PETALING JAYA, Oct 25 — While many can enjoy the upcoming long weekend to celebrate Deepavali with family and friends, Ganesh Murthi will be busy riding around the Klang Valley earning a living.
Ganesh, 26, started out working as a food delivery rider for Grab Food, but now also works for a healthcare and supplements company called Natura, as he manages inventory and orders, apart from doing delivery jobs as well.
His story came to light a few weeks ago, when his new boss, Aiman Manan, uploaded a post onto Facebook talking about Ganesh’s positive attitude and perseverance through his hardships, as he was astounded by the 26-year-old’s performance and conduct on the job.
Beside working for Natura, Ganesh also does multiple food delivery jobs, as he outsources his services as much as he can so that he can give his family a better life.
Because of his determination to hustle and earn as much as possible, Ganesh told Malay Mail that he does not have the time to celebrate Deepavali surrounded by his friends and family.
“It’s very hard for me to celebrate this year because I have a lot of orders lined up,” said Ganesh.
“Last time I used to get maybe one or two jobs a day on average, but now I have at least eight a day, so there isn’t much time to celebrate.”
He added that he no longer lives with his mother, but instead stays with his grandmother in Puchong, as he looks after her and keeps her company while carrying out the plentiful delivery orders that he has racked up.
Despite not being able to enjoy the festivities of Deepavali, which begins tomorrow, Ganesh expressed that he could celebrate it when he has achieved more in his life.
“I can’t really celebrate it now, because of the many orders and the fact that I don’t live with my parents,” said Ganesh.
“I’m not really celebrating it ‘big’ now either, even though I’ve made more money because I haven’t achieved enough yet to be able to do so.”
His delivery service, called GRS Delivery Services, has gotten a lot of attention ever since his story was shared on Facebook and he now receives so many orders that he no longer has the time to deliver Grab Food orders.
“I’ve already dealt with many customers for my delivery service and have a number of orders to carry out, so I can’t do Grab anymore, because there’s just too many orders,” said Ganesh.
He explained that with many Indian restaurants closing their premises and giving their staff a few days off for the Deepavali weekend, he helps out these restaurants to deliver food orders, as customers aren’t able to go to the shop to have a meal.
“I’m helping around 10 Indian restaurants as a delivery rider right now, most of them are on holiday, so the shop is closed but they still have orders coming in for their food,” said Ganesh.
Ganesh dropped out of high school when he was just 15 to find a job and support his mother and three siblings, as his father left the family when he was a young boy.
He then worked at McDonald’s for seven to eight years, before trying his luck as a food delivery rider.
Now working for Natura and doing his delivery services at the same time, Ganesh makes a steady income and plans to use that money to take the burden off his mother’s shoulders.
He said: “Hopefully these jobs will help me provide for my family and my mother who gave up so much for all of us.”
