I have been a loyal LG Electronics user, what with automatic washing machine cum dryer, airconditioner etc. of the same brand for the past couple of years.

Recently two episodes involving both the products happened that left me Happy/Sad. Read the rest of this entry »

A couple of months ago, I became the proud owner of Apple Mac Air, thanks to my wife. This decision was not easy to arrive at, but thanks to this Sidin chap who had bought one & corrupted my brain too. Then the argument of MS office was taken away by this Hardik chap and so agreed to be gifted with the Mac Air 11″ note book. Read the rest of this entry »

Suhas & Deepa Awhcat trio of restaurants came to Lokhandwala, in their usual band baja style with a barrage of leaflets, that impressed the wife so much that she decided “We need to try this out” No amount of persuasion works (as I’ve learnt over the years to my detriment).

So one fine evening, off we went, to an evening of Yo Yo….. Valet was yawning away to glory, but ran up and collected the car, on entering the gate, were stopped as if terrorist were about to strike and asked ‘Do you have a reservation’ I said No, but are you really full? because one could see empty tables. One of their senior person walked up and asked “What’s your mobile number?” On being asked Why? the response was “In case you forget something here, we would need to call you” No thanks and we were whisked inside ‘downstairs or upstairs’ came next, with us opting for downstairs. Read the rest of this entry »

The previous parts of Tata Motors saga were blogged here, here & here.

Finally, the vehicle was delivered on the 6th July. Unfortunately, the number plate was incorrect

Instead of MH 02 BR 4108 it was just 408 and that too both sides.

And, after so much of arguments they had left behind a key, which after due apologies they promised to deliver the next day.

The next day arrived soon after and besides a flurry of mails asking that “we heard that the car has been delivered” received a call from Mr. Shashank Mulye of Tata Motors who agreed, assured etc. and also generously waived off the Rs. 7000/-.

As things stand today, after a week having passed, the keys are still awaited. I am just unable to understand what exactly is wrong with Tata Motors?

In life, we all have an unspeakable secret, an irreversible regret, an unkept promise, an unheard request, an irreplaceable loss, an unreachable dream and an unforgettable 1st love.. still, life is about being happy anyhow.. because everything in life can be summed up in just three words - “IT GOES ON”

I have earlier blogged about Tata Motors here & here

To continue the saga….

Twitter friends helped out with some email ID, to which I wrote and one Ashmita Pillay responded with having forwarded the complaint to customer service and asking for contact numbers, that I provided. Around 12:50 pm on 5th July one Ravi called up from Service, listened to my litany of issues and said he would get the Sales in charge to investigate. Read the rest of this entry »

I had blogged about Tata Motors Saga… the beginning here.

On the 3rd July, we were leaving around 12 noon, when Mayuresh from Fortune motors calls “M’am your car is not ready, I have been trying your number since morning, it may be ready by tomorrow or so, I will call and inform you” My wife could not speak at all, I took the phone and asked to speak to the manager, the phone went dead. We drove from Lokhandwala to Marol Andheri East which is 45 minutes away and there was no call back.

On reaching, I asked for the owner, luckily being a slow day, there were no barriers and we managed to meet him. Mr. Sanjay Chandra received us, listened to us, looked at the system and started apologizing, accepting his staff had goofed up on the following counts:

1) Giving false commitment
2) Invoice paid on 21st June but car not ordered.
3) Letter of authority not taken for fund transfer till the 29th of June
4) No documentation done for RTO registration till 29th of June
5) RTO person on leave, nobody else referred etc. etc.
6) Accessory approval delay Read the rest of this entry »

A month ago, my wife started acting a bit suspicious, but after supporting me for god knows how many years, I felt she deserved it.

One fine morning on the 18th June, she threw a bomb shell “I am buying a car and it will be delivered in a week - 10 days” Whoa! where did you get the money? Which car? Why now? all were thrown out of the window and I knew it was a losing battle for me.

My enthusiasm waned a bit when I heard ‘Indica’ not that the car was bad, in fact like it much better than the old esteem and have traveled quite a lot in it; but more from the service horrors that I had heard being related. But I felt extremely happy and proud of her, because this was her first car bought with her own savings, in her own name. Read the rest of this entry »

I had earlier blogged about my problem with Costa Coffee here

After sending a text & reminder to their CEO Virag Joshi who promised action, it took them more than a week to remove the offending part of tile. Post this their Regional Head Kaushik called up to invite me to visit them again etc. Being in no mood to entertain, I had however promised that if and when I felt like it, would visit one of their cafe and contact him.

Finally, on a store visit last week at Inorbit Malad, waiting for someone to arrive, decided to have coffee at Costa. Ordered my regular and gave my card for payment, telling the person at the cash, that someone would be joining me soon. I was told that they would collect it together.

After we had finished, went to settle at the cash, but was informed that I would have to pay cash, which normally should not have been an issue, however had used up most of the cash for fuel earlier. When I expressed helplessness, was told that somebody would accompany me to the ATM for withdrawl, which was a no starter, on account of not having an ATM card.

This is when the two young lads - Sunil & Aasif - won my heart ” Sir, don’t worry, please settle next time when you visit” Mind you, I am NOT a regular at Inorbit Malad.

The friend who was meeting me turned up & I quickly borrowed and settled the due, besides writing a note for Kaushik.

Same company, different locations, different service, how does a brand target & maintain consistency?

14th March - It all begins today…. The regime is drastic because I do not have an option.

Keeping in mind that it would be a tough act, with a lot of people watching and more cheering, I decided to blog it weekly for the 5 weeks that I would be following a very strict diet. Details of week 1 can be read here.adfat2fit-bigloser20111

Alert: My customized diet and regime are being conducted under strict supervision of a doctor. It is advisable to consult a qualified doctor before attempting any regime whatsoever.