Can you imagine the most adverse situation in life to turn into an opportunity that changes the future, forever? My left-brain, influenced by my many years of work-life and personal situations forced me to think otherwise, until day before.
It was an impactful day for me. I visited a place that I thought I would never ever want to see, but this time it was for a good reason. ODC (OSA Drum Circle), a drumming group that I am a part of, was invited to Tihar Jail – Central Jail No. 1, to perform for the inmates. This gave me, and other members of the group, a rare opportunity to visit the jail (without doing anything wrong 😉 ).
When we reached there, the first thing that grabbed my attention was obviously the security, both – for securing the place to ensure no one could escape and also responsibility to ensure security of the inmates.
The impression that most of us were carrying in our minds was based on what we had seen in movies. But, the actual scene wascontrary to our belief and we were all surprised that the place was much cleaner than what we had imagined it to be and secondly, none of the inmates were in any uniform. This immediately gave me a feeling that this place was different. Most of the inmates were under-trails while only a small minority were convicts.
We went ahead and visited the wards in which the inmates stayed and almost immediately one could witness the glimpse of varied expressions – sadness, anger, vengeance and remorse. But, one thing that I observed in many eyes was something that I never expected, and that was happiness. This somehow surprised me. But the moment we moved ahead and saw various other wards, I did seem to find an answer to my question. These wards seemed like vocational schools and skill development centres.
The first training centre we saw was that of computer education centre. It was nice to know that many inmates had shown keenness to learn computers while spending their time in custody.
Then we moved on to an electrical training centrethat was being managed by an instructor who had been an inmate himself. He was a trained electrician who when imprisoned took upon the responsibility to help inmates get respectable work opportunity outside. He started training inmates on rewinding electrical motors, repairing fans, coolers and refrigerators. He had trained almost 600 people who now were earning their respectable livelihood outside the jail and was currently training another 125 people within the confines of Tihar. He was proud to show us a LED bulb manufacturing facility with the support of jail authorities. It was so nice to learn that it was rarely that electrical equipment from any of the Delhi jails were sent out for repair.
We then proceeded to the art and crafts room. We witnessed an amazing pool of talent that had created art that stunned us. Some of the sketches, portraits and paintings were so beautiful that it was tough to imagine that these were done by inmates, who themselves could never ever have believed that they could even draw. And the excitement to get an opportunity to showcase their work was at peak. I guess, for any artist, being able to showcase his work to the world gives sheer “happiness”. Its tough to express in words how they appeared to have felt.
Our next stop was a tailoring unit. This is where the inmates could learn tailoring and stitching. They had showcased garments for men and women that had been stitched in this unit. They boasted of their abilities to even take up orders from designers and exporters.
Then we witnessed food being cooked and packed for all inmates. It is called “langer”. The fact it is called Langar, seemed to have brought in love and affection in their cooking. The team that was making “chapatis” seemed experienced by now, to cook over ten thousand chapatis per meal. They usually started at 4.30 am in the morning, everyday. It reminded me of the langar cooked in most Gurudwaras.
This is when we proceeded to perform for the inmates of Tihar Jail’s Central Jail No. 1 that has almost 2000 inmates. We played drums (African drums called Djembe) and we were so happy to see that the inmates enjoying by clapping to the beats, as much as we were enjoying playing for them. After our performance, the inmates offered to showcase their talent to us. It began with a dance performance that could match what we usually see in talent hunt shows on television. This was followed by musical performances that surprised us. The talent was being nurtured within the confines of the walls of this prison, well equipped with musical instruments for them. It was a beautiful moment that I think most of present there will never forget.
We were then offered refreshments as a gesture to have brought smiles on the faces of inmates and helping them forget their miseries of missing their families and freedom, even if it was for just a few moments.
Many of us may be aware of the kitchen that Tihar Jail operates. This kitchen had prepared some mouthwatering snacks for us. These were not only clean but tasty as well. Tihar jail also boasts of generating revenue for the betterment of inmates through their brand TJ’s.
It was a day meaningfully spent. But, when I reached home and explained what I saw to my better half, she inspired me to write and share my experience. I wish I could have photographs to visually explain what I saw, but rightfully so – no phones, cameras etc. are permitted inside the jail premises.
No amount of nurturing can replace the freedom that the inmates surely must miss, but, I salute the vision of the authorities and their efforts to create an environment that is so positive that inmates were motivated to develop skills, nurture hidden talent and also built a bond among themselves.
Inmates came from varied backgrounds, but it was amazing to witness how punishment had turned out to become an opportunity, especially for those few who came from deprived backgrounds where such opportunities may not be accessible.
There are many varied opinions on whether punishment should be harsh, and I am not qualified to be judgmental about this situation, but I seem to be quite convinced that if being humane can transform people, we should give it a try. Even if one person changes for the better when he comes out of prison, it is an effort well made. I salute the authorities.
