2 min readBengaluruUpdated: Mar 18, 2026 03:51 PM IST
With the festive spirit of Ugadi and Ramzan in the air, travel prices in Bengaluru are hitting the roof. But while most people are grumbling about bus fares, one family in Vyalikaval decided to take their protest to a literally new, and very fleshy, level.
On Tuesday evening, a family of six came to a courier agency near Vinayaka Circle with an oversized, lumpy gunny bag and asked it to be couriered to Mangaluru. When asked to declare the contents of the package, they opened the gunny bag, and out popped an elderly man, breathing and fully alive.
The courier staff were shocked and refused the family’s request, explaining that a human being could not be treated like a parcel. However, the group remained adamant. They allegedly insisted that the agency fulfil their demand, questioning the purpose of the business if it could not accommodate their request. They even demanded compensation for the time and effort they claimed they had wasted, according to the courier staff.
As onlookers gathered to blame the family, they left the scene. The Vyalikaval police were notified about the incident as the family said they would go to another courier agency.
‘Reel’ reason
The police arrived at the scene and reviewed the CCTV footage from the courier office and nearby shops. They eventually located the group, who were all members of the same family. A young woman from the group came forward and admitted that the incident had been staged and filmed as a social media reel.
In a video, she explained her frustration with the skyrocketing bus ticket prices just before the Ugadi and Ramzan festivities. Her father had been unable to travel to Mangaluru due to the unaffordable fares, so the family decided to pull a prank to voice their grievance, she said.
A police officer said no complaint has been registered and no charges have been filed against the family. “We made them understand that it was wrong to send a human being in a parcel. They apologised for their mistake and were let off with a warning not to repeat it,” the officer said.
