For Manish Bisi, a young man from Madagaon village in Chhattisgarh’s Gariaband district, buying a SIM card from a local mobile shop turned into an unbelievable chain of events that felt straight out of a movie.
A Routine SIM Purchase Turns Extraordinary
The number once belonged to rising cricket star Rajat Patidar, and before long, Manish was picking up calls from none other than Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers.
It all started when Manish and his friend Khemraj bought a new Jio SIM on June 28 from a shop in Deobhog, about eight kilometres from their village. After installing WhatsApp, they noticed the profile picture of Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) captain Rajat Patidar. At first, they assumed it was some kind of glitch.
Then the calls started coming in. People on the other end introduced themselves as Kohli, de Villiers, and Yash Dayal. The two friends, thinking it was just an elaborate prank by their mates, decided to play along.
Read More
When Rajat Patidar Called in Person
But on July 15, everything changed. Rajat Patidar himself called with a direct plea: “Brother, please return my SIM.” Still convinced it was a joke, Manish and Khemraj laughed it off – until they heard the seriousness in his tone when he mentioned involving the police.
Minutes later, a police team arrived, confirming it was no prank.
Gariaband Deputy Superintendent of Police Neha Sinha explained that the SIM had been deactivated after 90 days of inactivity and reassigned as per telecom rules. “Manish was actually getting calls from cricketers who were in contact with Rajat Patidar. Patidar informed the Madhya Pradesh Cyber Cell that his number had been allotted to someone else and requested to have it back,” she said.
The MP Cyber Cell then reached out to Gariaband police, who spoke with Manish and his family. With their consent, the SIM was returned to Patidar. “There was no legal issue or fault on anyone’s part. This was simply a result of standard telecom procedures,” Sinha added.
For Manish, Khemraj, and their families, the experience was surreal.
Khemraj, a huge Virat Kohli fan, said, “I never imagined I would speak to Virat Kohli one day, and that too from our village. When AB de Villiers called, he spoke in English. We couldn’t understand a word, but we were so thrilled.”
Whenever Manish got a call, he would hand the phone to Khemraj. “The callers who identified themselves as Virat Kohli and Yash Dayal asked us why we were using Patidar’s number. We explained to them we had bought a new SIM and this is our number,” Khemraj recalled.
Virat Kohli and RCB Fever Sweeps Through the Village
The whole village was buzzing with excitement. Most are RCB fans, and the chance to speak to cricketing legends felt like a dream. Manish’s brother, Deshbandhu Bisi, summed it up: “Even if it was all due to a mix-up, these conversations happened out of sheer luck. People just dream of seeing them, we got to speak to them.”
ALSO READ: Most Wickets In T20I Cricket: Spinners Ruling The List
