Airtel AirFiber. A standalone home in Pune. One paying customer. Every line below is a direct quote from Airtel's own emails — including the part where they told me to scan my PC for viruses and switch off my router.
You charged me for a service you never delivered. So now I'll cost you the one thing you can't put on a bill: attention.
Real screenshots from complaint #11033496670. Tap any to enlarge. Personal details redacted; their words untouched.
Still 25 Mbps. Their fix: scan your PC for viruses, switch off the router.
Clear the bill + a 13-step "unbundling" before you may leave.
Airtel 899, "Active Plan", 100 Mbps. Delivered: 25.
₹1,060.82 due for a month of 25 Mbps. "Charges are valid."
First complaint, mid-June: I was promised a technician would visit and fix it. Nobody came — then Airtel called asking me to rate the technician's visit and the work done. You can't rate a visit that never happened.
A live speedtest on a 100 Mbps plan. No edits, no excuses.
Real lines. Repeated until they meant nothing.
"Let me assure you that the issue will be resolved within 24 hours."
"Your feedback makes us better every day."
"Kindly scan the PC with the updated anti-virus… Switch off your modem/router after use."
"Further, Airtel Black is a postpaid connection… the charges are valid."
"Hope we were able to help you!"
"India's 1st Spam fighting network"
Twelve messages. One circle.
Since install I got 25 Mbps. Promised a technician would visit. Nobody came — then I was asked to rate the visit.
Support confirmed there was an issue. I visited the Airtel store at Porwal Road, Dhanori, Pune — told it's the vendor's problem.
100 Mbps paid, 25 delivered, repeated outages, a CSAT survey for a no-show. I asked for a refund and pickup.
"You can expect an update within 24–48 hours." (The first of many clocks that never rang.)
It wasn't. Still 25 Mbps. Their advice: switch off the router after use, and scan my PC for viruses.
Pick up the router, refund the money, leave my premises.
"The issue will be resolved within 24 hours." (Clock #2.) "Once resolved, write back for billing adjustment."
To leave, first "unbundle" from Airtel Black in 13 steps and clear the bill. "Postpaid… the charges are valid."
Not paying. Disconnect the box and router. Porting my number out too.
Clock #3. Same sentence. Same outcome.
Show me 100 Mbps on speedtest.net by 27 June, 19:35. Miss it, take your router. Harass me to pay for last month, and airtelthankless.app goes live.
It went live.
Satire. Roughly as accurate as their speed claims.
On 19 May 2026, Airtel launched "Priority Postpaid" — since rebranded "Fast Lane" — a 5G network-slicing service that hands postpaid users a prioritised lane during congestion. It set off a national net-neutrality debate and drew government and parliamentary scrutiny. Airtel maintains prepaid users aren't degraded; critics call it a paid fast lane that leaves everyone else behind.
Notice the pattern. Pay more, get the lane. Pay the regular price, get the runaround — a "resolved" that isn't, a survey for a visit that never happened, a bill you must clear before you're allowed to leave.
This paragraph is commentary on publicly reported news. Read the sources and decide for yourself: