Travel, Shopping and Eating Out

1Asking for and giving directions

Asking a stranger for directions works best as a polite opener plus the specific destination, not a bare demand: 'Excuse me, could you tell me how to get to the railway station from here?' or, for something nearby, 'Excuse me, is the pharmacy near here?' The opener matters more abroad than at home, where a direct 'railway station, which way?' can read as brusque rather than efficient.

Giving directions back uses a small, repeatable set of pieces: go straight, turn left/right, it's on your left/right, it's past the [landmark], it's about a five-minute walk. 'Go straight for two blocks, then turn left at the pharmacy — the station is right there, about a five-minute walk' strings four of those pieces into one clear answer.

The failure that costs the most time is giving vague distance instead of a landmark: 'it's not too far' means something different to everyone, while 'it's past the pharmacy, on your right' gives a checkpoint the listener can actually watch for while walking, in Mumbai's crowded streets or anywhere else.

Figure. Ask with a landmark; give directions in short steps with left/right and a marker.

2Ordering food and stating dietary needs

Ordering runs on a short exchange: the server asks what you'd like, and 'I'll have the grilled chicken, please' or 'Could I get the pasta, please?' both work — 'have' and 'get' are equally natural here, unlike in most other contexts. Adding one modification is a single clause: 'Could I get that without onions, please?'

Stating a dietary restriction works best stated plainly and early, before ordering rather than after the dish arrives: 'I'm vegetarian — does this dish have any egg in it?' or 'I have a peanut allergy — could you check with the kitchen if this contains any?' Naming the allergy explicitly, rather than just 'I can't eat peanuts', is what gets the kitchen to actually check rather than assume a preference.

Closing the meal has its own short frame: 'Could we get the bill, please?' or 'Could I get a box for this, please?' if there is food left over — in restaurants across Bengaluru and Hyderabad, asking for a takeaway box is completely normal and never reads as unusual, even at a sit-down restaurant.

Figure. Order the dish and state dietary needs in the same turn so the kitchen hears both.

Ordering with a dietary need

1. State the restriction before orderingI'm vegetarian / I have a peanut allergy — said before the order is placed, not discovered after the dish arrives.
2. Ask the specific questionDoes this contain egg / could you check with the kitchen if this has peanuts in it? — a checkable question, not a vague 'is this safe?'
3. Order with the modification namedCould I get the pasta without cheese, please? — the modification stated as part of the order, not as an afterthought.

3Shopping, trying things on, and returns

Browsing without commitment has its own frame: 'I'm just looking, thanks' politely declines an approaching salesperson without being rude, and 'Do you have this in a size medium?' or 'Do you have this in another colour?' asks for a specific alternative rather than a vague 'something else'.

Trying something on: 'Could I try this on, please?' and, at the fitting room, 'Do you have this one size up? This is a bit tight.' Naming the specific problem — too tight, too long, wrong colour — gets a useful second item brought over, where a vague 'it doesn't fit right' does not.

Returns and exchanges run on stating the issue and the request together: 'I'd like to return this — it doesn't fit, and I have the receipt' or 'Could I exchange this for a different size?' A calm, direct statement of the issue works in most shops in Pune or anywhere else; raising your voice or over-apologising both slow the transaction down rather than speeding it up.

Figure. Browse, try-on, and returns each have frames; only is not a politeness marker.

4At the hotel desk: check-in, requests, and check-out

Check-in opens with your name and the booking reference if you have one: 'Hi, I have a reservation under the name Priya Sharma' — giving the name and the word 'reservation' upfront gets the desk searching the right system immediately, rather than after a round of 'sorry, what was that?'

In-stay requests use a could-question rather than a bare demand: 'Could I get an extra towel, please?' or 'Could someone come look at the air conditioning? It's not cooling.' Naming the specific problem — not cooling, rather than just 'it's broken' — gets the right person sent up the first time.

Checking out has its own short close: 'I'd like to check out, please — could I also get a copy of the bill?' Raising a billing question at this point is normal and expected, not confrontational: 'I see a charge here for room service I don't remember ordering — could you look into this?' asks for a specific correction rather than a general complaint.

Figure. Desk language covers check-in, in-stay requests, and check-out bills.

The hotel desk sequence

1. Check-in: name plus 'reservation'Hi, I have a reservation under the name [name] — this one word gets the desk into the right system immediately.
2. In-stay: could-question, specific problemCould someone look at the air conditioning? It's not cooling — the specific symptom, not just 'it's broken'.
3. Check-out: request plus any specific correctionI'd like to check out — could I also get a copy of the bill? I see a charge I don't recognise, could you look into this?

5Cabs, trains and the metro

Booking or boarding a cab has a short confirmation exchange worth owning: 'Are you my driver for the airport?' confirms you have the right car before getting in, and 'Could you take the highway, please? I'm a bit short on time' states a preference politely rather than a bare instruction.

On a train or the metro, asking a fellow passenger or staff for help uses the same could-question pattern as everywhere else: 'Excuse me, does this train go to the airport terminal?' or 'Which platform is it for the Bengaluru express?' A follow-up worth having ready: 'How many stops is that from here?'

The moment that actually needs English under pressure is a missed stop or a wrong train: 'Excuse me, I think I got on the wrong train — is there a way to get back to [station] from here?' names the problem plainly and asks the specific question that gets you a specific answer, rather than a vague 'I'm lost'.

Figure. Transport asks differ by mode: plate for cabs, platform for trains, line/exit for metro.

6Raising a problem or complaint politely

A complaint that works is calm, specific and paired with a request, not a general expression of anger: 'This isn't what I ordered' states a fact; 'This isn't what I ordered — could you have it remade, please?' states the fact and the actual ask, which is what gets a resolution rather than just an apology with no fix.

The three-part shape holds across every complaint: state the problem specifically ('the room wasn't cleaned this morning'), state the impact if relevant ('and I have a call in twenty minutes'), and state the specific request ('could someone come clean it now, or could I move to a different room?'). Skipping the request leaves the other side guessing what would actually satisfy you.

Staying calm is not the same as staying silent about being upset — 'I'm frustrated because this is the second time this has happened, and I'd like it fixed properly this time' names the frustration honestly without raising your voice, which in most service settings, from a ₹200 auto fare dispute to a ₹20,000 hotel booking issue, gets a faster and more genuine fix than either silence or shouting.

Figure. Complaints: soft opener, clear problem, then the fix you want.

The three-part complaint

1. State the problem specificallyThis isn't what I ordered / the room wasn't cleaned this morning — the specific fact, not a general 'this is bad'.
2. State the impact, if relevantAnd I have a call in twenty minutes — this is what makes the request time-sensitive, when it is.
3. State the specific requestCould you have it remade, please? / could someone clean it now, or could I move rooms? — a request the other side can actually act on.