How Indians live in cities. Standard of living of people in India

Since the borders of our state opened to its residents, one of the popular decisions of Russians or citizens of the former CIS has been the decision to change their country of residence. Among other popular countries, life in India is considered as a simple and comfortable alternative.

The opinions of compatriots who have already decided to take such an action vary so much that it is worth carefully assessing the reality of ideas about this almost mythical state for us and the objectivity of what is happening.

India has successfully become part of the multinational global space.

In reality, just like centuries ago, life in India is strictly subject to regulations called “castes.”

Until now, every person in this country belongs to a certain caste.

Only officially, not a single Hindu will ever pay attention to the caste of his colleague or interlocutor. From the point of view of official rules, even the legendary untouchable caste is endowed with rights. In fact, the ranking is maintained. It is all the more noticeable the higher the caste the person with whom you need to communicate belongs.

India is one of the few countries that have preserved pristine wedding traditions dating back to ancient times.

Marriages are almost always “concluded” only by older representatives of families. People in India do not have the right to independently choose their partner for future family life. Wedding celebrations are paid for by the bride's family. This is one of the reasons for expecting the birth of a son and not a daughter. Young people must belong to a common religion. The majority of the population is wary of a long-term partnership, especially marriage with a foreigner. A person here cannot and usually does not want to belong to himself, preferring family and national traditions. This will need to be taken into account when contacting the local population. Showing a negative attitude towards accepted norms is especially not recommended here.

Beauty of Indian women

Indian women are very beautiful, but not from a European point of view. Indian film actresses are more likely to be distinguished by their relative closeness to the usual standards of appearance and personal care. In reality, the local beauty is naturally inclined to be overweight. There is no habit of observing dietary restrictions. Most of the girls are quite plump from early youth. Even the slimmer ones quickly gain weight as they age.

European ideas about female age are unusual here. As if in our homeland decades ago, marriages take place at an early age. A genetic tendency to early aging turns a former beauty by the age of forty into a wise old woman who has had grandchildren for a long time.

In India, they prefer to stick to the usual traditional bright costumes and choose numerous jewelry.

Dirt on the streets of India

The unique dirt on the streets of almost every locality in this state has already become a legend. In the country's tradition, there is no practice of an institute of professional cleaners. It is impossible to hear the measured sounds of a broom in the early morning on local streets. Moreover, professional and regular cleaning is not carried out even in rich neighborhoods. In numerous slum areas of this state, real unsanitary conditions reign. This is important to consider even during a regular tourist trip. Although in the areas where the “travellers’ trail” is laid, they try to maintain relative cleanliness. But it’s enough just to go to the next street to again encounter garbage and dirt.

Poverty

It is also worth considering the presence of a large number of beggars on the streets even in Delhi. for most of the population are too high, which pushes a large number of residents to this, poverty is very widespread.

An important difference from the beggars usual in our cities is a polite attitude towards a person passing by; in India they will not beg. It is worth paying special attention to sannyasis. They are clearly visible by their bright orange clothes. These are those who consciously chose the path of renunciation of worldly life and its benefits. These wandering monks don't ask for money. It is customary for them to serve food. In this state, meeting a sannyasi and helping him is considered a good deed. Most of them live permanently in ashrams.

You can see the price tag in a cafe in South Goa in the following video.

Despite the large number of beggars, there is virtually no theft. Even children are not into petty theft from Europeans. Thefts are very rare, and minimal measures to take care of your belongings are sufficient.

All these factors, especially the level of poverty in India, are worth considering when planning to move to this country permanently or temporarily. Or even in a tourist trip situation.

The role of religion in life

The people of India are not as religious as is commonly believed. Most of them believe in karma and reincarnation. But he is at approximately the same level of fulfillment of Christian commandments as we are.

But it is important to pay attention to the lack of tolerance between representatives of different religions, often described as “friendship” between representatives of different faiths. Most repatriates to this country note a rather negative attitude between supporters of different faiths. Most of the population, about 80%, professes Hinduism. About 13% of residents profess Islam. There are Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox churches. Local residents are wary of those who decide to convert to Hinduism.

Here, despite the low standard of living, a large economy has been operating for a long time. Including children and grandchildren of those who left Russia in search of a better life in the first waves of emigration after the October Revolution and the years of formation of Soviet power. Residents of our country stand out, in different years, contrary to the customs of this state, who created families with Hindus. Most often, a resident of Russia marries an Indian. This is due to the demographic imbalance.

Official statistics prove that there are more men of the age to start families in the country than women. The growth in the number of such unions is also facilitated by the strict qualifications for choosing a bride from among her compatriots. A potential husband must meet strict caste and financial requirements. As a result, finding a spouse abroad is becoming easier and more profitable for many Indians.

