ANGLO
INDIANS AND ECONOMIC ACTIVITY
By
Susan Dhavle
In
this paper I follow the trajectory of the economic activity of Anglo Indians
from their earliest days of establishment as a community to contemporary times.
There was a pre-eminence of Anglo Indians in certain jobs created by the
colonial powers at a crucial point in their history. This led to resentment of
other Indians. After Independence the ambiguous nature of employment
opportunities (that was a colonial hallmark as far as their economic lives was
concerned), for Anglo Indians changed, and they either sought other professions
to compensate for economic survival, or migrated in search of better employment
and lifestyles. After a general outline of the economic spheres in which Anglo
Indians are present these days, I discuss with a few women of two Anglo Indian
families, the various entrepreneurial ventures and self-employment spheres in
which they are engaged. The interplay of the local, the regional, the national
and the transnational is an aspect of the community’s culture and their
engagement with employment, and it is seen and will be illustrated by empirical
material garnered from the Anglo Indian respondents of this
article.
1.Historical
background:
“Anglo
Indian participation in the economic arena has an interesting history tied up
with the history of the Europeans and also the history of the European powers’
struggle for supremacy in India” (Abel, 1988).
Stark
(1926) who himself was an educationist, is one of the earliest historians of
Anglo Indian employment with the East India Company (EIC), the English
government and the Princely States. The earliest among ordinary Anglo Indians
were found to be useful in trading professions by the East India Company since
they were able to understand Indian languages and were familiar with local
conditions and of Indian customs, modes of thinking, of natural products and
manufactures, and of market places and facilities of transport. This made them
invaluable assets to those whose chief concern was with the wealth to be derived
from a lucrative trade, argues Stark. He asserts that the Anglo Indian’s work in
trade helped to augment dividends of shareholders of the company in
England.
The
community’s earliest historian is also its most impassioned:
Through
our agency, revenue and settlement operations, land surveys and road making
became possible. But for us the telegraph and postal systems, river navigation
and railway construction would not have been feasible. We were the first
missionaries of the Christian religion, the earliest teachers in Indian schools,
the pioneers of Western arts, industries and sciences. In truth, we took a
leading part in every project that tended to advance the moral, material and
intellectual prosperity of the land – our LAND and its people, (Stark,
1926).
“By
the mid 18th century Anglo Indians were relatively prosperous and to
be found among the wealthy sections of the communities, in positions of power”,
(Moore, 1986). The English power growing rapidly required “More men to sail
ships, to serve in the forces of the company or King, to discover new sources of
precious metals and stones, silks and muslins. Anglo Indians made an invaluable
contribution to this”, (Ibid). The EIC, however, was to adopt a policy of using
Anglo Indians and discarding them according to expediency. “The East India
Company had hardly cast Anglo Indians out of its array, when it found itself
beset by foes,” (Stark, 1926) and so the community was recruited again and
demobilized again and again. Thus because of these qualities that the English
did not possess, the Anglo Indians managed to find jobs in the Company’s armies
as and when required, one of which was to safeguard the earliest English
settlements, which would “Grow into forts, with their churches, arsenals and
living quarters”, (Moore, 1986). The conflicts between the European powers at
this early stage before the English established an edge over other competing
European powers meant that, for example, Anglo Indians fought to help the
English to lay down their supremacy over the French, Portuguese and Dutch
colonists.
However,
once there was no threat to the English they laid down promulgations that
drastically changed the economic abilities of Anglo Indians. At first, the Anglo Indian sons of
fathers who could afford the expense, went to England to study for the
covenanted services. Once the English began to note that the mixed population
was becoming larger and feeling that jobs were being taken away from the
‘Europeans’, they started to lay down certain strictures. Gloria Jean Moore
(1986) outlines these strictures that were passed: The first promulgation of
14th march 1786, put an end to the prosperity of Anglo Indians in
that period. Wards of the Upper Orphanage which had recently been set up in
Calcutta were disallowed from proceeding to England to continue education and
thus could not qualify for covenanted service or attain high rank, no matter how
talented or intelligent. The second order passed on 19th April 1791
declared that from now on only ‘pure’ English sons could travel to England to
study and be qualified for lucrative posts in the civil services. Besides this
job avenue, the Anglo Indians had always had a large presence in the English
armies. The third promulgation of 1795 banned their entry into the army, except
as fifers, drummers, bandsmen or farriers, (Moore, 1986). This on and off policy
of giving Anglo Indians employment and then withdrawing it, critical for the
Anglo Indians but expedient for the colonial powers, would continue until post
independence when Anglo Indians became full citizens of India and had entry into
all wings of the military as well as being free to pursue any jobs they were
qualified for. They had fought for the English whenever they were called to,
says Stark (1926), in foreign countries and at Gallipoli and Marne and other
fronts. However, at times they were not ‘English’ enough to be employed by the
colonizers or sometimes were not ‘Indian’ enough to be employed by the Princely
States.
