‘Dropping her home safely was my duty’: Meet the TET-qualified Kolkata cab driver whose viral act is restoring the city’s trust

Forced to drive a cab after failing to secure a job despite clearing the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET), Munna Ajij Mollick, 31, has unexpectedly found himself in the social media spotlight after safely dropping home a young woman passenger who got into his cab in an inebriated condition late on Christmas Eve. A video of the incident, which went viral soon after, has reignited conversations around women’s safety in Kolkata in the aftermath of the RG Kar incident. However, Mollick said that while the internet hails him as a hero, his mother’s reaction to the incident was a reminder that he had actually done nothing “extraordinary”.

In a long conversation with The Indian Express, the viral cab driver revealed that he originally hails from East Burdwan in West Bengal and moved to Kolkata after high school with the aim of uplifting his family through education. For eight years, Mollick worked as a security guard, earning a meagre Rs 4,200, while attending night classes at Shyama Prasad College.

By 2022, he had cleared the TET and completed his Diploma in Elementary Education, fulfilling all requirements for teaching primary students. He was even empanelled and reached the final interview stages, but his dream got buried under massive recruitment scams and ongoing court cases that have since left the lives of thousands of candidates in limbo.

“When I cleared TET, I felt that all my struggles would end, but then came the cases, one after another. Honestly speaking, for middle-class or lower middle-class people, such a scam upends their lives. Look at the inflation rate, it is not possible to make ends meet without a proper job or employment,” he said.

With a younger brother to educate and a father who is working as a security guard, Mollick decided to drive a cab for a living, relying on the Maruti Alto he had bought on a loan. “I thought, I know driving. It will be independent work. I had no time to develop any skills any further, and I wanted to do something that could help me earn money immediately,” he recalled.

The incident that put him in the limelight took place around 10.30 pm on Christmas Eve this year. An inebriated young woman, about 18-19 years old, booked his cab for a long journey from South Kolkata to the northern fringes of the city near the airport. Though she started the journey with a male friend, he disembarked at a Metro station just minutes into the trip, leaving Mollick alone with the young woman who was in a vulnerable state.

“As her safety was in my hands, I knew I had to drop her home properly,” he said. Realising the sensitivity of the situation and the likelihood that misunderstandings may crop up later, Mollick decided to record their interaction during the drive.

“She was heavily intoxicated and not in her senses, so for my own security, I started recording. Her phone had died and she wanted to speak to her mother. I called her up and gave the phone to the young woman, but the mother was offended and she asked to speak to me. I assured her that I would drop the young woman home safely, and said I would give her a call five minutes before reaching the destination so that she could come and receive her,” he said.

Upon arrival, the young woman was unable to even operate the door of her building. Mollick stepped out, unlocked the door for her, and waited until she was safely inside before driving away.

When the video of the encounter went viral, an overwhelmed Mollick called his mother to share the news. Her response was thought-provoking. “When I told her of the praise I was receiving, she just said, ‘Why are people praising you? What else are you expected to do? Dropping her home safely was your duty, not an extraordinary feat’,” he said, adding that her reaction kept him grounded.

Mollick’s story resonates deeply because it silently speaks about the shifting atmosphere in Kolkata following last year’s RG Kar incident when a young, woman doctor was raped and murdered in the city.

“As a citizen of Kolkata, I always felt the city was very safe, but what has happened in the last two years totally changed the scenario. The trust has gone. I can’t do much about it, but what I can do is this: I talk to those who get into my car and make them comfortable so that they feel safe,” Mollick said.

“Sadly, we are living in a world where doing the right thing has become remarkable. In this incident in particular, the woman wasn’t fully conscious, so I just had to tolerate her tantrums and ensure her safety, which I did. That’s my duty,” he added.