All language subtitles for Welcome to India 2of3 720p HDTV_Subtitles01.ENG

Don't you think it's astounding
that our planet

supports seven billion of us...

BABY CRIES

..and counting?

Learning to survive in a crowded
world is our biggest challenge.

But there's one corner
where we're already

well on our way to adapting...

HE SHOUTS IN BENGALI

Welcome to India.

Over one in six in the world
live here.

And do you know what?
We are thriving on it.

We're resourceful...

Steve Jobs.

We're ambitious.

We're the ultimate pragmatists.

And do you know one of our most
basic ideas?

SHE LAUGHS

Take that thing you call "waste".

Around here,
it's one of our top opportunities.

So, if you think you're doing well
with your recycling,

come and take a look over here.

We'll let you in on how we,
with so little, can do so much.

This programme contains
some strong language.

TRAIN HORN BLARES

MUSIC: "Coppelia Valse"
by Leo Delibes

Let me introduce you
to one of our millions
of backstreet entrepreneurs.

Johora lives and works on
a railway embankment

on the outskirts of Kolkata.

Johora has built her home,

and a thriving business,
from sorting this stuff -

what you'd call "waste".

She started out as a rag picker here
23 years ago,

when she married her husband, Hanan.

Three years ago, Johora took a punt

and started specialising
in plastic bottles.

HORN BEEPS

She bought her eldest son, Nawab,
a rickshaw to collect them.

As head of "acquisitions",
he's built up a network of suppliers

who collect bottles from local
rubbish tips, shops and restaurants.

MUSIC: "Jaan" by Jassi Sidhu

It is a highly-competitive market,

with demand for bottles consistently
outstripping local supply.

HE LAUGHS

Back at base, Johora and four
employees strip off the labels

and sort the bottles by colour.

They're sold on by weight.

And Johora has a little trick to
make sure she gets the best price.

SHE LAUGHS

The bottles are crammed into huge
balls weighing up to 100 kilos.

Each of these fetches around £50
when sold on to the next

link in the recycling chain.

Johora relies on this income
to support her seven children,

pay her four full-time employees
£2 a day, AND make her a profit.

The opportunism of our backstreet
entrepreneurs

means we recycle over 60%
of our plastic bottles.

Now, that's a stat you in the UK
hope to achieve by 2020.

MUSIC: "Dying City"
by Johann Johannsson

Where YOU see trash,
WE see a livelihood...

and we don't just confine ourselves
to the small stuff.

Kanhaialal's one of 6,000 workers
in Mumbai

who butcher discarded ships
from around the world...by hand.

Kanhaialal was 14 when he started
working here, 18 years ago.

He's worked his way up to the role
of cutter

and uses a blowtorch
to carve these corroding hulls
into manageable chunks.

This will supply India's
construction boom with cheap,
recycled steel.

Today, he's on the team cutting
a large bow section

off a 12,000-tonne cargo ship,
built 32 years ago in Japan.

The team climb on board.

They'll make their incisions
from inside the hull.

Every section of this beast
must be dismantled...

..including the oil bunkers, which
can contain highly-explosive gases.

Just an hour into the job,
a blaze breaks out

on the bridge of
a neighbouring ship.

They say ship breaking kills around
20 people a year in India...

and that's the official figures.

But Kanhaialal's got a wife
and two kids to feed.

By mid afternoon, the bow section
of the ship is ready to come off.

Kanhaialal knows his boss likes
to keeps things

as "flexible" as possible by hiring
short-term, freelance staff.

They've been doing a good job
on the Japanese ship,

but if there's to be more work,

it's vital another vessel arrives
in the next few days.

Now, we might be the world's largest
ship recycler, but if you think

this appetite for the fruits
of recycling is a one-way deal,
my friend, think again.

Next time you put on your lipstick,
or lather up with soap,

bear in mind that some of the
ingredients may have started life

somewhere like this - Mohammed
Ashique's fat-processing workshop.

MUSIC: "Otto E Mezzo" by Nino Rota

His raw material is prepared
by a team of cutters.

It's beef suet, the fat from around
the kidneys and loins,

which he renders down
at high temperature.

Ashique sources his fat
from Kolkata's main abattoir,

where he barters with
the slaughtermen for their
daily suet pile.

Yesterday, he bought up over
200 kilos of the fat

and must work flat out to process it
before it rots in the heat.

His employees seem less concerned.

Once he's pressed them into action,

the rendered fat can be ladled
into salvaged tin cans, to cool.

And, of course,
there's value in the by-products.