At
the time that the railway networks, posts and telegraphs services and river
navigation were set up, again Anglo Indians were recruited for this mammoth
task. Lower caste Indians did some of the manual work but upper caste Indians
were fearful of despoiling caste purity and were besides, occupied in higher
education which was to help them in later years (Stark, 1926). Bill Aitken
(1995), though starting with the disparaging “...the railways signified perhaps
the unromantic reminder of half-caste liaisons”, goes on to assert
that,
It
is now almost forgotten how the entire middle level of railway running was left
in Anglo Indian hands....the Anglo Indian community monopolized the railway
institutes all over India and for their brief tenure of glory they shone as some
of the most professionally conscious railwaymen the world has seen. Whether as
engine drivers, guards, station masters or working as supervisors or mechanics,
the Anglo Indian was gifted with a verve and loyalty to the Raj that would cost
him dear, (Aitken, 1995).
He
goes on to say that “mechanically precocious, administratively meticulous and
professionally tough, they echoed faithfully those qualities their British
railway masters valued most”, (Ibid). He concludes that “Anglo Indians provided
the foundation for today’s running virtues of Indian railways”,
(Ibid).
Colonial
economic exploitation of the Anglo Indians was possibly because the English felt
confident that the community was rudderless without their patronage, extending
and withdrawing it as it benefited the colonial enterprise, which is why the
community would then turn to the Princely States. But at a crucial stage in
their state of being excluded from employment by the English the Anglo Indians
set up self-help ventures (Stark, 1926, Abel,1988, Moore, 1986). They trained
their fellow Anglo Indians in institutions they founded for professions in
trades and industries. “In the charity schools, pupils specialized in
handicrafts, carpentry, shoemaking, book binding and were apprenticed as seamen,
bandsmen, printers, indigo planters and landsmen”, (Stark 1926). ”Girls were
also trained in needlework, dressmaking, housekeeping, lace making etc.” Other
institutions set up for Anglo Indian vocational and professional training were:
The Parental Academy, La Martiniere’s and the Sherbourne School which was also
attended by well-heeled Indians, one of which was Rabindranath Tagore (Stark,
1926). Training went on at different levels of skills required for job seekers
among the Anglo Indians. One of the many such institutions for training was the
Madras Male Orphan Asylum (Caplan 2001). Caplan notes that pupils from here got
posts as junior clerks, shipmates, sailors, musicians for regimental bands, as
apprentices to printers, cabinet makers etc., though these pupils could only
attain subordinate positions. Those with moderate education and who were
semi-skilled attained a number of technical posts with the government. Caplan,
quoting from the 1871 census, refers to those professions where the learned were
found: ecclesiastical, legal, medical and engineering.
Henry
Gidney, an active Anglo Indian leader who was an ophthalmic surgeon trained in
England, and leader of the Anglo Indian Associations, presented a strongly
worded petition to the English Parliament and managed to procure reserved posts
for Anglo Indians in the upper subordinate positions in many services. He
himself faced prejudice in his active life as a leader of Anglo Indians and as
an Anglo Indian surgeon but he retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in the army and
straightaway began to take an interest in political life and with the Anglo
Indian Associations. He urged Anglo Indians to take an active interest in
political representation and of their “position as natives of India”, (Abel,
1987). It was Gidney’s successful petitions that helped the Anglo Indians to
gain many privileges, for example twelve seats in seven provincial legislatures.
After Gidney’s death in 1942, Frank Anthony came to prominence as one of the
community’s most high profile and vocal leaders. He was a lawyer by profession
and an active political leader as well as a fervent educationist. He wanted
Anglo Indians to practice and hold on to their unique culture, but wanted them
to always remember that they were Indians, (Abel, 1988). Frank Anthony was
cold-shouldered by the British for his frank approach in speeches. He,
nevertheless, stood up proudly for his community. He presented his case before
the Sapru Conciliation Committee formed in 1945, that Anglo Indians must take
part in the political life of the nation, that they be financially assisted in
educational establishments as guaranteed to the community under Section 83 of
the Government of India Act of 1935, and that the community’s quotas of services
and remuneration not be affected by the demands of other expediencies, (Abel,
1987). According to Abel, Anthony had the ear of Indian nationalist leaders such
as Mahatma Gandhi (who at first was wary of Anglo Indians because of their
allegiance to the British), Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. In
1946 Anthony requested Patel who was Chairman of the Advisory Committee on
Minority Rights with a petition. Abel describes the
outcome:
The
safe guards for the community were rescinded by the Independence Act of 1947,
but thanks largely to the support of the Indian leaders, these safeguards
continued and were finally incorporated in the Constituent Assembly on June 16,
1949”. Articles 297 and 298 (later renamed 336 and 337) gave the community
quotas in the services and guarantees for education for a period of 10 years.
