While you must have swiped left or right on Tinder in search for a perfect date, we managed to track down a person who used it for a whole different reason.
His name is Rohith Subramanian, a 23-year-old, ‘full-time’ traveller by profession. Being bored of his monotonous life, Rohit sold his start up in December 2016, to travel the world and has been doing just that for the last two years.
It was during one of his adventures while he was riding to Zagreb (Croatia) from Budapest (Hungary) in August this year, that he was denied entry into Croatia at the border, thanks to his unkempt appearance.
“It was super late by the time I got back on the road and in all the hurry, I forgot to refuel my tank.”
It was around 10pm and Rohith was stranded on a highway, in the middle of nowhere, with no fuel in his bike.
“The nearest gas station was also miles away, and roadside assistance would have taken at least an hour to reach.”
“I cursed myself for not filling fuel or having a backup. I panicked a little bit as there were no lights around and my phone had SOS service and an internet pack with no balance for calling. It wasn’t the best state to be in but I had faced such situations earlier in France so I wasn't very worried and hoped for the best.”
Disappointed, the traveler took out his phone, plugged in his earphones, sat on a rock and…started swiping.
“I didn't go seeking help on Tinder but I must admit that it turned into a good decision to use the app!”
Rohith, who he is a regular Tinder user, goes on to add that he must have had some good luck left in his kitty, because he matched with a girl some 3kms away and after explaining his situation to her and a twenty minute chat, she brought him a can of fuel and a sandwich.
“Yes, that was our very first date! But she deserved more than just a takeaway sandwich! Which is why, the next day, I took her out for a proper dinner.”
So how does he see Tinder?
“I see it as a social app where you get to meet a lot of new people who eventually turn into your travel partners, friends, hosts, guides etc. The beauty of the app is it can be used as whatever suits you.”
And since Tinder saved his life, is it a guardian angel in disguise?
“Sure is,” he says, adding, “My story of running out of fuel and a Tinder match getting me fuel is a classic example of the app being a life saviour. Also in Germany, I found a host for a couple of nights as well.”
Rohith met the girl in Zagreb at an Italian restaurant the next day and their conversations were about their mutual love for travel and her planning a trip to Vietnam. Since he spent a month-and-a-half there, he helped her with every possible route he knew and connected her with all his friends there.
“After our dinner I took her for a ride on the bike that started it all. She was a little shy during the entire journey as it was her first bike ride. And yes, we’ve stayed in touch ever since.” he concludes.
