Common work factor among rural women

There seems to be one common factor in rural households across India - Fetching water for drinking purpose from a source thats a minimum distance of 10 metres to atleast 2 kms from her house. All the laborious task she needs to undertake. How many generations more to come the rural women would have to face this situation. Do we really have a development focus, when the basic necessity is not resolved......

Kumaon bridegroom

Oriya bridegroom

Rajasthani Bridegroom

Glimpses of Rural Marriage on Akshay Tritiyaa in Orissa-Rajasthan-Uttarakhand

Akshaya Tritiya day which falls on the third day of the bright half of Hindu month Vaishakh, during late April-early May time, ‘Akshaya’ in Sanskrit means ‘that which never diminishes.’ It is also the birthday of Parashurama, Lord Vishnu’s Sixth incarnation. Today, Akshaya Tritiya has become the ‘Hindu gold rush’ day.

Astrologically, it is believed that the sun and the moon are most radiant and best placed on the Askhaya Tritiya day. Many devout Hindus choose the day to conduct auspicious functions. There is no need to select a ‘muhurat- auspicious time’ on this day as the entire day is devoid of malefic influences. Large number of marriages and several new beginnings take place on the day.

Myself Prof. Vijayalakshmi and Sarlaksha happened to be travelling across Uttarakhand,Orissa and Rajasthan around the same time. We witnessed mass marriages across communities. Atleast one panchayat had a marriage ceremony on that day. So much so that to our surprise it was difficult to hire a taxi for long distance....they were either reserved for election campaigns or for marriage parties.

We observed marriages in rural India with a simple baraat(marriage procession) with the bridegroom perched on a horse holding an umbrella for himself to the pompous and extravagant weddings of Rajasthan.....wonder why so much amount is spent on marriages. Is it a social obligation to be a part of village society?

Damayanti's undaunting spirit

She aspires to give her children a better life and is single handedly running the house, relentlessly, non stop working each minute for a better tomorrow......with no sign of slowing down....Damayanti takes pride in weaving the warm wollen shawls made out of rabbit fur........her astute business sense coupled with homely attitude has kept the family bonded

Grandma says

Education would be top most priority for her granddaughter.....

Aspiring better opportunities

I was happy to know that of the 150 households in village Darkot, district Pithoragarh,Uttarakhand each house has sent the girl child to school. There is a good spread up of schools and higher level education in this area.For further education family's are willing to send there daughters as far as district head quarters i.e Pithoragarh (180 kms). Each women correspondent we interacted with expressed her feelings saying she would like her daughter to be better educated than her.

Tribal Heritage Museum- 2700 ft above Sea Level

Mr.S.S.Pangti the retired school teacher was a man of principles and values. Climbing uphill to his house about half a km from the mainroad made me breathless,we were 2700 ft above sea level at village Darkot, District Pithoragarh, but it was worth reaching.This place was only 50 Kms away from the famous Milam glaciers and from the tibet border.To our surprise we found an elderly man perched at the corner of a building structure under construction, giving instructions to masons.

He had a soft voice but his tenacity to sit there and supervise the work at ripe age of 73yrs was worth appreciating.His ardous interest in preserving the Kumoan culture has germinated into an idea for establishing a tribal heritage museum.

Several artefacts were being collected from deserted village, especially the last remains of beautiful wooden carvings used in constructing the Kumoan home that protects from freezing temperatures.

His interest in teaching has remained a lifelong passion.....With an education upto class eight he taught children of tibetan refugees in early 60's.......later on completed graduation and also pursued a Phd...... finally retiring as a history lecturer.

He spoke at length about how his grandfather used to go to Tibet for trading and why his tribe has chosen to stay near Munsyaari. He went on to describe further about the Rajis tribe found in Dharchula at Pithoragarh to the Bhaichung tribes settled in north east.

S.S.Pangti is a highly regarded man in Kumoan who has written few books and also narrated a poem to Anjali as how he would like to be remembered by people on his demise. I and Anjali after meeting him came out truly inspired.