The number of potential emigrants to India is noticeably constrained by the policies of official Delhi. The authorities are willing to accept supporters of spiritual practices for temporary residence. They favorably view the long-term residence on their territory of holders of liberal professions who earn their living through remote employment. Such guests can even receive a permanent residence permit. Becoming a citizen of India is much more difficult. A large number of requirements are presented to applicants. In addition, life in India is incredibly difficult for an expat. The reason for this is a large number of factors.

From the video below, you can learn how to move to India for permanent residence from Russia.

Labor market congestion

This state has the second largest population on the planet. Moreover, the majority of the population is young. Working age in 2019 reaches more than 140 million local residents. For this reason, it is quite difficult for a repatriate to try to break into the labor market. Today, even among the local population, it is very high.

This is further aggravated by a significant percentage of applicants applying for highly paid positions. More than 500 applicants with adequate educational and work experience apply for one position in an international corporation. As a result, more than 80% of working citizens of the state are employed in the shadow sector of the economy. Unemployment in India is incredibly high.

Positions for which expats can apply

The downside is the lack of demand for emigrants even in the market for low-paid auxiliary work. At the state level, they simply will not be allowed to occupy a position for which a native resident can be employed. Foreigners in the company's workforce are allocated no more than 1% of jobs, which, as a rule, go to specially invited highly qualified specialists, whose wages exceed $26,000 per year.

You can learn about available work for Russians from the following video.

Severe punitive measures apply to foreigners who decide to find work in the illegal sector. Since, as a result, there is no way to legally confirm your income, the prospect of obtaining even permanent residence, not to mention permanent residence, most often becomes mythical.

How do Russians live in India?

Nevertheless, a large number of Russian citizens live in India almost permanently. As a rule, they live in the status of “staying tourists” in the country. For those who can receive a regular income for living, this is a fertile state.

Prices in India are amazing in their affordability. You can give the cost of products in terms of rubles:

• Bread costs a maximum of 25 rubles.
• Milk will cost a maximum of 41 rubles.
• The cost of chicken breasts does not exceed 230 rubles.
• The price of cheese is a maximum of 265 rubles.
• For drinking water you will have to pay a maximum of 27 rubles.

Most of the population lives on no more than $2 a day. A significant portion of the population subsists on 50 cents a day. At the same time, the state is in fifth place in the world in terms of the number of billionaires. The size of the middle class does not exceed 20% of Hindus and amounts to approximately 200 million out of 1 billion 300 million inhabitants. As mentioned above, real poverty often reigns on the streets.

Most of the “Russian Hindus”, in order to obtain temporary residence permit or permanent residence, either married local residents or received education in India. The advantage of getting an education in this country is the prospect of graduating from a prestigious university under international cooperation programs between Russia and India. Free training is provided under the Indian technical and economic cooperation program ITEC.

Some immigrants find work in this country. To do this, they will need to apply for a work visa. Anyone whose monthly income is at least $2,100 can get it. Most often, Russians in India work on the staff of international companies.

We are used to seeing India through fantastic Bollywood films and beautiful nature photographs, but few people remember that India is a third world country. People in Indian slums live in simply appalling conditions, but they are used to it and seem to be happy with everything, or maybe they have simply never seen a better life. We invite you to stroll through the streets of Indian slums, away from the tourist routes, and see the real, harsh other side of India.

Delhi slums:

The most popular garbage dump in Delhi is the river

For obvious reasons, the river smells very bad, even at a decent distance from it

The life of many ordinary Indians is the same as it was a hundred years ago. Cordless charcoal iron

Indian school bus

Outdoor toilet. Indians are not burdened with complexes. Many people generally go to the toilet wherever they have to, without being embarrassed by passers-by

Some men relieve themselves on their haunches, according to some custom

"Internet cafe" and computer club in Delhi

Typical slums in Delhi. India's population is 1.22 billion people. Not everyone has enough decent housing

Some drive cars dating back to British colonialism.

"Cozy" taxi stop

Street hair salon

In addition to people with disabilities, there are firecrackers like these begging on the roads. Seeing tourists, they quickly approach and start patting you on different parts of the body, probably finding out the presence of coins

They immediately began to cleanse the man who died on the street, in front of everyone. They took the money out of their pocket and took off their shoes

A stone was thrown at the photographer and he had to quickly retreat. Maybe this person didn't even die, but simply lost consciousness

Fresh chicken

Horse-drawn transport, 1 ox power

Harsh Indian childhood

You can eat deliciously and inexpensively on the street, but hygiene and sanitation are a problem

Motorcycle traffic jam in Delhi. A great opportunity to find out the latest news and get to know each other

Delhi jungle with wires hanging everywhere

Housing in the city center

As you know, the cow is a sacred animal in Hinduism. Eating beef is taboo. Cow's milk and dairy products play a key role in Hindu rituals. Cows are shown respect everywhere and are allowed to roam freely through city streets. Everywhere in India it is considered a very auspicious sign to give something to a cow to eat before breakfast. In many states in India there is a ban on killing cows; killing or injuring a cow can lead to jail time. Historically, due to the ban on eating cows, a system arose in Indian society in which only pariahs (one of the lower castes) ate the meat of slaughtered cows and used their skins in leather production

Cow slaughter is restricted in all Indian states except West Bengal and Kerala, where there are no restrictions. Cows are systematically transported to these regions for slaughter, despite the fact that transporting cows across state lines is prohibited by Indian laws. In large cities, however, many private slaughterhouses operate. As of 2004, there were approximately 3,600 legal slaughterhouses in India, while the number of illegal slaughterhouses was estimated at 30,000. All attempts to close illegal slaughterhouses have been unsuccessful.

