Rahul Gandhi hosted Rameshwar and his family last Monday.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi served lunch with his own hands as he hosted a vegetable vendor who had become the face of hardships due to rising food prices.
Recently, Rameshwar had a breakdown on camera while talking about his hardships due to inflation. The context was the skyrocketing tomato prices. A video of the incident had gone viral with many underlining how rising food prices are having an adverse impact on a large section of the society.
"I didn't want to live anymore in this society," said Rameshwar as Mr Gandhi listened to him patiently. His daughter was sitting right beside.
"Don't say that again. Speaking from your heart isn't a weakness, it's honesty. Don't think about what others say. You only adhere to the truth," Mr Gandhi replied, showed a video from their meeting last Monday.
The Congress leader today shared the video of the "candid conversation" with him.
"Rameshwar ji is the voice of an India whose pains, issues and challenges are far removed from the mainstream debate today. It is the moral responsibility of all of us to listen to the voice of that India and help in fighting those struggles," he said on X.
The video captured some heart-warming moments from their meeting.
At the lunch table, Rameshwar and his wife sat together while Mr Gandhi was serving them.
"She's (my wife) fasting today," Rameshwar informed. Mr Gandhi quickly enquired if she's allowed to have fruits and said he will get some for her.
Mr Gandhi also refused to be addressed as "sir". "Why are you calling me sir? My name is Rahul, call me that," he told Rameshwar.
Ahead of the meeting, Rameshwar compared it with "Sudama meeting Krishna", citing how lucky he was to have got this opportunity. Sudama and Krishna were childhood friends who grew up together and their emotional reunion is held as an example of true friendship, according to the legend.
In the video, Mr Gandhi asked him more about his struggles. Rameshwar said the Congress leader understands his pain and he was lucky to have been hosted by him.
In a longer post accompanying his video on YouTube, Mr Gandhi said he has been listening to people since he began his nationwide Bharat Jodo Yatra. One day, he said he came across the video of Rameshwar and wanted to him.
“Financially poor, but very rich at heart, Rameshwar ji - the smile remained on his face as long as the talks took place. He told stories of shattered hopes, but also a sense of responsibility. His courage is actually a golden ray of hope,” read the post in Hindi.
Mr Gandhi had on Monday shared his photo with Rameshwar and said he's a “lively person” in whom “the glimpse of the affable nature of crores of Indians can be seen.”
The vegetable vendor was recently seen in a viral video saying he could not buy tomatoes as the prices were very high.