Here's a man truly working for giving back to his people creating knowledge base, trying to preserve the fast losing culture of Kumoan habitat- Its a Mission that he is pursuing with a passion

Complements and comments

Ms Madhuri Menon's comments
Ms Menon has been of a great support to us. She helped us in identifying people with whom Sasha could stay at Kovalam and and at Vilathikulam for carrying out our work.
This is what she has to say. Thank you Mam- Rare complements such as yours motivate us to go further into the innerworlds
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Researchers are out there in the field- braving the blazing sun in Tanjavur, on the high seas of Kovalam, the deserts of Rajasthan or the icy winds of the Himalayas. Meetings scheduled after sunset- because that's when the villager returns from the field or the day's work. What drives these youngsters to do this? One simple answer is - PASSION for what they do.
Recently I was talking to a friend who had organised Sasha's visit to Tuticorin district villages. She had stayed at a fairly remote village of Vilathikulam and traveled to even more remote areas in search of material to understand people and document the rural profiles, so that the world understands this 'customer' better!. Even though her stay at Vilathikulam was short, she has left a lasting impression, with her enthusiasm, bubbling chatter and passion for the work. When i mentioned to Dr. Jothimony that Sasha had gone to Rajasthan on return from Vilathikulam, his response was 'oh- she's a very capable person....' He also commented on how well she interacted with the people in the villages she visited and how committed she was to her work.' May this spirit of adventure continue. All the best to Sasha and to the entire team.

Mousumi's village host @ Mayurbhanj

Mousumi our innerworld intern during her village stay @ Mayurbhanj with a Bhumija family, who originally travelled from Tamar (In Jharkhand state) to this area a few generations back.

True face of abject poverty

The true face of abject poverty is stands out straight in the face – What have I done for them- I was ashamed of myself. The source of sustaining a livelihood is still dependent on gathering forest produce (minor forest produce, like sal leaves, wood cutting for domestic consumption, marginal farming and landless labours). Bamboo cultivation in small proportion too was seen in every household, which is mainly utilized for renovating the mud plasterd and thatched roof houses with bamboo doors and fencing for the tiny houses

Refreshing drink - The Handia

As the vehicle moved from Baripada town towards Badakuldhia village, with the summer at its best the entire vegetation was in dry state, ……yet reminiscing the fact that once monsoon sets in, this area would soon blossom into lush greenery…after all Mayurbhanj is known for its vast dense forest reserve area, adivasis (tribals)(Out of the 62 types of tribals in Orissa, Mayurbhanj alone consists of 53 tribes) and the Simlipal Biosphere. Not many people were on the road…….expect for a few women who were sitting in the side paths adjacent to the road with aluminium pots…selling Handia….a refreshing beverage made from fermented rice.

The difference was so stark as I took a train from Bhubaneswar and alighted at Balasore, from there on I chose to take the roadway to Baripada town, the only town and district headquarter of Mayurbhanj. This north eastern part of Orissa is starkly different from other parts of Orissa. As my association with Orissa is two decades old, mainly in coastal belt of Ganjam- Puri- Cuttack - Khurda, the western Orissa of Sambalpur- Bolangir.

Mayurbhanj being a land locked district shares the boundaries with Midnapore district of west Bengal in north, Singbhum district of Jharkhand in South, Balasore district in West and Keonjhar district in East.

I was surprised and also it struck me that development is yet to reach here in its full vigour. If Mayurbhanj district can boast of a town and a market place its only Baripada. Mayurbhanj has a tribal people dominated population with about 53 types of tribes.

Strong Women-2 : We salute you

Dhanam

Iam 39 years old. I was born at Ambalapattu. Mine is basically an agricultural family. I did schooling at Ambalapattu till 10th standard and then I did 11th and 12th at St.Joseph’s school. After that I went on to study B.Sc. Physics My parents reside at Ambalapattu. I got married when I was 18 years old. My daughter has done B.E., she is married and has a son. My son is studying in the 10th standard. My younger sister is married to the richest person in our village. I had wanted to apply for the VO exam but my husband said that I shouldn’t do it. Myy husband is the village VAO. So I didn’t apply
Then I was forced to marry my elder sister’s brother in law. My father and my second brother only liked the marriage. There is a 17 years difference between my husband and I. My mother didn’t like the alliance due to the age difference. But I was forced into the marriage and I stopped my studied due to that. I had a daughter in the year 1987 and my son in the year 1993.
And in 1994, my husband fell ill. The first time his leg was swollen, we thought that it was an insect bite and used some traditional medicine but there was no cure. We took him to Pattukkottai , then we went to Tanjore, Pondicherry and Chennai. He has been unwell for 15 years. In The doctor has said that he would live on only for 4 or five years as his kidneys will function only for another 4 or 5 years. My husband gets tense very easily.
The turning point in my life was my husband’s illness. I feel that God will take care of everything. In my mother’s house I did not know any problems. Only now I know the family troubles. But I feel more confident now.

