‘I have never missed my duty to vote’

LUCKNOW: From a junior assistant in state public works department to a social media star, Reena Dwivedi has got an instant recognition as the 'woman in yellow saree'. Her photograph in which she is carrying an EVM is all over the internet.Although enjoying her WhatsApp and TikTok glory, Dwivedi takes life as it comes. "I was married early but then I had a career for myself. Now, that people are liking me, I am enjoying every moment of it... Who doesn't like getting noticed? I am happy," says the 32-year-old from Deoria.The photograph in which Reena, in yellow saree, is seen carrying an EVM to the polling booth she was stationed at in Lucknow, was a routine click by a colleague. But is has now gone viral.With comments like, 'her booth had 100% attendance', the photographs and video meme on apps like TikTok have become internet sensation. Talking to TOI on Monday, Reena said: "This is not the first time that I was posted on election duty. I have served at different centres of Lucknow in 2014 general and 2017 state elections as well. But a routine click this time turned me into a celebrity."Read also: ‘Clothes shouldn’t define a woman’Reena says that the best reaction came from her son Aadit, a student of Class IX. “He came to me and urged to make a video call to his friends to make them believe that the woman is yellow saree was actually his mother,” said Reena, who joined the PWD job in 2013.Fitness and diet-conscious, Reena has also worked in the insurance sector. “Private companies have a more disciplined work culture. I brought that legacy with me in PWD as well. Probably that’s the reason my seniors and bosses appreciate me,” she said.Reena and her husband Sanjay would be going back home in Deoria to cast their vote in the final phase on May 19 . “I am a firm believer in Indian democracy… I have never missed my duty to cast vote,” said Reena who is a graduate and has also earned several certificates in computer operation.