A family of nomadic 'lauhars' (ironmongers) from Chittorgarh (Rajasthan, India) have been living on the curbside of a busy roundabout in Gurgaon, Haryana ever since I moved here in 1996. I have seen this city transform itself over the past decade from just a suburban outpost to New Delhi, to India's Outsourcing Hub and Millennium City, with high rise steel and glass office complexes mushrooming everywhere. In tandem with 5 star residential complexes, golf courses, spa's, resorts and the omnipresent, Shopping Malls. Lets not forget the multiplexes.
They live in a collective of families in the shadow of the swank offices of a multinational real estate developer. They get shunted out from the 'curb', by the authorities time again, only to return back and get back to business as usual. The 'lauhar' from Chittorgarh, is a proud man, always with a smile on his face, with his very cheerful family of 4 daughters and then some. He was quick to shoo off his assistant (a local married to one of his daughters) and place his wife beside him, when I pulled out my camera. They have adapted, from providing traditional 'iron ware' for local labor gangs (pick axes, spades, spikes) to firewood, charcoal, pottery (including statues during specific festivals) and also ice and seem to have a thriving clientele.
Do we notice them otherwise as we drive past in our air-conditioned sedans? Or do the 'authorities' recognize them? What is their future in the Millennium City?
