A “taxi guardjie” is going viral in South Africa for sharing a little joy everyday with commuters and people stuck in traffic too.
Nadeem Diempie Swartz, a taxi guardjie from Hanover Park, has become a hit with commuters and motorists alike as he shows off a new sequence of moves every day to ease frustration as vehicles slowly crawl into the city bowl.
The “taxi guardjie” or taxi door operator guards the door, welcomes commuters, shouts out destinations to any potential clients and collects the fees.
Videos featuring the Nadeem have been shared globally on social media racking up more than 250 000 views in a matter of days.
“I just want to make people happy and get their day off to a pleasant start. Everyone looks so angry in the morning,” he says as he waits for the taxi to fill up on the Cape Town station deck.
“People think it’s easy being a taxi guard, but it’s hard work. You have to charm people, open and close the door and your maths skills must be on point,” he explains.
Whether hanging from an open minibus taxi door or walking alongside the slow moving traffic, the 27-year-old father of one gets loads of appreciation and applause from commuters as he asks the taxi driver to turn up the music so that he can entertain the masses.
“I just decided to ask the driver to turn it up; I opened the door and started to dance. I didn’t know these moves would make me famous.”
Watch the video below:
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