Motornama: Tour - 08
Director: Shaina Anand, Ashok Sukumaran
Duration: 01:01:46; Aspect Ratio: 1.778:1; Hue: 19.072; Saturation: 0.112; Lightness: 0.417; Volume: 0.348; Cuts per Minute: 19.006; Words per Minute: 31.083
Summary: A ride through the industrial district around Roshanara Road, New Delhi. We come across various sites and histories of the "industrial age" in the city, and its related narratives of automation, pollution, labour and closure. The tour is on cycle rickshaws, with rickshaw
wallahs as narrators and guides.
Sites visited include houses in the shadow of the new metro, a hundred year-old ice factory, a car-cover karkhana, a derelict cinema, motor repair and re-boring shops, a printing press transported from Lahore, a famous clock tower, amongst others.
Roshanara Motornama tour guides:
Rajesh, Raju, Lalji, Ajay kumar, Dinesh, Saddam, Ranjit, Rakesh, Tirloki, Durga Prasad, Nankhe, Panna Lal, Ramesh, Ram Bahadur. Vijay Kumar Misra. Akhilesh, Ram Surat, Ram Sajiwan, Ram Sajan, Raj Kumar, Suresh Kumar, Anil Kumar, Dharam Raj, Nihroo.
Roshanara Motornama was part of '48 degrees C' held in New Delhi, December 12-21, 2008. Curated by Pooja Sood. Organised by the Goethe Institut, Delhi.
A project by Shaina Anand (
http://www.chitrakarkhana.net/) and Ashok Sukumaran (
http://0ut.in).
See also
Motornama Roshanara
New Delhi
Shaina: Keep to your left a little. No to the right. Yeah great.
Shaina: Don't drive right behind them. A little to the right.
Guide: This worked in 1938.. this came here in 1935.
Guide: Now there is no one or we would have shown the operations.
Shaina: There is someone inside.
Old man: Isn't there any light?
Shaina: Today is sunday.
Guide: Today is Sunday sir.. its a holiday.. all the workers have gone home.
Shaina: What are you showing?
Guide: Its an old house.. its an ancient house but its very well maintained.
Offscreen: Actually he is showing some architecture..
Shaina: Then this tour is important.
Shaina: Go ahead of them.
Shaina: Our idea is to make sure this happens beyond the festival.
Lady: You have made everything that is to be shown ready..
Old man: If more people come they will make it happen. What the heritage people have done in Ahmedabad.. they too have done something related to rickshaw people... the day tour.. they have made rickshawallhs ready for the same.
Shaina: That is the idea! The festival will get over but we have police permission and so it can continue happening.
Shaina: I didn't hear you. I came late. Speak again.
Guide 2: I have to speak again.
Shaina: Yes, for the camera.
Guide 2: I was saying.. sir, I have shown you everything, told you everything. What would you like to say?
Black: Oil will get over and again everyone will come back to this... ride on rickshaws and cycles... where else will they go?
Guide 2: Where autos can't take you, rickshaws can. Ins't it? Now even oil prices have come down.
Shaina: Go ahead of me if you want! Overtake me if you want!
Guide: This is not a shop but this is our house. You see how rickshawallahs roam around the whole day, they earn and they are seen to be around the whole day. But no one knows which lane they disspear into in the evening. People work here the whole day.. but in the evening we park our rickshaws here and cook our meals.. at times we order from the hotel.. this is our house, sir. We may become broke but we always have our house open for us.
Shaina: How are you? You too fixed a motor in your apartment. Its looking nice.
Offscreen: Is there a matthi?
Guide: Yes you will get a matthi, sir.
Guide: I will treat you to a matthi.. but give me two minutes.
Offscreen: It will be prepared by then.
Shaina: And what about my tea?
Shaina: How's it going Nitin?
Nitin: Its going well. Its very intimate.. because he is telling his story. And through his story we are getting to know history.
Shaina: Actually you have chosen a filmy person among us. He is very dramatic and he is good.
Nitin: He talks in metaphors also. There are local metaphors like.. they use in their daily language.. it is not something constructed from outside..
Nitin: I have been in this university area for five years.. I know all these places. But still there are some things that you don't know and you have not thought of it from this angle..
Black: For example that factory.
Nitin: Yes. I have never been to that factory. Tirpalwala.
Nitin: I used to eat here.. sometimes for dinner we used to come here-
Shaina: Siddarth Hotel.
Shaina: When I'll say ready then start. Okay now go.
Shaina: See you at the station. Call me when.. after lunch or whatever.
Shaina: No, you better turn around.. don't go here.. go back again.
Shaina: How is it going, Vijay?
White: Do you know about wills? The will of Motornama has information about motors.. it makes you familiar with the old motors.. come with us sir, we will show you around and tell you everything.
Grey: The ones who took bottles in the morning..
White: Yes they took it for the same purpose.
Grey: But you are on the rickshaw..
White: If we don't ride the rickshaw then how will we travel? And if we don't go there then how will I tell you about the place?
Grey: On which channel will the interview come?
White: It will definitely come on Zee TV.
Grey: When?
White: Now I don't know that for sure. But it will come fore sure.
Grey: Thank You.
Shaina: How's it going?
Driver: Well..
Shaina: Did you show them the mill?
Driver: I am going to show now.
Shaina: Its yours? Go and see the screen.
Guide 3: But now there is a lot of public.. it can't be done with only that much power. Mills were established in 1920 with the aid of the motor. A lot of mills run here and a lot of flour is produced which is run by the motor. Almost 400-450 people work here. They stay here and work here. But the government shifted a lot of factories because of pollution. But this mill doesn't cause a lot of pollution and the government didn't shut this. By shutting this one the common man would be seriously affected. Surivial would have become difficult.
