My husband took this picture while on his way to work in Howrah. The time -7.30 in the morning. Along the way, he passes numerous abandoned factories that stand as a mute testimony to Calcutta's once-industrial might. People say that there is still some activity going on in these forsaken places. Small scale industries have set up base in them...(nothing, not even a building is wasted in India - they all get recycled). The setting of this picture is the gateway of one such abandoned factory. The man is a barber, and you can see how carefully he has set up his work station. Using the factory boundary wall as his inner wall, he has carefully tied a tarpaulin to the parts of the wall that jut out. (Could this have been a sentry box once?). He has the tools of his trade in the blue box that you see in the corner. After taking out his instruments, he probably uses this box as his stool. There is a shell of a battery with a small pattiya on top, which he uses as a chair for his customers. On the wall behind him is probably a mirror large enough for the customer to see if his hair has been cut properly, or he has been given a clean shave, or his moustache and beard have been trimmed the way he wants. With a small stick broom, the barber is sweeping his salon, for to him it is a salon. (There is a small place in the wall where he keeps this broom). Obviously he is proud of it, or else why would he take the trouble to sweep the earth and keep it clean. He also obviously respects the fact that his customers need to be comfortable when he is attending to them, hence the tarpaulin, for it affords shade. Look at the barber himself. He is neatly groomed from his hair to his sandals. He wears a watch. This is a clear indication that he respects himself. To surmise: he probably has a family; wife, kids, maybe old parents and maybe even a sister or brother. He has huge commitments which he tries to fulfill in the best way he can. He is neither begging nor stealing. He is earning his livelihood in an honest and dignified way. This gentleman, no matter how difficult his job, ensures that there is food at home, that his family has clothes to wear, and that the children go to school. He is not letting the conditions in which he is carrying out his trade affect him negatively; he is not allowing himself to be depressed. He is carrying on with his life, and seeing to it that his family is also carrying on with their lives. No matter that housing is a problem, running water a luxury, the price of basic food far too high, and that everything but everything costs a lot of money. There are huge demands on energy, both physical, and mental - physical strength just to exist and mental strength to remain reasonably psychologically stable. Yet one sees to it that there is the occasional outing to the city, maybe catch a movie, maybe have some of the tasty street food available everywhere. However it is that he feels life should be led, he is helping his family live. He is not allowing any of the numerous hurdles, that living in the way he is forced to live, affect him. He and his family too have their place under the Indian sun. There is a task to be done, there is a family to care for, and there is a life to be lived. There are responsibilities to be shouldered, but there is also fun to be had. There are the numerous festivals that lighten the spirit and bring an element of fun. There is Indi-Pop and Bangla-Pop that add zest. There is the circus of politics to debate and opiniate about. There are the Shah Rukhs and Aamirs that make life really enjoyable and worth living, and give us the dialogues 'we shall overcome' to face life boldly, and assure us that at the end of it all 'aall izz welllllllll!' And, there you have it--the spirit of Calcutta.