Nomination of Anglo Indians to the Central and Provincial legislatures was
secured through Articles 293 and 295 (later renamed 331 and 333), (Abel,
1988).
Abel
declares that before 1857 certain petitions made to the English parliament meant
that Anglo Indians were given posts in subordinate grades, without disturbing
English covenanted services and commissioned ranks of the army. Anglo Indians
had a marked aptitude for technical and mechanical work. The establishment of an
Apprenticing Society and Marine School led to a number of trained and skilled
Anglo Indians being able to enter the workforce. They became captains and second
officers, engineers, mechanics, telegraph operators, artisans and electricians.
On the railways they gained employment as station staff, permanent way
inspectors, guards and auditors, (Abel, 1988). They had by now become used to
service jobs. Neglect of higher education was a negative point for them at that
period in their history. It lost them many lucrative jobs in upper cadres of
covenanted services when these were finally open to Indians after Indian
nationalists agitated for these posts. The Anglo Indians would correct this
anomaly only in the contemporary period. Abel comments:
Appointments
in the lower and upper services, now brought within reach of Anglo Indians,
began to find favour with them over trades and industries. Stark felt, so long
ago, that Anglo Indians made a deadly mistake in losing the opportunity by
opting for service, “the freedom, Independence and competence which Industrial
vocations might have perpetuated to them”
(Abel, 1988).
Modern
Anglo Indians have started up business industries but long before this, Anglo
Indian fortunes continued to be tied up with English needs. When services and
amenities such as the railways were inaugurated, and whenever there were
conflicts with local or other European opponents Anglo Indians would be
recruited by the English into these services and armies only to be discharged
after the danger was over. In later years Indians started agitating for more
posts in all sectors, citing their superior education. There was an increased
demand for Indianization of services. Indians with higher education were also
finally admitted to upper positions of the covenanted services.
Anglo
Indians began to form associations and to be represented by their leaders even
more forcefully. Anglo Indians became aware that the situation was changing over
the centuries in India and socially and economically they had to keep pace.
Nationalism was also gaining momentum, leading many Anglo Indians as well as
their leaders, in particular Frank Anthony to rethink their alliance with the
English and to join the cause for independence. Following the First War of
Indian Independence, an ‘Auxiliary Force’ was created by the English for Anglo
Indians who now were forced to join. They were threatened with loss of jobs on
the railways etc. if they did not sign up for service. This also had the malign
effect by which Anglo Indians through force, during riots, had to shoot at
Indians. This caused much bad blood between those who were to be the future
citizens of India. Indians, contrarily, were not allowed into the Auxiliary
Force. The colonialist’s discriminatory policies were thus making them more
unpopular in India, (Abel, 1988).
The
Independence era was crucial for the economic future of the community as well as
for its continuing existence. Under Frank Anthony’s leadership and negotiations
with Congress leaders, positive changes took place. The Government of India Act
of 1935 gave representation to Anglo Indians in the provincial legislatures –
and thus Anglo Indians entered political activity and employment. Reservations
in the railways, posts and telegraphs and customs were to continue for ten years
after the laying down of the constitution, till 1960.
1.The
Modern period
In
the modern period it is necessary to take a brief look at the employment avenues
and positions that Anglo Indians are seen in.
Caplan
(2001) in his study of Madras (Chennai) Anglo Indians notes, “The contemporary
Anglo Indian family has to be understood in context of the changing positions of
men and women in the economy generally and the employment market in particular”.
He notes that Anglo Indian women did not enter the workplace in great numbers
till the later end of the 19th century. When they did start filling
up skilled and unskilled posts, he cites the exclusion of Anglo Indian men from
the labour market as a cause. Indianization of the traditional sector meant
displacement of Anglo Indian men, so women, both to meet financial needs and
also to take advantage of the job situation started filling many posts. Caplan
reports that in better off family’s women took up employment only for a short
period before marriage and this was in jobs where moderate skills were required:
they worked as secretaries, typists, telephone operators, school teachers or
shop assistants (Caplan, 2001).
Caplan
gives an account of the hierarchy of classes within which Anglo Indian
professionals and workers can be found. The elite among Anglo Indians, though
small in number, are professionals in government service, business managers and
people who see the new opportunities that they can avail of with education and a
sense of enterprise. Today they are medical doctors, lawyers, dentists,
engineers, architects, academics, members of the Indian Administrative Services,
bank officers, business executives and computer professionals as well as
officers in the armed forces, (Caplan, 2001).
Caplan
suggests that Anglo Indians with less education but good technical skills find
jobs in industries as fitters, welders, electricians, lathe operators, mechanics
and repairmen, for cars, air conditioners and engines. He also mentions that
Anglo Indians have found work on oil rigs in India as well as in the Middle
East. Those who excel in sports are given jobs in leading companies. There are
also a number of Anglo Indians working in the hospitality industry at various
levels from waiting and kitchen staff and who can rise to manager levels. The
Anglo Indians lower down in this hierarchical ranking find jobs in construction
sites, drive auto rickshaws, do house painting or work as security guards.
