The India we love: Meet Vishnu who rode 150 km on his bike to save 4-year-old Noor

With the country locked down to contain coronavirus, a little girl, Noor in Alappuzha, Kerala, was in extreme distress in the last week of March.

Her essential cancer medicines were not available in Alappuzha. Noor’s parents could not bear to see their little girl in such discomfort. They used to take Noor to the Regional Cancer Centre in Thiruvananthapuram for chemotherapy. The child was put on temporary medication as the chemo unit was closed in the lockdown.

When Vishnu, a former cop got to know about the little girl from his friend, Antony Ratheesh, a police officer, he immediately decided to help her.

Vishnu, who now works as a security supervisor at Thiruvananthapuram Medical College, covered a distance of more than 150 km on his bike in less than four hours to hand over medicines to Noor’s family.

Vishnu had been on night duty and was quite tried, but even then he decided to fulfill this mission. He went to the regional cancer center in Thiruvananthapuram, and bought the medicines. He had to somehow make sure that the medicines reach the child by 6 pm.

So Vishnu decided to ride to Alappuzha without taking any rest. He reached Noor’s house by 5:10 pm.

Vishnu didn’t accept money for the medicine, as he realised that the family was not in a position to pay, already burdened with the medical expenditure.

Noor’s family could not thank Vishnu enough for his kind deed. Vishnu told them it was his duty to help them out.

Vishnu, who believes that the only true religion is humanity, says that it’s tragic that some people are trying to divide us in the name of faith. “I see people as human beings, not as Hindus or Muslims. And we all must help those in distress, unconditionally. Compassion is the only religion worth following,” he says.

Vishnu believes that it’s only love that can defeat hate. “From my childhood, I was taught not to look for religion in anyone’s name,” he says.

Vishnu says that when he gave the family Noor’s medicines, the happiness that he saw in their faces, was the best gift that he could have ever got in return for risking his life.

“It’s difficult to express the joy I felt in that moment. It was all very overwhelming. Noor would have missed her essential dose that night, but God ensured that it reaches her. With tears in her eyes, the kid’s mother said that she would always pray for me and my friend, and that was the greatest reward we could ever get,” says Vishnu.

Such real life stories of compassion and selflessness reinstate our faith that there could be hate simmering around us, but as long as we have people like Vishnu and his friend Antony Ratheesh, we can together defeat all of it.

This is the India that’s entwined in our soul!

(Vishnu’s interview was initially done in Malayalam with the help of author Rohit Balakrishnan. He translated our questions in Malayalam and sent them to Vishnu, and also translated his responses for us.)