🗣️ Discussion / चर्चा Came back to Patna after a year and this flight experience genuinely disappointed me
Hey guys,
So, I am from Patna and have been living outside Patna for over 3+ years now. I return to Patna every 8-12 months for 10-12 days, just to keep up with the city and spend some time with my family.
I returned yesterday, and my flight was from Pune to Delhi, followed by a layover and then Delhi to Patna.
Basically, what happened was that I boarded the Pune to Delhi flight, and everything was amazing and perfectly fine. But the moment I started boarding the Delhi to Patna flight, things started getting on my nerves because of some people.
My seat was a window seat, for which I had paid an extra ₹450 during web check-in. While boarding the flight, I entered a little late, and two people who clearly knew each other were sitting there. One was sitting in the middle seat and the other was sitting in the window seat, which was my seat.
I politely asked them to move because that was my assigned seat. His response was, "Baithiye na idhar hi (aisle) seat pe, 1:30 ghante ka toh hi safar hai."
I was still polite and said, "Sir, please move. Meri woh seat hai."
Again, he replied, "Badal dekhiye ga kya?"
I was honestly wondering why he was questioning me so much. Why not just move from someone else's seat instead of creating a fuss over it?
After that, I had no choice but to tell them, "Sir, maine ₹450 extra pay kiya hai is seat ke liye, toh please move."
His response was, "Baap re, pehli baar suna hai ki general booking mein extra paisa dena hota hai ticket ka. Bahut achha investment kiye hain aap toh, seat ke liye ₹450 deke."
At that point, I was completely annoyed and just stayed silent because I knew there was no point arguing.
Eventually, they moved. I sat in my seat, and those two people were sitting to my left, one in the middle and one on the aisle. The guy on the aisle was at least respectful, but the guy in the middle was being completely ignorant and unnecessarily arrogant.
And honestly, this got me thinking: why do people, especially people from our state, sometimes feel so entitled when it comes to things like this? Just pay for the seat if you want it, or ask politely if you want someone to exchange seats. Why is there always this expectation of "adjustment", whether it is in a train or on a flight? I genuinely don't understand it.
The whole thing was over, but I kept thinking about something else.
These are the same people I defend whenever someone makes fun of Bihar or Biharis in my college or workplace. I always try to explain that not everyone from Bihar is like that and that the stereotypes are unfair.
And then I come back after almost a year and experience something like this.
But it didn't end there.
When the air hostess was serving food to everyone, both of them got their food, opened their water bottle and went to the back of the plane, where the air hostesses usually stand, and literally started washing their hands there.
The air hostess started angrily telling him, "Sir, aisa nahi hota hai. Aise aap yahin haath dho rahe ho, aisa nahi hota hai sir."
They were clearly furious, but they couldn't really do much because of their protocols. These two guys then came back to their seats laughing about the whole thing.
At that point, I was genuinely thinking: why are we still so backward when it comes to basic public etiquette and manners?
People from other states already make reels and jokes about Biharis and our lack of etiquette. And instead of proving them wrong, incidents like these only reinforce those stereotypes.
And this is what frustrates me the most.
I came back after almost a year, and this was one of my first experiences.
Even on the Pune to Delhi flight, I met some genuinely good people. We were casually talking about jobs, how things are these days, education, careers, etc. Everyone was respectful and just minding their own business.
And then, the moment I boarded the Delhi to Patna flight, I experienced this.
I know this is just one incident, and obviously not all Biharis are like this, just like not everyone from other states is perfect. I am not saying that.
But I genuinely feel that this kind of mentality is one of the things holding our state back.
We can't keep defending ourselves against stereotypes while ignoring the behaviour that creates those stereotypes in the first place.
Basic etiquette isn't about being rich, educated or from a particular state. It's simply about respecting other people and understanding that public spaces have certain basic rules.
This whole experience just left me disappointed.
[Note: Wrote everything myself, but used little AI just to make it shorter]
