The Birth Lottery

Here in Mumbai, poverty is inescapable. Everywhere you turn, you see it. People of all ages constantly begging for money, oftentimes with a limb (or three) missing. Flimsy shanty homes crammed together seemingly on every other corner, as if collapsable from a hard shove. Kids out on the street, using buckets of dirty water to wash themselves. None of this is entirely new to me, but I’ve never been to a place that displayed such things so…intensely.

Seeing this everyday has really made me wonder: how much of our fate is truly in our own hands? Consequently, how much of our fate is already pre-determined by the time we are born?

In America, the most individualistic society in the world, we are taught to believe that we are in control of our own destiny. That our actions determine our results. That anything is possible, no matter the humbleness of our beginnings. These fundamental beliefs are the essence of the American Dream. But when I see malnourished kids combing the garbage for a few scraps to eat or a boy with both arms missing begging me for a few rupees with a purse draped around his neck, I can’t help but wonder how these beliefs I grew up with are simply inapplicable to so much of the rest of the world. How many great scientists, inventors, doctors, artists, musicians has the world missed out on simply because so many kids never had a chance?

I like to think that the reason I am where I am today is based on my own talent, work ethic and decisions that I made. But really, the biggest difference between me and that malnourished kid in the slum might be that I was born into a middle class family in the US and he was born into a family living in the slums of Mumbai. 

In the United Arab Emirates, a boy lucky enough to be born Emerati is essentially guaranteed to be wealthy his entire life. A boy born 150 miles away in an Iranian salt mine is very likely to be doomed to a lifetime of poverty. Who knows, that same Emerati boy may have had a similar fate to the Iranian boy had he been born 100 years earlier, before the oil started flowing. Is the main determinant of our fate how lucky we get in the birth lottery?

Fortunately, I am optimistic that the potential impact of our results in the birth lottery will lessen in the future.

Today, I went on a tour of the Dharavi slum, one of the largest slums in Asia. If you’ve seen the movie Slumdog Millionaire, then you’ll recognize it as the area where Jamal, Malik and Latika grew up. From my conversations with some of the locals here, it seems that the movie had received very mixed reviews here in India, the chief complaint being that Dharavi was shown in an un-flattering, and more importantly, un-realistic way. After having gone on the tour, I can understand why the locals feel that way. Most people (including yours truly) associate the word ‘slum’ with extremely negative connotations. Extreme poverty. Feces. Dirtiness. Smelliness. Just to name a few. Although these things definitely do exist, Dharavi is much more than that.

Dharavi covers an area of 535 acres and is home to over a million people, with a population density roughly 20x that of the rest of the city. Located on prime real estate in the heart of Mumbai, it is not a place where poor people waste away their days doing nothing. Rather, it is one of the most productive places in the city, home to a large number of industries and small businesses, with an annual turnover estimated between $650 million USD (per Wikipedia) and $1 billion USD (per tour guide). Dharavi is home to the largest recycling industry in the city. Roughly 60% of all plastic used in Mumbai comes through its factories, and a portion of the recycled plastic is sold to foreign multinational corporations such as LG. It also houses a large leather good industry, where the raw materials are sold and shipped to foreign luxury goods brands. So next time you purchase an Android smartphone or a Gucci wallet, there’s a good chance some of the materials used originated from this place.

Essentially, Dharavi is a city within a city. There’s a popular saying that once you go into Dharavi, there’s no need to leave, as anything you need is available there. These days there are even kids that grew up in the slum, went to college and obtained a ‘good’ white collar job, that still choose to live there. I am not trying to glorify the place by any means, but it is important to distinguish between the perception of a place based on something like a Hollywood (or British) movie and its reality.

The other thing I noticed when walking through the place was that, even in one of the poorest places in the city, the people there have access to some of the luxuries of modern day technology, such as television, cellphones (my local tour guide had a nicer phone than I did) and, most importantly, wi-fi and the internet.

I believe that if we are going to lessen the impact of our results in the birth lottery on our eventual future, advances in technology, and especially the internet, is our best chance. Our world now is more interconnected than it has ever been. The more places I go, the more I realize that our generation is more or less the same. We are exposed to the same TV shows, the same Youtube videos, the same Lady Gaga songs. The internet has truly flattened the playing field. There is so much free information readily available now on the internet, that even a poor kid born in the slums can take the same courses I do, if he so chooses to.

