Meter Jam: The brave new face of Youngistan!

From time immemorial, people are duped by taxi drivers near railway stations; people are often inconvenienced because of strikes by the “unions“; People are often “taken for a ride” by auto-wallahs! We, the people of India won’t be held at ransom any more. Meter Jam is here!

In less than 2 weeks, the movement has garnered support from more than 40,000 people, most of them youngsters giving a new meaning to a bold, confident, emerging India. Forty thousand people have once again demonstrated the power of social networking media by getting together to teach the taxi and auto drivers a lesson.

However, a few people have questioned the relevance of the movement itself. To demonstrate the importance of this movement is, we present the story of “the dude”, our protagonist, a typical city dude who takes his girlfriend “the babe” for a movie on a typical Saturday evening.

There are no single screens in big cities anymore, so the dude has to go to a multiplex. As we know, multiplexes on tax holidays double their prices on weekends. The dude has to pay Rs. 250 for a stupid Akshay Kumar flick! The dude does not complain for he cannot afford to look cheap when the babe is around.

What is movie without popcorn? The babe likes it caramel flavored, the dude prefers it salted. Like a perfect couple, they buy a mixed tub. It costs 150 rupees! But dude is a smart dude, he takes a combo pack and saves 49 bucks \m/. After munching popcorn for two hours, the babe feels thirsty. The coke does not quench her thirst. The babe needs some water. Luckily, water is sold for just Rs. 30 in small airline sized bottles! The babe finds the bottle cute and the dude buys it for her.

Movie is always followed by dinner. The babe is very self-conscious about her body. She makes it a point to eat healthy. The dude being the city dude he is; knows that subway is healthy. Thus the dude and the babe decide to eat a piece of cold bread filled with uncooked vegetables popularly sold as a “sub” for Rs. 180. It tastes a little bland, so they add a little mustard, extra cheese, extra mayo accompanied by a large coke and a combo cookie (all in the name of “healthy” eating!). Another combo offer, smart dude spends Rs 500 to save 40 rupees more!

It is late and the dude has to drop the babe at her hostel. Dude does not have a bike. So the dude and the babe hire an auto-rickshaw. It is only 10:45 PM but the evil auto-wallah asks for night charge! The evil auto-wallah also has a faulty meter! But there is no way for the dude to know beforehand.

The babe is an Indian babe; she never pays for the auto! The auto-wallah asks 74 rupees for what should have been only 47 rupees. For the first time since evening, the dude realizes he is being ripped off! The dude has been “taken for a ride”. The dude knows it is never cheap to argue with an auto-wallah. Dude is now brave dude. Brave dude puts his foot down and stands up against evil people who overprice their product. The dude realizes he is being exploited only if the rippers are poorer than the rippees!

“It’s not about the 20 bucks”, the dude exclaims, “It’s about principles!” The babe is impressed. The auto-wallah is not! Soon the battle ensues. Ten minutes into the verbal battle, the evil auto-wallah emerges victorious! The dude is forced to pay 70 rupees. The dude is duped. The dude is enraged. The dude has had enough. The dude fights back. The dude seeks vengeance!

The dude has figured out a way to teach all the auto-wallahs and taxi drivers a lesson for exploiting people. And thus, Meter Jam was born. He urged everyone to boycott all taxis and autos on August 12th. As promised, the dude did not go out that day – he just ordered pizza and coke. Needless to say, it was also a combo pack and smart dude saved Rs. 59!

Moral of the story: the dude is an asshole!