Remember the old, classic advertisement for Mahindra XUV500? Yes, we are talking about the "cheetah inspired" vehicle that generated a buzz among four-wheeler lovers. Well, now Anand Mahindra says the vehicle manufactured by his company may not be the only big cat in town. On his Twitter handle, the Mahindra Group chairman posted a video from an unknown source, in which two adult tigers are seen strolling along a highway at night. In the tweet, Mr Mahindra wrote, "So our XUV isn't the only big cat on the highway… Magnificent." The tweet soon went viral garnering 1,90,200 views in less than 24 hours.
In the video, traffic remains at a halt while the tigers pass by them. The site at which the video was shot remains a bone of contention with social media users. Some claimed that the video is reported to have been shot earlier this month at Mahabaleshwar Road, Panchgani. However, others claimed that the video is much older and was shot near Tadoba Tiger Reserve in Maharashtra.
Some other users claimed that the footage could have been shot in Pench National Park in Madhya Pradesh. One user wrote, "This is not from Panchgani Mahabaleshwar road. As per their language, it's from Tadoba or Pench side region Vidarbha."
One user wrote, "Wonderful clip indeed and what an experience! However, according to a couple of my friends from Tadoba Tiger Reserve, the clip is from the buffer zone of Tadoba and it's about 2 years old."
Here's what another user wrote:
Meanwhile, the post received much praise from users for Mr Mahindra's smart comparison. One user was astonished at how Mr Mahindra always found a novel way to promote his brand. "Great how you are putting your SUV into every single story," the user wrote.
Some users even felt bad for the tigers who were being denied their natural habitat. “Seems like they are wondering what has become of their home. Road through jungle, then shabas, then hotels, then restaurants, then farmhouses, then waterparks,” the user said.
“Right of passage to the natives first,” said another user.
What do you think of the video? Let us know using the comments section.
