Amritsar Calling: When on the road, Ambarsaris like to play Russian Roulette

Years ago, a delightful German lady visited us. A couple of rides around town and she exclaimed, “Why does everyone on wheels and on foot aim for one another and swerve only at the last moment?”. All I could say was that we were experts in the art of deception and last-minute avoidance. Perhaps foolhardy as well. The guest, Frauke, was sure that despite the claims by the communists, the Russian Roulette was actually invented in Amritsar and played out on the roads every minute.

As we laughed at her observation, I reduced speed consciously, and secretly shared with her that God lived in India, mostly in this divine city. Therefore, although chaos defined our traffic sense, our accident ratios were tolerable. It took her three days to be able to sit back in her seat and not chew her nails while on the road. By that time, she was ready to depart with the conviction that providence did ensure our persistent existence against all odds.