The goal of development is not to level the playing field so everyone has equal opportunities. Ask the communists, that’s never going to happen. The goal is to give everyone a fighting chance, so that their results in the birth lottery do not entirely determine their eventual fate. We have a long ways to go but I’m hopeful we’ll get there.

Toto, I’ve a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore…

The past few weeks have flown by and its already been a month since I landed in Mumbai. I spent the first couple of weeks at a hotel in central Mumbai, the next week in Bhopal, the capital of Madya Pradesh, where my main project is located, and then moved into an apartment with two other volcons upon my return to Mumbai last week. The apartment is located in a neighborhood called Bandra, and houses one of the main ex-pat communities in the city. The good: lots of food and activities nearby, poppin’ place (by Indian standards anyway). The bad: its really expensive (by Indian standards). I will be based out of here during the rest of my time at Technoserve and will be living with Karolle, a girl on our business development team who went to school in North Carolina, but is originally from Madagascar, and Sid, an Indian guy originally from Delhi, but went to school at Babson College in Boston. Both seem like really nice people and so far, we all get along great.

Overall, the transition has been really smooth so far. Language hasn’t been too big of an issue and I’m starting to learn my way around the city. The people are generally really nice and I haven’t gotten Delhi belly yet *knock on wood*. Work has been a little slow, but I’ll get more into that later. However, a few nights ago, I was rudely reminded that, in case I forgot or was beginning to feel complacent, I am in fact, no longer back home.

Around 4:30 in the morning last Friday, I woke up suddenly to a throbbing pain on my upper left ear. It felt like someone had pinched me really hard. Being in a half-conscious state of mind, I was utterly confused at what was going on. When I stood up and put my hand to my ear, and then my face, I realized there were streams of blood coming down my cheek. Now I’m usually a pretty calm person but this freaked me the fuck out. A million thoughts began racing through my head and while still standing there in a daze, I see a little oval thing scurry across the floor and out my bedroom door. Now I didn’t get a clear look since the lights were still off, but I quickly put one and one together and realized that I had just been bitten by a rat/mouse while sleeping.

Yes, a rat/mouse bit me while I was sleeping.

That just happened.

Really.

As you can imagine, I didn’t get much sleep the rest of the night and saw a doctor first thing in the morning. Thankfully, the shots that he recommended me getting (tetanus/rabies), I had already gotten before coming so he just prescribed an ointment to treat the wound. It’s been a few days now and I feel completely fine. So yea, if you’re thinking of coming to India and think those 20 or so shots that are required are a bit much, they’re not. Get every.last.one.

Other highlights from the past few weeks:

I caught a movie for the first time last week and the seats looked like this:

Not only do the seats go all the way down where you are basically in a sleeping position, but they also give you a blanket!!!! How I managed to stay awake throughout the film (Turbo, which was eh..) is still a modern miracle. And on top of all this, we had to stand up before the film to hear the national anthem (apparently this is a Mumbai requirement). Word.

I’ve always had a bit of a weakness for ice cream but this place has taken it to a new level. Apparently a Mumbai stable, Naturals is a shop that makes a variety of fruit flavored ice cream using real fruit. The flavors are seasonal (since fruit is seasonal…), but damn, everything is SOOO good! The ice cream is fairly light, not too milky/creamy, and there are pieces of actual fruit inside! All types of random fruits too…coconut, lychee, jackfruit, and a few more that I’m sure don’t even exist in the US. I think I might like this place more than Bi-Rite. YEA I SAID IT.

A lot of the food here is ‘veg’ (for vegetarian). Initially, I was a little worried as when I think of vegetarian food, I think of bland salads and the like. However, most of the veg food here is actually really tasty and I really haven’t minded much. This here is called bhindi masala. We call it the ‘crack bhindi’. It is the business.

