Mumbai Auto Driver Earns Rs 5-8 Lakh A Month, Without Even Driving His Auto, How?

An auto driver in Mumbai is believed to be earning around Rs 5 lakh to Rs 8 lakh per month through a "brilliant" business that does not even require him to drive his vehicle around the city.

Interestingly, this idea neither asked for any sort of investment nor the use of an application or technology. The person is simply making this possible by being at the "right place at the right time."

Sharing a personal experience on LinkedIn, Rahul Rupani, a product leader at Lenskart, said that the auto driver stations himself outside the US Consulate in the city and offers to keep the bags of visitors in his vehicle when they come for appointments at the facility.

Posting a photograph of the auto driver, Rupani said that he earns "Rs 5-8 lakhs/month" by parking his auto at the right place every single day.

The entrepreneur got to know about this when he visited the US Consulate recently for a visa appointment. On his arrival, Rupani was told by the security that he would not be allowed to carry his bag inside.

There was no locker facility available or any other alternatives and he was asked to "figure it out" himself.

This is when the auto driver approached him. While he stood "clueless on the footpath," the auto driver waved at him and said, “Sir, bag de do. Safe rakhunga, mera roz ka hai. Rs 1,000 charge hai (Sir, give me the bag. I will keep it safe. This is my daily job. Pay Rs 1,000 for this).”

Rupani shared that he "hesitated," initially, but then gave in. This is how he discovered the "brilliant business" idea of the person.

Providing further details, he shared that the driver parks his auto right outside the US consulate and offers this "bag-keeping service" to all the customers at Rs 1,000.

This is how he is able to receive 20-30 customers daily, thus resulting in an earning of "Rs 20K – Rs 30K" per day, or Rs 5–8 lakhs a month!"

But that does not mean that the auto driver is legally permitted to keep 30 bags in his auto, Rupani said.

To make this possible, he has "partnered" with a local police official, who is the owner of a small locker space nearby. All the bags are kept at the facility.

"Legal. Secure. Zero hassle. The auto just acts as the conversion funnel," he wrote.

Rupani stated that the auto driver was running a "zero-mile, hyper-profitable, bootstrapped operation" when several people remained worried about their US visa interviews.

For this, the auto driver was not required any MBA or "startup jargon". 

"Just pure hustle and street-smart product-market fit," he added.

Terming it as a "masterclass," Rupani stated that real entrepreneurship at times does not require a "pitch deck" and rather a "parking spot."

In the comments section of the viral LinkedIn post, several people shared their views on the innovative approach of the auto driver.

One person claimed that the Consulate has a locker facility at a charge of Rs 500. But Rupani denied this and said they only allow mobile phones inside.

Another user called it an "awesome" idea and asked how the auto driver gained the trust of people, especially since new individuals come to the facility every day.

A third person said it is the famed "University of Jugaad," adding that these so-called entrepreneurs were spotting "inefficiency and monetizing like a boss." 

NDTV Profit has not been able to independently verify the authenticity of the post.