In
the contemporary period women without education or skills are doing domestic
work according to Caplan (2001). He concludes that women with basic literacy
skills are doing work as untrained teachers or giving private tuitions. On the
other hand women with university education are increasingly employed as civil
servants, college lecturers, bank officers and computer specialists, among other
professions. They also have excelled in computer professions but this requires
money for the expensive training. Travel and tourism is another avenue of
employment and Anglo Indians have also found work in hotels and offices in the
Gulf, (Ibid). No doubt the English speaking abilities of Anglo Indians as well
as their Westernized culture and skills are an asset in the job market, both in
India and the Middle East besides other countries. According to Caplan some
Anglo Indians continue to be poverty stricken. Anglo Indian charities try to
help with funds and aid in the forms of scholarships. This charity comes from
abroad as well as in India, (Ibid).
Gaikwad
(1987) insinuates that “Anglo Indians are mostly economically backward”. How
much has migration and education helped Anglo Indians to change this perception?
He states that Anglo Indians are to be found mostly in the service sector, and
are not active in business since, “No Indian business person would want to carry
out business ventures with them”. How far this is true is to be judged by
current employment of Anglo Indians in many a business venture. Anglo Indians
were never considered to have the wherewithal to fund businesses or to own
assets. After Independence and to the present day Anglo Indian migration has led
to them grasping opportunities for higher education and for highly skilled
technical training too.
More
recently, Gass (personal communication ,May 2010, see ‘Letters to the Editor’,
this issue) states that there is a large presence of Anglo Indians in the call
centre sector and that they are still running the schools and kindergartens, as
well as food production industry in India. He himself is part of a professional
Anglo Indian business grouping called ‘Anglo Indian Global Group’ . Anglo
Indians in all the English speaking, western countries to which they migrated,
are also counted as being in a multitude of professions.
The
International Journal of Anglo Indian Studies, the Anglo Indian Wallah, The
magazine Anglos in the Wind, etc testify to the fact that there is plenty of
Anglo Indian intellectual work going on. The number of PhDs in the community has
risen along with those with professional skills such as Gass has attained. We
know from their published books, papers, etc that Anglo Indian men and women are
active in universities in many countries besides India, as academics, as
lecturers and professors. They are also authors of popular novels and fiction
and some are widely published. The CTR (Calcutta Tiljallah Relief) publications
are a popular source of fiction for and by Anglo Indians and proceeds from the
sales of these publications go towards funding the education of poor Anglo
Indians in that part of the country. Anglo Indians are also present in media and
mass communication and have a presence in the Information Technology sector.
They are in publishing, editing and filmmaking. Anglo Indians still maintain a strong
presence in the teaching profession at school level as well. They are likely to
maintain some numbers in the traditional professions which in an earlier phase
of independence were reserved for them. They are still present in the armed
forces and women have the opportunity to be pilots and serve in the Armed Forces
and civil aviation, and Anglo Indians still continue to be in the cabin crew
service sector of world class airlines. They also figure in theatre, acting and
the entertainment professions. Anglo Indians are also present in modern day
politics as a profession: Derek O’Brien in Calcutta and Beatrix de Souza in
Karnataka are members of the legislative assemblies of their states. In
Australia Erica Lewin has joined a political party. Both these women have strong
academic backgrounds and have Doctoral degrees.
3.Interviews
I
now turn to the women I have interviewed for this article to understand the work
they are engaged in. All are self-employed professionals in their various
fields. They each have a positive approach to handling their own enterprises or
field of work. All are Anglo Indians though only one is married to an Anglo
Indian. They all give a strongly positive message about work participation and
their interest in their own family lives as well as life within the
community.
Maria
Kapper:
In
1985 Maria Kapper did a course in beauticians training from an Anglo Indian lady
in her house itself for which she paid a small amount. She managed to get a job
in a beauty salon. Her kids were small so she worked part-time. As her kids grew
she could give her work more time, and now has been twenty five years in the
business.
In
the early years when she had a young family her husband was working with a
well-known business family of Pune and he helped her out financially too. After
15 years of work in India she went with her husband to Muscat, Oman. She had to
leave her kids behind but she says the salary there was too low. She now runs
her own enterprise after taking an initial bank loan. She managed to repay the
loan and then bought the current location where her salon ‘Marias’ is located.
Before that she was running her business in rented establishments. She, however,
had to review her situation as rents were high.
After
she returned to India it took about a year for her to build up this thriving
business. She felt confident to do this and attributes this to the fact that she
is hard working. From childhood she always had a passion for fashion and beauty
and makeovers, and channelled that into making a career for herself. What Maria
values greatly is client loyalty. So many years of being located in one place
has meant that her clients have got used to her and are her well-wishers. They
find she has no ‘airs and pretensions’ and plenty of modesty without being
sycophantic. Maria recounts how her third child was a forty five day old baby
when she was working from nine in the morning to almost eight o’clock at night.