Let's go to another Indian metropolis - Bangalore

On the Delhi-Bangalore train. Indian guides do not have a separate compartment, they sleep on the floor next to the toilet

Bangalore:

Mumbai:

Mumbai (Mumbai, until 1995 - Bombay) is the most populous city in India (15 million people). Center for the entertainment industry. Bollywood film studios are located here, as are the offices of most television and satellite networks in India.

Children's childhood in Mumbai

Washing on the river bank

Another million-plus city in northeast India is Allahabad:

India is exactly the country where the beauty and wealth of some people and the simply blatant poverty of others are fully combined.

Having visited this country, your consciousness will turn inside out and never again will you talk about the fact that in Russia some people live richly, and everyone else is poor. Having visited India, and especially not the most prosperous areas and cities, you will see a combination of luxury and poverty.

How they live

Quite nearby there may be luxurious mansions with gilded columns, swimming pools, paradise gardens with the same birds of paradise, and miserable shacks in which half-starved and half-dressed children and their mothers vegetate their lives. While their fathers are trying to earn at least enough bread so that the family does not die of hunger.

These feelings will visit any tourist who wants to travel through the outskirts of the city of Delhi or its provinces. The circle is full of dirt and the presence of sewage thrown directly into the street.
India's problem, not least of all, is its pollution of both land and water. If everything is clear with water, because probably everyone knows that the funeral procession is accompanied by the burning of the body and the dumping of the remains into a nearby river.

But the land is polluted due to the lack of Hindu culture of throwing garbage into garbage containers, which is practically impossible to find, at least in the provinces.

on video how people live in India

Garbage is thrown out at your feet (I bought a bun, took off the bag and threw it at my feet. I drank a glass of coffee and threw a plastic bag at my feet.) What can I say if citizens who have their own homes throw out waste not somewhere in containers, but directly near your house.
Looking at this kind of beauty of the provinces, you understand how ordinary and rich people actually live in India.

Lifespan

All this affects life expectancy in India, which is 68.7 years, with men on average living 5 years less than women - 66.3 versus 71.2. But this trend is happening all over the world. In terms of duration, India ranks 118th out of 192 countries. It is noteworthy that Russia is in 113th place. As you can see, she didn't go far.

Standard of living

At the same time, the country’s standard of living (economy, quality of life, level of freedom, sovereignty) is very low. As of 2014, according to research by international organizations, it ranks 106th out of 108 studied. If compared with our country, Russia is in 32nd place. Which is good news.
So, if you look at the standard of living in India and Russia, then without going to this country you can understand how ordinary citizens live there.

Natalia Durbanova. living in Mumbai (India) - about what Indian logic is, how reincarnation affects arriving on time and why Russian wives in India are a separate “caste”

– Natalya, do you think we need to prepare for the move? And did you prepare?

– You need to prepare - try to acquire the maximum number of skills that will be useful to you in the future. Universal skills - profession, knowledge of language (English is a must, another one is better), even a driver's license. In short, everything you can study and master at home, so that after moving you don’t waste time, effort and money on it.

In general, I never set myself the goal of moving abroad. Firstly, I didn’t emigrate, but I’ve been working abroad, just for the sixth year and the third country in a row. Secondly, initially the idea was to work and gain life and professional experience in another country. In 2003, I graduated from the Faculty of Economics of KSU with a degree in world economics (WE). The head of the department suggested trying to enroll in a master's program in St. Petersburg.

The decision had to be made in half a day. I tried and got accepted. After a master's degree and three years of work in St. Petersburg at PricewaterhouseCoopers (one of the four largest auditing companies in the world), I unexpectedly received a job offer in Malaysia, in the regional office of a large Australian company. I had 2 days to think about it, and I decided.

After three years of working in Malaysia, I went to Mumbai as a tourist and realized that my next country would be India. In terms of professional experience, Peter and Kuala Lumpur gave me enough; it was time for personal growth. In all my moves, I made a decision quickly, perhaps because each time I thought that it would only be for a year, two or three, and I would return. In the end, I move on every time :)

– In your case, does moving abroad mean going there? Or should I leave here?

– It would be more correct to say - go there. No, I never left “from here”; I always felt good where I lived. I had a good time in Krasnoyarsk, I love St. Petersburg in my own way, I really liked and like Kuala Lumpur. Just while there is an opportunity, why not use it.

