When Kanan Gill called for a ermm... Yola Cab

Stand up comic and YouTube content creator Kanan Gill has published a hilarious video that highlights the frustrations of those who use app-based taxi services in urban India. So far, the video has been viewed over two lakh times on YouTube.

"Go straight, then take the first right, then take the second left."

Simple enough directions for a uniform behind the wheel, yes?

Apparently, not.

In a hilarious YouTube video, comedian Kanan Gill highlights the plight of those who regularly use mobile app-based taxi services like Ola Cabs (ahem, Yola Cabs...) and Uber, to name a couple.

Titled 'How Insensitive!', the video features YouTube content creators and comics Kanan Gill (of Pretentious Movie Reviews fame) and Naveen Richard (of Them Boxer Shorts, well, 'fame').

The video is a little over four minutes long. It was published on YouTube on January 3 with the description 'Getting a cab can be quite a challenge'.

Sure, the driver calls you as soon as you hit Ride Now on your mobile, but what happens after that? Spelling out your exact location can be so painful that you almost forget that customer convenience is the very premise this young, modern day segment is hinged on.

From outer space to under water the cab driver in the video (Naveen) takes all kinds of incorrect routes before finally reaching his customer's (Kanan) residence, all of 50 minutes late.

Listen between the hilarious lines of the script and you'll notice that several genuine issues are touched upon, such as traffic, taxi drivers' tendency to take unnecessary detours, their lack of familiarity with Google maps and consequent lack of punctuality.

The makers of the video would probably add emotional atyachaar - "Please don't cancel the ride Sir, it's my livelihood, Sir" - and 'over-branding' - the driver signs off with "Yola Cabs" each time he ends a phone conversation - to that list, but that's really not the case in the real world, is it?

In fact, the rushed, rehearsed, sing-song way in which the driver talks in the video is more in sync with the way customer service executives employed as helpline attendants by telecom companies speak.

The verdict: Drivers are daft. They have squeaky voices. Passengers are frustrated. The app-based cab hailing segment is here to stay, as are YouTube videos that ride on tools like humour and exaggeration.