India: The Dying Art of Professional Letter Writing

Slug: India letter writers

Reporter: Gayatri Parameswaran
Date: 24/03/2014
INR!:
" de#ade ago in $um%ai& letter writing was a popular 'o%(
Illiterate migrants would )ueue to trans#ri%e letters *or *amilies and *riends %a#+ ,ome(
-ut wit, t,e growing popularity o* mo%ile p,ones and #,eap #alling rates& it is now a dying
pro*ession(
Gayatri Parameswaran in $um%ai ,as more on t,e story(
./
S0/ 1 ra**i# at t,e s#ene
142year2old S,a+il ",med spends ,is wor+ing day sitting under a %lue tarpaulin& rig,t a#ross t,e
road *rom t,e general post o**i#e %uilding in Sout, $um%ai(
3e pa#+s par#els and *ills out money order *orms to %e sent t,roug, t,e post(
.ig,t years ago& ,e was wor+ing in t,e same spot4( %ut doing a di**erent 'o%(
S,a+il ",med #lip 1 5$ale/3indi6 00:107: 8,e wor+ was di**erent in t,e early days( People
used to send money t,roug, t,e post o**i#e and t,ey would send letters along wit, t,e money(
,at9s w,y I used to write letters in t,ose days(:
Illiterate migrants would )ueue up in *ront o* ,is stall& as+ing ,im to trans#ri%e letters *or t,eir
*amilies and *riends %a#+ ,ome(
",med ,ad many #lients as ,e9s *luent in 3indi and .nglis,(
S,a+il ",med #lip 2 5$ale/3indi6 00:207: 8$ost o* t,e time my #ustomers #ame *rom t,e Nort,
o* India ; <P& -i,ar and -engal( -ut t,ere were all types o* language writers ,ere ; Gu'arati&
amil& =annada& and t,ere were people *rom =erala& w,o wrote in $alayalam(:
3e ,as %een writing letters *or #lients *or t,e past 40 years(
S,a+il ",med #lip 3 5$ale/3indi6 7: 8,ere was a lady( 3er ,us%and %roug,t ,er ,ere4(and ,e
made ,er wor+ as a prostitute( ,at poor lady was so upset( S,e would #ome to me and send ,er
money %a#+ ,ome( S,e would tell me all ,er pro%lems( In ,er letters& s,e would ne>er a#tually
say w,at s,e was doing( S,e would 'ust say s,e was wor+ing in an o**i#e(:
-ut ",med says se#re#y is one o* t,e most important pro*essional #odes o* #ondu#t among letter
writers(
S,a+il ",med #lip 4 5$ale/3indi6 00:247: 8?e don9t tell ot,ers w,at people are doing( ,is lady
is doing su#, and su#,4 t,at man wor+s t,ere ; we ne>er say anyt,ing( ?e e>en gi>e our
address to t,eir relati>es ; t,e post o**i#e address( .>en i* t,eir relati>es or a#)uaintan#es #ome
,ere and as+ *or t,eir w,erea%outs& we don9t say a word(:
S0/ 1 ra**i# at t,e s#ene
Nearly a de#ade ago& t,ere used to %e a%out 20 letter2writers rig,t ,ere(
-ut today t,ere are less t,an ,al* t,at num%er(
",med9s young #olleague Dilip Panday laments t,e #,anging times(
Dilip Panday #lip 1 5$ale/3indi6 01:007: 8Now& @@ per#ent o* t,e time people don9t want letters
written4((( ,ere was a time w,en people ,ere used to *ig,t to ,a>e t,eir letters written *irst(
,at was 10211 years ago( "*ter 200A& e>eryt,ing #,anged(:
S0/ 2 Bar dri>ing %y
Srini>as is a dri>er *or a multinational #ompany in $um%ai(
!riginally *rom "nd,ra Prades,& t,e 2@2year2old ,as %een li>ing in $um%ai sin#e 1@@C(
3is *amily is %a#+ in ,is nati>e town& a%out 10 +ilometres outside o* 3ydera%ad(
Srini>as #lip 1 5$ale/3indi6 00:217: 8In t,e olden days& we ,ad to )ueue up outside t,e general
post o**i#e to send money %a#+ ,ome( It used to ta+e ,al* an ,our or an ,our( ?e ,ad to ,unt *or
a ni#e guy to write t,e letters( Sometimes it was ,ard to #ommuni#ate t,roug, t,em& you #an9t
tell t,em e>eryt,ing& #an youD:
-ut t,ose days are long gone(
S0/ 3 Srini>as spea+ing o>er t,e p,one
oday Srini>as spea+s to ,is wi*e and two +ids at least t,ree or *our times a day(
Srini>as #lip 2 5$ale/3indi6 00:227: 8Now I 'ust load up some money on my mo%ile p,one and
tal+ *or ,al* an ,our& an ,our sometimes( Initially& we ,ad to try and remem%er and t,in+ a%out
w,at to write in t,e letters %a#+ ,ome& %ut not anymore(:
S0/ 4 $o%ile p,ones ringing and +eypad tones
India is t,e largest growing mar+et *or mo%ile p,ones(
$ore t,an ,al* o* India9s 1(3 %illion people already ,a>e a mo%ile #onne#tion(
"nd Dilip Panday says t,is ,as meant a drop in demand *or letter writers li+e ,im(
Dilip Panday #lip 2 5$ale/3indi6 00:307: 8.arlier people ,ad to pay *i>e rupees 50(0A <SD7 to
ma+e a #all& e>en in#oming #alls were #,arged( Not anymore( Now t,ere9s a lot o* growt,( Now
i* someone wants to send a letter& it #osts ,im 1 rupees and 20 paise [0.08 USD]& %ut i* ,e ma+es
a #all *or a rupee& ,e #an spea+ *or 1(1 to 2 minutes(
S0/ 1 ra**i# at t,e GP!
-a#+ to S,a+il((( ,e9s now dealing wit, a new #ustomer(
?it, no letter writing to do any more& S,a+il now ma+es ,is li>ing pa#+ing par#els to %e sent >ia
t,e post o**i#e(
S,a+il ",med #lip 1 5$ale/3indi: 00:307: 8oday& t,ere9s no real in#ome( I get %etween100 to
400 rupees [1.! USD to .1 USD] on a good day& ot,erwise 'ust 1002200 51(E1 <SD to ".#
USD]( ,at9s it( en years ago or so it was mu#, mu#, %etter( I used to ,a>e t,ree people
wor+ing *or me( I used to ,a>e no spare time( I am li>ing on o* w,at I sa>ed in t,ose days( I will
#ontinue wor+ing ,ere as long as I #an( I don9t want my +ids to get into t,is( I will %e t,e last
generation t,at does t,is(:

3undreds and t,ousands o* pro*essions li+e S,a+il9s are dying out(
In t,e ra#e *or modernisation in India& t,ere are %ot, winners and losers(
?it, 0eliF Gaedt+e t,is is Gayatri Parameswaran *or "sia Balling in $um%ai(