[Goanet] Good samaritan Rickshaw driver
Hope you have this experience one day *As received* *Suvendu Roy of Titan Industries shares his inspirational encounter with a** **rickshaw driver in Mumbai:* *Last Sunday, my wife, kid, and I had to travel to Andheri from Bandra. When I waved at a passing auto rickshaw, little did I expect that this ride would be any different. As we set off, my eyes fell on a few magazines(kept in an aircraft style pouch) behind the driver's back rest. I looked in front and there was a small TV. The driver had put on the Doordarshan channel. My wife and I looked at each other with disbelief and amusement. In front of me was a small first-aid box with cotton, dettol and some medicines. This was enough for me to realise that I was in a special vehicle. Then I looked round again, and discovered more - there was a radio, fire extinguisher, wall clock, calendar, and pictures and symbols of all faiths - from Islam and Christianity to Buddhism, Hinduism and Sikhism. There were also pictures of the heroes of 26/11- Kamte, Salaskar, Karkare and Unnikrishnan. I realized that not only my vehicle, but also my driver was special. I started chatting with him and the initial sense of ridicule and disbelief gradually diminished. I gathered that he had been driving an auto rickshaw for the past 8-9 years; he had lost his job when his employer's plastic company was shut down. He had two school-going children, and he drove from 8 in the morning till 10 at night. No break unless he was unwell. Sahab, ghar mein baith ke TV dekh kar kya faida? Do paisa income karega toh future mein kaam aayega. We realised that we had come across a man who represents Mumbai – the spirit of work, the spirit of travel and the spirit of excelling in life. I asked him whether he does anything else as I figured that he did not have too much spare time. He said that he goes to an old age home for women in Andheri once a week or whenever he has some extra income, where he donates tooth brushes, toothpastes, soap, hair oil, and other items of daily use. He pointed out to a painted message below the meter that read: 25 per cent discount on metered fare for the handicapped. Free rides for blind passengers up to Rs. 50. My wife and I were struck with awe. The man was a HERO! A hero who deserves all our respect. Our journey came to an end; 45 minutes of a lesson in humility, selflessness, and of a hero-worshipping Mumbai, my temporary home. We disembarked, and all I could do was to pay him a tip that would hardly cover a free ride for a blind man.* *I hope, one day, you too have a chance to meet Mr Sandeep in his auto rickshaw: MH-02-Z-8508.*
Re: [Goanet] Good samaritan Rickshaw driver
As we partied around the globe, my brothers and I abandoned our grandmother in a 'Home' in Andheri. She is not around, any longer, but when my turn arrives, I hope the angel of mercy shows up with more than just hair oil - in a nip sized flask. Do feel free to read between the lines. eric. --- On Sun, 6/28/09, Luis Vas luissr...@gmail.com wrote: From: Luis Vas luissr...@gmail.com Subject: [Goanet] Good samaritan Rickshaw driver He said that he goes to an old age home for women in Andheri once a week or whenever he has some extra income, where he donates tooth brushes, toothpastes, soap, hair oil, and other items of daily use. He pointed out to a painted message below the meter that read: 25 per cent discount on metered fare for the handicapped. Free rides for blind passengers up to Rs. 50. My wife and I were struck with awe. The man was a HERO! A hero who deserves all our respect. Our journey came to an end; 45 minutes of a lesson in humility, selflessness, and of a hero-worshipping Mumbai, my temporary home. We disembarked, and all I could do was to pay him a tip that would hardly cover a free ride for a blind man.*
Re: [Goanet] Good samaritan Rickshaw driver
Thanks for that narration Luis Vas. Bombay has always been a city that can surprise you when you least expect it, like it did to newcomer Suvendu Roy. But for those who were born and lived in the city for more than a few years, it would be difficult not to have experienced the generosity of Mumbaikars both collective and individual. It would take more than one post to describe that effervescent quality but here are two instances of my own. My mother when she decided to live in a seniors facility, chose one that is run by Catholic nuns of a medical order in Jogeshwari, a western suburb of the city. The area around the St Joseph's Home for the Elderly is populated mostly by Gujaratis. They will come on weekends and even weekdays and bring their delicious khamand-dokras, patras, lilva kachoris, their kandvis and their tasty Gujju meals. They come un-ostentatiously, and consider it a favor that the nuns accept their food on behalf of the residents, rather than the favor the other way around. On their feast days they will out do themselves. After they go to their temples, they will come to the Home and give to the residents as if they are giving to their own parents. Even the neighborhood Lions Clubs take every opportunity to organize programs and events that make the residents happy and give them a much needed break from the usual atmosphere of the Home. Never once do the generous Gujaratis consider that the residents are Catholic and Goan and they Gujarati and Hindu. My mum was a nurse and having lived and practised nursing in Bombay for long, knew most of the