Comments on: the economy of our empties

By: sud

sud — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 14:40:45 +0000

you have re-sale market for “a to z” in India!

By: Bottle economy | DesiPundit

Bottle economy | DesiPundit — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 11:24:08 +0000

[...] and Jenny writes about the empty bottles of [...]

By: Dips

Dips — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 05:58:46 +0000

Oh, and what about the beer bottles? Labels or not, they are sold at a higher price to kabadiwalas because the beer companies themselves buy them back!

By: Jote

Jote — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 18:07:31 +0000

A very interesting piece indeed- I especially enjoyed the way in which it was presented.

A quick comment though, on what Jan posted:
How do you justify your claim that most restaurants in Malaysia re-bottle using local variants of Coke? While I am in no position to opine in regards to the more rural areas, it is far between that I encounter such practices within the Klang Valley or in any of the many large towns/cities I have visited. In fact, virtually all establishments sell their products with the seal intact and apparently tamper-free, thereby presumably precluding any such penny-pinching measures.

I don’t mean to cause any offence; I am merely curious as to where you commonly encounter this, and whether it is possible that I have been duped for all these years. Or if perhaps this used to be commonplace but has been phased out in recent years.

By: Jan

Jan — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 09:52:00 +0000

Lol, great writeup
In some parts of Malaysia, we always get coke and other soda in cans. If we got them in bottles (at restaurants), it’s usually re-bottled from cheaper 2L bottles or local copies.
Personally I found the local coke better because I think they used cane sugar. From your blog, I would love to visit India one day

By: Vv

Vv — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 17:05:56 +0000

*remembers my college days – I am a

Read Delhi Noir & “Surviving Women – jerry Pinto” – 2 books that artfully explain the idiosyncrasies of my bloated nation. I live in NYC but am originally from Hyderabad – you are probably consuming too much of one-part of India by moving to Delhi – try venturing to Hyderabad/Bangalore for a contrasting/cosmopolitan South Indian experience…

By: Dr Anurakshat Gupta

Dr Anurakshat Gupta — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 15:08:40 +0000

The one thing we Indians are good at I suppose is material management. I remember a pal of mine who sold the entire kitchenware from his ancestral house in Kerala to awe-struck tourists – passing them off as exotic temple antiques. This included the ‘lota’ his granny used for ablutions on her daily trip to the jungle!!

By: India’s Empties - Freakonomics Blog - NYTimes.com

India’s Empties - Freakonomics Blog - NYTimes.com — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 13:38:57 +0000

[...] in Delhi kill so many people. Now he’s back to explain how Delhi’s upscale alcohol ads create demand for his empty liquor bottles, and give his maid a nice side [...]

By: sher1na

sher1na — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 03:39:45 +0000

The only other revelation I had about empty bottles was from the book by Aravind Adiga, “The White Tiger”.

How very interesting.

By: anon

anon — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 17:14:17 +0000

haha, so true. My dad used to drink both expensive and cheap liquors and when he had friends over sometimes he would pour cheap liquor into the expensive bottles.

We’re cheap like that!