It's the solidified oil,
or "tallow",

that earns Ashique his real income.

It's sold to a local company
that turns it into stearic acid,

a key ingredient for many soaps
and lipsticks the world over.

Ashique's hardly made an impression
on his pungent stock

when he's interrupted.

A local party representative is
taking issue with the sacks of fat.

Ashique seems oblivious to
the stench of his workshop.

But at the end of an especially
tough day he treats himself

to a full pampering
at his favourite barbershop.

Fresh-faced and transformed,

Ashique heads for home sweet home.

With 30% of us under 15-years-old,

and our under fives numbering twice
the population of the UK,

our kids are one of our
most important assets.

At Johora's, while Nawab works
full-time collecting bottles,

the younger kids are put to good use
as a cheap, convenient water supply.

This evening, they're off to
the standpipe a couple of hundred
metres up the road.

After her 14-hour day
sorting bottles,

Johora's struggling to get dinner
ready for her large family.

But there's a knock at the door.

A local mobster has sent round
a couple of his henchmen.

They're keen to get hold
of her husband.

The 2,000-rupee payment might
"protect" the business,

but Johora's spending is
already maxed out.

She pays 4,000 rupees, or £50,
a month

to send her two daughters
to a religious boarding school

and term starts tomorrow.

Good night. BOTH: Good night!

While the children finally
get to sleep,

Johora and Hanan are up,
worrying about the gangsters.

Whether we like it or not,
there IS a system around here.

It's this which allows
business to prosper.

And the mob are
an integral part of it.

Take Coco here -

a mobster who's semi-retired

but, in his day,
was as big a fish as they come.

We make a demand.
A demand - cash demand,

that if you're going to do this,
you have to look after us.

Then we take care of you.

It's like "protection money",
you call it.

Because they are under our guidance
and our protection.

So we're basically providing them
social service.

Is it? Right!

HE LAUGHS

If he doesn't pay up,

then we know what to do to him,
or how to settle him, after that.

That's the important thing.

The mob's enterprise extends
well beyond social welfare.

They've also branched out
into utilities.

No-one wants to live in darkness.

This guy, he supplies electricity...

He tabs the government's line,

and he takes about 100 for fan,
50 for light...

..another hundred for TV.

At least 200, 300 apiece... one room.

So it's more than 300, 400 a house.

If he's got 600 houses, my God!

A few cops will come,

they take a little money.
Corporation guy may come.

They take some money
and they carry on.

They don't care a hoot
about what you are doing.

As long as my hands are greased,
my palms are greased,

I don't care what you are doing.
It's like that.

Johora's bottles are ready
for delivery

and, with the gangsters on her back,
she needs the income more than ever.

All she requires is a man
with a van.

As ever, she keeps it in the family
by using her son-in-law...

..but reliability isn't
one of his strong points.

HORN BEEPS

Johora's come a long way

since she started working for Hanan
as a young girl of 12.

He was married with two kids

but it wasn't long before he
succumbed to her adolescent charms.

Johora's son-in-law, Tinku,

finally turns up, hours late.

But he's not fussed. He holds
the key contacts Johora needs.

When Johora began specialising
in plastic bottles,

she quickly married
one of her daughters to Tinku,

craftily bagging both his van
and his bottle industry connections.

But working with your mother-in-law
isn't always easy.

Tinku's certainly useful, for now.

But Johora has an idea for tackling
her new cash flow demands

that he may not be so happy about.

Kanhaialal, the shipbreaker,
has been given a rare afternoon off.

His job may be dangerous,
but the extra pay for such work

provides a better life
for his family.

He spends almost half his income
on renting a family apartment,

here in the suburbs of Mumbai.

Half of what is left of his earnings

are spent on sending
his three daughters to school.

But it not's just Kanhaialal's pay
that worries Radha.

Kanhaialal's dangerous job
is a calculated gamble

against his daughters' future.

PHONE RINGS

It's Kanhaialal's boss...

with the call that every employee
dreads.

The job that Kanhaialal's been doing
for the last three months

is no longer his.

It's true, we Indians don't have
any of your unemployment benefits,

but search the city, and you'll find
there is always work available...

..if you want it badly enough.

The conditions at Ashique's fat-
rendering factory are getting worse.

With over 100 kilos of fat
still to process,

his stock's in danger of rotting.

And today of all days,
there's no sign of his workers.

MUSIC: "Summertime"
by George Gershwin

Ashique is resorting to
rounding them up himself.