My eldest brother was very worried because my family forced me into this marriage. I accepted everything as fate and didn’t blame everyone. My husband doesn’t feel sad or worried. My daughter and son worry a lot. My daughter has married one of my relatives. She had a love marriage. My son in law works in Chennai. My husband’s dream is that my daughter should become an IAS officer. My daughter got an MBBS seat in Russia but my husband was not keen to allow her to go. The entire cost would have been 7 lakhs. My son is studying very well.
We bought a land for 3½ acres in my son’s name. The person who gets the documents done was very helpful. We already have 5 acres of land and another 1 acre of land in my husband’s name. I have not bought any land in my name. We have put a bore well of 420ft depth with great difficulty. We had already spent 5-6 lakhs in the hospital. My eldest brother gave 50,000, my father gave 50,000 and my sister gave 25,000. For the bore well, we got the society bank loan with a lot of difficulty. Many people in the village put petitions because they were jealous that we would have more profits once the bore well was done, whereas they had only wells. But we finally got the sanction after the officers came and measured the distance between the other bore wells and ours twice. The society bank people were helpful in getting the bore done. We had lots of water at 50 ft depth itself. Mainly, my husband’s younger brother was jealous because we had bought the land which he was supposed to get. We have sugarcane in our land and it gives large profits. We also have paddy. Right now getting people to cut the crop is very difficult because there are not enough people who come to harvest sugarcane. I managed to get few people through my friend who also has sugarcane in her farm. We give our sugarcane to the EID Parry Company at Pattukkottai. For the cutters we pay 150 per day for the men and 100 per day for the women. In February the prices increase to 200 and in March it becomes 250 per day. For the harvesting the Bank gives us 12,000 rupees cash of which 4000 is given to the company. We also have sesame seeds. We grow 5636 variety paddy crop. We usually harvest paddy using harvester machine. We sold paddy for INR 68,000 last year.
My son is in the hostel since 4th standard because according to our horoscope we were supposed to be separate. He misses me a lot .I want my son to become a doctor but he wants to become an engineer. He wants to go abroad. I want my daughter to become an IAS officer as her father wishes. I worry most only about my husband because I don’t know when he would pass away. I feel scared that something might happen to him.

In search of an Indian identity

My travel across Indian villages has clearly established one aspect of Indian identity- Indian identity is neither individual I self nor collective We self. It is familial –we self[1].
This familial we self is pan Indian feature ( probably extends across the subcontinent). Interview after interview , myth after myth highlights this aspect of our identity. Our collective dreams are for the welfare of our children and mentioned as duties towards them to educate them and/or settle them in life(euphemism to get them married). And to construct a home for the family. Our deepest fears involve shaming the family name, not living upto expectations of family members while our worries are always about not fulfilling one’s duties to one’s parents and children. Relationships are evaluated as duties and responsibilities.

This is so ubiquitous and obvious in all aspects of our life that it is taken for granted reality. Indian society is a collection of familial Wes. The differences across India are the differences in the power distribution within the family.

Our epics extol virtues of ideal son (Ram) who underwent untold miseries so that his father’s boons to his step mother were upheld. Ramayan starts with Dasarath’s yagna for a child- despite being a virtuous king wealthy, courageous and famous, he was unhappy as he did not have children. The epitome of parental duty is depicted by Shravan whose killing is used as the root cause of the troubles that befell Dasarth and his progeny. Sita’s banishment on return to Ayodhya is again to overcome familial bonds for the sake of a higher duty. Mahabharata depicts the sanctity of a woman and attempt to harass her was a root cause for the fights between brothers. Gita is to explain why one has to overcome familial bonds for the sake of one’s duties to the kingdom.


