Rs 30,000 job vs Rs 75,000 earning as Mumbai auto driver: Ex-Investment banker’s normal ride turns into a lesson on success

In metro cities like Mumbai, ambition runs high and opportunities seem endless. But when you look deeper, the reality of corporate life often tells a different story. For many young professionals, starting salaries can feel underwhelming, barely keeping pace with the cost of living. Climbing the ladder of success is a slow process, taking years of persistence, proving your skills every second and building quiet resilience before paychecks begin to reflect effort. Along similar lines, an ex-investment banker, Utkarsh Sharma, painted a stark picture of corporate salaries during a normal autorickshaw ride.

From daily wages to monthly math

The video opened to Utkarsh Verma having a candid interaction with an auto driver while riding through the busy streets of Mumbai. When he revealed that Mumbai was an expensive city, the driver agreed but added that an individual can make good money here if they manage to grab the right opportunity.




The conversation then shifted to the auto driver’s daily wages, who revealed that he earns about Rs 2,500 after expenses every day. Doing the math, Utkasrh Verma noted that based on the auto driver’s earnings, his monthly income amounts to roughly Rs 75,000. Taking the figures into account, the professional put forward a rather sad observation.

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Street-side hustle challenges corporate pay

Utkarsh Verma compared the auto driver’s earnings to entry-level corporate salaries, pointing out that many fresh graduates do not even earn as much in their first jobs. They are usually happy to get a job that offers a decent amount of Rs 30,000. The video concluded with the former investment banker cheekily suggesting that driving an auto in Mumbai can have better income potential, with daily interactions and networking opportunities, rather than sitting inside a cubicle all day.



While this is one account, the scenario is not always the same. Recently, an autorickshaw driver who appeared in a blink-and-you-miss-it role in Ranveer Singh’s Dhurandhar 2, opened up about not being able to watch the movie in theatres due to the skyrocketing ticket prices in the theatres, costing around Rs 500 per person. Only managing to save Rs 2,500 per month, the driver, in an interaction with a Punjab media portal, acknowledged that he could not afford to spend that huge amount right away, although his children were eager to watch his father perform on screen.