Viral Video: Woman Books Female-Only Rapido Ride, Gets Male Captain Instead; Company Responds (WATCH)

A Maharashtra woman booked a women-only Rapido Pink bike ride, but was shocked when a male driver contacted her and arrived at her location. After cancelling the ride due to safety concerns, she was unfairly charged a cancellation fee, prompting her to share her ordeal in a viral video.

A woman from Maharashtra talked about her experience with Rapido's "Pink" bike service for women. She said that a male driver called her to make sure she was there. She said the whole thing was annoying, and it got worse when she was charged a fee for cancelling the ride with the man driver.

The woman, Shalini, said in an Instagram video that she booked a Rapido Pink ride because she thought there would be another woman riding with her. She said the page for booking had a picture of a woman, but a male rider called to make sure she was okay. He asked her if she was expecting a girl because she had booked the service for women only on the ride-hailing app.

“This man has the audacity to tell me that, ‘Madam, I am gay,’" she said. “I was like, ‘Okay,’ and I immediately cut the call."

That things got worse when she was told she had to pay Rs 15 to stop a ride that only costs Rs 25. "For something you guys didn't look into very well, and he posted a picture of some of his family. I can tell this is a picture of a woman, and there's a man in front of me," she said.

Shalini continued, “Now, this man has seen my face. He has come by then. He has seen my face. He knows which building I live in. And I cannot even do anything. I cancelled the ride. I had to pay extra. Calling the experience a failure of women’s safety, she added, “Women’s safety is just a profitable deal in this country. It’s a joke."

Watch Viral Video

In the caption of the post, Shalini wrote, “WTH. Apparently, being a woman is a premium-priced experience, with no premium protection included. Pink tax, luxury pricing, and still no assurance of safety. What a f—g joke."

Rapido Responds

Soon after she shared the clip, Rapido acknowledged the incident and apologised for the experience. They said, “We completely understand how distressing and concerning this experience must have been for you, and we’re truly sorry you had to go through this. Bike Pink rides are specifically meant to be assigned to female captains, and we’d like to investigate how this ride was assigned to a male captain, along with the captain’s conduct."

They further added, “ We’ll also look into the cancellation charges, as these should not have been levied in this situation. Please share your registered mobile number and ride ID with us via DM so we can investigate this on priority and take the necessary action."

How Did Social Media React?

The video has since drawn attention online, with the incident raising concerns about how a male captain could be assigned to a service that is specifically marketed for women.

“Seriously??? Aren’t you ashamed?? How many complaints do you want to take serious action?" asked a user.

Another shared, “Same happened with me. I booked a ride, and the driver came with another vehicle. Fix this, your product guys are doing what??"

“Bro, a man has always come whenever I booked a Rapido Pink; I never knew it was supposed to be a woman, ffs @rapidoapp," someone else wrote.