Offscreen: Be careful with the potholes.
Shaina: Are you done with all work?
Shaina: Now it will be less because there are a lot of people.
Shaina: So can I just ask your'll a little bit of what you have been feeling about this tour because its just a very important question. Its true because what has been happening here when this tour has been happening repeatedly for ten days.. the esteem of the rickshawallah has gone up in his own neighbourhood. So in that sense you have become the art.. the side effects they will experience. Because normally you sit in the rickshaw and you determine the destination. And after that he doesn't speak. So we have reversed those roles.. he talks to you and...
Blue: Also I think when we come here to visit for these people its also like a unusual experience... they think that who are these people who have come out of the blue.. suddenly roaming out on these rickshaws.. and the rickshawallhs are taking them around.. so for them also I think this is also a very unique experience. So I think in that case perhaps we become the exhibits.
Shaina: Thats true. Yeah. And what have you.. you've been seeing all other artworks?
Blue: We have gone around. But I think perhaps this is one of the most exciting... the one on 'Bara Khamba' road was also very impressive. I really really responded..
Shaina: The tree wallah or the videos?
Blue: The tree. I couldn't see the video because the video wasn't on.. but the tree was definitely very thought provoking. Absolutely.
Shaina: So why do you think something like the tree or this project resonates more with you than the normal.. say.. 'Don't spread plastic?'
Blue: It resonates with me because you know.. perhaps I have certain opportunity to some kind of exposure and some kind of awareness which is been created over a period of time .. but I think what I find very disturbing is that this so-called public art.. I mean.. with due respect to the people who have made so much of effort and so much of work..
Blue: Response of the public.. you know, the man on the street.. seems to be rather low. As a matter of fact, one thing I find very interesting is that when I was roaming around in the area, you know which is like Connaught Place, where you have perhaps a new profile of people, there is less and less.. you know, there is a work of art you know on top of Palika Bazaar. There are people sitting around, picnicing.. people are not even turning around like - 'What's happening here?'
Blue: But in this area I find that you know, there seems to be more participation. Like if you are sitting around, people are talking more and more. So I think that's.. there is some kind of difference between the profile or the mindset- I don't know what it is. Roshanara Garden I find- okay, more of the artist's perception.. there is maybe just a marginal fraction of people who are reacting. But, there is a response.
Blue: Whereas, if you look at a place like Mandi House or something,.. Ramleela ground... people are just walking past as if nothing exists here. So I think...
Shaina: But you blame the public for that or the artist?
Blue: I don't want to blame anyone, I think its more of communication.
Blue: If somewhere we have communicated, that means our communication media was good enough.. somewhere we have not been able to communicate.. that means there is a certain flaw in the communication.
Shaina: Drive to the left. And then overtake.
Shaina: Take it from here... or else overtake from ahead..
Guide 2: Come in.. (?)
Moustache: You refused?
Shaina: Sorry? In this area .. okay..where did you spend your time then?
Blue: I was caught up in Old Delhi.. in front of Avishkar.. behind Novelty Cinema.. I also went to school in this area.
Shaina: Which school?
Blue: Good Law Castle.. the castle was there when I was in school... it was in (?) when we were in class five..
Shaina: Tell him..
Guide 2: This is an old ice factoty.. 150 years old..
Blue: They still produce ice?
Guide 2: Yes.
Guide 2: This was started by Indira Gandhi.. (?)
Offscreen: The Babans came..
Blue: Wasn't there ice in India before?
Offscreen: Baban started it.
Blue: For how many years is this?
Offscreen: Its 100 years old.
Lady: Where does the water for this come from?
Guide 2: It comes from there.
Blue: Didn't they change it? They didn't make anything? They didn't renovate it or expand it?
Shaina: You went in? Crazy no?
Brown: My dreams!
Shaina: Did you see the silly and the..
Brown: The ammonia and the.. its totally what.. because I used to see this water.. all the time, everyday.. completely fascinated.. actually it was bigger you know, it had another plant here.
Brown: They had like this.. they had another one here..
Shaina: Coz she said now there are four rooms of which two are shut.
Brown: This water thing.. there used to be another extension like this.. and you could see water dripping.
Shaina: Was that made out of wood at that point?
Brown: So if you pass by this strange kind of building.. like this horizontal slabs.. it is dripping into water.
Shaina: Was the inside like your dreams?
Brown: It was actually. Yeah. I mean I had always thought of this kind of vcery dimly lit place.. and the smell of ammonia was.. I didn't know that. The ice slabs under the floor.. good place..
Shaina: Oh but this is murder chowk apparently. I saw it stamped here.. right here.. with six parts hanging out.. and watching the fight.. it was a set up fight..
Brown: Because there's a lot of this credits.. in the market and it goes wrong..
Shaina: And its there.. Harshal what I'll do is, I will email you..
Shaina: If you are taking then take Robin and him together.
Shaina: Quick quick! Again take two rounds!
Shaina: No! Again!
Green: Hi!
Shaina: Hello! How are you finding it? The tours..
Green: Didn't know there was anything like this in Delhi!
Shaina: What? Such tours?
Green: No.. didn't know there were all these things in Delhi.. when are we shown all this? Very nice effort, but was publicised very little.. people were not able to know much about this..
Guide: So that's what we are doing - making people aware.
Shaina: Rightly said!
Shaina: Are you from Delhi?
Green: Yes I am from Delhi but I didn't know much.
Shaina: So they showed you the hidden history.
Guide: These are all places from history.. like that old bungalow you saw.. it is 200 years old.. which we said was a haunted mansion..
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