A Day In The Life Of A Street Hawker

To give meaning to our lives, we have to be engaged in some sort of vocation; be it in Career, Business (big or small), or following a creative profession which includes music, painting, dance, writing, sculpture or sports etc.This gives us the ability to have a good life and it also enhances our abilities to support others who are associated with us like our families. This also means that during our lifetime we go through many phases, some bad and some good. We have to balance between the two and not give up easily on ourselves and people who believe in us. I am saying all these known and common tenets of life because of what I witnessed few days ago in busy commercial complex and which really inspired me and made me realize that life is truly amazing.

Few days ago, I had to go to Nehru Place on some personal errand and being a weekday, it is really tough there. The whole passageways between the official complexes there are covered with hundreds of street hawkers displaying and selling variety of goods. Right from clothes, to shoes, electronic goods, leather goods and what not!. Every day, they come out in the morning and start setting up their small shops in designated spots and wait for the first customer. As the day progresses and if the first sign of any potential customer is seen, these hawkers start yelling at the top of their lungs to attract any and all passersby by quoting lower rates on their goods to attract someone. And this goes on regularly from morning till nightfall and is amazing. The important thing to be noted here is that each hawker has a specific designated spot and he/she guards it over protectively. That day also, it was jam packed with people hurrying about their businesses, or stopping by a hawker and examining his goods and if not satisfied, moving on to the next one. It was so crowded that you could not even stand at a side and not be pushed or jostled aside by the crowd.

It was here that I saw a tall, dark, lanky fellow setting up his small shop of mobile covers and other accessories a little bit away from the crowd. What made me observe him for a few hours was the intent look on his face, as if he was determined to sell all his goods today only. In the beginning, he began his tentative approach to a couple of potential customers by just softly calling out to them, but unfortunately got no response. Whereas his fellow competitors and friends just looked at him sympathetically and went about their business. He then tried moving out in the open, under direct sunlight so that he can be the first to catch any potential customer. Seeing this, others just laughed at him and made fun of him for being so foolish to be directly under the sun. But this did not deter him from applying his method which suited him fine. Then he also started shouting at the passersby to come and have look at his display of Mobile Covers, Screen Guards, Tempered Glass etc. Here also, at first people just passed him by without giving a second glance. As the day progressed and the intensity of the heat grew, it seemed that the boy's determination also grew. In the meanwhile I had finished my errand and was about to return when I thought that I should go and see that how the guy is doing.

It was post lunch when a potential customer stopped by the guy and bought a mobile cover, the expression of sheer joy and victory that I saw on the guy's face was worth a million rupees!, even I felt like doing a victory dance for him!. The rest of the day was then like a cake walk for him and he was literally successful in selling all his goods. Even I bought a mobile cover from him just to bolster his spirit. By way of casual conversation, I asked him his name and he said "Rahul", and he was studying in Deshbandhu College(Evening Course). I was amazed at his tenacity and asked him" How do you manage all this and go to college?", he smiled at me and sang a famous line from the iconic movie Mother India". I was literally shocked by his response because ne never looked the type of being depressed and gloomy; rather he was all cheerful and joyous. He said " If you give up easily then life will beat you down, but if you choose to fight back and conquer all adversities, then life will treat you like a king". These few lines spoken by my namesake really inspired and galvanized me that I decided then and there that come what may; I will never give up and be brow beaten by this life.

The purpose of my telling this story is just to say that whatever difficulties life throws at us, we should never be disheartened and depressed, rather we should fight back and be victorious. The famous poet late Shri Rabindranath Tagore once said and which I am quoting in my own words are these:

"As I walk through the Valley of Shadow Of Death;

I will not fear anything,

I will keep my head high,

And keep walking until I reach my destination".

Always be courageous and steadfast in your determination.