How a selfie changed Hyderabad Uber driver Laxmi's life

Hyderabad: On 6 August, when NewsMeter spoke to Hyderabad's cab driver Dandu Laxmi, she was worried about the upcoming EMI for her vehicle—Rs. 45,000 that was due on 15 August. She worried if she could save her only source of daily bread, her Xylo car. But with the help of a few good samaritans in the city, Rs. 45,260 has been raised through Twitter.

The icing on the cake is a new job that pays around Rs. 50,000 per month that was promised by Rahul Kanaganti of Flytta, a Hyderabad-based start-up that helps enterprises with their relocation needs. On 13 August, Rahul tweeted, "Our team has already confirmed an opportunity for her to work with @flyttanic with a fixed payment of Rs.50k+ per month, fuel will be taken care of by the company itself. I am sure that should help her."

Laxmi's struggles were brought to light by Hima Bindu, a city resident who took a selfie with her and posted it on Twitter on 5 August. "I am feeling elated. On cloud nine! I accidentally took her ride on August 5th and we now built a relationship for a lifetime," tweeted Hima. Further, she shared Laxmi's story and requested people to help her. Hima thanked the people who helped raise the EMI amount for Laxmi. "This is not my effort alone in raising funds. Many kind souls have owned her story. Special mention to teams Bring A Smile and Inner Wellness Centre. This is probably what it feels like when a community comes together in making something happen. I am grateful to everyone for making Laxmi akka's life better," added Hima.

Laxmi, who has been driving for the last five years, is a resident of Neredmet. In a day, she rides for 8-9 hours and earns around Rs. 2,000 per day. Before Covid-19, her husband used to take care of all the household work and she had very little to worry about. But during the first wave of Covid-19, her husband tested positive for the virus, and suddenly, the burden of the household and earning for the family fell on her.