Street hustlers in Udaipur: Revisited

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The noise and the street hustling put aside, the charm of Udaipur, I think, lies in its architecture and roof top restaurants. There are so many of them that are hard to choose which to go to. All offer very good views of the city, and are haven from the street noise and pollution. But that is not what is on my mind today.

The situation with hustling appears to have gotten worse. The hustlers continue to hustle with rapacious audacity, and know no limit. "If it was up to me," said my gentle and very kind host, "I would hang them all up in the air from one leg, like chickens." He is the owner and host of Krishna Niwas Hotel. It has a prime location right on Lal Ghat where the most affordable midrange hotels are and is a site of the convergence many street hustlers. He says he sublimates his authoritarian impulses by painting.

In fact the hotel lobby is an art studio. He has been working for 3 months on a commissioned work by the local Maharaja. His painting style is watercolor on canvas, typical of the Rajathani style minature artwork, very popular among locals and tourists. He lives there with his family; his wife offers outstanding cooking classes in the traditional style, using slow cooking methods and fresh ingredients.

This is the prime time for hustling; the tourist season has just started. A good number of folks depend on the tourist trade for their livelihood. This leaves some of these guys with nothing to do for 6 or 7 months. So one can understand why the site of a tourist might make a few of them so exited. Most visitors I have talked to have it up to their neck, and feel crudely objectified.

Folks come to Udaipur from all over the place, but mostly they are from Israel, France, UK, and the US. Most Israeli tourists have just finished their army and are on a one-year paid holiday to India, as rehabilitation or compensation package. Most restaurants have even dedicated a portion of their menu to Israeli food.

The way we dress and look makes us stand out like sore thumb and makes us obvios targets. To be a target, all you have to do is leave the hotel. Here is a typical scene. You have just left the hotel on your way to dinner just taking a walk. The guys are usually loitering around the shops are walking about in the streets. You are constantly asked questions or comments like, "What is your name, where are you from, what are you looking for, nice rickshaw, come to my shop, you are my friend." I was on my way to dinner at Hanuman Ghat yesterday with French couple I had jsut met. While crossing the pedestrian bridge we noticed two small children approach us innocently using similar lines. Clearly they had nothing to sell and were just making conversation. You figure they emulate what they have seen.

I was just walking today and guy sitting in front of his shop shouted out of the blue: "what are you looking for?" I shot back quickly with a smile, "what are you looking for?" Some of the guys have hard time putting their finger on me. They know I am not from here, but some appear puzzled because they notice a similarity. "Brother, why you look like us," is a frequent question. I reply, our origins go a long time back.

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Photos

Sunset from a roof top hotel
Jagat Niwas

Krishna Niwas Hotel
View from roof top, overlooking the famous lake palace hotel.

Roof top hotel cafe, and swimming pool
Udai Kothi Hotel. Located in Hanuman Ghath, a quieter portion of the old city, overlooking the the main portion of the old city, sunday warm afternoon and you see lots of folk bathing

A typical busy street in old city
Street Hustler in Udaipur

Street Hustlers
The person on the left is a likable Kashmiri shop keeper. What you see in the picture is a typical scene.

Roof top restaurant and pool
Udai Kothi Hotel, Hanuman Ghat.

Comments

[Jackea]

The roof top restaurants are my favorite too.