Flash Post 278!

Button, it doesn’t take too much to break into a smile as Aarti (the lady in the picture above) flashes while selling “limbu mirchi”at a traffic signal.

True. True.

She’s obviously found that little gap in-between selling her wares–maybe when the traffic lights turned green– to spend that little time with her baby and smile seeing that face looking up at her and, maybe, pondering what immense joy this tiny bundle that she created brings to her life.

I’ve often seen urchins laughing away and having a good time with other fellow urchins while playing a game of hop-scotch on the footpath. They seem so happy.

These vendors– selling flowers, others books, toys and fruits– fascinate me. There’s a couple of sisters selling flowers, sometimes handbags, etc., at the Mahalaxmi traffic signal who we’ve known for years. When our vehicle, amongst many others, stops at the traffic signal sometimes, they run up to us beaming from ear to ear, strike up a conversation and try and sell us their wares.

Happiness is one of those things that cannot be bought.

The picture you see above was clicked by Sachin S Pawar from Colaba and appeared in today’s Mumbai Mirror.

6 Comments

jubin March 20, 2018 at 11:27 am

Look at the smile on their faces! Poverty is possibly the toughest thing to live with..no one who is above the poverty line should ever complain about anything. Only those who’ve experienced hunger and the search for a roof over their heads have the right to complain.

Reply
- author March 21, 2018 at 11:06 am
  
  My dear Jubin,
  
  I agree with you whole-heartedly. The privileged lot who actually have nothing to complain about keep complaining incessantly about the smallest of things. In the adjoining picture to Aarti’s, the two urchins in the foreground are making funny faces and beaming from ear to ear. These kids have no idea if they’ll get something to eat that day and yet, they are so happy!
  
  Happiness is a state of mind and you may have everything that you need or want one hundred times over but that does not guarantee that you will have happiness.
  
  Reply
waluscha March 20, 2018 at 11:33 am

I read this too..she deserves to be on the cover of a newspaper…what loves these people live. Not one bit of respite. Either she’s raising her kid or she’s earning her money. Really..who says men are stronger or men do all the work or only men can earn money… Women like this expose myths like this…

Reply
- author March 21, 2018 at 10:53 am
  
  My dear Waluscha,
  
  I am also of the opinion that these women live a very tough life. During a part of the day they earn some money which gets snatched away by a greedy husband who has to buy his quota of liquor for that night. If she refuses to part with the money, she gets beaten up. She also does the cooking, cleaning and other chores at home. It’s sad that she has nothing to look forward to except loving and getting back love from the baby she has given birth to.
  
  Reply
Mohit Vashisht March 20, 2018 at 11:36 am

I hope she doesn’t sell the baby or that the baby is not a rental one to be able to earn more money…child labour is the biggest scam. but at the end of the day these people are out on the streets living without food and shelter…whatever they need to do to survive, they will and we cannot and should not judge them for that.

Reply
- author March 21, 2018 at 10:44 am
  
  Dear Mohit,
  
  The fact that the child could be a hired one never struck me after a first glance at the image though I know about the scam. Seeing her hold up a baby and warmly smile at her struck me of the maternal instinct almost all women have when they see or hold a baby in their arms.
  
  Reply