Around 40 km away from Bangalore, Hosur is a town right on the border of Tamil Nadu. It is widely known for its factories, and the job opportunities which it presents. So a lot of people, especially from the Northern part of India, looking for job opportunities, migrate here. This includes people who work in reputable jobs to people who have jobs which barely pays them. These people with low income jobs are pushed into poverty. I was reminded of this situation when I saw a group of kids running into a bunch of tarp-covered built settlements. These settlements are located right behind the Hosur railway station and right in-between a huge electric grid. I was intrigued by this place. Not just because of the tarp tents, but also because of the people who lived there.
I had no idea who they were. Where are they from? Or what do they do? I knew right then I wanted to take a dive into their world.
The time was around 6 o'clock when I approached the settlements. As I walked towards the tents I saw this man sitting outside with his family. When I asked him if I could ask him general questions for this article, he told me he was not educated enough to answer my questions. Instead he pointed me towards a direction through the tarp tents, suggesting there are other people who can answer my question. So I walked through the tents. What looked like a few tarps tents together from the outside, turned into a small village with at least 250 people as I walked in.
Kids and the people swarmed up around me. They all looked so surprised and intrigued as I walked though. The first thing which caught my attention was the campfire in the square and the music they were playing. It sounded like Rajasthani music, and they were burning trash. By looking at the condition I could guess their jobs were primarily rag picking. As I spoke to a few people, one person agreed to answer my question.
Babu is a 56 year old man who is a rag picker. He lives in this area with his family and his community. When I explained to him about the process of this interview and asked him what he does for a living, he pointed towards the buildings around the place and said, “We are from UP and we pick garbage for a living. I know nothing about this process. I am a poor man and uneducated so what can I do? I don't know what happens inside these huge buildings and offices.” He continued, “We eat food, sleep peacefully and when the sun comes up we go pick up garbage around the city which helps us to eat again.” I asked him if the government helps them with their situation. Babu claimed, “I don’t even know what the government does sir.” Another guy supported Babu’s statement from behind, angrily claiming that the government does nothing. “They do nothing?” I pushed.
Babu continued, “We just survive and satisfy our bellies sir that’s it, and we don’t want to take anything from anyone or give anything to anyone.
"My kind request is if you come to my home, drink a glass of water and let me cook some rice for you which is worth 10 rupees.” At that moment all I could think was how generous he was to offer food and water. I continued the interview. “Are your kids getting an education?” He said, “No kid here is getting proper education. They all turned into donkeys who pick trash for a living. They wake up in the morning to pick up trash or they don’t do anything else.” Then he asked me for some money and soon all the kids gathered around me again hoping I would give them some money.
Babu smiled and said, “Look how these poor kids gathered around so soon to ask for money. If we were a little wealthy we would have been okay.” Then he asked me to use my phone’s flash on his foot. And when I did he showed me a swelling on his leg and told me how it is making him limp. Due to his situation he is unable to afford treatment.
I went around taking photos of the place, interacting with a few other people. When I asked another person’s name, his name was Babu too. When I smiled, the Babu I was interviewing said there are a lot of other Babu’s here and we are all just brothers. Then I went to ask him the final question. I asked, “Are you happy?” Babu said, “Yes I am happy and everyone here is happy, and if you are happy I am happy too.” This put a smile on my face.
As I was walking out I saw a few people cooking food and how the water leaked through the tarp into their houses. A few kids shivering in the cold. Turns out in the heavy rainy season they go back to Lucknow, their native and come back once it is over. Babu accompanied us till we walked out of the place.
One thing I learned about the people and the settlements over there is, even though they are living in the worst living condition, they are still happy with what they have and generously give what they have and satisfied with what they have.
Written by
Jaisurya S.
