the time of booking, I saw that the insurance is a document which is to be provide to the RTO for the registration process. Immediately mailed the soft copy of the insurance to the sales person.

The discounts given out to me
1. Extended warranty for two years worth 15,169/-
2. Cash discount of INR 7,500/-
3. Corporate discount(Depending on your profession)
4. Free floor mats
5. Free Idol
6. Free perfume
7. Free mudflaps

                 All this with Mahindra and Mahindra going gaga over their website shouting on the top of their voice that there is a discount of upto INR 60,000/-. The website does not tell anything regarding the breakup of the discounts. So, it is practically impossible to argue with the showrooms. Anything is asked you will be told that it is not for this model. So, the "upto 60,000" is a myth. Whatever, take qoutes from all the dealers to find out about this.

                 Coming to buying an insurance, you have to be pretty careful here. You definitely can save money upto 13K. To check the prices of insurance for new vehicles on various insurance providers, you need the following data
1. Demographic data (Name, address, age............)
2. No claim bonus certificate. If you already own a car in your name. If in your policy document the NCB is mentioned then that itself is the NCB certificate. Otherwise mail your insurance provider for the same.
3. RTO where the vehicle is to be registered
4. Ex-showroom price
5. Engine number(full and detailed)
6. Chasis number(full and detailed)
7. Car make and model
8. Nominee demographics
9. Date of you taking the ownership of the vehicle from the showroom

               The option of captain seats is turning out to be colossal chapter. My sales rep is telling me that he is having a heck of a time convincing his GM regarding this. He asked the details of my previous car. He told it was required to convince his GM.

                   The day has come and the sales person called me and told that the car would be ready in the evening. I am not somebody who will go into the details of the vehicles. I just want them to work. Did a visual inspection. The seat covers were folded in the most un-professional way as I had expected. The arm rest on one of the captain seat hung down instead of being horizontal. It was repaired nominally. Checked out the audio system and seemed to work good. Now started the saga of signatures. The salesman don't know much about the car. He tried to explain what he knew. But, i saw that he was failing terribly. Everything was signed. I asked him when I would get the RC smart card. He told it would take 40 days and it would be dispatched to my address. I asked him a document for extended warranty. Lo and behold, there started the great Indian rope trick. When the senior salesman came to my house I just told him to spell out his offer. What he did was held a sheet of paper and put the Total price of the vehicle on the top. Below he put a minus sign across the cost for extended warranty and a cash discount. He showed me the calculation. I thought that the total offer from him is a free 2 year extended warranty and the cash discount. On the delivery day, the salesman told that the offer was given to me just subtracting the extd warranty. This he did to reduce the cash burden on me.

My question to him was
Did you make me an offer to decide whether I wanted extd warranty or not?
No. He did not make me an offer.

I had taken parker pens as gift in the increasing order of costs based on the responses from the three salesmen. After this ordeal, Nobody in the family was agreeing to give the gifts. An eye for an eye will make everyone blind. So, handed over the gifts to the junior most salesman and thanked him for everything.

So, I have been hoodwinked. So, Please be clear with every rupee you are dealing during the discussion. Ask him to write it down explicitly.

The usual formalities were completed. I drove the vehicle to a temple near my house. It was a new experience all together. The drive is majestic. The gear knob vibrates like crazy.

Anant cars front office called for taking feedback regarding the experience. Wifey responded with exactly whatever happened. The ordeal at delivery time was taken as a complaint. So, the salesmen called me up and visited my house. But, they re-iterated whatever they were telling adding this might impede the junior's growth. So, had to give a response favorable to the salesmen.