Anshu Gupta’s Goonj has created a new paradigm of giving, transforming lives in villages across India.
IN THE EARLY ’90s, Anshu Gupta, then a young freelance journalist, used to roam the streets of Delhi in search of stories of people who remained invisible. This is when he met Habib bhai, a middle-aged man who lived on the pavement outside Delhi’s LNJP Hospital and delivered unclaimed dead bodies to the police. His cart was a moving advertisement for his work—‘laawaris laash uthaane wala’ scribbled on it. Habib bhai got paid `2 and some cloth for every dead body he handed over to the police. The winter months were busy, Habib bhai had said matter-of-factly. After all, many more homeless people died in the bitter Delhi cold— sometimes up to 10 to 12 a day.
Gupta followed him around for a whole week to understand what it meant to be a bearer of unclaimed corpses. His middle-class notions about the boundaries of what was human were shaken, but not shattered— until he met six-year-old Bano, Habib bhai’s daughter. “When it gets too cold, I go to sleep hugging dead bodies,” she had said with a bland expression. “It keeps me warm, and the best part is, dead people do not move—you get to sleep peacefully.”
Trained to be a journalist, Gupta never quite forgot what he saw and heard during his week with Habib bhai—the heart-wrenching struggles of the dispossessed for daily survival. It was often not the cold but the inadequate clothing that triggered the needless loss of lives.
この記事は Reader's Digest India の February 2019 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です ? サインイン
この記事は Reader's Digest India の February 2019 版に掲載されています。
7 日間の Magzter GOLD 無料トライアルを開始して、何千もの厳選されたプレミアム ストーリー、9,000 以上の雑誌や新聞にアクセスしてください。
すでに購読者です? サインイン
READER'S DIGEST-BOOKS
These book summaries highlight Siddharthya Roy's exploration of conflict and violence, Michael Castleman's deep dive into the history of publishing, and Swadesh Deepak's examination of social issues and masculinity through Hindi literature.
Man with printed sarong
A lawyer, pianist, critic, and mentor to artists, Lionel Wendt is best known for his photographs of Sri Lanka, especially those of people indigenous to the island, captured amidst the lush landscape or posing in his studio.
Too Much?
New studies show that even moderate drinking is a health hazard. Here’s a frank look at the toll alcohol takes on the body
ME & MY SHELF
Coimbatore-born Prashanth Srivatsa is a science fiction/fantasy writer whose stories have appeared in magazines such as Asimov’s, Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction and Three-Lobed Burning Eye, among others. Prashanth’s debut fantasy novel, The Spice Gate chronicles the journey of Amir, a young man born with special abilities who unravels the power that keeps the world in balance. magazines such as Asimov's, Magazine of Fantasy Science Fiction and Three-Lobed Burning Eye, among others. Prashanth’s debut fantasy novel, The Spice Gate chronicles the journey of Amir, a young man born with special abilities who unravels the power that keeps the world in balance.
Small Business, Big Heart
Caring for people is part of the deal at family-run shops
Spill the Beans
Everyone has secrets. Here's why you should share yours
It Happens ONLY IN INDIA
Angry lovers are like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get.
FULL STEAM AHEAD!
I GOT THE CHANCE TO DRIVE THE WORLD'S LAST SCHEDULED STEAM TRAIN
Stressed and Worn Down
More and more people are clenching and grinding their teeth. Here's what to do about it
THIS BACON FAKERY MUST STOP
I was recently given bacon-flavoured dental floss for my birthday.