Sarita Brara tells the interesting story of men from impoverished villages in Uttar Pradesh’s Bahraich District, who have migrated to the hill station and do brisk business selling short-eats on the streets
Who can resist a hot, crispy, buttery double-decker sandwich with a tangy filling of potato and cheese? The sandwich is prepared right in front of you in a matter of seconds by Ram Charan, who has been a familiar face for decades now, standing with his small khomcha or tripod stand at the corner of the busy Lower Bazaar of Shimla. He deftly makes the sandwiches on a small stove and then serves the delicious snack with two varieties of spicy chutneys.
Ram Charan is one of nearly a hundred men from Bahraich District of Uttar Pradesh, making a living in the tourist hill town, selling fast food. He left his native Nawabpur Village almost three decades ago, looking for work. He started with making ram ladoos (a kind of snack), but soon realised that it took a lot of time and had a very short shelf-life. He then settled on making sandwiches, the first street vendor in Shimla to do so.
Ram Charan encouraged not only his three brothers but other relatives as well to migrate to Shimla to make a living by selling fast food. Today, in a ripple effect, men from different villages in Bahraich are making a living by selling snacks such as momos, kulcha channa, bhelpuri and cheese and tikki burgers. They are spread out all over the town and can be seen doing brisk business from their khomchas near educational institutions, bus stands, offices, busy markets and tourist resorts.
One of Ram Charan’s brothers makes steaming hot non-vegetarian momos at the famous Lakkar Baazar (known for wood products, including toys and kitchen appliances); another sells kulcha channa at the old bus stand, and yet another sells burgers, better known as ‘hot dogs’ here, with an aloo tikki filling.
These men from Bahraich live in rented quarters in the town and have enrolled their children in Shimla’s schools because, unlike seasonal migrants, they stay in town for the whole year except for a short period when they visit their native villages.
Dinesh Kumar came here as a young boy of 12 from Gonda in Bahraich. A decade-and-a-half later, he says he was able to save enough to get his sisters married, and is sending money home to his parents. “It is only after fulfilling my family responsibilities that I got married five years back,” says the young man.
Each of the men have a similar story to tell. Families too poor to give them education, most of them forced to shoulder the responsibility of younger siblings or parents even before they’re out of their teens. Many either had no agricultural land, or only negligible property, and could not find work to earn a living. A large number had dropped out of school for one reason or another, and, in any case, did not have the means to continue their education.
Dinesh, who sells momos in a front of a public sector bank, says it was his maternal uncle who suggested that he come to Shimla. Dinesh now has two sons – a four-year-old he has enrolled in school, and a toddler.
Santosh Kumar Pathak from Devra in Bahraich has his khomcha not far from Dinesh. He sells bhelpuri. Like Ram Charan, he had started with ram ladoos but felt it was not the right choice and soon changed the menu. He sidestepped a specific question about his earnings, but implied that he makes a reasonable amount. “We are here because we are able to earn enough to save. Otherwise, why would we come hundreds of miles away from our villages?” he says.
In fact, these men have made a mark with their cooking. Ram Charan even gets bulk sandwich orders for birthdays and other functions. He has two children. While his son is still studying in a school in Shimla, his daughter, after completing her schooling, is looking to get training in the beauty business or tailoring, to earn a living.
But the earnings are the fruit of a lot of hard work. Mornings are spent buying raw material and preparing the snacks. Then they have to carry the tripods, weighing 20 kg or more, on their heads and walk for several kilometres from their rented quarters, uphill and downhill on Shimla roads, to reach the markets and other strategic spots to set up a temporary shop. They also have to stand for hours as they do not have anywhere to sit while conducting business. Standing for a long time has taken a toll on the health of some of these men. Ram Charan, for instance, is suffering from hernia, for which he has to undergo a surgery.
Some of the street vendors are able to visit their homes only on occasions of marriage and other functions. These trips are undertaken usually in the lean, rainy season, and don’t last for long. “We can’t afford to remain away for long. Even if the earnings during the rainy season are not much, we earn something,” say Dinesh and others.
Notwithstanding the hardship, for the men from Bahraich and from other parts of India, the tourist town of Shimla, hundreds of miles away from the heat and dust of their poverty stricken villages, is the ideal place to earn a living.
(The writer is a senior journalist based in Shimla.)
from Webdoux