An American tourist visiting Maharashtra’s Satara staged an unusual protest over the absence of a cloak room at the city’s railway station, balancing a bag of clothes on his head and urging authorities to introduce a luggage storage facility for visitors.

Tony Klor, who uses the Instagram username Tony Babawala and has 89.1K followers, documented his experience at Satara Junction in a video, questioning passengers and railway staff about the lack of a cloak room while arguing that such facilities were essential for tourists exploring Indian cities.

Tourist Questions Lack Of Luggage Storage

“I’m an American, and I’m visiting every city in India. And I’m here in Satara, and I’m absolutely furious because they do not have a cloak room,” Klor said in the video.

He argued that visitors needed a secure place to leave their luggage so they could explore a destination without carrying their belongings.

“A cloak room is necessary for every tourist in every city,” he said.

Klor repeatedly asked people at the station why the facility was unavailable. One person told him that Satara was a small station and that development work was under way.

“Where am I gonna put my cloak? I need a cloak room. Satara, where you at fam? Let’s get a cloak room in Satara,” Klor said.

Station Master Says Facility Could Be Considered

Klor later approached the station master to ask whether a cloak room could be introduced in the future.

The railway official told him that the facility was not currently available but could be considered later.

Klor thanked the official and described him as “such a sweetheart”.

He also attempted to persuade fellow passengers to join his protest, celebrating when one person agreed to support his demand.

“Hey, we got another protester!” he said, while maintaining that the campaign was “not politics” and was intended to support tourism in Satara.

At one point, Klor said he would file a complaint with the relevant ministry to press for the introduction of the facility.

Tourist Links Cloak Room To Satara’s Tourism Potential

Klor said the availability of a cloak room could help visitors explore Satara more easily and support the city’s tourism potential.

“With a cloak room in Satara, the city’s tourism will be able to flourish. Satara is such a beautiful city,” he said.

He added that he hoped authorities would introduce the facility so that tourism in the city could continue to grow.

His video later shifted from the railway station to a tour of Satara, where he showcased its landscape, historic sites, markets and forts.

Klor described the city as a “hill station metropolis” and praised its greenery, strawberries, temples, markets and historic architecture.

Tourist Praises Satara’s Forts And Landscape

During his visit, Klor toured Rajwada and a fort, admiring the landscape and the strategic locations of forts built by the Marathas.

“I have never seen a fort built like this. It is truly built differently,” he said.

“When the Marathis built something, they built it right,” he added.

Klor also praised Satara’s weather and lush surroundings, saying the city was beautiful enough that “everybody needs to visit Satara”.

By the end of his travelogue, he gave the city his strongest endorsement, saying: “This place is truly immaculate. 10 out of 10.”

Railway Officials Say Proposal Has Been Sent

Railway officials said Satara station is a British-era facility and that a proposal to introduce a luggage storage facility has been sent to senior authorities.

Station master Ganpat Chavan said Satara Junction is also covered under the Amrit Bharat Station Scheme.

Under the scheme, the new station will have a luggage storage facility, he said.

The tourist’s unusual protest has therefore drawn attention to a facility that railway authorities say has already been proposed as part of the station’s planned development.

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