Bengaluru's footpath mess gets a 'temporary' fix after Canadian vlogger's takedown

A Canadian vlogger’s takedown of footpaths in Bengaluru has prompted temporary repairs on 12th Main in Indiranagar after several spots he had highlighted were fixed soon after.

In a video posted last week, Caleb Friesen criticised the condition of the footpaths in the area, pointing out broken slabs, large holes, piles of soil and garbage.

At one spot where people had dumped trash into a large hole in the footpath, he joked, “An asteroid collided with planet Earth and created a giant hole and now people are using it to dump their trash. It’s kind of becoming an impromptu dustbin.”

Two days later, Friesen returned to 12th Main and recorded the changes, saying the footpath had been fixed, at least “temporarily”, as it will be dug up again when work on the road’s larger revamp begins in early 2027. The redevelopment will follow the Tender SURE standard.

The large hole he had compared to an asteroid impact had been completely paved over. “It is now safe, level with the rest of the footpath,” he said.

A crack and a pile of soil outside Araku Coffee had also been fixed. The pile of soil was gone, and the crack had been paved over.

Friesen also showed a tilted slab leading down into a drain that had been used as a dustbin. The slab had been fixed, and a new one had been placed over it. The wall next to the slab had also been painted.

The repairs were carried out after the response to Friesen’s video, with the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) deploying a tractor on Friday, followed by four tractors, a JCB and 10 labourers on Saturday, he said. Lead engineer Satish oversaw the work, while area inspector Vijay Haridas helped expedite the process. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Caleb Friesen (@caleb_friesen)

In his earlier video, Friesen had also highlighted garbage dumped around an existing dustbin and criticised a stretch of footpath that he described as “pretty nice” but said a large pile of soil made it look like “this stretch is part of a war-torn country which it isn’t.”

“Indiranagar shouldn't be like this. The footpaths should be walkable, safe, pedestrian-friendly, impressive, and a reflection of all the innovation that happens in the city. Instead, they're a mess,” he had said.

He questioned why footpaths in the “centre of India's tech ecosystem” were in such poor condition and called for a comprehensive upgrade of Bengaluru’s pedestrian infrastructure.

Although Friesen said he wished authorities were “more proactive instead of reactive”, he also commended their response to the issues he had highlighted.

He urged citizens to raise civic issues in creative and peaceful ways and contribute to improving public spaces.

Caleb Friesen, who describes himself as a “part-time pedestrian living in India," has 206k followers on Instagram.- Ends