India: Exploring Delhi | DW Documentary

the one thing we know for certain about the capital of India is that it is colorful and huge 15 million people are said to live in and around its impressive buildings but the actual figure could be 20 or even 25 million no one knows for sure more and more people are migrating to this metropolis in India's northeast in fact just as they have done for centuries the Muslim moguls ruled from here so did the British during the colonial era today the city's destiny is determined by Indians who are as diverse as the stories they ride [Music] Branagh does Gupta write stories about modern-day Delhi entitled capital his latest book is not only about the city itself but also about the importance of money in Delhi Rana Das Gupta was born in Britain as the son of Indian parents he moved to the city of his forefathers several years ago even though he takes a distinctly critical view of Delhi the spirit of the city is very harsh and aggressive it's very paranoid and concerned with threats and security and I think the the warmth of the city is is is directed inwards so people are very good hosts for instance it's a it's a delightful place to be hosted the city because people once they invite you into their home they will give you everything Rana believes that the apparent harshness of the city comes from the fact that over the last few centuries it has been built by immigrants people who established a new life for themselves here regardless of the consequences people say the Delhi's are a ancient city because they've been cities here for maybe fifteen hundred years but it's actually not an ancient city because every time people new sets of people come to the city they they abandon everything that's happened until that point and they build a Ganados city just next door and then they ransacked the old city for stones and everything and build again the British did that the Mughals did that everyone has done that and even now with Goregaon which is the new shining tower city of corporations and indeed in Delhi you can take a journey back in time every day bustling old daily lies in the north of the city then there is New Delhi with its many splendid buildings and government offices located in the far south are the suburbs of noida and gore gone which are also home to millions of people and impress the visitor with their high-tech architecture this is the one side of Delhi the creative glamorous beautiful side in Delhi when work is over for the day and the temperature has dropped below 40 degrees people head for the city's parks and lakes this man-made lake in the trendy neighborhood of house cars is particularly popular the water is too dirty for swimming in but the lake is perfect for strolling around and after a stroll it's away from the lakeshore and into the fray in Hamburg they head for the shunter and in Munich they head for schwabe here in Delhi partygoers make for Howard's car's village with its countless restaurants and music clubs this is the epicenter of the Capitals nightlife but on this particular evening it is not the rotating turntables that are the focus of attention but a group of poets who are taking part in the very first Delhi youth poetry slam a poetry slam is a kind of competition for poets each presentation lasts a few minutes and is always extremely personal the upper age limit for participants is 25 and with gratitude for the belief that was instilled till that day my friend don't give up for this fight for your dream is true each time you find yourself even with a hiccup remembered Alvin we believe in you and the dream we want to bring young people to the movement so we want to talk about personal and the political we want to bring young people to bring all their voices and perform in front of small audiences build a community which speaks in a chaotic city like Delhi I wish when Cupid struck its arrow and love came knocking the poem this woman wrote deals with the risk of falling in love she would like Cupid's arrows to carry a warning but since they don't falling in love remains dangerous there are other ways too you don't always have to straight heart for it however now that I'm already here please deal with caution here the poem is presented as a song with guitar compliment painful lines about love and life what else but not all the poets focus on intimate and everyday [Music] so we talk about gay rights feminism gender is plays a really big role in slam poetry so you'll see we have performers who talk about how you know it is to be a woman in India how it is to be a northeastern Indian in a city which is a discriminatory this poet is not even Indian she comes from Tibet doesn't really feel at home anywhere and now works through her frustration with poetry they see I'm a pseudo girl that I don't have the same spirit of the unadulterated Tibetan blood india has seeped into my soul the elders called them Sandra but quietly they get offended the youth are a little more creative in choosing words for those not born in India but on the city streets I'm just another the audience applauded enthusiastically every time afterwards they head off to other clubs where the evening isn't yet over for example to one where presentations also take place albeit of a totally different kind welcome to the daily death fest death metal is a particularly violent form of hard rock the base is extra heavy the voice is extra deep and the lyrics extra gloomy but in no way could the mood be described as apocalyptic abroad it's more like a lifestyle you will have older people like gila people in the sixties fifties also attending metal shows whereas in India once they start working you know once they have real jobs and they get married and all they kind of quit metal you know so metal is not there as a lifestyle a death party as a fun event that is how all also sees things he was born in Hamburg but India has been his home for a long time now as a side job he sells records and fan articles I came here when I was 17 what I can tell you about India is that the underground lives metal is always for the other side India too has its problems and many of the kids and even over 50s also need metal