TWO WORLDS, ONE COUNTRY

India, the world’s fastest growing economy, has undergone a massive transformation in the past few decades. There was once a time when on hearing our country’s name, the first image that would flash in an outsider’s mind would probably have been poverty or disease or illiteracy and maybe after that, our rich culture fabricated by our multilingual and multi ethnic society, our historic architectural marvels, our colours and of course, we the people. Though these features continue to exist, life, in the world’s largest democracy and second largest population has taken a shift towards the fast track. Ever since the massive globalization drive begun in 1992, the standard of living in the country has grown substantially. The influx of several popular western brand names in India in the recent past has led to the formation of a whole new class christened as the upper-middle class, which of course has its own set of concerns. But despite this metamorphosis, India’s culture and heritage continues to be its prominent feature and its major source of earning as well. Well, this definitely is a fact to be proud of, but what is not is that the above mentioned basic problems such as poverty and illiteracy and social stigmas like child labor and dowry still haunt our society.

Experts and journalists around the country describe this situation as –‘best of both worlds’. I would have to say that this phrase is quite apt, as I happen to be one of those Indians, who get to be a part of both these extremes and witness the beauty of its coexistence. The following two contrasting stories are based on these very experiences.

Part 1: The world below…

After a whole tiring day of boring lectures and frustrating labs, at six in the evening, I finally get to hang up my boots temporarily. Well, I generally relax by enjoying an evening meal along with my friends in the nearby snack stalls. There are a variety of such places in the vicinity of my hostel which include tea stalls, shake centres and low cost restaurants. With the break of dusk, the whole arena is thronged with many a student like me, who are here to revitalize themselves and these shops in turn, thrive on us.

When I visited this place for the first time, I was taken aback by the reliance of these places on a single bright bulb, switched on by tying up two live ends, to light up the area. I had no clue about what I would be confronting in terms of food. On asking, the owner started chanting what seemed to me like a Sanskrit shloka. He was actually going through the list of items, which seemed to have been permanently etched in his mind over the years. Not being able to understand a single word of his blabber, I gave some weird looks to my friends, to which he reacted instinctively and asked me to take a look at his menu on a wooden board. As I started going through it, I came across some of the most bizarre names of the world such as - chikan chowmean, freid raice, bund butter, mango shek, banana sake, pasty etc. I tried my best to control, but eventually burst into laughter. Not wanting to hurt the owner’s sentiments, I quickly turned around and tried to control myself. But I was, by no means, helped by the neighboring shop which read- chinesh food and sek carnar. A few moments later, I finally regained some sanity and placed my order. I was asked to have a seat. As I waited for my order, I looked around to check out its people. Besides the owner there was an elderly helper and to my shock, there were two very young boys who looked like brothers and an even younger girl. The sight of that little girl in dirty and tattered clothes, cleaning up the dishes with utmost effort, was a horrifying one. I was brought to my senses by one of the boys who inquired in a rural Hindi, whether I had placed my order or not. I tried to distract myself by taking a glance of what the others were having. My eyes got fixed on the Aloo paranthas garnished with some lovely pickles and a very symmetrically cut, piece of butter. Hang on, there was still more to come. The young boy alias chotu came out with a plate of noodles. That was it! I had started to salivate profusely now. Thankfully my wait ended quite soon when the lad shouted out-“egg chicken roll”. I hastily claimed it. The next few moments of my life were just out of this world. The roll contained some delicious fillings, topped with some tempting pieces of red meat, all of which had been pretty meticulously compiled. The taste could not be described in words. I devoured two of them in no time. When I asked him where I could wash my hands, he gestured towards one of the water jugs; the same from which people drank water. I reluctantly rinsed my hands, but drinking that was out of question. After that I decided to go for a chocolate shake as dessert. He gleefully accepted my demand, cleaned his blender and took out some milk from his fridge. After that he added some crushed ice, heaps of sugar and chocolate powder and switched on the mixer and my shake was ready to be served. Considering the amount of chocolate and sugar he had added, the taste just could not have been bad. Well, my whole meal summed up to a mere forty bucks. No wonder this place was so popular. Ever since, this place became a part of my daily routine.