She underlines the fact that, “If you want to come up in life you have to
sacrifice some of your time. You don’t get anything by just sitting
around”.
Maria’s daughter
Suzanne who runs the second branch of the salon that she opened some years ago
went to night college. By daytime she was helping her mother and then told her
Mom she wanted to follow her in the business. She did her course and joined her
mother till they opened their second parlour which she now
manages.
Many
of her clients say Maria is amazing. She works cheerfully and pleasantly the
whole day. She has a friendly relationship with clients, knowing their
personalities and preferences and individualizes each person’s finished look.
Her customers also come up with a diversity of ideas of what they prefer with
which she conforms or advises against gently. The atmosphere of conviviality and
hospitality, the gentleness of handling and the companionableness that is a good
hairdresser’s traits, all help her in her work. Clients love to talk and confide
in their stylists so Maria is a patient and caring listener. After a long day at
work, when she is mostly on her feet, she then goes home to look after domestic
responsibilities. Doesn’t she ever take a break? She just feels she has to go on
because she loves what she is doing.
She
has had to struggle. She did not have the finances for publicity for her
business but it came all the same by word of mouth. She opened a Men’s salon
recently, buying some more space in the same premises and this enterprise also
she promoted through her clients. Advertisements, she feels, don’t really help
if your work does not speak for its self. Her clients interact with her as a
good person she says. “They don’t care anything about your caste or your back
ground as long as you are professional and maintain standards which are high”.
Caste as an exclusionary factor previously (and in pockets still continues to
affect Anglo Indians) affected the community mainly because of the Christian
religion it professes and its westernization, (Gilbert, 1996). This has no
effect in urban, westernized areas of Pune however, so Maria can make such a
statement. Most of her clients are elite/upper class people from the Koregaon
Park area in Pune but she welcomes anyone who walks in and plenty of middle
class people are her clients too. The beauty business thrives in India and there
are all levels of beauty salons. She says some of her clients are demanding.
They travel abroad and know how to get things done as well as what they want.
They come to her because she is accommodating and listens to what the clients
would like, making this a distinctive feature of her work.
The
whole family is involved in this enterprise. While her daughter runs the other
salon, her daughter-in-law Rufina works with Maria. “They are very proud of what
I do,” says Maria. Her husband who is retired now also helps with dropping them
off to work and picking them up, as well as seeing to her little grandson who is
about three years old. They all live close to each other though in different
apartments and much of their time is spent with each other. Though they have a
circle of friends and acquaintances her family is at the centre of most of her
social activities. Her son, who works in the IT sector stays in a bungalow
nearby. This kind of joint family is not usual among Anglo Indians and it is a
joint family but in a varied way, where there is interdependence and
independence too.
She
feels she does not want to belong to any upper class kind of society. And she
feels that Anglo Indians as a community don’t support other Anglo Indians. She
says ninety nine per cent of her clientele is from other communities. “Anglo
Indians are not necessarily friendly and supportive to someone who is an Anglo
Indian running a business”, asserts Maria.
She
is forty six years old now and years of standing on her feet have given her a
back problem but she ignores it. Once she comes to work she feels good and fit
and feels perfectly alright. The day she is not working aches and pains plague
her so it is work that keeps her going. She is not a party going type of person.
Sometimes she is too tired to do anything else but still she is happiest at
work. Work and family matters to her, she says - “no partying
around”.
Maria
blends in with the multi-ethnic nature of her clientele who nevertheless want
all the most current in western styles. She easily copes with the national and
transnational scope of her profession. She is confident about the way she
contributes to the family’s financial status through this small business, which
is expansionist in nature in accordance with her financial output. She also
tries to save for their old age and for the kids needs. She has one daughter who
is twelve, so her studies etc are still going on and she is yet to be settled,
which is years ahead. Much of what she earns goes back into the business. Her
salon is clean and hygienic and has a friendly atmosphere with a lot of friendly
camaraderie. She invests in better products to use for clients, and sends the
girls for courses in upgrading skills. Two of them will be going to London to do
an advanced course. So she is growth oriented and wants to open more branches in
Pune or even outside Pune.
Maria
and her husband own their own apartment in a decent part of town and are glad to
live there, not very far from work. With the success of her business she and the
family are able to go on holidays together and even travel abroad. She and her
husband have just returned from a trip to Italy and Spain. They travel within
India too, to Kerala or other hill stations. It is all, or sometimes partly
funded by Maria’s earnings.