In July I was on vacation in Krasnoyarsk, and I thought, “How lucky I am! I was born in the best city in the world! Honestly! - we have big roads, clean streets, no crowds of people, nature, snow, a lot of culture - there is an Organ Hall, an Opera House, a drama theater, so much more...” But in order to appreciate it, you had to travel halfway around the world :)

– Why this country?

– There are two main reasons.

Professional. I am an economist by education, worked as an auditor, accountant, and set up an outsourcing department in Malaysia. India is an IT country, and I decided that if I was looking for a job here, it only made sense in the high-tech sector. Now I work for an online payment processing company, something like Paypal, but only in a special niche - a high-risk business. This area requires a good technology platform that is quite sophisticated from a programming point of view, so the owner and technical team are Indians, but they hire foreigners to handle the clients.

The difference in Indian and European mentality is very noticeable. I talk to Europeans in a language they understand; my boss doesn’t make life difficult for himself with the peculiarities of written etiquette. So, foreigners like me have to deal with communicating with European banks and drafting business letters and proposals.

In addition, Indians have a very flexible attitude towards time, accordingly, deadlines are a very flexible concept :), but an Indian has, conditionally, 55 reincarnations, while a European has only one. I understand that if a client from England writes that it must be done today, it must be done today! Not tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. However, today the whole world is working with India, and we must learn to understand the Indian mentality.

Personal reason. At different stages of life you set tasks of different complexity. India is a complex, multifaceted and multi-layered country, but very interesting. Even if you take a 6-month vacation between jobs and travel from north to south, you won’t understand India.

Many things in India seem at least incomprehensible to Europeans, and at most absurd. But in India there is a logic to everything, we just don’t know it! This is why I came for a long time, to at least partially understand.

- If we compare living standards here and in Russia?

– In Russia the average standard of living is much higher. India is a country of contrasts.

There are people so poor that we would never even dream of living 10 people in one room all their lives, and having a cup of rice on the table twice a day. But there are also such rich people that our Abramovichs could not even dream of. There is a house in Mumbai - the most expensive private real estate in the world, worth about 1 billion dollars, 27 floors, its own McDonald's and a helipad - a family of 5 (five!) people lives in the house. (The house, by the way, is not only the most expensive, but also one of the ugliest in the city :)

The middle class is far from being the majority; the poor are much more numerous.

What amazed me when I first arrived in India was that this gap between different segments of the population does not lead to a social explosion and revolutions, as in the 20th century in Russia, say. The reason for this is the caste system.

Among us, those “at the bottom” are dissatisfied with their position. An Indian who was born in a low caste and worked all his life as a servant does not even think that fate might have something else in store for him. Of course, even in a low caste there is a chance to get an education; there are state quotas in universities for low castes, but these are few.

In India, almost everyone has a domestic servant. Here, every middle-income family usually has housekeepers, either living with them or visiting them. A housekeeper can live and sleep in the kitchen all her life, and this is in the order of things. Plus, a laundress comes to them (few people have washing machines, everyone was very surprised why I need one, because for $15 (~600 rubles) a month you can give everything to a specially trained person, he will also iron the laundry), a toilet cleaner, a driver, car washer, milkman, florist (just like we subscribe to a newspaper - in India you can sign up to deliver flowers for religious services) and so on.

And this is not even a matter of prestige - it’s just the way it is. According to the law, all these people, of course, do not belong to anyone, but in fact they are very dependent on their owners. The servants receive, on average, from 1 to 5 thousand rubles from our money. The population of India is 1 billion 200 million people, and all these people need work, and that's the whole point. The upper and middle strata of the population believe that the more servants are hired, the more good the deed is done - otherwise all these people would live in the village, in much worse conditions.

Another interesting point is the attitude towards personal space.

If in Russia things are generally normal with this, in Australia personal space is a kilometer long - “mind your own business” (“don’t interfere in other people’s affairs”) is highly valued there, then in India there is no personal space at all.

Maria Arbatova wrote it correctly - Indians perceive the whole world as one big family. And when one of the members of this large family does something wrong, he is patiently taught and guided. My Hindi teacher came to me three times a week and during the teaching process she was interested in literally everything - every event in my life, checked all my photos on Facebook, read any comments (she diligently translated Russian-language ones!).

I was simply shocked by such “care”. Another amazing example - once I met a young man, we started dating, in general, work was neglected due to a romantic haze in my head. Two weeks later, my boss finally calls me in and, without any embarrassment, lays out all the ins and outs about my admirer - his name, where he lives, what car he drives, what family he’s from, that is, he literally opens his file in front of me. This was the first and only time in my life in India when I wanted to take a ticket for the next flight and leave. For the boss, it was an expression of sincere concern. It was such a touching, fatherly approach to solving what was essentially a labor problem, and it is very indicative of India.

