Customer Service never got worse? A tale of Anandamela in Gariahat, Kolkata

This summer when visiting Kolkata, I purchased a Samsung 1.5T Window AC for Rs. 16000 under the following general terms from Anandamela. These were especially important to me because of the short nature of my trip.

1. Anandamela will deliver the AC next business day guaranteed.
   
2. Samsung installers will install 1 business day after delivery guaranteed.

The AC was delivered as promised but the installers were not there. I called Anadamela several times on their customer care number but no response. Finally I decided to visit the store on Day 3 of purchase. The salesperson was very cold with complete disregard to my woes. After some begging, he provided me the contact info of Samsung installers. He refused to talk to them.

After several hours of haggling with Samsung installers, they arrived only to proclaim that the AC door is broken and hence the item is defective. They advised me to call Samsung customer service at a 1-800 no. Samsung customer service declared that the defect was minor and "advised" us to proceed with installation and record a complaint of broken door.

I was furious - why should I accept a defective AC and be devoid of the pleasure of a smooth out-of-box experience? After all, my customers don't demand any less. Plus who knows what else is broken!!!

I decided to take this with Anandamela since I held them responsible. I wanted a replacement AC. The salesperson outrightly denied despite ~2 hours of haggling on the phone. He even accused me that it is possible I had tampered with the AC - can you believe it?

So here I was: Anandamela refusing to reclaim the AC and Samsung refusing to replace it as well.
Sadly: I had made the payment in full and I was hard pressed for time. I decided to go ahead with the installation and filed the appropriate complaints with Samsung which they fixed in due time. Anandamela never called.

Why should consumers have to accept such customer service in an open market? Possibly because these are woes of a consumer that is not known or heard by the million others. Something similar to yelp.com is in the order.

Beware of Anandamela - blacklisted at least for me!

Sanjeev Kapoor Recipe - Hyderabadi Biryani

Slice a lot of onions

Deep Fry – remove excess oil

Boil rice in water

Add salt

2 Tejpata leaves

8-10 Kali Mirch

5-7 Hari Elaichi

2 med Dalchini

Par boil rice - cook 75%

Powder following

Shahi Jeera

Dalchini

Kali Mirch

Laung

Elaichi

Mutton – 500 gms

Add Ginger & Garlic paste

Add Salt

Marinate well

Add powdered masala

Red Mirch powder

Crush the onions and add

Add Curd

Pudina + Dhania leaves

Mix well and leave for 2 hours in fridge

In a Container, add Ghee / Oil

Add Moiti Elaichi, Dalchini

Add sliced onions

Add mutton marinade

Mix well

Cover and cook until mutton is well cooked over low heat

If needed add a little water

Use a mitti ka dum - Sanjeev Kapoor had a special "Dum"

Add some rice

Put cooked mutton

Put some Pudina leaves

All remaining rice

Now add Kesar/Saffron milk

Cook in "Dum" for ~30 mins

Serve hot

Sweet Mango Chutney

Ingredients

1. 1 Med-Large Raw Mango
2. 1 tbsp Yellow Mustard Paste
3. 1 tbsp Kala Jeera
4. 4 big tbsp sugar (or to taste - should be sweet)
5. Salt to taste
   

Method

1. Cut mango into 1" length med slices
2. In a container, add Kala Jeera
3. Add cut mango slices and cook until soft
4. Add some water to cover mangoes
   
5. When mangoes are cooked ~75%, add mustard paste and sugar
6. Cook through. Mangoes should be soft and pulpy. Consistency is like thick syrup
7. Serve hot or cold

Alu Palak Recipe

Ingredients

1. 1 med packet of baby spinach
2. 1 bunch of Methi leaves
3. 1 Med Onion
4. 1 tbsp Jeera seeds
   
5. 1/2 tbsp Garlic paste
6. 2 green chillis
7. 1 Med Tomato
8. 1/2 tbsp Jeera Powder
9. 1/2 tbsp Coriander Powder
10. 1/2 tbsp fresh lime juice
11. 1 tbsp Garam Masala
    
12. 2 Med Boiled and Halved Potatoes

Method

1. In a container, add oil and ingredients 1-9
2. Allow the greens to cook through
3. Transfer to a blender adding little water if required
4. In a fresh container, add Jeera seeds, and blended mixture
5. Add the boiled potatoes
6. Add Jeera and Coriander powder
7. Add lime juice and Garam Masala
8. Cover and cook on low for 3-4 mins to allow potatoes and greens to mix well
9. Serve with Rotis or Rice

Coriander Chutney

Ingredients

1. 2 bunches of Coriander leaves washed well
2. 2 tbsp Tamarind paste (or to taste - should not be very sour)
3. 1 tbsp Sugar
4. 2 Green Chillis
5. Salt to taste
6. 3-4 cloves of Garlic

Method
Blend all of above in a blender using water as needed

Home Made Chicken Burger

Ingredients - for bun

1. Burger Buns per your liking
   
2. Lettuce
3. Thinly Sliced Tomatoes
4. Thinly Sliced Onions
5. Mayonnaise
6. Amul Cheese Slice
7. Maggi Tomato Ketchup
8. Dijon Mustard
   

Ingredients - for patty

1. Ground Chicken - 1 packet
2. Some mint and cilantro
3. 2 Eggs
4. 1 Minced Onion
5. 1/2 tbsp Jeera and Coriander Powder

Method

1. Mix all ingredients for patty and marinate for 4-6 hours if possible
2. Make 4 big patties from the mix
3. Make round patties about 1" thick and with the top center slightly patted down (because the burger will bulge in the center when cooking)
4. In a pan, add a little oil and put the patties
5. Cook ~5-6 mins per side or until patty is completely cooked
6. Assemble the bun with mayo, mustard, lettuce, tomato, onion, cheese slice and patty and tomato sauce
7. Serve hot