New Delhi, Thursday, April 21, 2011
12 my city
Thulla: City-speak for a cop desidictionary Eg: I got caught by a thulla last night
htcity PHOTOS: ZABEEH AFAQUE
meandmy
Graffiti tee s
delhi
R30
These vendors may not know who Che Guevera or Jim Morrison is, but they sure know who sells
THE T E R C E S SELLERS’ Ever wondered how those branded knock-offs, exotic handicrafts and exported goods reach the flea markets? Read on to find out
Vaishali Bhambri ■
A
Cricket mania continues in the city. We spotted these young men playing the game and enjoying the surprise showers at the same time. Only in Delhi!
dilse
Hi Hnu, I love you so much baby..""I cant live without u"", these are just words but i really mean it !! Honey..missing you so much, missing ur smile !! Be mine always. —Ur Jana Dear Gurvinder, Baby i love you...u r d most awesome person in my life...n m so happy dat our relationship completed 1 month...so happy 1 month of barbadi together...:D this is just to tell you that you mean a lot....U r my best frnd,my love,my angel...d apple of my eye..no matter wat i will olways love you..thnx for changing urself for me.. Mmm... wah!!Love you n i promise goa saath chalenge!! —Bulbul Hi, this message for the girl who meet me 724 bus saturday morning she sitting with conductor seat i was boy who stand u. u wear blue tops and jeans and u working Kingston service center nehru place i meet u and give 4 gb pen drive and u said change 15 days i want friendship u. contact dil se. — AS hello Puju, Its long time and i can promise you dat no power can separate us till the time i am on earth except GOD.... Be with me always and in every pros nd cons of life ... we will enjoy every moment together. —Your bacha Ranzy Singh To my popo (xemos), Through this column, i juz wan to say u r still d one whom i had
crush on even u r ma boyfrd. oye popo, i just want 2 make u feel special in everyway. coz u r spl 2 me. YAH ! I was born to say i love you . -Urs morto To dearest my ex Rav, I was d statue of innocence before ur interfarence in my lyf. at once i loved u d most but nw i h8 u d most for ol ur last words. tz proved dat d true luv dsnt exist. nvr evr fal in luv. —Only Urs Hi, This msg is for all girls specialy for south dlhi grl pls i want to friendsht with u becoz i m very alone in life i had never any affair and by god i realy want a true friend who share ideas with me and reply me through dil se. —Akshay Hi Pooja, I m daily reader to dil se my name is sam nd i m also 19 year boy from c.p nd i m hotel management student . I m frm himachal bt stdying in delhi yr i m also search fr cute frnd . Cz i m vry lonley in delhi . So wana b frnd if u r intrested so plz cnt dilsai coloum . —Sam KAVYA my best frnd, heyii baby vsh u many2 happy returns of d day may GOD bless u so dat all ur dreamz cum true may u get all d happiness in d universe may u achieve evrythng u dezire may u alwaz get d best thngs in laif..HAPPY BIRTHDAY !! —Kavya K, Diz msg iz 4 da 1 whu brok ma heart so badly n whu iz really so happy in his lyf.... luving u ws da biggst fault f ma lyf really...!!! u'll regret 1 day... trust me.... I HATE U K####K.... -Ur ex
round the time when the Capital’s hardcore party-goers are returning to their homes, over 10,000 sellers flock towards west Delhi. Unbeknownst to shoppers, they reach Raghubir Nagar market around 3am everyday to buy their wares for the day. Funky tees, used mobiles, leather belts, shoes — everything under the sun are sold here at throwaway prices. The catch? It’s all second-hand! When we reached the market at 5.15am, trade was already at its peak. Men and women, mostly from Gujarat, were busy bargaining. We even spotted a man haggling for a washing machine. As the sun rises, bhajans begin to blare from the loudspeakers of the adjacent temple.
Second-hand bargains No one knows when the market came into existence. Some say it’s more than 40 years old, whereas others believe that even their great grandfathers used to sell goods here. “I have been accompanying my parents to this place ever since I was a kid,” says Vicky, 22. From designers of showrooms to buyers from export
THE RECYCLE CHAIN
yehdillihai!
Hi Pooja (Laxmi Nagar waali...) My name is Vibhu i am 17 plus ..just finished my school....wanna do friendship with me?? —Your new friend
vaishali.bhambri@hindustantimes.com
houses to sellers from Janpath, Sarojini Nagar and weekly markets — the market is visited by a huge number of people. “They mostly buy second-hand clothes. As far as I know, they resell it at the Sunday flea market outside Lal Quila,” says Taaj, 28, a seller, who has been coming to his market for the last 10 years.
Tea and snacks Giving the sellers their first tea of the day for more than 20 years now, is Subhash Chand Shukla. Offering tea for R5 a cup, Shukla has been a witness to the changes in the flea market. He tells us that the peak season of the market is October and November. “During these two months, there are a lot of festivals, such as Navratri, Durga Puja and Diwali. It’s at this time that people clean their houses and give away all the junk,” he says. Shukla sells about 100 cups of tea a day and earns up to R500. “The sellers are very good at their work. There are times when they even change the labels of the shirts and trousers, to attract the buyers,” he informs. “Putting up such a full-fledged market in the wee hours of the day is not an easy task,” says Sohan Pal, who has been selling bread pakodas and mixed pakodas
for the past two years. Pal roams around the busy lanes of the market complex, selling the hot munchies with green chutney for R5. “I earn about R150 daily. Since it’s summer time now, people prefer eating fruits. My sales go down in this season,” he adds. Water packed in plastic packets were being sold here for R1. When the morning sun shines bright, you can quench your thirst with nimboo soda (lemonade), available at R7 for a glass.
