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Journalism of Courage
Modern Delhi is an odd place. The wealthiest metropolis in the nation possesses many clean streets, impressive buildings and countless signifiers of development. Yet Delhi appears to be a series of stark realities; a city without magic or mystery, whose actuality can be deconstructed rather than unveiled and re-imagined. But amidst the dusty rubble of Delhi8217;s inexorable process of becoming, in a small corner to the west there sits Kathputli Colony that is both a dreamscape and a slum.
Rushdie wrote about Kathputli Colony, or 8216;The Magician8217;s Ghetto8217; in Midnight8217;s Children: fire-eaters, sword-swallowers, snake charmers, magicians and jugglers; performers so skilled that they are able to momentarily bend reality. However, Kathputli Colony is not a figment of Rushdie8217;s imagination, but a reality.
Delhi8217;s dust settles on the miniature houses, making Kathputli appear slowly decaying. Then the music begins 8212; a teenage boy plays harmonium and sings in a voice between childhood and manhood. Children gather at the doorway and tap their tiny hands and feet to the rhythm. Then the magician enters. 8220;Oh my GOD!8221; he yells as he flips through a notebook that appears to be full of pictures, writing and colours, and yet empty to people sitting in a different part of the room. Then comes the juggler with his metal balls, executing tricks and making twisting expressions that leave one oscillating between awe and disgust. As the performance ends, Jagdish shoos the children away. They disperse like little birds, their little arms flapping, bare legs moving up and down and their laughter echoing through the narrow corridors of the concrete labyrinth.