The knots in our myths are around clash of duties to various household members father- son, husband- wife, across brothers , mother-son. Thus our epics are not about war and victory but about are hero’s struggles against familial bonds compared to duties to larger humanity.

Our preoccupation with marriages and children, family members of politicians inheriting party posts across the country ( across Indian subcontinent) and our acceptance of such dynasties as normal aspect of our politics are proofs of familial self.

What is the impact of a familial we?

For one, our customers are not rational individuals nor norm bound collectivists. They are responsible members of household with duties to fulfil. So any income belongs to the family to meet several obligations and duties of the household members. So any customer information should collect information of the household not of the individual.

When we identify entrepreneurs to invest, we need to understand that s/he wants to create an empire for his family and not merely create profitable venture for self. That family bonds are more powerful than calls of individual conscience. So our investor profile has to include members of the household particularly of wife and adult children (to profile only sons or to profile children and wife is a subcultural issue!!).
[1] I have referred to several Psychoanalysts and researchers viz., Alan Roland ( In search of self in India and Japan) Sudhir Kakar (Indians) , Panda and Gupta ( Individualized-collective self)

Beyond numbers Vol1-4

We also have compiled all the stories in 4 volumes as a prelude to our data analyses

Select 20

We have come up up with a sample booklet of our work . We would be soon making many copies for circulation-do reserve your copy.

If I were to be born in the hills

I would choose to be born a buffalo and never as a woman.
Wake up at 5 am, trudge 2 kms uphill to fetch water for cooking, cleaning, drinking for family and buffaloes, cook, clean, sweep and collect dung for manure, fetch grass and green leaves for the buffaloes, work in the fields- (sowing ginger and corn, when I was there) fetch more water, cook , clean and sleep.
Kids as young as 5 years were carrying hay that weighed probably more than them trekking more than 2 kms uphill ( 2 or more such treks) before they got ready to go to school.
The only animal that had a cushy life was the buffalo.
When I was wondering what the men do- I was told they earn a living. I wonder what it means

Iam old

My trip to Kasmoli village.

I am old- not growing old, plain , simple, Old. This fact was brought to fore when I had to climb the mountain to reach the house where Anjali was staying in a really remote village of Kasmoli off Agarkal.

Flight to Delhi was uneventful, so was the trip to Haridwar. I stayed at Ginger. The roof was peeling and the handle of the bathroom door had come off , leaving behind rusted screws. Tatas have to immediately spruce it up, lest ginger becomes another seedy hotel.
Morning dawned and it was a breathtaking scenery all the way upto Agarkal.Once, we reached there, there was simply no connectivity. We enquired in a small shop and Ajender was very well known, so they directed us to a village 5 kms away. After initial hesitation, the taxi driver drove me up to the Kasmoli bus stand and dropped me. It was completely deserted with no one in sight. I sat down and waited for sometime. Then came two men in a bike who said , his house was up there- can you see that building- that one up there- that is the place. Well looked way too far. Then came 2 kids carrying hay twice their weight and size, careening their way up. I requested them to pass the word that I was waiting in the bus stand. Another 10 minutes. Then came this pretty girl, Ajender’ wife. Well there started the walk.
It was an uphill climb of may be 2 km and took me close to one hour. It was the most torturous walk. She offered to carry up the luggage and she did so with ease. I had two hand bags and my bedding to carry up and my self. Two kilometres up the path, I had to request her to hold my hands. I huffed and puffed my way up with frequent stops. The whole village saw me. Some were helpful and offered water, while others were laughing at my plight.

Once I reached the house, it was well worth the efforts. It was a beautiful house facing the valley. It was so neatly kept , shining vessels arranged well, hand painted low ceilings and nice people. It consists of an old lady, daughter, two daughters in law and her elderly father in law. Her son had come here as it was the election day.
We had a lovely lunch of rajma and rice and cups of buttermilk. Later in the day, we saw them planting ginger. The slope was the same as the mountain slopes they did not water stagnation. We tried telling them, the best practise is to have steps following the slope , and the slopes within each step should be uphill to conserve water and prevent soil erosion. A simple drain following the slope would reduce excess water. They were practising old methods of agriculture using hoes and ploughs.