music to distance themselves from the mainstream inside the blast continues but only until midnight otherwise the neighbors will complain this is just the right place for those who like things quieter and more classical a dance performance in a theater in Delhi many of the audience are here for a particular reason their friends or relatives of the evenings dancer this will be her first major appearance after a long period of training naturally her coach is also present classical arts were never for the public it was always for the elite and for recognizes who were educators like opera and ballet all these modern music contemporary dance salsa whatever tango and all that they'll come and go but classical arts traditional arts never die they're like golden piece our goal never goes out of fashion nor does it loses Sheen known as Kuchipudi this form of dance comes from southern India but the story the dancer tells with her body is universal it is about the conflict between good and evil and the hope for worldwide peace salvation through beauty [Music] this place is a mix of classical culture and modern consumerism the Kingdom of Dreams in the suburb of Gorgon is an entertainment center with an artificial scarlet and beneath it a Boulevard on which you can visit every region in India in rapid succession in one day anyone who is tired of walking can sit down and enjoy a touch of Bollywood the dance interlude however is merely an appetizer for the main attraction the dream that many Indians and even non-indians love to nourish most of all the dream of Bollywood numbering more than a hundred the dream characters are of course made of flesh and blood some of them have played in Zangara more than a thousand times zhang Gorda is the story of a prince who has to choose between two women one a princess the other a rebel initially I was not an actor I was a cricketer so when I joined this field I think I start with the mimicry and all always you know means Bollywood films always inspired me the way they made their films and all emotions highly drama so day by day I get motivated from that films I love theatre actually in front of a camera I feel I feel as if as if I'm I'm blocked but I love stage I love being on stage I love the energy on stage I love the fact that we only get one take you know everything is life even if you make a mistake you have to live with it so that's that's very challenging and and I just love stage I love reaching out to the audience more the best thing is you don't have to understand Hindi to understand this show because it is a very very self-explanatory you know exactly what's happening it's it's it's simplistic in a storyline but just wow in in the way it's presented so you don't even need to have your headphones on or you don't need subtitles or or any kind of translator you will just enjoy because you will get to see Bollywood life so in true Bollywood style the show lasts for nearly three hours the cast scene and dance and there's a happy ending to celebrate torn between two women the prince gets what he wants first the love of the rebel and then the hand of the princess in marriage the audience is happy after all the environment in and around Delhi is so crass that dreams at least should be sweet and smooth [Music] from the kingdom of dreams to ultra harsh and often unjust reality to one of Delhi's many slums home to those who cannot afford the steadily rising cost of rented accommodation most of them came to Delhi from far-off places at a time when cheap labor was in great demand since then many have become unemployed some of my neighbors have been living here for 20 years there's no electricity no running water and no toilets so we live without any goal and without any form of comfort like many here Kranti hoped that she and her husband and their children would be able to move into a proper house but she has since abandoned that dream how are we supposed to move into a bigger house if we have no income my husband can't find work anywhere we have no future the husband of roshni her neighbor is also out of work the whole family live from what she earns as a cleaner about 2 euros a day only hope that my children will be able to escape from poverty we've often thought about how we could get away but since we don't have any relatives who could take us in we have to stay here yet luxury is closeby located just around the corner in fact is Delhi's most luxurious shopping temple here running water is literally fired into the air and this again is the other side of the social coin a slum where water is scarce despite the vast amount of rain that falls in the monsoon season since the rainwater mixes with the filth here it's full of germs and not safe to drink you won't find any water pipes here only water stations where every now and then a truck with a water tank will stop at the moment though there are none in sight every day we have to fight for the bit of water we can get two or three canisters per family that's nothing and there are no wells here we complain and complain but nothing happens while they are waiting here a truck arrives at another water station people immediately rush up and get as much water as they can because no one knows when the next delivery will be we get water here every one or two weeks that is nowhere near often enough so we have to fetch it from other places and that's tough especially for the women one resident told us that criminal gangs profit from the water shortage some gang members have taken control of a public water tank near here they sell the water illegally to people who don't even live here an hour later the other end of the slum is a hive of activity at long last a truck with a full water tank has arrived not only in Delhi for hundreds of millions of people throughout India living from canister to mouth so to speak is the rule because many settlements don't even exist officially they mushroom without any functioning administration experts are calling on the government to take action so what the government needs to look at is to strengthen its a distribution system if not through networks if not through pipeline networks it can make bulk storage points and from