Meet Harpreet Pappu, better known as Pappu
Back Gear! Driving a Toyota Cressida car in reverse through the congested city
traffic or speeding in excess of 80 km per hour seems like an unbelievable
prospect, but the way and ease with which Pappu maneuvers the vehicle put
anxiety to rest. Pappu has recorded over 16,250 km of driving - all in reverse
gear - in the last over 10 years. "I started driving in back gear in the
year 2000. I have driven a Fiat, Premier 118-NE, Ambassador, Maruti van and now
I drive a Toyota Cressida. I wanted to do something unusual and driving in back
gear seemed comfortable for me," Pappu told IANS. Pappu, whose name now
figures in the Limca Book of Records 2010 for his unusual feat, says he wants
to break the record of John Smith who features in the Guinness Book for driving
805 km continuously in reverse gear. "I want to tell people that driving
in back gear is not very difficult," Pappu said. The champion driver from
Bathinda has so far done 140 km at a stretch - in reverse gear, of course. In
March 2009, Pappu drove his friend Muqqadar Ali in his decorated Fiat car in
reverse gear for the latter's wedding in a village in adjoining Haryana. Pappu
drove over 70 km in back gear in nearly two-and-a-half hours. The car stopped
at the shrines of Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims and Christians and carried one person
from each religion during the journey. Even Pappu's wife, Krishna Devi, is now
used to their car being driven in back gear. They are now known as the
"reverse couple."
