'Lost My Job After Govt Banned Chinese Apps in 2020, Now I Drive a Bike Taxi'

In 2020, the central government banned many Chinese apps. There was pressure on me, so I had to leave the job.

Vignesh Nagabusanam used to work as an operations executive at a Chinese company. He lost his job in 2020 when the government banned Chinese apps.

(Image altered by The Quint/Namita Chauhan)

Video Producer: Maaz Hasan
Video Editor: Prashant Chauhan

My name is Vignesh Nagabusanam and I am a BSc Visual Communication graduate from Chennai. After my studies, I got a job at a Chinese company. It was going well. I started as an intern and was later promoted to the position of operations executive from 2018 to 2020.

In 2020, the Government of India banned many Chinese apps. There was internal pressure on me, so I had to leave the job. It was the same time that COVID lockdown was also imposed and there were hardly any job opportunities.

So, I decided to pursue my passion!

Vignesh has a keen interest in photography and videography.

(Photo Credit: Vignesh Nagabusanam)

'Film-Making Is My Dream'

I have an immense passion for photography, videography, and film-making. I, basically, want to be a film-maker. Since loneliness became the new normal during COVID, I wondered: is it possible for one person to make a movie without a crew?

I wrote a script, I acted in it, I directed it, I shot it, and edited it. The whole process took me over a year.

Vignesh Nagabusanam dreams of becoming a film-maker.

(Photo Credit: Vignesh Nagabusanam)

After one year, the product was in my hand. I sent it to my friends and family members and their feedback was really good. Since the feedback was really good, I had to put in everything I had – my savings – and I even had to take out loans.

The poster of the miniseries produced by Vignesh.

(Photo Credit: Vignesh Nagabusanam)

I pushed it as much as I could. I tried digital marketing and sent it to over 20 film festivals. It won in over 15 film festivals.

Vik, the miniseries, won several awards at film festivals.

(Photo Credit: Vignesh Nagabusanam)

But my award-winning miniseries wasn't a commercial success. It got good feedback and responses and won in film festivals, but it wasn't commercially viable.

I lost all my savings and then I started looking for a job. I, however, didn't get any job so I started photography and videography services. But that, too, was rough because I wasn't getting clients or projects.

'Why Rapido?'

So, I decided to work for Rapido. It isn't a bad thing because no job is a bad job. So, why Rapido? I thought – while driving Rapido, I would be able to connect with people and grow my network.

I give my visiting card (to passengers) so that if there is any requirement for photography and videography services, I can be contacted. Not just that, Rapido also helps me deal with my financial issues.

Vignesh has ferried over 750 passengers.

(Photo Credit: Vignesh Nagabusanam)

My story came to light when Parag Jain, one of my 750+ passengers, took to Twitter to talk about it. So, I really need to thank Parag Jain because he made this tweet and it went viral.

People who are having rough times, losing jobs, and having other losses, please don't give up! It's not about giving up. Failure is a step forward. These words are easy to say, I know. But I have been there. I would say, just try to cross the barrier because once you face failure, there are a lot of things that you can learn.

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