Warning : I am going to rant/bitch some more today. People who don’t like ranting/usage of foul language stop here.

These people can’t seem to get the simplest things right. Even if one was willing to let go of the humongous slights and curt tone used, it is impossible to over look these “mistakes”
1. The telephone number is wrongly printed on the Consulate’s ‘official’ letter paper, conveniently.
2. The ‘official’ letter sent out to me and my mom was typed out wrongly, once again the mistake happens in my letter conveniently – i.e saying I did indeed work where I stated was supposedly wrong!
3. Oh and you want to know the best joke? On quizzing the staff at my office a very apprehensive peon/clerk came forward to admit that someone had indeed called… and asked for… get this… LEKSHMY. Who is she? Well, my MOTHER. The poor chap was worried that he had committed some grave sin by not knowing my mother’s name!

What sort of shoddy establishment are these jokers running anyway! I was applying for a VISITOR’S visa. For which my uncle was paying, everything including the ticket! I could have been a vacuous bimbo twiddling my thumbs as far as these idiots are concerned. Law, THEIR law, does not require me to be working. And they think it is reason enough to ‘reject’ the visas on these flimsy cooked up grounds?
I so wish I could claim it is their loss and not mine – unfortunately I can’t. Irony is, I am from the working class and a “non-refundable” fee of Rs.2,300 + Rs350 (towards ‘handling’) for each person (mum and me remember!?) adds up to the grand total of Rs.5,300 – is not a sum I can scoff at.
Even if a ‘mistake’ has been committed (by the way, they never commit mistakes! In their own words “it is your word against ours!”) the applicant would need to reapply and once again pay the visa fees in full.
So basically, this is a money making scam. They single out the applicants they know want to go there (and father’s memorial service is not something a person is going to miss simply because of a one time visa reject after all!) and harass them all they can.
Well, personally submitted the application for my mum today. But guess what? After spending the whole day running from pillar to post, I learn that “Friday the offices are closed on account of Good Friday (pardon me, but I cant really see what is so good about it!) Saturday and Sunday are non-working days. And as Easter happens to falls on a Sunday (can it EVER fall on any other day you brain dead imbeciles!?) we are keeping the offices closed on Monday as well. The application will get processed in 3 working days”.
Three working days for them begins only on Tuesday. And if all goes well ma should get a visa by Friday.

Oh, but wait a min, my grand dad passed away on the 12th of April, which happens to fall on Monday.

Too bad mate.

Better luck next time.

Better luck next time someone you love kicks the bucket.

Fuck it.

Fuck it all.

I am just through with them and their crappy “customer services” (they ought to rechristian it to customer screwing!)

Maybe I should get the level of melanin in my epidermis (or should that be dermis? Biology was never my strongest suit) reduced.
No wait, maybe before I consider traveling again, I should go get married to someone from the – superpower - U.S of A. let me see them ‘rejecting’ a visa to someone from the most powerful nation on earth on such ludicrous grounds.

disclaimer : almost all U.S citizens I’ve met are wonderfully nice. It is just the government that sucks.

update : I've lost my cell phone. The number 91 22 35075757 stands withdrawn. More on this later.