there on allow people to make their own user groups as yet however there is no solution in sight and the time-consuming procurement of water remains the fate of the poor how can they or their children ever escape from grinding poverty when many hours everyday are wasted in fetching it the water situation is appalling it takes forever for water to arrive and when it does there's chaos the children have to help so they can attend school fights break out and the police have to intervene it's madness the women then carry their canisters home the family's water requirements are covered for today tomorrow they'll have to ask around again to find out where water is available free of charge here there is water in abundance but it is unpalatable flowing through Delhi is the Yamuna the second biggest tributary of the Ganges which for many Indians is a sacred River the Yamuna is probably the most polluted river in the world hundreds of millions of liters of waste are dumped into it every day the farmers who grow their fruit and vegetables along the banks of the river are very worried the river is completely polluted the main culprits are the factories who just discharged their waste in it you can't farm with water that's contaminated it's a health risk it said that we use the filthy water but that's not true we irrigate our fields with well water which we filter first we even drink the water and we are healthy there are far too few water treatment plants the only hope is that at least the groundwater isn't toxic and can be used for preparing meals if I cook with water from the river my children become ill so we avoid the river and only use water from the well but one environmental expert believes that farmers who grow their vegetables here are wrong in thinking themselves safe so even if we take ground water there'll be some filtration but it's not a complete prevention and you will find same levels of toxins and that also has dangerous consequences for those who consume the vegetables since this is in the body this is in the body of the vegetable you cannot wash it off there's almost nothing you can do about it cadmium affects the kidneys and and similarly other chemicals can be endocrine disrupters they have long-term intergenerational impacts they also can cause cancer people who shop at the many markets have little idea of the risks they don't even know where the produce comes from they think it's enough to just clean it by hand but that's wrong [Music] I wash vegetables thoroughly before I cook them I know they contain a lot of pollutants that can make you ill so I clean them carefully the indian government promised years ago to clean up the ganges and its tributaries but so far little has been done even though many indians revere the ganges as a goddess as yet it seems to few people are bothered by the fact that this divine River is more like a sewer but there is also another way of dealing with refuse a creative one in fact here art is produced from scrap rusty containers are adorned with graffiti even artists from Europe participate they find that what is decrepit and chaotic fuels their creativity you got to see a part of India that not many people get to see so we experienced something very raw very raw very ghetto I've never seen so much diversity in my entire life I've never experienced a country where there's 27 different official languages and thousands of guards this mural is dedicated not to a deity but to a national idol of all places Mahatma Gandhi the peace activist adorns the facade of the police headquarters his portrait was painted many years ago by a German it marked the birth of Delhi's street art movement it also gives some kind of hope to to the people and to this community which is generally very neglected and things like that they're like these children who can't get enough of seeing top-class international art in their neighborhood simply amazing there's art everywhere he says artists come here from all over the world it's great and in all likelihood they will continue to come because in Delhi there are still countless containers that can be decorated and no end of shoddy facades either if there are protests about environmental pollution and injustice anywhere in Delhi then this is the most likely place yet at first glance everything seems so laid-back and unpolitical an oasis at the heart of a congested metropolis of over 15 million people this is the JNU an elite university many of its 8,000 students as well as a large number of its professors come from the lower social classes so it's no surprise that ideologically the JNU leans to the left fighting slogans and revolutionary icons adorn the walls at the moment the students are turning against India's government and it's Hindu nationalist policies we are opposed to the government's economic policies we are opposed to the government's politics the way it is pursuing a politics of hatred politics of communalism and caste injustice that is we are that is something we are opposed to and we've repeatedly raised our voice things were getting really bad then I mean there were lots of conversations to be had with parents also were scared and who didn't want us to take strong positions because everyone was targeting students one by one from that ministration to the police even universities outside India also came in our solidarity so we do believe that it's a very strong Mis register strong movement which is including a lot of youth a lot of young people a lot of like-minded people together the movement is headed by the man who sparked off the protests Kanhaiya Kumar is the leader of the All India student Federation after attending a rally against the execution of a Kashmiri separatist he was accused of sedition and arrested [Music] Kumar was released on bail and now rails against the government democracy this fight is for social justice at the University and elsewhere it is about saving democracy in our country Asadi SRD freedom freedom the students are at least able to voice their protest without interference the security forces are nowhere to be seen protests are somehow a part of daily life after all there are many grievances that need addressing