Udaipur

Snippets from a recent work trip to Udaipur that touched me in different ways...

Lal

An elderly man approached the curb in his white Maruti Dzire. The license plate confirmed that this was my reserved Uber ride with Lal from Maharana Pratap Airport to the hotel.

As we headed west towards the city, Lal and I struck up a conversation set against the idyllic backdrop of the Aravalli hills cloaked in the rays of the evening sun. When I told him that I work in the education sector, his eyes lit up! It turned out that he worked with Seva Mandir in the early 2000s for around 5 years in classrooms as a volunteer teacher. Once he got to know that I taught for 3 years in Pune, he animatedly began describing his classroom experiences! ☺️ He shifted to driving cabs as a profession because the volunteer teacher role didn't pay him enough to support his family and he didn't possess the necessary educational qualifications to rise up the ranks there. 😥 The passion with which he spoke about teaching was moving and a beautiful start to the trip! ✨

~ o ~ x ~ o ~

The Nat community

The Nat community, labelled as a “denotified tribe” (DNT) since 1952, remains shackled by colonial-era stigma and intersecting oppressions of caste, gender and economic deprivation (source). My time in Udaipur involved a climb up a short hill to visit a cluster of open-air homes that were inhabited by a Nat family. No legal electricity connection, a single tap at the base of the hill that produced water for a couple of hours a day, administrative barriers to getting an Aadhaar card and other documentation and limited/no support from the rest of the village owing to the aforementioned stigma — all these were taken as unavoidable consequences of being a part of the community.

(Note: Faces have been greyed out to protect identities.)

The lady wearing a pink shawl (bottom left of the photograph) was the matriarch of the cluster. She didn't know her birth date or age; her best guess was that she was in her 80s or 90s. Her husband had passed away years ago and she stayed in the cluster along with her 6 sons. One of her sons (leaning against a tree towards the centre of the photograph) was present during our visit as he was on leave owing to an injury to his right toe picked up at the factory where he worked. He lived in the home that is visible in the photograph along with his wife and 3 children. He spoke about the struggles that he and his brothers' families faced daily to find jobs that would allow them to provide food, clothing and shelter for their children. His oldest son, who was 9 years old, wasn't enrolled in a formal school (no documentation). When we first met the child, he was walking up the hill with a sickle in his hand that he used to cut wood as part of an informal child labour arrangement to earn extra money.

These sights and conversations made me realise how far we (India) are from achieving the ideals of justice (social, economic, political), equality (status, opportunity) and fraternity (dignity) that are enshrined in our constitution. Forget ideals, even basic human rights weren't guaranteed to the Nat community! 😓 The matriarch's wizened face, the man's resigned face, the child's innocent, yet hardened, face... each stirred emotions within me that are hard to put into words.

~ o ~ x ~ o ~

Swapnisthan

Interacting with the founder, Dr. Prakash Chandra Dangi, and his team at Swapnisthan was one of the main reasons why I was in Udaipur. Swapnisthan (Place of Dreams) is an alternative learning centre for children from socially disadvantaged communities that follows a need-based curriculum tailored to address their specific and contextual needs (source). Dr. Dangi presented his organisation's work followed by an informal interaction with his team, a community immersion, lunch and classroom observations. In line with the core Indian belief of अतिथि देवो भव (Atithi Devo Bhava), which translates to treating guests akin to God, Dr. Dangi proved to be an excellent host — we shared a delicious Rajasthani meal of दाल बाटी चूरमा (dal bati churma) prepared by his mother! 😊

One of the highlights of our time in Swapnisthan was observing the children during the classes that Dr. Dangi and his team conducted. These children either aren't enrolled in schools or sporadically attend low quality government schools; for them, this after-school learning centre that is trying to offer a reimagined and stimulating education was a breath of fresh air! 😇 The first lesson centred around the story of Holika and Prahlad (since Holi was a few days away!) and themes related to the destruction of evil and the victory of faith and righteousness. An abridged version of this tale is linked here. I liked that the children got to work in teams of 5-6 members and tinker with their hands to make effigies of Holika and Prahlad using sticks, ropes and newspapers. Their excitement was palpable as their effigies began to take a more concrete form! 😄

(Note: Faces have been greyed out to protect identities.)

The second lesson continued with the Holi theme — this time, the children got to make natural Holi colours using maida (refined wheat flour), beetroot and turmeric! As their tiny hands kneaded the dough in large bowls, I could see the look of wonder in their eyes as the white maida gradually turned into fine yellow and purple/pink coloured powders!  The photograph below says it all; the facilitators, Lilam (in black towards the right with pink hands) and Vanshika (in white towards the back and wearing glasses), can be seen in the photograph as well! 😇

(Note: Faces have been greyed out to protect identities.)

~ o ~ x ~ o ~

Mahendra

I started this post with a cab journey; I'll end with another!

With Swapnisthan being on the outskirts of Udaipur, finding a cab was a challenge. In fact, on Uber, only intercity cabs were available! 😅 After multiple attempts, Mahendra accepted my ride request. As he was 14 minutes away, I dropped him a message asking him if he was surely coming and he said yes but थोड़ा समय लगेगा (he will take some time to come).

Once the ride began, the fact that I had studied in Rajasthan piqued his interest. He asked me a bit about my background and what brought me to Udaipur. In return, he told me how he used to work as a delivery associate for Swiggy before and during the Covid pandemic and the challenges associated with the job that made him invest in a car and shift to Uber. I shared how I respect and am grateful to Swiggy associates for the work that they do on Bangalore's minefield roads and how I call each by their name (and not "Swiggy") since they are human beings with an identity beyond Swiggy! 🤜🤛 That made him reminisce about some of the kind customers he had interacted with when delivering food and we concluded that not all customers are inconsiderate! 😂

At the end of the journey, he told me how, under normal circumstances, he wouldn't have accepted my ride since he mainly does intercity trips! 😛 However, an outstation trip got cancelled at the last minute and he was free — that is how I became his first ride at 12:15 p.m.! It made me reflect on how serendipitous our brief time together was and how much of what makes life interesting is outside our locus of control. 🙂

~ o ~ x ~ o ~

A memorable trip with numerous heart-warming interactions drew to a close! 💙