Elderly woman selling chocolates in Mumbai local trains goes viral on social media, refuses financial aid

Swati Maliwal shared the lady’s video and urged everyone to buy goods from her

She loves sharing the happiness by selling chocolates on the busy local trains in Mumbai for her livelihood. Earlier this week, the video of this elderly woman, dressed in a suit, caught the eyes of netizens and since then several people started looking for her.

Delhi Commission for Women Chairperson Swati Maliwal shared the lady’s video and urged everyone to buy goods from her, as well as thousands of people like her who work hard to earn their livelihood.

Soon after the video went viral, the Hemkunt Foundation’s Harteerath Singh Ahluwalia started looking for her and two days later on Wednesday, they found her on a local train. “Hi, #Mumbai folks, trying to find “Dadi Ji” who’s seen earning her livelihood on a train. Would want to help her out and make things a bit more comfortable for her – randomly came across this reel on Instagram but no luck so far,” Mr. Ahluwalia said in a tweet.

When his team members met her, the lady refused any monetary help and said she would continue to sell the chocolates and other stuff. “After much effort when we finally found her today, to our sheer surprise, Dadi- Ji declined any monetary help. We then bought all the chocolates that she was selling,” he said.

When the woman, who later identified herself as Vajji, refused monetary help, the NGO bought all the chocolates she was selling and asked her to take a day off. “Forget about the financial support, she was not even ready to sell her stock for double the selling price,” Mr. Ahluwalia told The Hindu.

After he posted the video on various social media platforms, several people from Bollywood and influencers shared it and urged their followers to look for her. “A large number of people started commenting on our posts that they saw her on this train and at that station. We have narrowed down all the comments, deployed teams at selective stations, and finally found her,” he said.

“Dadi exudes sheer determination, uncompromising self-worth, and honest love for life that sets her apart. We will now meet Dadi every week & will try and help her in whatever way we can. For now, our heart is full of respect and love for Dadi & hands overflowing with chocolates,” he said in a tweet.