Every evening I enjoy my daily snakes or rather snacks along with a glassful of my favorite cold coffee without ice, over here. Cold coffee and that too without ice may sound a bit funny, but I have no choice. The manner with which the ice is transported and then crushed can make anyone lose his or her appetite. The chunk of ice is brought on a cycle and the same jute bag is reused each time it is crushed. In fact there is a big question mark on the hygiene of this place. With time, I noticed that, the dishes are merely dipped in a soap water solution in the name of cleaning. The workers rarely wash there hands and it is better to ignore the water supply being used. No wonder these guys charge so less. They have to manage their family’s whole living in that meager sum. This also accounts for the hiring of children as labor. They are not only cheap, but can also be better exploited. The sight of these young boys and girls toiling hard in a time when they should be playing around is quite heartbreaking. What make matters even worse are the conditions under which they work. Their masters force them to grill under the relentless heat and the biting cold, with dirt and germs all around and adding to all this, they do not even have a permanent toilet. It is very easy to say that the government should steps to eradicate this evil but unfortunately, these children are major earning sources for their families and will have to live under worse conditions if sent back home.

Well, despite the sorry state of affairs in these places, there is a spirit about its people. The kids always seem to be cheerful and find some or the other source of entertainment while working, which is heartening to see. The owners and workers are quite down to earth, polite and completely dedicate themselves to our service with a lot of curtsy. The people who are found here in multitude are generally from the lower classes. It is interesting to see these guys sit back and relax on those dilapidated plastic seats and wooden benches to enjoy a samosa with a glass of boiled tea and indulge themselves in animated discussions most of which are political. My astonishment reaches its pinnacle when I see the mutual trust among the people. After ordering a dish, one may enjoy it anywhere in the vicinity as per will and pay after that. There is no stress upon ‘on the spot payment’ and very rarely does anyone take undue advantage of this system. All these highs and lows taken together make these sorts of places truly amazing.

Part 2: The world above…

Back home to Kanpur after a tiring and financially tight few weeks in college, I get a much needed breather. The first desire which props up in my mind is to hang out somewhere either with friends or family to enjoy some tasty cuisines. I instinctively think of a mall, owing to its happening atmosphere and more importantly, its absence in the city where my college is located, the pious Allahabad. Kanpur though, has rapidly improved in this respect over the past few years and is now home to some of the better malls of its zone. This could be credited to the growing business class of the industrial city.

As soon as I enter the mall premises, I get an adrenaline rush. The parking lot itself has a lot to tell about what one could expect inside. It is generally full of cars of all the popular brands in India, with the gleaming high class luxury sedans dotted in between, but visible distinctly. After walking through the wooden security channel, which seems to beep for every person and a rather lousy security check, a blast of air conditioning welcomes us into the mall. The atmosphere inside is simply electrifying. The high glass roofs, the lighting, the cleanliness, the glitter, the crowd, everything is really attractive. The first time I came to this mall, I was awestruck at its splendor. I simply gazed around the whole structure, trying to count the number of brand names lined up. Well, that was a few years back. Since then, visiting malls, for me has been a patchy yet regular feature of my calendar.

