Story of BONI

After I had searched for issues in Anegundi, I wanted to look into Hampi once, hence I went to Hampi, of course the vendors did worry me a lot. What was the reason of this market? What were there lives like?

Hence I started off.

When you enter Hampi after crossing Tunghabhadra and climbing up the stairs, no scene can be more ecstatic than women, men, children selling colourful products from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and many other states. Earrings, anklets, incense stick holder, diyas and what not. For a moment you might feel that even their life is full of colors, colors that define them, colors that make them their own selves. But no!

They seem to have had lost all interest in selling these to people, they only want customers and no people.

I wondered what could be the reason? “These people must have been standing with their at the same place since years. They might as well speak history” I thought.

But no one was interested in talking or general conversation. I wondered more.

Untill I  found out their story of colours to colourless!

Here are a few stories from Hampi which I found as I walked down the lane.

Lambani Lady:

Story of BONI (money earned from first customer of the day)

“ Madam boni kardo na please, subah se kisi ne kuch nahi khareeda hai”

“Arey par abhi to vo ladki saman lekar gayi apse”

“Madam kuch kharid lo na ap” she said hiding away as she did not wanted to take up my question.“ Madam sab khatam krne ka hai khareed lo na please.”

I was very puzzled, Until I found out my answer in her words and her eyes. Carrying baby in her womb, worried about how will the baby survive, she did answer my question finally!

This Lambani lady hailing from Kalrapur, travels everyday from a village 5 kms away just to sell off her items. On asked how far is the village? She said 7rs by bus and 5 rs by auto! Same was the answer from other vendors. They all just knew whatever concerned them. For them distances were in money. Their big shops had been snatched by UNESCO to make this a colourless space, consisiting of brown heritage standing high only and they were given just an year to set up their small stalls on the road to sell off their items. Everybody has very few months left. “Sab nikal dega madam ye sab” Crushed by government and burdened by her family, she goes on to the next customer- “Boni kardo Sahib” showing her tanned earrings with her tanned hands.

                      

Shivaram:

I just happened to bump into a person sitting near a small salon while I was wondering why is UNESCO snatching away colours and essence from Hampi by destroying their houses and shops and what will it give in return to these people.

‘ Koi unity hi nahi hai’, shouts a man Shivaram, crestfallen on the matter of their houses and shops being destroyed by UNESCO. He was more worried of the fact that this place has no unity, people do not help each other, but they definitely envy each other due to money matters.

350 houses and big shops were broken down by government near Hampi Bus stand and in compensation 150 small plots were given to people 4kms away in  Kamlapur where not much tourists go. Shivaram owns  salon which is exactly between Virupaksha Temple and River. It is so because people after doing Pooja can come for Mundan and then go to river to complete the Pooja.

Noticing that this is only haircut shop in lane I asked him, “fir to apko pandit favour karte honge na shop ko khula rakhne ke lie?”

“Pandit bhi to commercialise ho gya ab, vo kyu favour karega” I could definitely sense a deep grief inside him about split in the communities.

“Kisi ko kuch kaam ni bacha yha, sab idhar udhar ka kaam karke paisa kamakar jeeta hai.”

But his son definitely saved his life by taking a road untaken by joining Jindal, a steel plant 45 km away from Hampi in ITI department.

Old man did seem like he is losing his own children at the cost of Hampi being a UNESCO world heritage site.

Administrator:

Administrator in one of the Jain Institutionsin Hospete, he did seem priest of Krishnadevraya's powers and Vijayanagara Samrajya.

Out of nowhere he started from history of vijayanagara empire to how Krishnadevraya used to get up early morning 3 o’clock to start his day to split in army due to his son-in-law Ramraya to the battle with Bijapur. He broke my superstition about all temples in India have been looted and destroyed by mughals only by bringing out the fact to me that the wealth was not looted, it was divided into three parts, one part went to Bijapur Empire, one to Tirupati and the last one was taken by his relatives in Chandragiri and Panagonda!

His words did leave me wondering how powerful history these massive structures embody.

This is the place where such a great combatant took his breathe.

Raja:

'I am concentrating on more flashy flashy things in Hampi' says Raja proudly annoucing himself as 12th PUC fail.

Well, the straight way to life seemed too boring for him.

Fascinated by 'European things', he stopped studying and dreaming of owning a business,he set off!

From being a tour guide to managing a restaurant, there doesnt seem any job untouched by him. Everyday being a new hope for a new flashy experience for him, he isnt scared to touch the ground again, to loose his shop which will be cleared in a few months by UNESCO!

With a big dream of owning a hotel someday, he says with eyes filled with pride ,I can survive on my own anyhow for whatever happens.

Bad facilities in Hampi for tourists did seem to bother him alot.

Tailor Lady:

After her divorce, when she wanted peace in her life, one of the history chapter in 7^th standard did come to her mind. 400 back story left such impression on this Lady that when she came to Hampi as a tourist she decided to stay here forever in lap of Krishnadevraya’s kingdom’s ruins. Greatness of Vijayanagara empire left such print on her mind that with 20,000 rupees in hands she came here all the way from Hyderabad and settled down her own tailoring shop 15 years ago.

She finds her own kind of peace in Walking every morning till kamlapur along with the sun, more peace than she every found in being an army man’s daughter or in her marital life. She seems to have married this place. But of course no tale is a fairytale, reality did throw upon harsh times when UNESCO cleared her shop too with 350 other shops. But she being the fighter all her life, she holded her parts down and started a small tailoring shop in the market lane. A small cubical is now her home. She sleeps there, she eats there, she works there! Life can be hard for a single lady, but it is definitely something full of pride.

In midst of everyone fighting for land and wanting big shops and money, she is happy on her own without any greed of having anything.

People do a lot for finding their own peace!

In the later part of the day we went to Kamlapur to find people who work in homes, but we could not find any.