UP man travels 1,500 km on cycle, hopes to meet Anand Mahindra, Kumar Mangalam Birla

Monish Rana, from Meerut, cycled over 1,500 km to reach Mumbai (Image credit: @Monishrana04gm1/Twitter)

In March this year, a man from Uttar Pradesh undertook an arduous journey on a bicycle to see his idols. Monish Rana cycled from his hometown of Meerut to Mumbai in order to fulfil his dream of meeting some of the leading businessmen of the country, including Mahindra Group chairman Anand Mahindra, Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran and Aditya Birla Group chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla.

It took Rana 15 days to cover the distance of more than 1,500 km and reach the financial capital of India on his cycle – and that was only the beginning of his quest. Once in Mumbai, the 27-year-old waited for days outside the houses of these businessmen, cold-called their offices and sent letters in hopes of scoring a meeting.

While he was successful in meeting Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran, Rana is still hoping to meet Anand Mahindra and Kumar Mangalam Birla.

“I waited outside the Mahindra Group head office near Gateway of India for 5-6 days,” he tells Moneycontrol. “I also waited outside Anand Mahindra’s residence in hopes of meeting him.”

you can meet me for 5 minutes sir i have come from meerut to mumbai by cycle please sir i have been roaming all over since 2 days i am roaming a lot in this heat but till now i have not received your address please sir please get 5 minutes from sir @anandmahindra @MahindraRise pic.twitter.com/shdp9cG86A

— Monish rana (@Monishrana04gm1) April 10, 2023

“This was around the time when Anand Mahindra’s uncle had passed away. He was very busy but he came to office only to attend a meeting. That’s when I saw him,” he claims. Rana, who works in a bank, also claims that Mahindra staff has assured him that he will be able to meet the 67-year-old industrialist.

He adopted a similar manoeuvre with Kumar Mangalam Birla – waiting in the sweltering heat of Mumbai for days to score a meeting. “His daughter, Ananya Birla, knows about me. She knows I cycled to Mumbai,” claims Rana.

Rana’s bicycle plays an important role in his story – he has decorated it with a placard featuring photos of the four businessmen he hopes to meet. However, on the advice of Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran, who told him to avoid a repeat of the dangerous journey, Rana left the cycle in Mumbai when he went back to Meerut.

He is now planning to travel to Mumbai by train again next week, carrying an artwork he wants to present to Chandrasekaran. This time, he hopes he will also be able to meet Anand Mahindra and Kumar Mangalam Birla.

“I want to travel by cycle to Bangalore, when I hope to meet Azim Premji too,” Rana tells Moneycontrol.