We had cups of tea, walked up to a natural valley and came back to the house. I discovered the “old lady” and I were of the same age. I am an old woman. Period.

Holidaying at Manali

I had a wonderful time at Manali. It was pouring , so we could not go out and do any touristy stuffy. So while rest of the family watched cricket, was editing cases for a presentation that we presumed to be on Oct -1 but was meant to be given on may, 11.

I was jittery and anxious , but with help of Preethi, Suchitra and Suyash, we were able to pull it off. I hope it was well received .

" Nothing is impossible- miracles take a little longer" -( Anon- Quote from US Army )

viji

PS: Dr Mor's presentation was well received- he sent a thanks mail.

If you are wondering

what is kumalai kulam in the map , it is lily/lotus pond near the temple

Mr Subramaniam

He is a retired school head master and he helped us create karambayam map- thank you sir

PRA map of Karambayam

From PRA map of Karambayam- see how dalit house holds are clustered in the edges of the village

Strong women-1

She lost her husband when she was 24 and pregnant with her 3rd daughter. Brothers tortured her for her wealth as she had no sons. pressurized to get married. A lady she trusted swindled her and left her with no asstes. At 65, her duaghters are married, grandchildren are educated. Thanks to her hard work , courage and smartness. She wants to set up a canteen near our branch to provide food packets to customers who are waiting. We are honoured to know you

Tanjore pictures

Viji and Sasha in Karambayam - Catching them young -

Long time - no read

Dear all
Preethi- was rudely pulled out and sent to tanjore for hectic 2 days and is back in chennai- I havent seen her field notes
Anjali is lost to the net connected world - i would be meeting her on may 13 at rishikesh
Mousumi has complete her work and has moved on to bhubaneswar enroute mayurbhanj
It has been a lo----------------ng time since I recd field notes from any of you - Iam worried and anxious
What is happening in your lives
Pls do send in your notes and pls do catch up with your transcripts
Viji

Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday Preethi The team celebrated Mousumi's birthday on the day we visited Kovalam . Preethi's birthday was on May 3rd. She had planned to spend a few days in ChennaiDue to some exigencies, Suchitra and Preethi had to rush to Tanjore. Preethi landed at chennai on May 3rd morning and had to leave post lunchSorry dear - My apologiesWishes for a wonderful year aheadViji

Mousumi

I really enjoyed my stay at Arakhpur.
But things are different at Bada kushashthali.
Its a developed village and people are more busy..
I hope everything goes well here too.
Thank you all!!!.All the Best to you and Anjali.
Bye...

Suchitra writes

Dear All,
It has been two weeks since the innerworld interns are on field
- Anjali has moved from Village Darkot to another tehsil called Dharchula, within Pithoragarh district. She is interviewing people from the tribal Rajis community. - Mousumi has moved from Arakhpur to another village called Badakushasthali within Ganjam district. - Preethi has completed her stint in Veerapandian village and is back in Chennai, before she embarks on to her next district.
The transcripts completed by all of them on an average are 17 numbers, all are getting better on the interviewing technique front. Inspite of tough rustic environment extreme summer in T.N & Orissa, biting cold in Pithoragarh.The girls are braving it out well.
The next update would have an exclusive pictorial link on the interviewed correspondents and some more unique pictures captured by our team on field.

Sasha and other pets

Some pictures of Sasha

Annual vacation

Team

Iam taking my annual holiday with family from April30- May 6th
Iam available throughout-pls feel free to call m anytime
I will be checking may mails and looking forward to read transcripts and field notes

Sasha is leaving

With great sadness, I inform the team Sasha has resigned. She was the first member of our team and I joined after her. We have shared a lovely relationship- most times fun. some anxious moments and some bitter and angry moments. She considers me like her mom and we have had similar quarrels of a mother and a daughter.

She is leaving us to pursue her higher studies and I wish her all the very best. She will be with us till June 2nd .

