Can a system teach you life skills? Can a system teach you to appreciate realities of the world in which we live in? Can it grow our perspective to look at things beyond social, cultural and moral contexts? … I guess, the answer is- Yes! I’m talking about that system which embraces 60% of India’s population – The Rural India.
Once I entered the village, the soothing monsoon weather and the smell of wet mud, made me feel like as if I’m walking through a painting. I’ve already had an unexpected epiphany about the appearance of Indian villages and their way of life when I started exploring them for my documentary shoots. With all my experience, I’d easily accepted the fact that these rural set-ups are a great source of learning.
Few lines which always stays with me that I read in a book called ‘Shantaram’ by Gregory David Roberts – “You will never understand the city, unless you first understand the village. Go there. When you return, see what India has made you.”
Rural India is like a rich library to me. I’ve captured stories that have inspired me at different walks of life. Let me narrate one such story from my treasure. My first ever visit during fellowship was to a village called Bedla, which is nearby Udaipur in Rajasthan. Well, the idea of going to a village was to understand how loosely we are connected to our roots, in other words “Breaking our Stereotypes” about villages in India. As I’d already been through the process of knowing how Indian villages are always seen under a bad light, I thought this activity will be another opportunity to capture stories from Bedla.
I think kids are like butterflies, who can spread message so efficiently that we adults can’t even do even if we sit and brainstorm our minds for hours. So, I gathered kids there and played a game which had a hidden message of cooperation. Surprisingly, the kid from that group got up and helped his mother distribute tea filled cups to everyone. The mother said, “Vaise toh kabhi kaam nahi karta, bas apke samne kar raha hai”. Well, my aim was not to teach anything, but I was quite happy seeing that kid helping his mother. That very moment, I saw his mom’s face which was shining with a bright smile, and I started reminiscing about the times I’d prepared hot chapattis and tea, and served it to my mom. I can’t say what she feels because she never expressed it to me, but I can say that her innocent smile and a relaxing expression on her face tells me to make her feel special all the time.
With that train of thoughts, adding one more story to my treasure, I returned with a feeling to cherish. I realized, how each travel and all kinds of people teach us what we miss most in our lives.
Just two words -thought provoking.
Just two words -thought provoking.
Looking at the rural community as your learning setup is cool … very cool! Keep writing.
Looking at the rural community as your learning setup is cool … very cool! Keep writing.