London’s black cabs or ‘hackney carriages’ boasted about being the best cab service in the world. Every driver was tested not only for his knowledge of London but also subjected to character tests! The old cabs, however, are failing character tests to newer models. The New York trademark checker cabs, made famous by the corruption fighting cab driver played by Robert De Niro, turned off its meter for the final time on July 27, 1999. Many New Yorkers will say Manhattan hasn’t been the same since. And yet, (with apologies to Shakespeare), “All taxis young, all taxis must, Consign to Thee and come to dust.” Then there is the Mumbai cab; an austere blend of the London-Black and the Yankee-Yellow. One could never paint the picture of the city without dabbing in the ‘Fiat Premier Padmini’. Trapped between the purpose of its existence and its existence itself, in the true tradition of a Himalayan sage, it arrogantly denies death.
“Yeh Taxi hai, Pajero nahi!” Nana Patekar’s delivery shadowed the lingering subject with humour, but the truth behind it is eminent. The newest Premier Padmini is over 10 years old and has outlived its utility. Was the taxi meant to be an attraction for the nostalgic? Or was the purpose of its existence solely cheap, convenient and safe public transport? Pushing it further, does the symbolism justify it being a threat to occupants and pedestrians, not to mention the ecology?
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