9:20am: I walk down the stairs with todays “Times of India” in tow and sit down to breakfast: Omlet Masala. Yes that’s what they call it.
After just over a week of staying in Ahmedabad it seems like I’ve got the routine down… But alas breakfast is where any inkling of routine stops: Everyday in Ahmedabad seems to have a new rhythm to try to master until you realize there isn’t a rhythm, just time and space and somehow the pieces must fall in place. The total antithesis of this lagom concept that has been shoved at me in Sweden for the last year. Lagom is literally and figuratively miles away in India.
Around every bend it seems that there is one extreme or the other: “Too much spice” or “so little money!” are the chimes daily from our group. This juxtaposed to the daily images of people with few clothing on their backs and other with countess layers of bejeweled saris.
You soon become familiar with the consistently inconsistent ‘rythm’.
Once we buckled down to some group work, it was interesting to see that several members of the group have picked up signs that there is a new breed of Indians whom despite an often calm facade, are actively redefining where they stand with their identities.
There are signs that a new class is emerging whom are less preoccupied with the dogma of the past whilst not being anything less then proud of their heritage. Whether this is towards balance or simply just another contradiction to add to the list is yet to be answered, but I don’t think it will take 50, 20 or even 10 years time to see what is to come of it.
Kendra Williams
Stockholm University
SSES White Label Student