She
insists that clients and her ideas are in tandem. If she knows what style will
suit a client as a hairdresser she will give advice. She will not, however,
bulldoze someone into accepting something with which they would be
uncomfortable. She does not mind going with the ‘funky’ or the conservative,
whatever the client finds more suited to them. Choices depend on the client. The
hairdresser has the responsibility to do the correct thing by them or the client
will not be satisfied and seek other people. Now she has reached a level of
financial security where she could invest in another branch and is exploring
that possibility. Her daughter will also follow this line - help her in
advancing their business.
Maria
and her husband are members of the Anglo Indian Association but she is not happy
with how it functions. She feels the milieu is not friendly, that people gather
in clumps and do nothing to welcome newcomers so she feels a sense of alienation
there. She feels Anglo Indians as a community should be inclusive to new members
but they are not. So in the final analysis it is work and more work that is her
mainstay in life.
Claire
Datta
Claire
Datta comes from a talented, transnational Anglo Indian family who migrated to
Canada in 1967. Her father was a well-known small arms designer for the
military. His design of the Peter’s Pistol (in use for many years by the Indian
Army) made a name for him in the small arms design sector. Her first cousin is
the celebrated stand up comedian Russell Peters who now has a luxury home in the
Hollywood hills in the United States. Claire’s sister Patricia Brown is also
known on the Anglo Indian circuit as the author of well-received cookery books
and most recently, a novel. She has two other sisters who are artists. One of
them is a respondent in this article.
Claire
started her bakery/confectionery business in 1985 in Bombay (Mumbai now). When
her husband was posted to Delhi she began to work from home. Through word of
mouth in the Air Force she began to get plenty of VIP dinners and coffee
mornings as commissions. The Air Force Wives Welfare Association ran an
exclusive shopping destination called Santushti in the heart of Lutyens Delhi.
Claire sought and was given permission to sell her baked wares every Saturday
under a banyan tree. She became famous for the looks as well as quality of her
baked goods and every Saturday the crowds came early and she mostly sold out by
noon. This led to her being allowed to set up shop twice a week and finally to
being offered a small shop in the same premises when it fell
vacant.
At
the time she was the only serving officer’s wife to own a shop in this exclusive
location. This was a formidable feat. She had to have finances to pay a deposit
and to cover running expenses. Taking a loan of four lakhs (400,000 rupees), she
got the business up and running. She baked all day, did the deliveries in her
Maruti car herself and prepared all evening for the next morning’s production.
It was hard work, blood, sweat and tears, according to her family, that brought
her to this point of financial success. The quality and innovative nature of her
baked goods soon became known to a select clientele who remain loyal to her
brand till today. She put in long hours of work to keep up with fulfilling the
demand of the specialty brand she produces. She does all this cheerfully and
pleasantly and success has seen her making copyrighted photos of her brand
“Claires’ as advertisement. The decorative nature of her confectionery and the
quality are what clients swear by. Claire’s westernization is seen in her
products, sometimes a cake made in the shape of a Louis Vuitton handbag – a
westernization matched by buyers with influences from regions around the world
and India. She is able to adapt to the economic niche of this sophisticated
group of patrons.
She
has seen financial success and recognition over the last ten years also among
family and friends. She has to fulfil orders for customers with very demanding
standards and she is able to keep a promise of quality because she meets these
standards with regularity, if not going well beyond. Her reputation as a creator
of high quality baked goods has grown tremendously along with her business
output. Anglo Indian women are not really known for entrepreneurship skills (but
they are increasing in numbers). Claire puts such misconceptions to rest by
being a tireless business organization head. Her successful small industries
skills are such that she attracts orders because the cakes are mixed and baked
to perfection first, following stringent procedures and no short cuts, and then
decorated with creative ideas that are extremely attractive to her fastidious
clients.
Claire’s
work has gained her enormous financial and personal security. She and her family
are comfortably off, having their own well-maintained and elegant home in a
suburb of Delhi where this writer was served delectable eats. They are also
able, when she can spare the time, to take holidays abroad and within
India. She is an example of a
person who breaks the stereotypes of the typical Anglo Indian woman, as she
states: “living in a lower Middle class milieu and satisfied with her lot”. She
also treats her workers with humorous affection along with dignity and respect.
Claire’s
is today a distinctive and sought after name in this business in Delhi. Her
clientele includes very high profile and elite Delhi socialites, business people
and politicians, as well as her own old friends who she never lets down. She has
catered wedding cakes, birthday cakes and confection to countless friends, thus
keeping a down to earth aspect to a loyal client base.
Now
that Claire is unwell she still refuses to take a defeatist attitude and
religiously goes in every day to her office and her bakery in Delhi’s Race
Course Road area. She oversees the carrying out of her orders which are still
pouring in, testifying to and a celebration of the triumph of her spirit over
her travails. During this interview she was currently fulfilling an enormous
order from a well-known businessman.