Language no bar! Don’t be amused if you hear these wayside vendors uttering an “excuse me” or a “thank you” every now and then. We did hear English phrases mouthed by many of the vendors. “Kya bataye madam, angrezi to bohot
Delhi is one crazy place to live in. With its diverse food stalls, bazaars, street dogs, monuments and traffic jams, we are bound to see something unusual here. Once I saw a vegetable vendor, whose wheel cart had an engine and the handle of a motor bike. My friend told me that she too had seen the same sight and said that nowadays vegetable vendors move around in this way. This was a clear case of innovation, Delhi-style! Even though the flaws in Delhi eclipse it from its share of good things, the kind gestures or a helpful hand for the needy makes every Delhiite smile. Though such wonderful things happen once in a while, the good side of this city makes us love it and forget all our problems. —Sneha Gohri Dear Diary, This post of mine is an apology and an attempt to relieve my
guilt. One day, I was travelling in the Delhi Metro and was in a rush. I put my bag for security check. While I was doing this, one man, just a step ahead of me, was also putting his big bag in the luggage x-ray machine, but his pace was very slow. I got really angry and pushed him a bit. However, he kept moving with the same speed. I got angry and wanted to give him a scary look. But when I looked at his face, I saw his face and realised that he was blind. I reckoned that he was not blind, it was me, who was blind because didn't even see. I realised my mistake. That day I understood, our bad mood can harm and bring bad actions. We should understand our responsibilities. —Jasleen
We were surprised to find that every seller needed a ticket before he or she could to be here. And price of the ticket? It’s R2! There was even an Administrative Block nearby, with a board that announce the market. Curious to see how such a vast market was managed, we entered the dimly-lit room — only to find few locked doors. Quite an effective management it is, we should say!
ld in this The goods so starched, are washed, en dyed, ev es sometim e aged and ar tagged, pack i Nagar and ojin resold in Sar kets. ar m h at np Ja etro Nearest M ri ou station: Raj the Garden on Blue line
Trousers
R100
The bread pako de offering eating walla and the tea vendor are options for the th sellers in this m e only ones arket
1 Get the sari
2 Trade again
3 Back on sale
How often have you exchanged an old tattered sari for shiny new utensils? Guess where did your sari end up — more often than not, in Janpath, as a cushion cover! “We prefer Benarasi saris as they are sought after by traders. The zari and gota can be reused in cushion covers,” says Aarti, 18, who collects saris from homes
The goods are sold at very low prices. The prices start at R10 for a shirt or a sari and goes up to R500 and depends on the scope of reselling or reusing it. “There are many buyers who look the R10-stuff. It usually includes light bordered saris, and trousers,” says Sundari Ben, 42, who has been selling goods here for the last 20 years.
The saris sold here are usually used for making patches of the borders; the gotta and heavy embroidery are used for making handloom items, such as cushion covers and rugs. “I buy only the Benarasi saris from here and use the patches for cushion covers,” says Savita Ben, who sells cushion covers and bags at Janpath market.
campusfashionista
Namya Sinha ■
namya.sinha@hindustantimes.com
I
t is a youth movement that aims to help street children, orphans and runaway youngsters with the aid of music. Music Basti, the brainchild of 23-year-old Faith Gonsalves, helps underprivileged children and youngsters by imparting to them the knowledge of music, basic education and life skills. “At Music Basti, we create interactive spaces with underprivileged children. Initially, we were doing it mainly through music, but dance and theatre were also a part of it. Now, it's become more of an education pro-
Nitasha and Manika of Bhagat Singh College make a style statement in their purple tees Priyanka of Indraprastha University in a stylish brown top
The founder
Ashish of Institute of The Chartered Accountants of India strums the guitar in his cool checkered shirt
PHOTO: PRABHAS ROY
Music in the lanes
Dear Diary, Our Delhi has the perfect symphony of tradition; and modernity has given me many reasons to be proud of it. —Purnima Joshi
Admin Block, really?
Shoes
R50
W(hole) sale?
metropolitandiary Dear Diary,
jaruri ho gayi hai, (What should I say, English has become very important today)” says Salim, 26, a vendor who lives in the Raghubir Nagar slums, opposite the market complex.
Saris
R10
Kapil of The Institute of Charted Accountants sports a cool printed T-shirt
Faith Gonsalves
In 2008, Faith Gonsalves founded Music Basti. She came up with the idea when she was in her final year of college at Lady Shri Ram. While in college, Faith worked on projects that included the Indian Education System, Child Rights.
gramme,” says Faith. Through this programme, besides music, the participants are also given a chance to perform at big concerts. “We look for opportunities, where these children can get maximum exposure. Every month, we make them participate in concerts. This is a part of our Musical Exposure Programme”, says Faith. Music Basti performed recently at the Big Horn Fest. There are around 15 volunteers and 20 artists working with Music Basti. There are workshops organised for the at-risk youth and children. The Music Workshops Education Programme has local and visiting international musicians imparting classes.
The other kind of workshops include Music Skills Development Classes, where students are trained in vocal music, along with musical instrument. “Within six months, you get to learn quite a lot and also gain experience of working with underprivileged children. I assisted in teaching music to the children,” says Anjuli Chakraborty (26), an intern with the programme for the past six months. To get in touch with Music Basti you can mail at musicbasti@gmail.com
Music Basti from Ummeed Home perform at the Big Horn Festival
The Dil Se Campaign at Khushi Home for Girls
PHOTOS: TANUSHREE SINGH & VIDYUN SABHANEY
PHOTO: ARVIND YADAV
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