"Feels Like Playing With Your Life": Ex-NRI Shares Dangers Of Driving In India, Internet Reacts

A Reddit user who recently returned to India after living in Canada for 2.5 years shared a viral post detailing his harrowing experience with driving in India. Having spent a considerable amount of time in Canada, he naturally applied Canadian driving norms in India, such as yielding to others, stopping at red lights before turning left, following speed limits, and staying in his lane. However, this approach often drew abuse from others on the road.

The Redditor also shared a terrifying incident where a scooter rider, without a helmet and wearing earphones, abruptly cut across his path. Despite driving straight without any indication of turning, the rider angrily blamed him for not noticing his turn signal, which he claimed to have activated beforehand.

"Today, I was driving with my mother when a guy on an Activa scooter came from the opposite direction. He wasn't wearing a helmet and had earphones plugged in. Suddenly, he made a left turn right in front of me. I wasn't even taking a turn; I was just going straight with my indicator off. He came dangerously close and then started yelling at me, saying I didn't notice his turn signal. Like, what the hell? You're supposed to use your indicator when you actually want to turn, not switch it on 300 meters before and then randomly cut in," he wrote in the post. 

See the post here:

Why Driving in India Feels Like Playing With Your Life
byu/Solid-Juggernaut5384 inCriticalThinkingIndia

The Redditor highlighted the harsh realities of driving in India, where blinding high beams, potholes, stray animals, and sudden pedestrians make every journey a gamble. He realised that driving in India isn't about following rules, but about survival, with roads becoming battlegrounds of ego, negligence, and chaos.

The viral post sparked a strong response from Reddit users, who shared their own harrowing experiences driving on Indian roads. One user wrote, ''Cannot agree more. And don't forget to mention two wheelers overtaking for left without even honking."

Another commented, "2.5 years in Canada is a long time.  People who have been outside the country for 2 months start noticing the garbage and the lack of driving skills in the country.  We just don't know that there is a better way.  It's not our fault,  we have not reached that level of civilization."

A third said, "I couldn't agree more. I too followed the laws of UAE when I first moved to India, but got abused and honked. I had to realise the hard way that I am in India, and what provenly works internationally does not work in India."

A fourth added, "Once you drive in India, you realise why Indians don't do adventure sports. Too boring."