eminent specialists of the time. When relatives and people referred by other people in Goa and elsewhere, came to mum and asked her to help them get the best treatment notwithstanding their limited resources, mum would take them to these doctors and then mention to them that these people could not pay much. In those days their consultation fee used to a hundred rupees. After that it was no further expense. Since these specialists were attached as honoraries to the Govt Hospitals they would get operated there for free and in addition get the best drugs and treatment since their were Dr. XXX's patients. When mum would ask how much they should pay, the generous doctors would say whatever they are able to give. Often that would be a ten rupee note handed in an envelope to the secretary. It was a custom for the secretary never to tell the doctor what was given and the doctor even if he knew, would never treat that patient any different. Bombay is a city different from any other. Once not too long ago, there was a bond that held Mumbaikars together. It was the understanding that they had all come to the city for a better life and that each one's struggles were no different from the other. Perhaps in intensity but not in type. There was an intense human bond on a one-to-one level. Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Parsi or Jew was for your own home and your own community. On a public level that mattered little. They were all from one God. I know that having become much richer now, Bombay has changed. But every now and then, as with your Mr Sandeep story, the old Bombay refuses to die. Roland. On Sun, Jun 28, 2009 at 7:08 AM, Luis Vasluissr...@gmail.com wrote: Hope you have this experience one day *Suvendu Roy of Titan Industries shares his inspirational encounter with a** **rickshaw driver in Mumbai:* My wife and I were struck with awe. The man was a HERO! A hero who deserves all our respect. Our journey came to an end; 45 minutes of a lesson in humility, selflessness, and of a hero-worshipping Mumbai, my temporary home. We disembarked, and all I could do was to pay him a tip that would hardly cover a free ride for a blind man.* *I hope, one day, you too have a chance to meet Mr Sandeep in his auto rickshaw: MH-02-Z-8508.*
[Goanet] Good samaritan Rickshaw driver
I believe this piece, would like to know where it appeared and wonder whether it also doubled up as a PR piece. What is worth some reflection upon is the bit where Suvendu Roy of Titan Industries says I started chatting with him and the initial sense of ridicule and disbelief gradually diminished. This is a such a persistent quality in us Indians, where does it come from and where does it go. But its is good to hear even someone state this out loud, his sense of ridicule. Its a pecuniary quality that is common to many of us, and is spelled out well in the book Being Indian by Pavan K. Varma. Also the bit about the rider attempting to make sense of this persons dharma both in its humanity and business methodology, as in, We realised that we had come across a man who represents Mumbai ? the spirit of work, the spirit of travel and the spirit of excelling in life. I asked him whether he does anything else as I figured that he did not have too much spare time. Very little basis to make the claim, but eminently acceptable when one does not know how this bienseance came together--as in sense of propriety. Complex analogies will mostly come from the masses. To make analogies and connections that aid or abet in how ones sees oneself amidst the changes that occur around us requires a different mingling as well as soiling of the mind. These changes have to be grappled with as the country gets sold to the largest bidder. One must also remember that during the Emergency the elites, the educated, the business houses, and ones with good jobs all supported it. It was people like my Dad who managed to flee from a sterilization van on a Mumbai street after escaping but not without staring in the face the spectre of Shri Vasectomy or should that be Bhesechthomy. We have all ended up on various paths, and truly with vastly different experiences. Dad must be smiling--in fact howling with laughter in the form of a cloud while we debate global warming. Man this is funny. I wish my brothers woudl howl with laughter too at whatever comes in their path. Coudl say more but must stop before I get too martial, contra-religious, or even pleasantly sexual--and risk this post not making it to Goanet. But life is short and waking on the razors edge is an art. Only those who can see outside our censorious existence while living within it, can create a different head space. Those in our higher institutes or education are not taught to see. It comes from within and in some cases a bit of it may be taught--as in a course on Social Change. I believe as a non-psychologist the Miller Analogies Test was applied on the streets of Mumbai, the answers will be devastating emotionally to those who believe in their superiority for a myriad of reasons. BTW, the largest employer in India is not the Indian Railways but the streets and by lanes of the country. venantius j pinto Date: Sun, 28 Jun 2009 16:38:31 +0530 From: Luis Vas luissr...@gmail.com Subject: [Goanet] Good samaritan Rickshaw driver Hope you have this experience one day *As received* *Suvendu Roy of Titan Industries shares his inspirational encounter with a** **rickshaw driver in Mumbai:*
