The autos are cheaper than taxis, which people generally book using a ridesharing app such as Uber. India has another ridesharing app called Ola that people can use to reserve autos in addition to more traditional vehicles.
Just as Lizzie McGuire said that the best way to experience Rome is on the back of a motorcycle, I would contend that the best way to take in the bustling life of India is from the inside of an auto. While riding an auto, I feel the wind in my hair and I am in direct contact with my outside surroundings. If someone is cooking aloo parathas on the side of the road, I smell it. If someone is hanging up colorful scarves for display in a roadside shop, I see the colors clearly without the barrier of a window. This also means that if there is a rainstorm outside I am sure to get wet, but this is a small price to pay for seeing the landscape up close.
I think of Indian culture as one that has developed organically. People do not follow centralized rules. Traffic signs have devolved into mere suggestions and cars often drive on the wrong side of the road, and yet out of the chaos there emerges some semblance of order. People manage to arrive at their chosen destination by honking loudly to make their presence known and maneuvering around other vehicles that are in the way. The same rules, or lack thereof, seem to apply to Indian society.