India is a country with a very low divorce rate. And if there are children in the family, divorce is almost impossible. The tradition of arranged marriage is very strong here - marriages not of convenience, but rather by agreement. There are now about 70% of them, and in villages it’s 99%. Marriage becomes a kind of transaction for families based on caste. In case of divorce, you are excluded from your family and society, this is the worst thing that can happen in the life of an Indian. Therefore, the attitude towards marriage is very, very serious. And if castes are now practically not taken into account when hiring (and 10 years ago it was much easier for a Brahmin - a representative of the highest caste of priests - to get a job), then when choosing a partner, this is a fundamental factor. Marriages for love are viewed with suspicion here - it is not very reliable, love is like carrots. And this has its own logic, as with everything in India. People get married with the understanding that it is forever, and there is no other option and there will not be, so you need to build a relationship with the one you have.

– Do you feel like a stranger in a new country?

– I feel like a stranger and one at the same time.

My own - I wear Indian clothes even in the office (it’s much more convenient, by the way, I don’t have to suffer in heels 🙂), I speak Hindi at the everyday level. Hindi is more difficult than English, but easier than Japanese or Chinese. Some complex sounds (there are three “t” ones), the logic of sentence construction is a little different - we have prepositions, they have postpositions (“I’m from Russia, I live in Mumbai”), and so on. As one of my friends said - living in a foreign country and not speaking its language, it’s like you’re looking at the world through a cloudy glass - you can live, but the quality of life is different. All professional education above grade 10 in India is conducted in English, and educated Indians speak English well, but in everyday life, Hindi is, of course, necessary. In Hindi, I mostly haggle, swear, and touchingly talk about my mom, dad, and brother. At work only English.

Alien, in a good way - still, the attitude towards a European-looking person in India is different, more privileged, I would say. Indians have a very positive attitude towards Russians, dating back to Soviet times.

– What about work and housing?

– Housing in Mumbai is the most expensive in India. This is the largest city in the country, 20 million people live here. It stands on a group of islands that were artificially filled in and the city began to be built. Now this is a peninsula and there is nowhere for the city to grow; it goes out to sea.

In Delhi, for example, about 13 million people live, but its area is 7 times larger - there are wide avenues, huge streets, practically Moscow. In Mumbai, everyone lives very densely, skyscrapers and then slums, in general, real estate here is expensive. Prices are somewhere between St. Petersburg and Moscow, and by Indian standards the highest.

Finding a job as an expat is not very easy. What is clear is that there are 1 billion 200 million people here who need to be employed. And that's why there aren't many expats here (an expat is a highly skilled foreign worker, as opposed to a guest worker - a low-skilled foreign worker).

To obtain a work visa in India, you need to earn $25 thousand a year, which is $2100 a month, which by local standards is a lot, the level of a good leader. By the way, my real salary is half as much, about $1 thousand per month, and in order for the employer to issue me a work visa, I have to declare the amount twice as high (and, accordingly, pay taxes on it, more than taxes on the actual salary). companies). The ideal option in India is to work for a foreign company, then the salary will be at the average European level, which is more than 25 thousand dollars per year. I deliberately went to work for an Indian company because, as I already said, I wanted to see the country from the inside, including corporate India.

I don’t recommend coming here without a contract. Unless, of course, you want to become a semi-legal, that is, live here on a tourist visa and at the same time earn extra money. By the way, Mumbai is a city of Bollywood, and foreigners are needed in the film crowd.

But these are fleeting earnings, a completely different story. There is also a topic with Goa - you can work in tourism aimed at Russian tourists, as animators or guides in Turkey and Egypt. To be honest, Goa is not India; in terms of culture - it is more liberated, food - there are more meat-eaters, in real India there are more vegetarians, religion - there are much fewer Hindu temples than Christian churches. Therefore, they have a calm attitude towards tourists, and, in general, more relaxed moral and ethical principles. Tourists come to Goa, joyfully put on a bikini, get on a scooter and rush off to “explore the country.” In Mumbai, not only have I never worn a bikini, even on the beach, I’ll think three times before wearing a knee-length skirt. And if I decide, I’ll most likely take a taxi rather than public transport.

– Is there something that you are missing here?

There is not enough Russian/European culture - opera, theater, classical music, museums, this is very nourishing (that's why I went to St. Petersburg at one time). But in any country you can find islands of European culture. In Mumbai, for example, there are screenings of classical operas on the big screen.

And also Russian food. As a child I couldn’t stand buckwheat, now it’s a delicacy! And borscht and vinaigrette are generally the food of the gods! I cook for myself, I have buckwheat from 7 countries at home! - I always order it as a gift for guests from abroad. There are no Russian restaurants, because... Russian cuisine is too bland for Indians. In general, the Russian diaspora here is mainly Russian girls who married Indians, and they cook and feed their beloved ones at home.

