“I just want my son to study well and then live a better life than I do”

This article is part of an interview series about people working in the informal sector in different countries, including a motorcycle taxi driver in Uganda, a refugee teacher in South Sudan, a fish butcher in Mexico, a street vendor in Kenya and a head porter in Ghana.

Who are you?  

My name is Reba. I am from a small village in the Sundarbans south-east of Kolkata. People in my village traditionally collect honey. However, due to different circumstances, I ended up coming to Kolkata. My husband is a construction worker. My son is nine years old and goes to a public school nearby. I work as a maid in about eight houses near Kolkata Airport.

Where do you live? 

I live in a room on rent in Kolkata. It is just one room; bathroom and toilet are used on a sharing basis and located outside in the common area. When we have guests like my mother or someone from the village, it gets a bit crowded, but for three people the room is okay. We cook, eat and sleep there.

What does your average day look like? 

I wake up around five in the morning and prepare my child for school. I start work at the first house around eight. I cook and help with other kitchen work. In some houses, I do the cleaning. I finish work at around five in the evening, then I walk for about 30 minutes to reach home. Then I bathe, check on my son and cook.

What do you like about your situation? 

I am not sure. My husband got really sick about a year ago. I had to borrow money to look after him. I camped at the hospital. Now he is well again. Right now, I am just happy that my family is okay and not sick.  

How can your situation be improved? 

There is so much that can be done. Maybe I should win a lottery and just be successful in paying off all the informal loans that I had to take while I was nursing my husband. I could not work then. I hope my son studies and does not get into bad company. In addition to public school, he attends a private tuition class, but I don’t know if that is enough. I just want him to study well and then live a better life than I do. 

Roli Mahajan is a journalist based in Lucknow, India.
roli.mahajan@gmail.com