Touché Airtel!

Note: You can add this to your collection of customer service jokes, if any.

I wanted to activate the ‘mobile office weekly plan’ on my Airtel postpaid connection for the whole of this week as I was going to be in between places and somehow access to net after work hours was critical for this week especially. For those of you who do not know what this plan is all about, pay Rs 140 for the whole of the week for unlimited browsing and download charges as applicable. Speed: 115 kbps. Nothing much to bragg about it was not a bad offer considering net access during late nights was essential. After the initial confusion regarding the exact procedure of activation of this plan, I finally got this thing activated.

Since I boot into Ubuntu most of the times on my lappy, I tried to configure this so that it would work on Ubuntu. And just when I am at this thing, I get a call from an Airtel customer care executive (ACCE)…..

ACCE: Mr Vivek, are you happy with the mobile office weekly plan? Do  you have any complaints?

Me: Well, yes. I have some queries.

ACCE:  Ok, What is the problem?

Me: Well it is more of a technical issue. Are you the person I am supposed to be talking to for such issues or do you have to forward this call to some other department?

ACCE: You can talk to me regarding the technical issues you are facing.

Me: Ok. I am trying to configure this to work on Ubuntu Linux. Do you have any idea how I can go about it?    ( This was a long shot. I was pretty sure that the guy wouldn’t know how to do it. Still. No harm in asking. )

ACCE: Yes I do.

Me: (What ?  touché Airtel ! ) Ok.

ACCE: Sir, Click on Start…. Go to programs…..

Me: (Interrupting ACCE) I think I got it.  Thanks for your help anyway!