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Social Media Star of The Week: Yash Pise
After three Ubers cancelled on him at 9pm post landing in Gujarat recently, and two others asked him to pay them ₹500 extra just to accept the ride, Yash Pise, 27, the Head of Business at Yuvaa Originals, was glad to just get an Uber driver who agreed to drop him
After three Ubers cancelled on him at 9pm post landing in Gujarat recently, and two others asked him to pay them ₹500 extra just to accept the ride, Yash Pise, 27, the Head of Business at Yuvaa Originals, was glad to just get an Uber driver who agreed to drop him.
The need for fake calls
But then he had an argument with the airport authorities about paying the airport charge, and even tried to get Yash to pay it. The cabbie then zoomed past the airport barricade without paying, driving rashly, not abiding by traffic signals. All while fighting on a personal telephonic call.
And so, Yash did what he’d heard countless female friends tell him they do when they feel unsafe in a cab—he pretended to made calls of his own. “I even called up a relative who lives in Gujarat to let them know I would meet them tomorrow, just to establish that they know I am in the city. The pretend call was to my dad, to establish that he works as a police official. My father actually had a corporate job,” says Yash.
Safety vs privacy
As he got dropped outside his hotel, the male privilege that men usually enjoy when it comes to safety, hit Yash hard. “It’s a strong male privilege that isn’t recognised anywhere. There are women who fight this fear every day when they get into a cab. I felt that fraction of fear for the first time in 28 years. And I’m a big guy. There was a 99 per cent chance that the cabbie wouldn’t have done anything. I felt helpless and recalled all the conversations I’ve had with my women friends over the years. How they share their live location every time just to be safe, and this also leads to no privacy in life. Women have to choose between privacy and safety!,” says Yash, who follows three rules when a female friend is taking a cab/rickshaw alone: Drop them to their ride and ensure the cabbie sees Yash; take a pic of the vehicle; ask the friend to call when they reach loudly enough for the driver to hear it.
His post got a lot of responses: Concerned messages from women asking him if he was okay; and men asking him for details of the incident out of curiosity.
“Take actionable steps—report the issues, use platforms to start conversations about it. Don’t just let it go so that people are aware,” says Yash. Like his office, which tied up with a taxi agency after the incident to ensure that people travelling to other cities for work, don’t end up with an unknown cabbie. “And, instead of a male taking stand, ask your female friend if there is something you can do. Because women don’t need male protectors around them,” concludes Yash, who also reported to Uber.
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From HT Brunch, July 30, 2022
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