How a new SIM card connected Chhattisgarh youth to Kohli, de Villiers, Rajat Patidar

The Madhya Pradesh cyber cell contacted Gariaband police, who spoke with Manish and his family. With their consent, the SIM was recently returned to Patidar

Raipur: What if a new SIM card suddenly connected you to Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, and an IPL captain? That’s exactly what happened to a man, in his twenties, from a remote Chhattisgarh village, who thought he’d just bought a routine SIM card—only to discover it once belonged to cricketer Rajat Patidar. What followed was a whirlwind of celebrity calls, confusion, and an unexpected brush with fame.

At first, they dismissed it as a glitch—until calls started coming in from Kohli, de Villiers, and Yash Dayal.

Manish Bisi from Madagaon village in Gariaband district, purchased a SIM card on June 28 from a shop in Deobhog, around 8 kilometres from his village. His friend Khemraj, while helping him set up WhatsApp, noticed the display picture was of India cricketer Patidar, who had captained Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the 2025 IPL season.

At first, they dismissed it as a glitch—until calls started coming in from Kohli, de Villiers, and Yash Dayal.

Thinking it to be a prank by friends, they even played along—until Patidar called him on July 15, requesting to return his SIM. In no time, a police team arrived at his doorstep.

Gariaband deputy superintendent of police Neha Sinha explained that the SIM had been deactivated after 90 days of inactivity and reassigned to a new customer, in line with telecom policy. “Manish was actually getting calls from cricketers who were in contact with Rajat Patidar. Patidar informed the Madhya Pradesh Cyber Cell that his number had been allotted to someone else and requested to have it back,” she said.

The Madhya Pradesh cyber cell contacted Gariaband police, who spoke with Manish and his family. With their consent, the SIM was recently returned to Patidar. “There was no legal issue or fault on anyone’s part—it was simply a result of standard telecom procedures,” Sinha added.

For Manish, Khemraj, and their families, the incident has been nothing short of “a dream.” Khemraj, an ardent Kohli fan, recalled Manish passing the phone to him. “The callers, who identified themselves as Virat Kohli and Yash Dayal, asked why we were using Patidar’s number. We explained that we had bought a new SIM and this was our number.”

“Talking to legends like Kohli and de Villiers is something we can’t describe. Even if it happened because of a mix-up, we were lucky. People just dream of seeing them, but we got to speak to them,” said Manish’s brother, Deshbandhu Bisi.