| Description | Track 1: silence 0.29 mins
Tracks 2-9: Interview with Charles Lewis, an employee of an advertising firm who had previously worked in Uganda and became interested in coming to India after meeting Indian colleagues there. He talks about his first impressions of Bombay, the western look of the city with the large amount of Victorian architecture, and the contrasts and similarities between cities in East Africa and India. He discusses the hospitality he has received from people in India, his government contacts and introductions to civil servants in India which enabled him to visit villages in Rajasthan to see block developments in 1957, and the differences between villages in India and Uganda. He describes his sense that nothing had changed for hundreds of years in the villages he visited, but that the developments and the introduction of radios were changing peoples way of life, and talks about the friendly attitudes of the villagers towards him. He goes on to talk about arriving in Bombay during the General Election campaign of 1957, witnessing the large meetings that took place on Chowpatty beach, and his impressions of Calcutta, which he thinks has more indigeneous character than Bombay
Track 10: silence 1.53 mins
Tracks 11-17: Charles Lewis talks about advertising ideas in India which he thinks are derivative of western concepts, his sense that there is less imitation of western models in Indian drama and poetry, and discusses his interest in Indian classical music, his dislike of Indian film music and attending music conferences in Delhi and Calcutta to hear various musicians. He talks about the time it took him to feel at ease in India, his sense that it was easier for him because he has travelled a lot, and possibly because he married an Indian woman after being in Calcutta for two years. He describes his social life in Calcutta, his avoidance of many Indian films, and the differences between Bombay and Calcutta. He tries to sum up his experience of living in India, his greater awareness of the political situation in the country and his sympathies with political radicals and their determination to try to combat social injustice, and his views about the recent events in Bangladesh and the campaign for a united Bengal. He ends the interview by talking about his plans to stay in India indefinitely and to educate his son in India
Total: 32.16 mins
Dubber's reference number: PLA KF565D0558780 |