not least in the important public sector of healthcare once again Delhi is under a blanket of smog the problem is particularly bad at the cold time of year people coughin complain of headache and say their eyes are burning ribbity is falling ill because of the ambient air quality which has decreased I mean which has decreased to such a level that people out here are not able to breathe for four or five days now things have been unbearable this filth is dangerous and toxic at times the fine particle levels exceed a thousand that's 40 times higher than the threshold value set by the World Health Organization the tiny particles get into the bloodstream and the lungs increasing the risk of cancer and Stroke the main culprits are diesel vehicles and the countless fires in the streets and our major public holidays like Diwali the festival of lights fireworks add to the problem experts are calling for a sustainable policy to combat smog there should be zero tolerance for waste burning and dust and the pollution that happens to our construction activity but at the same time we need to scale up of a transport system so that the growing dependence on personal vehicles can be reduced but the situation will not improve quickly smoke related illnesses will become more common anyone who falls ill in Delhi or indeed anywhere else in India and wants the best possible treatment but can't actually afford it likes to come here with the name almost as long as the patients waiting list the All India Institute of Medical Sciences Delhi is known for Shorter's aims treatment here is free so even those who cannot afford health insurance and that applies to most people in India can come here and be seen by the best doctors one of them is trauma specialist dr. Amit Gupta who is also the hospital spokesperson M says an institution everybody wants to come even for trivial problems they would like to come and get treated at aims primarily because the quality of care the general public has faith in it so in the sense you can say we are victims of our own you know sort of excellence but you're right we are struggling with the patient load and the numbers and we would want that the other hospitals also take up the load of aims and therefore the government of India is deciding to make more such aims like institutions in India outside his consulting rooms there are crowd scenes you'd normally associate with a sports event but where these people are concerned far more is involved several patients have just arrived and awaiting for their first diagnostic appointment others have already been diagnosed and have come back to begin their treatment the waiting period can be up to two years some of the people here are accompanying married couples parents and children who are ill while treatment is being given they live on the site some of them wait out in the open I have come with my daughter from the east from Bihar my daughter has major problems with her bladder but I couldn't afford to have her treated so we came here to get the finest treatment I have a kidney problem I came here a month ago but I didn't want to wait to have all the many tests so I returned to my village but my situation deteriorated that is why I have come back however I haven't been able to get to bed so I'll just have to see how I get on I live 500 kilometres away I have problems with my kidneys and my liver I have been to lots of hospitals already and because none of them could help me I was sent here I've been having tests for a month now I'm waiting for a diagnosis my husband has been having treatment for the last six years he has cancer of the larynx the treatment here really helps him it's not easy to get an appointment except in an emergency but then new things move quickly still I'm satisfied in contrast to the basic accommodation the system here is highly modern patients can register at computer stations they receive login data and are then allocated the next available appointment most of the patients are extremely grateful but not all of them this girl has tuberculosis her father is furious wait and wait but nothing happens first she was supposed to have a blood test than a hearing test suddenly we were also expected to pay but for the treatment but for the laboratory costs 500 rupees about 14 euros but I don't have that kind of money in Delhi things look totally different for people who don't have any financial worries as a rule it is not aims they turn to but one of the many private hospitals having come out of her anesthetic rosy feels like a new person her mother is with her only a short while ago rosy was still called Michael and looked like this now she has the body she has wanted ever since childhood to be honest with you I've always been a female and from the age from birth to the age of 10 everybody thought hours ago in England where she lives the operation would have cost around 50,000 euros he or she will pay only a tenth of that to this specialist doctor Koscheck is a cosmetic surgeon who specializes in sex change operations here he's talking to another patient the procedures are very very affordable as compared to the Western countries and even in Thailand and this is specifically the every patient always looks for the quality also service is also and the safety also the both the things if we combine the highest possible quality and affordability the India I think if this is becoming number one now once a bourgeois looking grandfather Dale from the United States has become transformed almost unrecognizably into the flamboyant Betty they have to spend several years undergoing hormone therapy psychological evaluation and and all that before you can even try to get surgery because you have to have a letter from one psychotic ayah twist and one psychologist to be able to submit to the clinic I feel wonderful I feel great there is no outward indication that this small private clinic is where people can change their sex in India - that is something that would meet with disapproval officially transsexuals are treated with tolerance they're acknowledged as a third sex but this human rights activist herself a transsexual says there is a lot of discrimination we people