Russian wives, by the way, are a very valuable caste in India (laughs). Firstly, fair skin, this is very much valued here, secondly, there is a much less sense of possessiveness (and among Indians it is overly developed - “where did you go, what are you doing, who were you with”, etc.), and thirdly - they are more independent and independent in everyday life.

– You’ve already said partly, though, but is it still expensive to live in India?

– My salary is very good by Indian standards, but small by expat standards. It's enough for living and household expenses. For example, on food, including local restaurants, and periodic raids on supermarkets with imported products, I spend about 10 thousand rubles a month. Traveling within the country can also be normal, but traveling abroad is already problematic; only a few budget airlines fly from India. But there are good railways here! Despite the horrifying photographs of people hanging in clusters from the running boards, in reality everything is much better. There are good air-conditioned trains at very reasonable prices, much cheaper than in Russia.

Communication, Internet, transport - everything is inexpensive here. It’s sad with medicine - it’s either inexpensive, but does not inspire unambiguous trust, or vice versa. I had a problem with vitamin D, and an appointment with injections from a private doctor was extremely cheap. There are large medical centers with European price levels, where blood tests are prohibitively expensive. For example, in Malaysia there was something average, but relatively high quality and stable.

– Are you going to return to Russia?

– I’ve been living in India for 2 years, planning for another year. It’s just that, besides work, I also do a lot of interesting things, for example, with the local expat community, we organize meetings that bring together up to 170 people of 30 nationalities. We help newly arrived expats overcome cross-cultural differences, the first shock after moving, we reassure them, we advise them. I went to local colleges several times and gave lectures about Russia.

I will return to Russia. I’ll travel some more, gain experience, and come back. I will have to deal with finances, although in reality, of course, I want to teach - and as a part-time job I would teach a fascinating and informative course about the same cross-cultural differences - I have knowledge, I am ready to share!

I moved to India in early 2010 and live here to this day. Of course, you have to come to Russia periodically due to the limited time spent on a visa. At first the visa was issued for one year, but now for some reason they are issued only for eight months. I’ll tell you in more detail about the beginning of my journey.

Around 2005, I became passionate about yoga, and as you yourself understand, from yoga to India and its culture, it’s just a couple of steps. About a year after my all-consuming penetration into Indian culture, I met a girl who was a fan of yoga and meditation like me.

A year later we got married and in December 2010 we left for India together. We had a very small reserve of funds, I would even say, most likely modest. It was decided to earn a living by freelancing, because it is almost impossible to find work with an official salary in India. In general, after some time of living in India, this system began to bear fruit, and now I can say with confidence that this is the absolute truth - in India you can live on 50 dollars a day.

But it's better to start in order. There were a lot of people on the plane on the way here, and needless to say, it was packed to capacity. Although such a crowd of people at this time of year is not at all surprising, because during the Russian winter in India it is the warmest time, and, therefore, the most touristic. On the plane we were fed buns and coffee, which in itself was very nice. So, we arrived comfortably. At that time, I was an ardent supporter of everything Indian, so neither I nor my wife had any vaccinations before the flight, and let me tell you, it was completely in vain. But more on that later.

It should also be mentioned that before traveling to India you should take a large, or better yet, a huge first aid kit from home. Many medicines familiar to Russian people are simply not available in India, for example, good antibiotics, enterosorbents, no-shpa and citramon.

So, we ended up in India. And this country met us...mmm...specifically. Having arrived straight into Goa, we went towards the ocean. It’s 6 am, the whole village is sitting on the beach... why do you think? I don’t even know how to say this literary, I’ll probably say this: “all the local residents, or almost all of them, sit out of great need right on the ocean shore. But then I didn’t care at all, I was at the height of bliss from the mere thought that I was in India.

Naturally, we first had to look for housing. Of course, I wanted something completely inexpensive and preferably close to the ocean. And here it is - a house in Bramakan... It was just a miracle - 10 minutes walk from the sea, behind the mountain, an empty hut, standing alone in the jungle. We found the owner who lived in the city, he arrived on a moped, gave him the key and said - live, don’t worry... so we did...

Cashew trees twist intricately, and the flowers exude a delicate aroma! Nothing disturbs the peace and gives complete freedom for meditation. Only a lonely, silent neighbor passes by a couple of times a day to let an artificial river flow onto his property. The sacred lake was very close to our new home, and the underwear with powder in it is washed simultaneously with the ritual ablution.

And again, at that moment it didn’t seem strange to me at all. Everything is fine, everything is as it should be, I am in nirvana. Something like these thoughts lived in my head at the time. I smiled constantly and was absolutely happy. But it didn't last long. Literally before the first food poisoning, which occurred a few hours after the first meal in India.

