Watch out...

Funny notices and road signs have made frequent appearances on my blog. I was amazed to notice a spelling error that I had missed for several months, in spite of being right in front of my eyes all along.
This is a bottle of Teeth Cleaning Oil (yes, I know I run the risk of being disowned by my dentist friends) which makes several claims. The first one is 'Relieves tooth ache'. At least, that's what its supposed to say. Remarkably, it actually says 'Relives Tooth Ache'. Should I be relieved?

It also goes on to say in a reassuring manner that it (relives) 'Bad Odur', 'Removes stins from teeth' and also 'Arrest bad blood form gums.

Ouch...

Stop! Who goes there?

I am back after a little break. My landlord sprung a surprise on me by saying he wanted the house vacated in a week. A hectic search followed, then some hurried packing, shifting, setting up the new place, and am now back in business!
Funny road signs seem to have become a summer theme for my blog - or maybe I just have a penchant for noticing such things on the road. So, here's a sign and I challenge all of you reading this - show me this sign anywhere else in any country on the face of this earth! This is only possible in Pune.
I am sure we have all heard of this phrase 'point of no return', but here's a place from where only a return is possible! There's no going ahead anywhere, buddy!

OK, wait - that's not all. The brilliant irony is that this road sign is at the end of a one-way road! So no vehicle is ever going to come from this side and see this board! That is, if everyone follows rules on that road, but that's a different matter.

Customer orientation

Organizations across the world have been trying to out-think and out-do each other in being customer-oriented. Each of them have their own buzzwords ('customer delight' - is one example).

Here's one organization that beats them all. I have blurred few details from this picture - some because they contained names and phone numbers (and I didn't want my blog to advertise their services) and others simply because they were too graphic!
Anyway, here's what the poster conveys.
1. Just in case the potential customer has any doubt whether this service is for him or not, there are two rather revealing pictures of 'before' and 'after' states.
2. There is of course all the required information about phone no, address etc.
3.And then there is this amazing guarantee. It is so amazing that I couldn't resist the temptation of copying that part of the picture and reproducing it here.

Translated into English - it would mean - we guarantee to treat you till you are alive!!! Now, that's very reassuring, I must say. Its another matter that the patient might die of the treatment than of the ailment, but this superbly worded guarantee covers that risk too. Show me a better example of business acumen together with customer orientation.
Well, that's the problem with our dear Marathi Manoos. Subtlety was never his strong point.....

Hundred percent India!

Here's an interesting notice seen at numerous places in Pune. Translated into English, it would mean - Courses for Spoken English with 100% guarantee. In the event of failure, full money back guarantee ! So what exactly does 100% mean? Typical of India, where we live happily with ambiguity in every aspect of life. Often 100% doesn't really mean "truly 100%" in India. But we understand the sentiment behind the statement and let it pass.