“Marriage is about two things: sexual satisfaction and building generations. Nothing more. Only useless people are thinking about love. The result of a love marriage is never satisfactory. Divorce, arguments, affairs. These things don’t happen in arranged marriage. Arranged marriage is always successful. Love is for useless people. But if you’re going to feel love, at the very least, make sure it’s someone of a similar income level.”
(Jaipur, India)
“We have to keep our relationship secret. Our parents would not approve and we’re not courageous enough to tell them yet. So we meet in secret three or four times per month. Since the beginning of our relationship, we’ve shared a diary. We take turns keeping it. Whoever has it will write down our memories. They’ll also write down what they want from the other person, and how they feel misunderstood. Then every time we meet—we hand it off.”
(Calcutta, India)
“I used to drink beer every once in awhile. That was all. But several members of my family died in a few years time. The worst was my brother. He was younger than me. And after his death I lost all control. Now I can’t stop drinking. I’ll quit for a few weeks at a time, but then I’ll get this feeling: ‘Let me have a little bit today.’ Then I’ll drink continuously for five or six days until the shivers kick in. It’s ruining my health. It’s causing me to neglect my work. My family is ashamed. And I live with a constant feeling of doing wrong. But I can’t stop. And even if I did, I feel like I’m too old and it’s too late.”
(Jaipur, India)
“I came to the city when I was twenty and became a fruit seller. It’s allowed me to build a house in my village. I feel healthy. I get to eat. A lot of people don’t get to eat on time. So I’ve gotten everything I wanted. The minute you think: ‘I have a lot’—that’s the moment your spirit is at rest. My spirit is at rest.”
(Jaipur, India)
“One night there was a huge storm and he didn’t come home from work. I had told him to sleep at the shop, but he wouldn’t listen to me. And by nighttime he still hadn’t arrived. The trains shut down. The phones stopped working. I sat by the window all night with my children. I asked everyone who walked by if they’d seen him. The next morning I went to the temple and said so many prayers. Then at 11 AM, I heard the bell ring. And there he was. He was soaking wet and completely covered in mud. He smelled awful. I started crying so hard. I made him some hot tea and a little food, and he went straight to bed. When he finally woke up, I informed him that he would be moving his shop next to the house.”
(Mumbai, India)
“I sell grain for people to feed the pigeons and cows. It’s a way to get good karma. This has been our family’s business for eighty years. It began with my grandfather, then my father, and now it’s mine. I have about 250 or 300 clients that I see every day. Things were going very well. We had two houses. A car. Lots of gold. But a few years ago my brother-in-law got kidney disease. Our family spent everything to save him. We travelled all over India. People said: ‘go here, go there,’ and we always went. And we always paid whatever they asked. My mother even donated her kidney. But nothing worked. He died seven months ago. My parents passed away soon after because of the stress. Now I’m all alone. I own nothing but a scooter. I still believe in karma. Without it I have nothing left. But only God knows what I did to deserve this. If I knew, I wouldn’t have done it.”
(Jaipur, India)
“I don’t want her to depend on anyone when she grows up. From the very beginning, I’ve been dependent. I barely left my home until the age of eighteen. I'd only walk from school to home, and even then I’d be accompanied by my brother. I had no idea how to face the world outside. I never even learned to ride a bike. It’s going to be different for her. I told my husband: ‘Whatever she wants to do, I’m going to support her.’ And I’ve already gotten a bike for her. The moment she is old enough, I’m teaching her to ride a bike.”
(Jaipur, India)
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