Her
charges are according to her expertise and expenses and form no barrier to her
success. She is understanding of friends needs and adjusts accordingly. She has
been channelling much of her financial gains from her ten year old enterprise
towards growth and improvement of her staff, the mechanics of the business as
well as to improve quality so that her business grows and prospers. It is all
honest hard work. Far from being the small bakery on the corner ‘Claire’s’ is an
exclusive and well-recognized brand name for confectionery (giving 5 star
upmarket and ‘spiffier’ outfits a run for their money in upper class Delhi
circles), all due to the channelling of her efforts continuously in this
direction.
The
writer Khushwant Singh (2002) mentions her in a column. They had been
corresponding and he says he places an order once a year for a turkey or a capon
(specialities that Claire will produce besides her other items). He has the most
to say on her thoughts about the loss of the family tradition of eating around
the table where everyone shared their thoughts and the day’s events. Claire writes to him. “As a working Mom
I appreciate all the conveniences, the escape from drudgery in the kitchen but I
also miss the security and love that came from being at the table with my
family. We discussed school and boyfriends, Mom’s day and Dad’s day and there
was a feeling of steadfastness that no matter what happened this would never
change”. She tries to keep this tradition alive. She also tells him how her
husband shares her views on food (and drink) as bonding factors in a family. “My
husband says he learnt to drink at family dinners when he was eighteen. A beer
was poured for him and he watched how his dad and grandfather sipped it and made
it last through the meal”. Women
professionals mention domestic and family responsibilities and parenting as work
too – if this is not shared then the burden falls on only one person within a
couple. Claire’s husband is indeed a supportive presence in her life, helping
her start up and now helping her through a difficult phase of illness and her
insistence on working.
Ann
De Lorme:
Ann
De Lorme is an artist and sculptor who did her art training at the JJ School of
Arts in Mumbai as an external student. She started with sketching, drawing and
painting in college. Then she started moulding in clay from live models, finally
moving into carving stone. Though
she has had some technical training she mostly worked things out herself and
used books to guide her. Her artistic influences are Somnath Hore, a Punjabi
north Indian sculptor, and Constantin Brancusi who is a Romanian sculptor. They
are her two main influences, though she admires the work of many
others.
She
likes to play around with dimension, sometimes working with two dimensions and
then onto three dimensions. These dimensions take on the power to suggest
analogies that she is playing with. She also experiments by making ‘windows’
within her sculpture...these are open spaces that she incorporates into some of
her sculpture and which form important elements of her composition. To a
complete outsider Ann describes sculpture as being the language of form, such as
music is something for the ear.
Out
of her many pieces displayed in her studio cum home she picks the ‘pregnant
woman’ as one of her favourites. She is a reclining woman and she seems to be
contemplating her condition. The sculpture is called ‘Expecting’. She is not
just waiting for the birth of her child, much more to what she is expecting is
wrapped up in that foetus in her swollen womb, her hopes, her expectations.
These figures are an expression of her own beliefs, infused with her own mind
and spirit and exude a vitality and presence. Most of her figures are female
though there are some male figures too. She has never been a mother but she has
tried to feel that experience through her sculpture, and to express those
thoughts. “In our lives there are so many emotional ups and downs”, she says,
which she tries to capture in her works. Another female figure is ‘Sunday Rose’.
She has a crucifix around her neck and is supposed to be a Catholic and seems to
be saying “So what if you are cynical about all my church going”. She continues
to develop style and meaning in her works.
The
‘Handicapped Priest’, another work, is indicated by a cross carved into his
chest (also an example of a ‘window’). He has only one arm. He signifies what a
priest tries to do, tell people about the church and religion that he himself is
not fully convinced of. Another male figure is ‘The Taster’. While one hand is
near his mouth, he holds a prism in the other hand, which reflects the multiple
images of life and he wants to taste life itself. There is a compositional unity
in the forms and human figures she creates, an abstract, almost metaphysical
allusion in her work. The dynamism is palpable and her perception of the
ambiguity of human nature infuses her sculpture.
Ann
does take an interest in Anglo Indian culture and mundane activities such as
cooking and visiting old memories. She often discusses with her siblings how
their parents were and what their life was like in the military cantonments when
they were younger. She doesn’t consider herself unique but feels fortunate to be
able to express her thoughts through art and she asserts that her Anglo Indian
background is a heavy influence in her art. She is very proud of the creative
ability of this family.
She
describes the process by which she makes a bronze sculpture. This is known as
the ceramic shell process. First a model is made of wax which is then covered
with a mixture of colloidal silica and zircon. After the layers form the shell,
the wax is burnt out and bronze that has been heated in a crucible is poured in
at a molten stage. When the metal is cooled the shell is broken and the
sculpture inside is ready to be seen. She uses what is called a spruing system
which consists of runners for the metal to go down and risers for the gas to
come up. If the gas does not escape the shell can explode. It is a complex
technical process. “As an artist you must know the technical processes, the
difficulties and the complexities, if you are doing it
yourself”.