This time I decided to have my dinner at McDonald’s, a multinational fast-food outlet chain, in case you did not have an idea. I pushed open the very meticulously polished glass door besides which was a sitting figure of Ronald, the mascot clad in red and yellow, and entered. There was quite a buzz inside which blended with the beats of the English songs being played in the background. I walked straight down to the counter and waited in the queue to place my order. I looked up at the lighted and attractive menu board. There were some appealing names with their even more tempting pictures along side them. What were not quite as enticing though, were the exorbitant prices written against them. I decided to go for a McChicken burger, some fries and a coke to go along with them. The cashier asked me whether I wanted to go for a combo meal as it would have offered me an extra item at a lower cost. I was not very keen on that extra item and hence refused. I was then thrown in with yet another deal, this time in the form of yet another complex permutation and combination. With my mathematics not quite being the best in the world, my mind was in a scramble. I shrugged all those snarls off and asked my man to adhere with the request made by me and finalise it. He keyed in some data and out came a bill from that electronic device with a characteristic high pitched buzz. The weight of my wallet reduced significantly soon after. As I waited for the order, I got a chance to have a glimpse of how the activities taking place in the kitchen. It was absolutely spic and span and was full of some rather sophisticated ovens and grills. The workers in there were highly professional, with some of them dipping the already cut fries in shining oil bath, some compiling the constituents of the burger and some responsible for the beverages and other nitty-gritty jobs. Very soon my order was handed out to me on a tray and I sat down on a suitable location, not being able wait to get my hands on the food, especially after getting its captivating fragrance. As I chomped through my burger with intermittent sips of coke, I did what I loved to do the most. I looked around to see the brilliantly illuminated ambience, the happenings and of course the people. It was astounding to see the glitter of wealth in the crowd, the majority of which comprised of youngsters. The teenage boys wore some rather flamboyant T-shirts with baggy jeans that were strapped at alarmingly low levels. In addition to these, the hair gel had been brought to adequate use, with hair-spikes oriented in all possible directions as a fashion statement. The girls were clad in scintillating apparels with as many exposures as possible within the present socially accepted limits. Their trendy hairstyles, sparkling accessories, glowing make-up and mystifying fragrance were all abiding the latest fashion standards. I could have carried on describing their attractive appearance had my mother not brought me into my senses by a typical parental statement-“My goodness! What has happened to the kids nowadays? Just look at how they are dressed.”

It was true. Being a teenager myself, I could, for once understand this trend in my age group. But what was more shocking, was to see the kids’ jazzy outfits. Clearly inspired from Television, the children seemed no less than little celebrities. I tried going back to my own childhood, which was not very long ago and recalled that even in my time, we flaunted around our simple shirts and jeans or frocks and skirts as in the case of girls. Well, seeing their parents’ dressing sense, one could lift the lid of the fact of who was responsible. The unnecessary artificial aids to reduce their apparent age made them look rather ghastly. They were murmuring away with each other in the most sophisticated of English with least possible usage of Hindi, which of course is inevitable for any Indian.

I was finally over with my delicious course and scurried off that place in fear off getting an inferiority complex. Howsoever complex is their world, the fact is that there was clear cut happiness radiating on the faces of those relatively young, higher middle class section of people. They seemed to get a sadistic pleasure in reiterating their superiority by showing there neighbors down time and again. Who doesn’t though?

So there we have it; two absolutely contrasting worlds in almost all respects. Both of them seem satisfied, but there exists an underlying urge for development. The lower class wants to go higher and the higher class holds the desire to fly even more higher. So the direction of shift of momentum is clearly evident. Every year there are myriads of people from home and returning from abroad who are establishing themselves in the elite business class. The cost of living index (COLI) is increasing exponentially and the western influence is clearly evident.

Well, all this could give nightmares to a normal Indian who is witnessing his countrymen get spellbound by an influential country’s lifestyle. Did Gandhi ji and Nehru vision a developed India in the form of another America? This may not be a pleasant thought, but it has to be accepted. The world is dynamic. Evolution is a basic truth. Development is always for the good, though it may bring along some side effects along with it. You may hate it, you may like it, but you cannot ignore it. It is also a fact and a heartening one, that the current trend towards commercialization has helped the ones in destitute. So as long as it promises to facilitate those young child labors in the block, it has to be good. After all, we have to set our priorities.

As far as us normal Indians are concerned, we should try to recall our chemistry lessons and remember the fact that spontaneous reactions always occur in order to establish a state of equilibrium. Hence without worrying too much about the disturbing westernizing trends and trying to keep ourselves away from it, let us enjoy the best of both worlds.