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89-year-old woman sells handmade bracelets on Mumbai local trains to ‘pay her family for staying with them’

Her story came into focus after Instagram user Meeta Tushit Shah noticed the elderly woman carefully navigating a packed train and struck up a gentle conversation.

3 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Feb 3, 2026 05:16 PM IST

The video soon crossed two million views, prompting an outpouring of reactions

At a stage of life when most people slow down and retreat into the comfort of routine, Kamalaben Mehta is still moving, quite literally, with purpose. At 89, she boards Mumbai’s crowded local trains carrying a modest bundle of handmade beaded bracelets, selling them quietly to earn her keep.

Her story came into focus after Instagram user Meeta Tushit Shah noticed the elderly woman carefully navigating a packed train and struck up a gentle conversation. In the video Shah later shared, Mehta introduces herself with calm clarity and mentions that she lives in Nalasopara, far out on the city’s edge.

Shah summed up the moment in a caption that quickly struck a chord online: “Both heartening and strengthening? Met an eighty-nine-year-old lady climbing into the Mumbai local train in the afternoon, selling bracelets.”

As the interaction unfolded, Mehta explained that she sells the bracelets to pay her family for letting her stay with them. When asked for her address, she declined, not out of secrecy, but concern. She didn’t want her family to feel embarrassed.

That quiet choice resonated deeply. Shah later wrote, “I wished to buy all but couldn’t due to limited cash. She stated that she had to pay her family for her stay but didn’t give her address so the family wouldn’t face shame. Women empowerment indeed.”

Watch the video:

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A post shared by Meeta Tushit Shah (@meetatushitshah)

The video soon crossed two million views, prompting an outpouring of reactions. Many praised Mehta’s resilience, while others reflected on what her situation says about how society treats its elders.

A commenter noted, “Oh god she is still selling in the train. I’ve been seeing her since more than 15 years now.” Another wrote bluntly, “It’s a shamfull to see how we are not able to take care of our elders.” A third shared a long memory: “This aunty used to sell in trains when I was in junior college..n now I am 40…salute to her for this strength.”

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Someone else wrote, “I have already met this senior lady in andheri, she is so strong i tried to help her with some monies but refused and instead of that she told to buy then she will accept those monies.”