Emmy-winning comedian Vir Das has slammed Air India, complaining about broken tables, broken leg rests, and a seat stuck in the reclined position during a recent flight to Delhi, despite having paid ₹50,000 per seat.
As his wife is recovering from a foot fracture, he pre-booked a wheelchair for his wife. However, the cabin crew appeared clueless when the wheelchair was needed.
Also read: Jaipur Resort Files FIR Against Ritesh Agarwal's OYO After Getting ₹2.66 Cr ‘Wrong’ GST Notice (startuppedia.in)
Vir Das Bashes Air India
Calling himself an Air India loyalist, Vir Das shared on X: “I’m a lifetime loyalist. I believe you’ve got the nicest cabin crew in the sky, this post pains me to write.”
“Broken table, broken leg rests, her seat is stuck reclined, won’t straighten fully,” he added.
Two hours late, when they got off in Delhi, Das and his wife found no wheelchair in sight, but a stepladder.
When he asked the flight attendants to assist his wife while he took care of the baggage, they stayed silent, giving a “clueless look at each other.”
At the top of the stepladder, the actor-comedian again requested the ground crew for assistance, only to be ignored.
“We step off the plane to the top of the ladder. I ask an Air India male ground staff member to help us, looks at me, shrugs, and ignores me,” Das recalled.
His wife had to use the stepladder with her fractured foot. At the bottom, near the buses, Das informed a crew member of what had happened. The staff member indifferently said, “Sir kya karein… sorry (What to do, sir. Sorry).”
Once they reached the terminal, the Encalm staff informed the wheelchair staff that Das had pre-booked a wheelchair.
Encalm is a private airport services company that was responsible for arranging the wheelchair and assistance services, but was unable to provide them because Air India didn’t coordinate.
“We get to the terminal, Encalm people inform wheelchair staff that we had pre booked a chair. He’s clueless,” wrote Das.
Seeing wheelchairs lying around unclaimed, Das simply grabbed one and wheeled his wife out himself.
“No staff because the flight is late. I grab a chair and wheel her to baggage claim, then out of the airport to the parking,” he wrote.
Das ended his post sarcastically by asking Air India to claim the wheelchair from the parking area.
Also read: Are Robots Slowly Replacing The Domestic Helpers In Bengaluru? Report (startuppedia.in)
/startuppedia/media/media_files/2025/04/15/3OezWHslzPNHMeIpnOjR.jpeg)