Sasha - You will be sorely missed and Innerworlds will not be the same without you . Daughters dont resign and you will always be one for me

Kudos for Mousumi

Shirish is COO of our KGFS - and Mousumi was staying with his wife's grandmother. Today I recd a call from Shirish and I was moved and elated beyond words.
Villagers from Arakhpur had called up Shirish to tell him what a wonderful person Mousumi is, how well she conducted the interviews and how well mannered she was through out her stay.
I cant express my feelings when he spoke those words-
I am proud of you Moususmi - Keep going
I am proud of Anjali who is braving hardships ( cold and computer crashes ) and of Preethi - It takes courage to go back to your roots to do research-
And Sasha is back - after an eventful trip to Rajasthan- She witnessed childmarriages, had a camel ride , petted white rats and had a heat stroke all in course of 2 weeks
Suchitra is travelling to Theni
God bless all of you
Have fun

Mousumi from Orissa

There were all kinds of people over here and I have many memorable experiences which I cant forget.A school teacher who is of my age but looks so grown up and has taken the responsibility of his entire family.

People of lower caste have no food to eat, but the treatment they have got from the higher caste has united them the all the more. They have their own definition of happiness.People from higher caste with power have forgotten about their family once entered into politics.It is family which will suport when power and youth is gone...

Is it the culture of Orissa to be so fatalistic?The people know to work hard, eat and sleep.They dont have goals in life.Is this happiness?

While I take interviews, some co-operate, some don't,some even misbehave.Over the time my framing of questions has improved.I have realised their are no particular rules for work.

Only rule is to enjoy whatever you are doing. No electricity in daytime, low lights in night .I have my own doubts, but still I hope I will be able to do justice to my work. I want to hear from Preethi and Anjali. Dear all,if you read this, please respond,it really feels good

Sasha's escapades

Sasha had an exciting trip - she was curious to know why nobody was free to give interviews and why was the entire village getting involved in weddings. She was rudely shooed off when she tried clicking pictures and was close to tears. I was baffled.

Only then it dawned on us she had stumbled on child marriages - a prevalent practise in Rajasthan. Girls as young as 12-13 were married off.

Thankfully Sasha did not get into trouble- though every one who heard about it knew how narrowly she escaped the wrath of the villagers.

Insurance- We practise what we preach

A chance remark that we need to insure our equoments led to a more obvious need-to insure our interns. Thanks to Suchitra's untiring efforts, all our interns have mediclaim in case of hospitalization and life insurance group policy. We have taken it for 25 and made it available for interns of other teams as well
Thanks Dave , Kumaar and Bindu for supporting us

First week drags on- can I do it?

Anjali is in Pithoragarh, Mousami in Arrakpur and Preethi in Veerapandi . Sasha is coming back after her exciting stay in Udaipur.
Everybody underwent a period of self doubts- can I /can't I phase. The task sometimes looked too complicated - respondents not cooperating, not giving sufficient details, low rapport, climate is too hot to cause heat stroke or too cold to seek tea -
But the team has moved on- We have survived the first week in field, transcripts/village map ( from Anjali) is slowly trickling in - and am happy to see the results. Some interviews are detailed and nuanced and others sketchy . We have learnt how to adapt body language learnings in village settings
All of us witnessed weddings ( temple festivals in case of Theni). It wasinteresting to know weddings took place across India on the same day . Will try to post some pictures

The team is steadily settling in.
Good progress so far - keep up the good work dear- you are all doing fine . relax and enjoy your work - Looking forward to your mails and transcripts
Viji

Good observation

Good observation- interviews attract a lot of curiosity and everybody wants to pitch in -
Rarely will you find a person alone to be interviewed- replies are compound replies with views of everybody around- that is fine - BUT PLS make a note of it in your transcript- mention who said what and who were the people present when the interview was taken - if contradictory voices were heard, mention that as well . When Mousumi was interviweing , the respondent's daughter answered many questions and her husband some more - that is perfectly ok -
the lady's views were shaped by people around her and boundaries between MY view and MY family's views is nearly not there in most cases - exceptions do exist and these are solid men and women , who know their mind and speak up
Viji

First week in the field

My first day in a village near Berhampur was uneventful. The family was very happy to have us and Mousumi settled in quickly. She conducted her first interview with the lady o f the house and two more today.

