Bengaluru woman flags ‘cellphone addiction’ after drivers stay on calls throughout auto rides: ‘Everyone is on phone’

Manasa Manjunath shared that drivers spoke on the phone during the entire auto rides, calling it a sign of cellphone addiction.

An automotive engineer from Bengaluru has raised concerns about what she calls a growing “cellphone addiction” in the country after noticing a pattern during her recent auto rickshaw rides.

Manjunath shared that the experience left her surprised and concerned. (Pexels/Representational Image)

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Manasa Manjunath said every auto driver she travelled with this week spent the entire ride talking on the phone, sparking a wider discussion online about people being constantly glued to their devices.

“I’ve taken 4 auto rides this week. All between 15-25 mins. Every auto driver has been on the phone non-stop for every single minute of every ride,” the caption of the post reads.

Concern over rising phone addiction:

Manjunath shared that the experience left her surprised and concerned. She wrote that the drivers were on the phone “non-stop for every single minute of every ride”.

Her observation did not stop with auto rides. She added that similar behaviour can be seen in many everyday places. According to her post, people working in stores, salons, and shops are also frequently busy on their phones instead of focusing on their work.

“It’s the same in stores, salons, shops,… Everyone is busy on their phones instead of doing work. We have a serious cellphone addiction problem in our country,” the post adds.

HT.com has reached out to the user for more details. This report will be updated when she responds.

Check out the post here:

Here's how people reacted to the post:

X users quickly reacted to the post, with many sharing similar experiences. Some said they had also noticed drivers and workers spending a lot of time on their phones while working. Others agreed that mobile phones have become a major distraction in everyday life.

One of the users commented, “Pretty soon you will see them in phone calls with AI rather than humans, and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that either, people need simulation when the work is mundane.”

A second user commented, “I always wonder who they talk to so much? Is it another auto guy plying on another road?”

A third user commented, “Also, people give you half attention while still being on the phone call. It's not only annoying, but I also found it stressful.”

“There is something called 'being mindful' while doing one's work. I don't agree even to listening to music,” another user commented.