are such hypocrite we see you know if some outsider is doing something whether it is right wrong or whatever according to our perception is okay we give it time care but our family should not do some anything because we have all our own prejudice Rosie who will soon be flying back to England doesn't have that problem she has her mother's full support I love you mum she says time and again thanks for supporting me on my journey even when it leads to India our next story takes us out of Delhi to boat gaya in eastern India it was here 2,500 years ago that the Buddha is said to have found enlightenment even today thousands come here in search of inspiration and health for body and soul but anyone who's seriously ill and perhaps poor as well is in a really poor position outdated and overcrowded the local hospital is typical of those in the region as a whole for every 10,000 patients there is roughly one hospital bed and one doctor with often dubious qualifications that at least is the view of farmer Joe Dooley ADIF he lives in a village 20 kilometres away for months now he has suffered from stomach pains and attacks of fever he is now getting ready to see a doctor the man is an expert but he lives far away in the capital Delhi Jaggu and his mother are excited it's great to know I'll be talking to a real specialist I'm certain he'll prescribe something that will help me nitu a neighbor of his will also be going along for a consultation she has chronic pain in her wrists jadoo has told me too that the consultation will only cost one year Oh fifty something even poor people from the countryside can afford there is no doctor at all in our village and those in the next village are no good however that is where a telemedicine Center was opened not so long ago djaro and Neto are walking the five kilometers to get there even though every step is painful for him a thousand kilometres to the west numerous high-tech firms have settled on the outskirts of Delhi doctor avnish Gautam works at a health center that offers online consultation for poor regions its services are subsidized by the state F Nisha and his colleagues are aware of the limitations of technology and that often they can only scratch the surface with their long-distance diagnosis honestly speaking this is a bit a bit tricky at times and because they acquaint the patient is in front of you you can they just examine whatever you want whatever you have your doubts but when he is not in front of you and you just you can just see him not like is not sitting there so it's a bit difficult at times everything is ready for the virtual consultation all that's needed now are the patient's themselves Jarre don't need to have now arrived in the neighboring village they pass by the practice of the local doctor all they see of him are his feet but they would rather do without his services anyway however the entrance to the telemedicine centre doesn't look too promising either the silicon's cybercafe as it's known offers various digital services including access to the tele doctor its operators are trying to establish a connection to Delhi if the doctors don't go to the villages the villages have to go to the doctors what's best of all the doctors are available 24/7 all you need is an internet connection but despite the help of a technician it takes half an hour to establish the link and the consultation takes us long again because sometimes there's no sound and then picture using his mobile phone because the computer microphone isn't working the doctor asks Joe do if he sometimes feels nauseous Joe Joe says yes he sometimes has to vomit this has a very bright future like provided there are some improvements in the connectivities and no different internet problems in India but the future looks pretty bright to me djaro would like to have spoken longer to the doctor but in the meantime warned more patients are waiting for him to finish now it's Nietzsche's turn this time the internet link is perfect doctor avnish prescribes some ointment for her and assures her that she will soon be free of pain I think it's a real step forward in this way I can talk to a specialist who will recommend the right treatment at the pharmacy on the other side of the road jarda and knee to present the prescriptions they have just had printed out they wait but they don't get what they want I'll be available in look I only stock what local doctors prescribe you can have cough medicine and aspirin you'll have to go into town to get the medicine on your prescription maybe you'll be lucky there so they will have to go all the way to board gaya after all to the city of the Buddha Pichardo and knee to the road to the beautiful digital world is longer and more complicated than they thought in Delhi anyone wanting to share a beer with friends and drink to their health has plenty of places to choose from like the beer cafe [Music] the owner of this modern pub explained to us what makes beer so popular especially with young people the world's consumed in India the Indian market for beer is 11% the good news here is that you've got a lot of leeway where the highest growth that's coming in any liquor sector it's coming in beer this restaurant specializes in German beer and the beer that is served here complies with Germany's ancient purity decree but then German beers are nicer because it's uh it's got the essence and the barley that you grow in Germany is completely different to what we have in India the water in Germany is probably playing a much better role in producing beers in Germany than what it does in India it is easily palatable with the German meals that we serve that beer is becoming more and more popular in Delhi is somehow fitting because in its own way the capital - is something of a brew for some tastes and souls it's sometimes a tad bitter and in its own way Delhi is definitely intoxicating you

Channel: DW Documentary

Views: 496,523

Rating: 4.6213522 out of 5

Keywords: documentary, India, Delhi, New Delhi, Old Delhi, travel, adventure, food, culture, religion, Hindi, Markus Spieker, cities, film, DW, Deutsche Welle

Id: 985xnRfA2VE

Length: 42min 36sec (2556 seconds)

Published: Thu Feb 22 2018