Some observations
1)As most interviews are going to be conducted with you sitting down in the floor with the respondent, check if they are fiddling with their toes - legs crossed, hands crossed and fiddling with toe nails- It indicates restlessness and low rapport, closed posture - it is time to stretch them out - shift you positions to reduce tension and increase rapport
2) with women, eye movements may not be clearly following pattern thanks to their dupatta/ veils around their face - check where her position is when she talks of her childhood - and push into memory zone for details of dress/day time /night time and calibrate positions for past and future .
3) Pls ask for their sources of entertainment- TV -names of serials, time they watch regularly - t everyody - it is also a good closure question - and you can also ask them to sing a few lines to close the interview
Pls add any insights that you may have had in the field that you found useful

Viji

Kovalam

She is fish trader - Very enterprising lady who decide dto get into fish trade- ususally reserved for women who have lost their husbands to the sea . Women are not permitted to enter the sea to fish. So trading is a way for the fishing community to look after these women.

All adult members of the fishing community are insured.

Her house boasts of 2 Tvs, a washing machine , gas and other amenities. her husband was a vilalge meenava ( fifherfolk community) leader. Her eldest son is educated - was working earlier , now has lost his job. Younger one, who quit studies after 6th grade is doing very well. Her daughter is married.

Era , sura, chenangunni, nethili, vanjiram, paarai,-- names of varieties of fish in tamil. Sasha is now an expert in identifying them. A great achievement for a die hard vegetarian - - way to go Sasha

Kovalam pix -Sasha

These are some pictures

clicked by Sasha during her stay at Kovalam. We visited Kovalam as part of our field trip

Interns

Date: 9 – 16 April ‘09

Venue: IFMR Trust Office, Guna Complex, Chennai.

About the participants


Preethi holds a bachelors degree in engineering and is presently pursing a post graduate diploma in management specializing in development sustainable finance from Institute of Financial Management and Research (IFMR). Preethi is keen to pursue a career in development sector. She is also interested in photography and poetry.


Mousumi holds a bachelors in agriculture from Orissa university of agriculture and technology and is presently pursuing a post graduate programme in agri business management from National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management (MANAGE). Mousumi is a good team player and wants to contribute towards the project goals assigned in any task. She is interested in creative writing and likes to travel.



Anjali holds a bachelors from G.B.Pant University of agriculture and technology and currently pursuing a post graduate programme in agri business management from National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management (MANAGE). She is good sports person, actively partiticpated in NCC and likes to listen to music.

Induction

A week long induction to orient Preethi, Anjali, Mousumi was organised at Chennai
Suchitra managed it quite well - equipments in place( camera, tape recorders, icards, batteries), reading materials in place, schedule was followed quite well and it was a very hectic week for all of us.
Dave got his day long slot to explain 4 worlds lens to view life. He was dazzling as usual ( though suchitra was worried how he would handle it without preparation/ reading material- she had initially slotted 2 hours for the session) . We ended the day with Gladiator watching ( Hate to admit it- I dont hate the movie any longer!)

We had training by Dr Arvind on how to use the camera / tape recorders and on the last day Deepti gave us tips on good shots and poorly composed shots

I had my share of theory lessons- anthropology to psychology to explain Innerworlds concept of
Indian identity and a deep dive into how and why of our methodology

And then it was interviews, interviews and more interviews. We didnot spare anyone-Jay of DSF to Ajay of It team were interviewed. ll of us volunteered to be interviewed.

The initial focus was on body language - it was fun watching our trained interviwers tricks of trade to build rapport- crossing and uncrossing legs , flicking hair back - Thansk to Dave again, all of us in the room together could manipulate context to create rapport.

Then came content - why the questions and how to frame these questions - We divided them into 3 chunks- individual related, significant others and context.

Then came trip to Kovalam to practise shooting of the camera kind. We have a zillion photos of
Kovalam, catamarans, prawns, crabs, fishes of all kinds and what not

We spent time planning their trips based on Poverty index and " do you somebody who would help us" method
After a miserable last two days trying to figure out if the interns are elgible for local trvale, cash advance and other details , we strate dour journeys to differnt parts of India.