Homemaker Yogita Satav Goes Viral For Her Courageous Act, Saves Bus Driver's Life

Yogita Satav, a homemaker in Pune saved a life and went viral on social media in January. Recently, her story was shown in an insurance advertisement bringing spotlight on her again.

According to reports, Satav was among the 20 women who had gone to the outskirts of Pune in Morachi Chinchol on January 7 for a picnic. The women were traveling in a minibus. On their journey back, the driver of the bus complained of unconsciousness and uneasiness. When he could not drive, 42-year-old Yogita Satav took over the wheel and drove the bus to a hospital. This was how the driver's life was saved.

Recently, an advertisement recreating Yogita's act of courage has gone viral. In the ad, the passengers are panicking and calling for help when a character representing Satav takes matters into her hands and gets into the driver's seat. With great difficulty, she drove the vehicle to the hospital in Shikrapur town which was about 35 kilometers away from Pune, Maharashtra.

While talking to India Today shortly after the incident, Yogita Satav had said, "I have been driving small cars like the Maruti Celerio, accent and Omini Van since the last twenty odd years. This is the first time I tried my hands on a big vehicle like a mini-bus."

Satav's courageous act is being talked about across social media platforms. She became part of an insurance's company's campaign which aims to break stereotypes attached to women drivers. "We present to you a story of a courageous woman who took the wheel in the face of adversity. A story that will empower and inspire you to #DriveLikeALady," Kotak General Insurance wrote.

The short 21-second-long ad film was released by the insurance company as part of its International Women's Day 2022 theme, #BreakTheBias. The myth that women are not good drivers has been busted time and again. In 2020 study published in journal The BMJ suggested that women are actually better and safe drivers than men.

“We suggest policy-makers consider policies to increase gender balance in occupations that substantially involve driving, given the greater likelihood that other road users will be killed if men rather than women are driving or riding,” the researchers wrote.