When Charlie and I arrived in Chennai after a 28-hour train ride from Calcutta, we got in a fight with an auto-rickshaw driver within our first 30 minutes in the city. We were specific at the rickshaw stand about where we needed to go, but our driver followed his own directions despite my insisting that he was wrong (they call me GP-EL for a reason). I finally thrust my phone to his ear with our hotel on the other line (a working phone is a MUST for travel around India), and after a few words, he admitted defeat. But he wanted us to pay the amount on the meter after driving us in circles, when we had already agreed on a lower price to the correct location. Obviously.
We did not pay the higher price, but things got heated when we got to our destination. It's a theme in India (and life) – headstrong men there REFUSE to ask for clarification or assistance when they're unsure of something. I couldn't count on two hands the amount of times a driver told us he knew where we were going, even when he literally had zero idea and didn't even understand our words when we announced our destination. Too nervous to lose the job, these guys drive off with you and try to casually clarify later, which leads to disaster more often than not. These encounters are what make travel in India incredibly frustrating, and make it a country that's gratifying to make it through a day in.