It
requires expert marketing skills, quality of product and originality for a
creative person to be financially successful too, say Ann. Of course Ann has had
to struggle financially. “Unless you sell your work it is very hard to
progress”, in her words. She mostly sells through art dealers but has other
avenues. Though her basic craft is art the aim is also to sell. Her ‘product’ is
also meant for the ‘creative’ buyer whose acceptance and appreciation of her
creativity is important in a sale transaction. And that intent is there in many
a buyer she declares - they will ask for guidance and information and be well
tuned with the creative expression of the artists that they patronize. As an
artist she may want to have her work known and appreciated and for it to belong
in collections is also an aim. So art finally turns into a form of
self-employment, where investment in materials and processes is set off by sales
- art evolving into economic activity. Her prices are quite high and it is
mostly industrialists or business houses that buy her sculpture. But she is
satisfied with where she has reached, never having looked for too much fame,
mainly wanting personal and artistic satisfaction. However, through her art she
has also been able to earn a sizeable amount because of the nature of her
significant work. She stands on her own feet financially and manages all her own
work herself.
She
lives in a house she owns, a neat, sizeably large bungalow with a garden and
plenty of pet dogs for company and security. She has a car of her own. She has
not been as successful financially as her sister Claire whose business is
roaring, but she is a restless artist satisfied with her life but not ever
completely finished with artistic expression.
Ann
believes that if you have a creative spirit you must let it run free and
overcome obstructions to it. Her art is her life’s meaning and what she hopes to
be remembered by. She remembers events related to the creation of every piece.
“It all tells the progress of my life through my art”. She is in touch with
artist friends and exchanges views and news with them. Her art has given her
some riches but now Ann is writing as well and in the future she wants to open
an artist’s commune where artists and sculptors will reside with each other. She
also hopes to be able to start her own foundry. She has to get someone else to
do the work required from a foundry and would like to have one of her own. Ann
lives in quiet, contented comfort, and is yet another Anglo Indian with a modern
day occupation.
Conclusion
Anglo
Indians have been pursuing different economic activities at different periods.
Starting with an uncertain footing during the era of colonization when the
community itself was established, they finally found ways and means to help
themselves. At Independence Anglo Indians had reservations in upper subordinate
posts in the railways, posts and telegraphs and customs only for ten years after
the laying down of the Indian Constitution till 1960. However, many of the
community continued in traditional services because of their aptitude, or found
new avenues of work. Independence meant reservations would last only for a
limited period so Anglo Indians had to find new areas of employment. Mass
migration of the community at and the continuing years after independence led to
a greater scope of employment positions, though not necessarily all highly paid
ones. The community also took advantage of higher educational opportunities and
more advanced technical skills in countries of migration. If English as a mother
tongue helped Anglo Indians to get jobs in the traditional services they were
entrenched in in India, it also helps them to now get employment in businesses
and service industries that are more global in nature. As a transnational
community they also adapt to the needs of work in sectors that require skills
particular to different regions. Within India itself the community has found
many new avenues of employment, breaking stereotypes about their economic
backwardness and lack of capital and assets. Though some continue to be poor and
to work in poorly paid jobs many Anglo Indians in India and within the diaspora
are now pursuing a great variety of well-paid professions.
References:
Abel,
E, (1988), The Anglo Indian Community:
Survival in India, Chanakya Publications, Delhi
Aitken,
B, (1995), Exploring Indian Railways,
Oxford University Press, Delhi
Caplan,L,
(2001) Children of Colonialism: Anglo
Indians in a Post-Colonial World, Berg, Oxford, New
York
Gaikwad,VR,
(1967), The Anglo Indians: A Study in the
Problems and Processes Involved in Emotional and Cultural Integration, Asia
Publishing House, Bombay
Gilbert,
A, (1996), The Anglo Indians in
Australia, from Unsuccessful Caste Members to Attaining Immigrants: an
Examination of Anglo Indian Labour Force performances and Their Life
Perceptions, Ph.D Thesis, Monash University, Melbourne, viewed
20th May,
2010,<./agthesis.html>
Gass,
M, (personal communication) May 2010
Moore,
GJ, (1986), The Anglo Indian Vision,
Melbourne, AE press
Singh,
K, (Sat, March 16, 2002), ‘This Above
All’ from The Tribune, Delhi
Stark,
HA, (1926), Hostages to India: Or The
Life Story of the Anglo Indian Race, 2nd Edition, Book 3 of the
Anglo Indian Heritage Books.
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Susan
Dhavle has an academic background in History and Anthropology. She has an MA
from Bombay University, in Ancient Indian History and Culture and another MA
from the University of London, in Gender Anthropology and Development. She has
worked for NGOs in editing and publishing newsletters, the last work being the
book “Struggles for Survival: A Tribal Resource Directory” for The National
Centre of Advocacy Studies, Pune, India. She is now involved with editing the
International Journal of Anglo Indian Studies and The Anglo Indian Wallah. She
can be contacted at:
<susanddhavle@gmail.com>