"People Will Troll Me, But...": Grammy Winner Ricky Kej Blasts Air India

Indian-American composer Ricky Kej has yet again publicly blasted Air India after he had to allegedly wait for nearly an hour over the payment of his excess baggage at the airport. Taking to his official X account today, Mr Kej, a three-time Grammy winner, detailed two incidents with , which apparently was the fifth time in a year that he faced an issue with the airline.

"I am certain a few people will troll me, asking me why I keep doing this to myself.. travel through such a terrible airline, but I will continuously give them chances and criticize them for errors, till they improve," he posted on X.

The airline has regretted the "inconvenience to the customer" and said it takes "feedback seriously".

 "At Air India, we hold ourselves to the highest standards of customer service. We have taken the feedback seriously and will take corrective steps where necessary so that such incidents are not repeated. We regret the inconvenience caused to the customer and appreciate his support to the ongoing transformation of the airline. Such isolated incidents are not representative of the commitment of our staff towards service excellence," said an Air India spokesperson.

First Incident

Narrating the first incident, which he said took place when he was flying from Delhi to Bengaluru on September 14, Ricky Kej wrote, "I reached the Air India check-in line at the Delhi Airport. Was flying business class. As always the lady at the counter was distracted, had to get her attention."

"I had not slept for 2 days and was travelling directly after performing a concert at the ITC Maurya. My bag was overweight by 6 kgs, I immediately offered to pay, as I always do. They told me I needed to go to a counter which was quite a walk away just to pay. I requested them to bring the wireless payment machine to the check-in counter like all the other airlines do (I routinely pay for excess baggage due to the nature of my profession)," the 43-year-old said.

"They refused (Devika, Ravi Kumar, Mukeeta and Neha). So I walked to the counter they directed me to. The person at that counter (Sunil) refused to even look in my direction and rudely said he was busy - either I could wait there for a while or he directed me to their ticketing counter which is at the other end of the terminal. I refused both options and went back to the check-in counter," he alleged.

Mr Kej said they told him that there was "nothing they could do" and made a call to Sunil and told him to accept his payment.

"I made the walk back to Sunil (for a second time). I offered to pay by UPI. I did not have any credit cards or cash. He flatly refused UPI (Shocking for an Indian brand). He said UPI is useless and Air India does not accept it," he wrote further.

"I protested.. told him that I have UPI attached with multiple banks and can ensure the payment goes through, he refused to talk to me further. I went back to the check-in counter. They told me there was nothing they could do and offered to cancel my ticket instead!! They refused to give me any details on a refund and gave me back my suitcase. Then I argued with them - told them I am sleep deprived, I need to be on the flight...," he added.

"Finally after 50 minutes of this ordeal, and almost missing my flight, on my insistence, Devika called Sunil.. he finally agreed to come to the check-in counter (where I was) with the wireless machine and accepted the UPI payment which went through effortlessly in a few seconds. I left for security check and boarded the flight," he said.

The classical musician said he personally feels this is a "systemic issue" with Air India where they "just do not care" about their loyal customers.

"I have named all the offensive staff, and would really like to know how Air India deals with this issue I had. I should have never gone through that 50-minute ordeal when they could have settled the payment within seconds. This is a clear case of the airline bullying a customer," he said.

Second Incident

Describing the second incident, Ricky Kej said he was flying from Mumbai to San Francisco on an Air India flight on September 20 when one of the attendants continuously turned off a blue light (call for service) turned on by passengers.

"I was flying economy, a direct flight from Mumbai to San Francisco. Almost a 17-hour flight. I like to take walks on the plane every 3 hours. During one of my walks, I was standing at the back of the plane. In deep animated conversation were 2 female flight attendants and another woman in a pajama and t-shirt (I assume she was a flight attendant on a break, she was accessing the stowed away containers and shelves.. even helping passengers who walked to her.. giving them water, etc)," he wrote on X.

"A blue light was switched on by one of the passengers. One of the flight attendants saw the indicator, and very nonchalantly (while being seated on a makeshift chair made from trays) reached up to the touchscreen and turned off the blue light while not skipping a beat in the conversation. I was appalled but did not say anything," he added.

"Then as expected, after a few minutes, the blue light was switched on again by the same passenger. Like clockwork, the same flight attendant turned off the light through the touch screen. I was now shocked that all three flight attendants were totally fine with this response and behaviour," the music composer said.

Mr Kej said the blue light was then switched on again by the same passenger for the third time.

"This time I did not hold back. I told the flight attendant what she already knew, that the same passenger had called her for a third time.. so maybe she could take a break from her conversation. She made a huge face, an under-the-breath remark, and went to check on the passenger. I could not get the name of the flight attendant, because she was the only one not wearing a badge," he added.

This shows the complete "apathy" that Air India has for customers and it is a "systemic issue" that may take years to address, he said.

"I will continue to fly Air India though, and I am certain you will see more such stories. Hopefully lesser in frequency. My best wishes to Air India. I really, from the heart, hope they succeed. We all really need them to," he added.

In another post, Mr Kej also said he is "not giving up" on Air India or calling for any "boycott".

"I am going to continue flying the airline unless it turns out there are major safety issues. I will be a loyal customer and fly them, and criticize them when needed. Even as I type this tweet, I am at the Bagdogra Airport waiting to board an Air India flight to New Delhi," he said.

Air India's Response

Air India responded to his post, saying it "sincerely regrets the inconvenience experienced" during his travel.

"We are thoroughly investigating the issue and will take appropriate action. Thank you for bringing this to our attention," the airline said.

Last month, he slammed Air India for downgrading him from business class and refusing to offer a refund.

Mr Kej shared his frustrating experience on X, stating that he had booked and paid for a business class ticket from Mumbai to Bengaluru, only to be informed at the departure gate that he had been downgraded.

"Wow.. 3rd time this is happening to me in one year. I booked and paid for a business-class ticket on Air India from Mumbai to Bengaluru. When I reach the departure gate, the staff rudely tells me that I have been downgraded (for no reason) and they cannot give me a refund. What's up with Air India?" he had written in his post.