First Impressions

Its been a little over a week since I landed in Mumbai (which all the locals still call Bombay). As I will be spending the majority of the next 9 months of my life here, the following are a few initial thoughts:

People are generally really nice…when they’re not trying to rip you off

The first cab driver I had the pleasure of encountering here in Mumbai covered the meter with a red piece of cloth as soon as I got in and refused to show, or turn on the meter even after I had repeatedly asked very nicely (cabs are legally required to charge you by the meter here in Mumbai btw). Each one of my requests was met with an ‘it’s ok’, ‘no problem’, or finally ‘no english’. So naturally, my first cab ride ended with a shouting match and me abruptly walking out into the middle of the street.

However, other than a few greedy cab drivers trying to make a quick buck off someone who obviously sticks out like a sore thumb, most of the people I’ve encountered so far have been both incredibly nice and helpful. Case in point:

This past weekend, I went with a couple of people to do some hiking at Matheran, a hill station located a few hours outside of the main city. Hill stations are towns built by the British on places of higher elevation than the nearby plain/valley (a.k.a hills – creative name, I know), usually for the purposes of escaping the summer heat. When we arrived, it was really coming down and while looking for a place to park, our car gets stuck in the mud.

When this happened, approximately ten people near us all dropped whatever they were doing and spent the next hour trying to help us get the car out. Never mind the rain, the mud all over their clothes, or their original plans. All that mattered at that moment was helping another human being stuck in a shitty situation out. Incredible.

By American standards, things are really cheap

Major props to Mr. Bernanke and crew for hinting (who knows if it’ll actually happen) at ending QE in the near future and subsequently, causing the value of the dollar to rise substantially in the past few months. At the current exchange rate of 60 rupees to the dollar, you can get a really good local meal for under $3 USD, 1 GB of data for your smartphone for about $4 USD, and every cab ride I’ve been in has been under $2 USD. After paying rent, I’m expecting to pocket about $20 USD per day as my stipend here, and believe it or not, I think I can get by quite comfortably. However, the one thing that isn’t all that cheap is alcohol. Apparently Maharashtra has a 100% import tax on all foreign alcohol (the tax varies depending on the state) so getting a Blue Moon here is about the same, or even more, than getting one in San Francisco. Guess it’ll be Kingfisher for me from here on out.

The locals are not morning people

The first day going to work, I left around 9:15 and ended up spending almost half an hour trying to hail a cab as nearly every one that passed by was occupied. When I finally managed to track one down, the traffic was so bad that the ride ended up taking 40 minutes for a journey I would later find out should take less than 15. The next day I left around 8:30 and lo and behold, the streets were damn near empty and multiple cabs were just parked, waiting around for customers. Apparently, morning rush out here doesn’t really happen until 9:30-10:30. Oftentimes I’ll get into the office by 9 and be the first or second person there.

Riding the trains is quite an adventure

I’ve been on my fair share of crowded metros in different cities around the world and riding the trains here in Mumbai is near, if not at, the very top for craziest/most stressful experience. First of all, none of the train cars have any doors, so they’re just all open entrances. People also constantly have their bodies hanging out the entrances, like this:

The stations never announce when a train will leave a station once it arrives, and as there are no doors to close, there is absolutely no indication as to how long a train will stay at a station. So what ends up happening is that, as a train is pulling into a station, before it has even come to a complete stop, there will be a stampede of people trying to get into a car and oftentimes, an equal stampede of people trying to get out. What this ultimately means is that, just in order to board a train, you often have to sprint from car to car looking for an opening to pull yourself into, as many cars will be so packed that they are literally impossible to enter. Never has the simple act of boarding a train felt like such an accomplishment. Good thing I have sharp elbows.

Drivers are crazy…and the honking never stops

Mumbai was built by the British as a port city located on a peninsula. What this means is that there is a lack of room for expansion as the population of both people and automobiles swell. Streets here are generally pretty narrow and most cars are small and narrow as well. Consequently, the locals here drive like crazy people and use every.single.inch of space available on the road. Cars are often mere inches away from each other, and things like lane lines, turn signals and sometimes, even traffic lights don’t really matter. Basically the right of way goes to whoever gets to the spot first. What is one result of cars in close proximity fighting for limited space? Honking. That’s right, constant, never-ending, all hours of the day, honking. Might need to cop some earplugs soon.

