Here's How This Auto Driver Turned Mumbai Traffic Into "Most Innovative Hour" For This Passenger, Others

Mumbai city in Maharashtra is known for its frustratingly long traffic jams. Few locals who have lived in the city for years have found their peace with the traffic and have been making the most out of the time they spend stuck in it. The remainder of the crowd constitutes those in the hustle culture who are constantly in a rush.

A recent post by a social media user named Rajiv Krishna narrates a story of how two people from these two different crowds came together and had one of the most memorable rides amidst the infamous traffic.

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A post shared by Rajiv Krishna (@krish_rajiv)

A Journey From The UK To UP

In a long post penned by Rajiv Krishna, he narrates his experience with his auto driver in Mumbai traffic. The auto was stuck in a jam, and Rajiv was contemplating walking the rest of the distance as Google Maps deduced that it would take at least an hour in the traffic to cover three kilometres. However, having sensed his passenger's restlessness, the auto driver started engaging in a conversation with him.

He introduced himself as Ramdev and asked Rajiv how many countries he had visited. Along the lines of their small talk, Ramdev told him that he knew the names of the 44 European countries. He then promptly went on to name all the 44 countries in near alphabetical order. Adding on to it, he also named a few of the current Presidents and Prime Ministers of some prominent European countries.

The 61-year-old native of Sindhudurg, Maharashtra, then took the passenger through the names of all 35 districts of his home state, 33 districts of Gujarat and all 75 districts of Uttar Pradesh. He then began discussing his thoughts and the highlights of demonetisation, the 2G scandal, the Panama papers and so on. Impressed by the general knowledge and facts that he was pouring out with ease, Rajiv said that it was "Definitely the most informative 60 minutes I've spent stuck in a traffic jam."

In fact, the day turned out to be informative for a lot more people stuck in the traffic as the bikers and rickshaw people next to their auto were listening intently to each and every word spoken by Ramdev. He managed to keep an entire crowd hooked during the traffic jam.

The readers also got an insight into Ramdev's background, who unfortunately never had the means to receive a proper education. He told his passenger that his family never had the capacity to even afford a meal once in two days, so he went on to educate himself and gain "knowledge through self-study." Many of the alphabets, numerals, and general knowledge that he had acquired was out of his "uncanny ability to retain vast amounts of information", wrote Rajiv in the post. He concluded the post by saying, "Every little while, Mumbai has the knack of making you feel small and incredibly fortunate at the same time."

Reactions To The Post

The video was posted from the passenger seat of the auto, from where the auto driver can be seen reciting the names of the countries. Rajiv also mentioned that Ramdev agreed to a short snippet of the video taken from the back rather than a photo of him as he prefers to remain anonymous. The wholesome video garnered quite a reaction, with over 39,000 likes and hundreds of comments.

Many were left in awe of the knowledge the auto driver carried, and they commented that he should have tried his hand at the competitive exams. One user named Dhruti Asher called the video heartwarming and wrote, "wish every individual had equal access to education." Yet another user commented that moments like these are humbling and that "the education we take for granted is a privilege that most others can only dream of."

Rajiv, too, was of the same notion and said that in a parallel universe, the auto driver could have been a professor with a doctorate at a top-tier university. Ramdev, on the other hand, is content with his life and has no regrets as to how it all panned out for him.

Also Read: 'Small Acts Go Long Way': This Bengaluru Auto Driver Stacks Sanitiser, Toffees, & Band-Aids For His Passengers