The Singapore cabbie in his many avatars

Taxis were never my favourite in India. I always found them stuffy and overpriced compared to their lighter but more nimble cousins - the auto-rickshaws. While the ancient Ambassadors of Kolkata gave you more space than the claustrophobic Fiats of Mumbai, the smell of fuel mixed with the grime of these huge cities didn't make for a pleasurable ride in either.


Photo source: Wikimedia Commons

Singapore taxis are, of course, much more comfortable - though they are not cheap by any standards, especially in peak hours with the plethora of surcharges slapped on. What makes a taxi ride in Singapore entertaining, though, is the readiness with which most drivers engage in small talk. On many occasions, this rapidly develops into either a teach-in session on life in Singapore, or a discourse on any number of topics under the sun. Following are some snippets:

Avatar 1. The cabbie as the ambassador for Singapore

It was our recce trip to Singapore a month before moving here. The purpose - looking around the city, with a bit of house-hunting thrown in. And I suppose our words and actions made the above very clear; at least, clear enough for our cabby friends. So each of the four taxi rides that weekend, the cabbied gladly announced: "Singapore is a multi-racial country". It was as if they had taken on the mantle of ambassadors of the city-state (and from my experience I can vouch they were indeed right). And of course, we did get quotes which ranged from the stereotypical - "Most Indians are IT preofessionals" - to the accusatory - "Indians come and take our jobs"

Avatar 2. The cabbie as the gourmand

It is a typically sultry afternoon, but we are tempted to hop on to a taxi and get a taste of Indian food in Little India. Our cabbie is smart enough to put two and two together, and launches into what can qualify as a "2iminute guide to Indian cuisine". Not only does he offer tips on Indian restaurants in Singapore, but also explains the difference in "roti prata" (the Malay/Singaporean dish that comes closest to Indian bread) as preferred by North Indians vis-a-vis that prefereed by South Indians. I gather he was explaining the difference between the naan/chapati family of breads from the North and the dosa/appam family from the South.

Avatar 3. The cabbie as the Hindi song buff

Yet another taxi ride, and we are pleasantly surprised by a Kishore Kumar number from a good forty years back playing. After exchanging surprised glances, my wife enthusiastically enquires if it is some radio station that the driver is listening to. "No" - pat come the answer. Our good friend is playing a CD of Hindi songs. Now that was a big surprise! And no, he doesn't understand Hindi, but he does understand the "mood" of the song. It was "Happy listening" for the rest of the journey through the weekend traffic.

Avatar 4. The cabbie as the financial journalist

A late night at work, and it is a sleepy and tired yours truly that embarks on the 10-minute ride home. But I am intrigued by the driver's knowledge of the financial markets. After expressing his surprise at my working late even though I don't cover the European markets, he launches into a little speech on the right hours for work depending whether you cover New Zealand or Iceland. I find that he keeps himself abreast of the latest financial news - proven by a short commentary on the UK banks' results announced that week. He also shared with me his theory of how his passenger volumes are correlated with the stock market, and the latest on which bank is laying off employees in Singapore. It was only because we reached my condo that I was deprived of more nuggets of information and analysis.

I am told that many taxi drivers in Singapore are retired from government or private sector jobs and look at this vocation as a source of steady income. And after paying the rental to the taxi company and buying the fuel, there is a decent amount of profit to take home. So the cabbie in Singapore need not be from the poorest section of society, as in many other places. The recession is starting to bite, though. On another late night ride back home, a cabbie bitterly complained that with passengers using buses and the MRT more and more, and many expats leaving the city-state, earnings have dropped. Even working 18-hour days is not proving to be enough. The good news is that he still has his sense of humour intact, and is ever ready to engage in small talk to lighten up your day.

PS: The rumour mill has it that some taxi drivers are "informers" for the Singapore government. It is unlikely we will ever know for sure if they are. But how does it matter, as long as they keep you entertained?