Indian food is much better here….the other stuff, not so much

Although I’ve only been here for a week, I can confidently say that most of the Indian food back home is definitely toned down. The local Indian food here is SO much better. Dishes are much more flavorful and most of them are spicy, which is right up my alley. But they’re spicy in a compliment-the-flavor type of way and not in a spicy-just-to-be-spicy type of way. Also, there is wide variety of ‘Indian’ food, usually based on the state and region where it’s from (for example, north Indian food, which is prevalent in the states, is very different than south Indian food). I’ve only tried a small sample of the many different types of Indian cuisine so far, but let’s just say there’s a whole lot more to Indian food than chicken tikka masala.

On the other hand, the ‘other’ cuisines I’ve tried so far (save a pretty decent Thai place, but seriously, even ‘bad’ Thai food is generally pretty good), have been, to put it mildly, disappointing. The other night I went to a ‘Chinese’ restaurant and ordered some chicken chow mein. Pretty safe right? Here’s what it looked like:

WTF is that??

I’ve been to enough countries that I’m fairly certain there is bad Chinese food everywhere, but this definitely takes the cake. Tasteless, not-fully-cooked noodles in a slimy, gooey ‘sauce’, if you could even call it that. I’m generally not that picky but this was borderline inedible.

My first meal in Mumbai was actually this:

Not really the business.

The Indian head bobble

In my brief time here, I’ve already noticed a number of cultural differences, from the terms used in business to the way waiters serve you in restaurants. However, the one thing that stands out the most, and is also the most amusing, to me is the reaction I get when someone agrees, disagrees, or even just a ‘ok’ or ‘I heard you’. Basically, the reaction to anything I say.

I hope I don’t pick this up.

Weather hasn’t been too bad

My biggest concern before coming to Mumbai was the weather. Surprisingly, it hasn’t been too bad thus far. Yes its humid, but as the monsoon season just began, and the rain comes down intermittently throughout each day, the temperature hasn’t been too high. I’d guess 80’s – low 90’s. Bearable. The locals tell me there are 3 months of the year where it’s so hot that its hard to breathe, never mind walk, and that animals will lie down on tile floors to try and escape the heat. Just so happens that those 3 months will be the 3 months of this upcoming year where I’m not here. Stay schemin’.

Poverty is everywhere

Poverty is inescapable in Mumbai. Everywhere you turn, there are people sleeping directly on the streets, or in makeshift homes on the streets (often just a tarp being held up by a couple of wooden sticks). There are seemingly slums on ever other street and I haven’t even been to Dharavi or any of the other large, exclusively slum areas yet. The infrastructure here, particularly the buildings and roads, appear to be crumbling. I’ve yet to run into a building without mold, a sidewalk without cement pieces falling apart, or a street without trash littered everywhere. And this is the financial capital of the country. I can’t imagine what it’ll be like when I go to ‘real’ India.

The people at Technoserve are great

The biggest draw of Technoserve for me, besides the type of work they do, is that they seemingly attract a lot of high caliber people. In this regards, I have definitely not been disappointed. Everyone here seems to be both really smart and down to earth. Our head honcho, the country director, used to be a CEO of a tech company and ex-McKinsey. A number of the other volunteers are either students or graduates of top MBA programs (HBS/Wharton/Columbia/INSEAD/Chicago). One girl goes to Wharton and the Kennedy School at the same time and just so happens to be one of the nicest people I’ve ever met. There are a couple of start-up founders in the mix, as well as people that have done some great things in the development space.

One of my biggest surprises in coming here was how many VolCons (what they call us Volunteer Consultants) there actually are. Apparently there are 30 VolCons at Technoserve around the world currently, and 10 of them are here in India. We definitely make up a core part of the overall team and some VolCons are even leading their respective projects. A few of the managers here also started as VolCons before transitioning into a full-time role. Most of us are in our mid-late twenties and seemingly all down to have a good time, so it almost feels like working at a consulting firm (the work is structured similarly as well) again.

I will be flying to Bhopal this weekend to meet the rest of my project team. Next week I’ll, hopefully, be able to go into the field and actually meet and work with the stakeholders (small farmers). Can’t wait.