At first I felt as if piranhas had taken up residence in my stomach. Then, within five days, I had to use all the anti-diarrhea medications brought from Russia. An unforgettable sight, I tell you. And this despite the fact that with such total dehydration it was necessary to naturally drink water only from a bottle. I’ll tell you right away about Indian water. I would not advise anyone to drink it raw, rinse your mouth after brushing your teeth, or even just wash your face. All of the above should be done with bottled water. Fortunately, it is sold everywhere, but I want to warn you, be sure to pay attention to the fact that the bottle is tightly closed, and the local seller does not open it, even in your presence. Otherwise, you will not be able to avoid poisoning. It’s me who is so smart now, but then I was completely not so knowledgeable about what seemed to me little things.

I'll tell you about our hut. As you can see in the photo, this is a structure consisting of walls and a roof, the floor in our house was stone, there was no door. True, there was only jungle around, so it did not cause any inconvenience. Naturally, there were no facilities for a toilet or shower. And if we managed without the latter quite simply, then without a sanitary facility, especially during the period of illness, it was, to put it mildly, uncomfortable. In general, except for the above, we were satisfied with everything. Every day at dawn we chanted mantras, meditated almost constantly and ate mangoes and coconuts. Speaking of coconuts. These are the only fruits in India that are safe for Russians to eat, especially during the adaptation period.

We lived in such a hut for about three to four weeks, and then we went to visit Russian friends and lived with them for a whole month. The whole family spent the winter in India. Since they lived with children, it is natural that their living conditions were excellent. Food and water were also radically different from what we had in the first weeks of our stay in India.

There, both my wife and I got stronger and almost completely adapted to life in India, or rather, I’ll say so, it seemed so to us at that time. We ate mostly rice, stewed vegetables and flatbreads. They drank only boiled water. On the advice of new acquaintances, they began to soak fruits in laundry soap, and before eating, peel them and pour boiling water over them. There was never any poisoning during the period the Russian family lived in the house.

Every morning we started with yoga. Then after a small breakfast we usually played the violin or surfed the Internet. Our new friends even had it in their house; there was no need to go to an Internet cafe.

I would also like to tell all those who are planning to move to India, remember that I only came across an ATM there once, and even that one did not work, so I advise you to arm yourself with cash. I would also like to warn newcomers against stealing from local residents. Everyone steals here, and not only people, but also monkeys. And monkeys in India are considered sacred animals, just like cows and snakes. Monkeys are not punished for stealing. If a person is bitten by a snake, then it is sent to prison. This is the paradox of India. And by the way, the deceased after being bitten by a poisonous snake is not burned, but simply put on a raft and sent sailing, most often to the Ganges. This is done because it is believed that this person did not die, but simply fell asleep in a very deep sleep. Let me tell you that it is an extremely unpleasant sight to see bloated corpses next to a crowd of people bathing or washing clothes. But this is the whole of India - a country of absolute paradoxes. The Ganges River is considered sacred among them, and many pilgrims come to it specifically to perform ritual ablutions. As for me, despite all my immersion in the world of India at that time, I could not bring myself to dip even one toe into this, to put it mildly, not very clean water. Although this water actually disinfects a lot of things, and there is a completely normal explanation for this - under the depths of the water there are huge deposits of silver, and it is this that contributes to at least some cleansing of the local reservoir.

India is a country that loves children very much. Here they touch them on the cheeks, it’s something like our Russian “pat on the head.”

During the entire time I lived in India, I was able to see little girls running to school barefoot, and adult students studying right on the ground.

India still never ceases to amaze me. Everything is somehow wrong here, the slow and very measured flow of life, the constant laziness of the locals, dirt and feces on every corner, snakes and monkeys, creepy insects and very well-mannered dogs. Well-mannered, they never bark and lie very neatly everywhere. Hungry, skinny, but with some kind of proud expression on their faces. I once gave a treat to one dog, and with such an arrogant look he took a piece of pie from me, no wagging of his tail, nothing like that is observed in local dogs.

After staying with Russian friends, my wife and I decided to live closer to the mountains. The beauty there, of course, is indescribable, although no, just completely described, however, not only described, but also... Then I think you guessed what I want to say. This is the case here almost everywhere, it happens, and there is nowhere to step. Full public toilet.

And on the mountain next to the cave there is a convent. There was a heavy downpour and we asked an old nun to wait it out.

She happily checked us in, fed us and put us to bed... and in general she did everything somehow joyfully, constantly chanting mantras and saying nothing else. So we lived in this monastery for some time. I couldn't learn the names. Drinking water had to be obtained from a closed well through a narrow hole. Although I skipped a bit. The difficulty of obtaining water had to be faced a little later. In the monastery they eat right on the floor from some plates that look more like pieces of cardboard.

Everyone is fed here, or maybe we’re just so lucky. I was never able to find out this, and maybe I didn’t try very hard. There is a constant smile on the nuns’ faces, often toothless, but certainly very joyful and open. Every morning there was a service in the monastery, the nuns sang beautifully and looked at us cheerfully.

