Bengaluru, usually among India’s safest metros, was in the news recently after a young woman’s terrible Ola cab ride from the airport was turned into an extremely unnerving experience. Shravika Jain described in a detailed post on X (previously Twitter) how her driver’s indecent behavior had left her extremely insecure during a night ride at 11 PM.

“People said Bangalore is safe? Last night’s cab ride from the airport was one of the most frightening experiences I’ve ever had,” Ms Jain posted. Her message has since gone viral, attracting widespread attention and concern.

From Stares to Singing: Passenger’s Account of the Ride

As told by Ms Jain, the driver started gazing at her uncomfortably soon after the journey started. When he inquired if she understood Kannada and got a reply, he supposedly started playing loud music on YouTube. The scenario turned more horrifying when he started singing loudly and slapping his thighs suggestively.

Though Ms Jain insisted again and again on the volume being turned down, the driver countered with a disquieting glance and made barely any adjustment in the sound. Things took a turn for the worse when he smoked a cigarette in the car in disregard of her protests.

“I was alone, it was late at night, and I had three male friends tracking my location on a call,” she posted, highlighting the fear felt during the drive.

Unexpected Stop Increases Anxiety

Ms Jain mentioned one very frightening instance when the driver pulled over in the middle of the road, saying he would like to get tea. Refusing her request to be taken home first, the driver got out and went back after close to 10 minutes. She added that he kept looking at her inappropriately for the remainder of the journey.

“I was scared and just prayed I’d reach home safe,” she said. Fortunately, she did get back home without any untoward incident.

Bengaluru Police and Public Respond

Subsequent to the post going viral, the Bengaluru Traffic Police replied, requesting Ms Jain to provide her contact details through a direct message so an investigation could be launched.

The incident has triggered widespread indignation on the internet. A user wrote, “So sorry about it. I believe every company whose workers are working this way should make it mandatory to teach them sex education, what is bad touch, good touch, and how to look for others & punishments if you do something.”

A second individual explained a personal experience by stating, “Bengaluru isn’t as safe as people think it is. I have guys following me and my roommates around 8 pm even though we weren’t wearing anything revealing, and since they were a gang of 5-6 men and all were south indians, we had to keep quiet.”

A third contributor put forward, “Drivers should be video-monitored, with footage available for review when users activate an alarm. One should be relaxing and enjoying the cool night breeze after a long day of travel, not staying on high alert.”

The incident reawakens the Indian urban women’s safety debate and reiterates the need for tight safety controls within ride-hailing services as soon as possible.