The Other India

*Please note before reading that this is not a light heartened post. The following are my discoveries from my time in India. I ask that you respect that.*

India is a wonderful country to visit as it is full of history and culture. However, like any third world country, there are two sides to India: the side which I was lucky enough to "live" in and then the other side filled with poverty. The saddest part about this in my opinion is that very little is being done to help these people by other Indian people or their own government. This is not to say that modern day Mother Theresa's do not exist and there ARE numerous international NGOs. However, for the most part when you visit India you will notice that in fact, very few people at the top actually reach out to their own people. As much as it hurts to watch children beg and mother's hold sick babies, when I visited India you have to accept that there is only SO much I was able to do. So, that brings me to my to the slums.

About a year and a half ago after my mother had made her way half way across the world she realized there was much work to be done at our home in Jor Bagh. My father had found a WONDERFUL lady to help clean and cook, but with all the pollution in India she needed help cleaning the marble floors, watering the plants, taking the dogs out, etc. Anitha is a wonderful, Christian woman with a HUGE heart. She and her husband had been walking by the slum one day and saw a young man. He was shy, but they struck up a conversation and learned he was working as a gardener in nearby neighborhoods.
Anitha went home, but felt called to tell my mother about this boy as they were looking for additional help. They went back to the slum, which just so happens to be right across from the American Embassy School- sort of ironic I think, and interviewed him. To make a long story short my mother decided to hire him and have him move out of the slum and into the back side of our building (every home in India has living quarters for staff). Baju had come to New Delhi from a tiny village that was an eight hour bus ride. His father had left his family. He had five sisters and was the only son which now meant at 20 years of age it was his duty to not only support the family, but to also pay for every one of his sisters weddings. A huge duty for such a young man.

At first Baju hung his head and barely spoke. He rarely smiled. He had never slept on a proper bed or used running water. However, with encouragement and time Baju came out of his shell. He was trained by Anitha and my mother. He now has friends and a wonderful new job (mother secured jobs for all her staff upon moving).

These are photos of the slum where Anitha found Baju. Contrary to popular belief it is often not free to live in the slum. Baju had to pay the equivalent to $20 a month to rent a spot in a "home" in this slum. He did not even live in the area pictured- this area is the "higher" end of the slum.

While Baju's story is wonderful, it is saddest that it is actually very rare. Also, while Baju did thrive during his year and a half with our family it was not a walk in the park. He was sadly very mistreated by many people in Jor Bagh because of what caste he was apart of.

While I have read there are some areas of India that are letting go of the cast system, it is still plays a huge role in the lives of many in Northern India. Even well educated people mistreat those from lower casts. Again, this is not to say all people do this; it is a general observation. There are many horrible stories of people being treated as slaves and help being beaten and abused. However, as much as I would have loved to, I am not going to be able to change a nation's way of thinking. While in India we focused on doing what we could to help better the lives of those around us. However, no matter how you look at it, it is still heart wrenching.This is the side of India that is far from glamorous. The side where woman lift heavy stones to build new sidewalks as their babies lay in the dirt next to them. The side where normal people are yelled at by people in a higher caste, just for kicks. The side where wealthy, educated people leave children with disabilities at orphanages because they have believe they are evil. The side where children are sold into begging and prostitution circles. This is the other India.