I would like to clarify that throughout the time described above, we lived on money from freelancing and on the small financial savings we had accumulated in Russia.

After the monastery, for some time we rented a room for 100 rupees. When leaving the house, the ocean was visible. In the heat it's just bliss. True, local residents there constantly asked us to photograph them.

But this, however, did not bother us in any way and we enjoyed photographing the children and, in general, everything we saw around us. Nowadays we are so used to everything that we don’t carry a camera with us all the time, but back then everything was a novelty and we wanted to capture everything.

Now I will tell you about how we moved in India at first. Life in India means there are no traffic rules. And the longer I live here, the more I am convinced of this. There is practically no oncoming traffic; whoever has the bigger car is in charge. Drivers constantly press the horn. The noise is such that there is probably nothing to compare it with. Once, during our next move from the northern part of India to the southern part, we noticed that the pass was closed and there were no cars. And then a jeep packed to the brim with people and knapsacks drives by. He drives by, then backs up, the driver shouts - get in! Where??? It’s okay, let’s get compacted! And in fact, in some way still unknown to me, we were able to not only get into this generally not very large car, but also get there calmly. As calm as it can be in a country like India. I even remember an incident when we spent the night in almost the same conditions that I just described. It was something...Local residents are sexually dissatisfied and this affects everything. Every now and then they try to touch or stroke your woman. It was for this reason that the night for me that time passed completely without sleep.

Public transport in India is also packed to capacity, although it is somewhat similar to Russian buses at rush hour. Nobody ever pays for a ticket, at least we never paid, and we never saw any locals do it. There is also dirt everywhere in transport. It is better for women to try not to travel on public transport at all for the same reason as described above. One day we found ourselves in some kind of baggage car, where Indians were packed in three layers! I found myself between the shelves...more precisely, between the butts...The girls were sitting upstairs, sandwiched between the men, who were devouring them with passionate glances!

So you can only drive in India with extreme sports and nothing else. We lived in northern India for quite a long time; we also rented a small house without amenities for little money. Everything suited us there, only the view was sometimes blocked by a strange shadow. I didn’t immediately realize that a monkey had come to visit us.

We ate there, mainly fried bananas, which we happily prepared ourselves.

Now I hate bananas, especially fried ones, but back then they seemed like the food of the gods. Bananas in India are not at all the same as in Russia, there are many different varieties, and the ones we are used to in our homeland are not eaten in India even by sacred animals, cows.

Now I’ll tell you about our living in India at the moment. I received a rather lucrative contract and now live in India on a work visa with my wife, of course. We live in a big city, in comfortable conditions, but I am still under constant fear of being poisoned or contracting something infectious. And we don’t even think about children until the contract ends. After all, a small child constantly puts his hands in his mouth, and in India this can even be deadly.

Even in the city, seemingly among luxury and wealth, every morning I see beggars or people from the lowest caste on the side of the roads. Some are just lying on the ground, others are sleeping in houses built from cardboard and tarpaulin.

And the children, according to my initial observations, are now very happy here in India.

They absolutely do not care about the concerns of adults. By the way, young children here are not only given dots on their foreheads to protect them from the evil eye, but also have their eyes rimmed. How they manage to do this still remains a mystery to me.

In cities, as in villages, all locals love to be photographed, as I mentioned above. And they even ask for it themselves. Agree that it is difficult to imagine Russian people, for example on a bus, who would come up to you and ask you to take a photograph of them as a souvenir.

Now I will summarize a little my chaotic story about India. If you decide to move here, then be prepared for constant poisoning and fear of becoming infected with something. Living in India requires you to get all the necessary vaccinations before moving. There are many of them; any infectious disease specialist at the clinic will give you a complete list. For the first time, stock up on antibiotics; there are few of them in India. It also doesn’t hurt to take so-called “homeless bags” from home. They will help you survive in the extreme conditions of India. Remember that you may have to live in huts or just in the open air, and theft in India is very rampant, so carry documents and money on you at all times. Beware of snakes and monkeys. The latter, too, like people, engage in theft. They very cleverly confiscate all your things, and then take them to the market and exchange them for food. And don’t be surprised, this is exactly what happens. Do not drink freshly squeezed juices in India, although this is a great temptation, you should not do this, otherwise there may be unpleasant consequences for your health. One more piece of advice: never drink tap water, even in five-star hotels, or even rinse your mouth with it. Buy drinking water only in bottles. In restaurants and cafes, never order dishes made from raw vegetables and do not eat if your order is served slightly warm. Food in India should be hot, preferably scalding. Believe me, I’m already an experienced person in this matter and I won’t give bad advice. Another wish from an experienced resident of India - be sure to carry a flask of alcohol with you everywhere, the stronger the better. I'm not advocating drinking, I'm just saying that if you take a sip before and after every meal, you'll be less likely to spend the next day cuddling with your white friend. And of course, when moving to India, take as many anti-diarrheal medications as possible.