The British introduced Indians to underwear. Some now wear it as it
has become fashionable. In the South they still wear the langot which
translates roughly to loincloth. The Northerns went without. Women
went bra less and no one thought anything of it. Instead of being a
backwards underwearless nation the women had "support" sewed into
their sarong eliminating the need for bras. This is still very
apparent in Gujarat where some of the tribal women wear backless vests
with the bra part very obviously sewn in in a different colour. It is
very bizarre indeed. The men wear very large earrings studded into the
middle edge of their ear. But that is another story.
Along with no underwear, diapers are not traditional either. In Ladakh
I heard a baby briefly cry on the bus while we were stopped to get
petrol. The mother rushed the two year old child outside, pulled down
his pants and put him into a reclining lounge position . A stream of
urine hit the pavement between the petrol pumps. When she left I also
noticed a couple pieces of baby poo on the ground. Certainly not
hygienic but more environmentally friendly then diapers. Slightly
older children respond to a pss pss sound. The child essentially pees
on command. The mother could be cradling the child and she doesn't
even have to get up. She just has to point the child for the stream of
urine to fly past the guests and on to the mud floor of the courtyard
(I witnessed this first hand). With the Indian habit of throwing
garbage onto the street it saves having diapers littering the roadway.
Toilet paper is another novelty item here. It clogs the sensitive
overused sewer system so the locals use water and their left hand. As
only tourists use toilet paper it is often very expensive. We get to
put it in a bin beside the toilet.
Toilets also appear to be a novelty. In the slum I visited there was
one toilet for 1,500 people. In fact over 50% of Indians don't have
access to a toilet on a regular basis. When I ask where the toilet it
is they usually form a huddle and then come back without any answer.
The usual recommendation is to ask to see a hotel room and then use
the bathroom while I am there. Hotel staff have caught on to that
trick. In a strange twist although most Indians don't have access to a
toilet almost all own cell phones. Phones that are far technically
superior to mine at home.
Indians will relieve themselves almost anywhere. In Calcutta I saw a
12 year old girl eagerly waving and saying hello to me as she was
squatting and peeing on a busy urban sidewalk. I was a little shocked.
Early morning trains often pass through slums and the sightseer is
greeted by hundreds of Indians, pants down lining the track answering
the call of nature.
Despite the filth and squalor Indians are always clean. Their clothes
are always perfect. Ironing shops are frequent along the roads. Their
irons filled with glowing red coals to keep them hot. Women beat the
laundry against the road or sidewalks. Brightly coloured laundry
hangs everywhere. Washing is very much a public thing. Occassionally
if you have laundry done it smells worse then when you gave it to them
due to the less then fresh water they have used. At least the stains
are gone.
In Calcutta taps flow constantly on to the roads. The government has
installed them so people can wash. And they do. Next to honking taxis
men smile stripped down to a little loin cloth soaping up. Their hair
and bodies white with suds, they scrub their privates through their
clothing. Those too poor to own a second set of clothes wash
themselves in their clothes. It is all innocent enough just extremely
out of place to us Westerners. Women must wash in private and are
seldom seen batheing.
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