Thomas BARNES

Student of The University of Sydney, Australia
Exchange to Indira Gandhi National Open University, India

It has been fascinating to get a glimpse of the real India, beyond the ‘tourist trail’, and to get insights into how many people live day-to-day. Since February 2013, I have been hosted by Indira Gandhi National Open University in New Delhi, India. Most of my work here is based on field research in industrial areas. I based myself in the city of Gurgaon, on New Delhi’s southwest fringe. This is an area of rapid development. Twenty years ago, most of this area was farming land. Today, it is littered with glitzy offices, shopping malls, call centres and huge industrial zones. Yet the cows, of course, remain!

There is an amazing mix of people, including locals, foreigners like me, as well as thousands of people who have come here to work from all parts of India. India is such an incredible mix of cultures and languages, so this makes it even more interesting.

I have spent a lot of time talking to people who work here, run enterprises, or scratch out a living in the best way they can. Behind the glitz and glamour, many people are doing it tough. Yet they are so welcoming, and happy to allow me to enquire into their busy lives. Local people treat guests like kings!

Getting around is often challenging but always fun, whether it’s a ‘rickshaw-wallah’ taking me between my apartment to the local market, sharing taxis with locals or chatting to folk on the bus… and Delhi’s metro system makes it incredibly convenient to get to most parts of the National Capital Region.

My hosts at IGNOU have been a dream to work with. I have been regularly interacting with students and staff at the university. Hopefully, we have learned from each other! It was a pleasure and an honour to participate in a seminar with my hosts and new friends. The whole experience will be crucial in my academic career in Australia as an India specialist. I hope it can also be used to build stronger ties between Indian and my University.

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