Ashique faces competition

in recruiting staff
from other "fragrant operations",

such as the one using the cramped
space of his workshop's veranda.

Cow's intestine from the abattoir
is given a thorough cleaning,

before being carefully inflated.

Once dried, it may well be headed
your way via the international

sausage casing market.

One of our best customers
are the Germans,

who import 2,000 tonnes of our
animal guts and bladders a year.

Ashique's day is going
from bad to worse.

Not only is he short-staffed

but the rows of cow's intestine
is limiting space

to deal with his fat mountain.

By mid morning, a new kind
of opportunist has moved in.

It's the local heavies asking Ashiq
to clean up or move out.

When you're working off the books,
there's no point turning to

the official legal system
for help in disputes.

Instead, most turn to these guys,
the local political bosses.

We might be out of sight of
tax collectors and the law,

but there are still some things
we have to play along with,

if we want to get ahead.

Johora's still feeling the pressure

of the increased monthly
protection payments a fortnight on.

It's time to deploy her new idea.

She's used her brother-in-law's bank
account to take out a big loan.

A VERY big loan.

She's bought herself a van.

But her purchase is already
creating issues.

Her son-in-law, Tinku, who has
always provided her transport,

now stands to lose out.

Despite Tinku's protests,

the new van is modified
and is now ready for service.

Johora can't resist
a celebratory lap.

She's even bought a new dress
for the occasion.

HORN BEEPS

A stop at the local shrine ensures

spiritual support for the venture -

a kind of "holy vehicle
warranty plan".

It's 4AM, and Johora's wasting no
time putting her plan into action.

The more she can squeeze on,
the bigger her profits.

But before that, she wants to ensure
first impressions count.

Johora and Hanan are no longer
simply bottle sorters,

they're wholesalers
in their own right.

SHE LAUGHS

But their promotion brings
a new pressure.

They must shift their bottles
for at least 42 rupees a kilo

to cover the loan for the van.

The trouble is, we've become
so efficient at recycling

plastic bottles in India that there
aren't always enough to go round.

So we've started importing
from overseas

and a shipment earlier this week
has depressed prices.

Leaving Hanan to close the deal,

Johora sneaks off to do
some industrial espionage.

So far, so familiar, but a piece
of machinery catches her eye.

The flakes spat out by this shredder
fetch 45 rupees a kilo,

seven more than the current
rate for bottles.

It's sold on to manufacturers
of polysynthetic fibre,

who in turn supply the world with
everything from polar fleeces

to stuffing for your sofa cushions.

While Hanan is being
knocked down even further,

Johora has snuck a glimpse
of the future.

Their first direct deal is done

and the price is still better

than they would have got
through their son-in-law.

Johora's got to play the long game

if she wants to grow her enterprise
into the business of her dreams.

But for now, at least,

the protection gangsters
can be paid off.

Down at Darukhana shipyard,

it's Kanhaialal's second day
without any work.

Early next morning,
Kanhaialal goes to meet

his fellow ship breakers
before they start work.

The good news is there's rumour
of a new arrival in the yards.

It's a promising lead
but Kanhaialal's late

for today's round of hiring.

Kanhaialal has only one chance
to secure the job his family needs.

But his new boss is notoriously
difficult to please.

The news is good.

And the payment is just
the start of it.

Guaranteed wages
for three whole months.

It's as good as Kanhaialal
could dare hope for.

His home and daughter's education
are safe...for now.

MUSIC: "Jan Pechachan Ho"
by Mohammed Rafi

CAR HORNS BEEP

You can probably tell,

we're a pragmatic lot.

Making money
is our top priority.

But it doesn't mean
we don't know how to have fun.

Next week is the Islamic festival
of Eid-al-Adha.

For Kolkata's large Muslim
population,

it's time to push the boat out.

Every family that can will spend
a small fortune on a
sacrificial animal.

For a few short days,
one of these is every kid's
must-have accessory...

..and you think Christmas
is expensive!

Business is booming
with Johora's new van,

and she's made her youngest son,
Naushad, a promise.

This year, if he behaves, the family
cow will be his to look after.

Hanan has decided to head
for an out-of-town mega market.

It's got the best seasonal deals
to suit every pocket,

from scrawny yearlings to the
fully grown and carefully groomed.

Hanan's teaching Naushad
how to cut a deal,

and traders don't come any sharper
than these wily cattle hustlers.

Nothing seems to be up to
Naushad's mark,

and the choice is dwindling fast.

Naushad spots the cow
of his dreams.

The biggest item of festival
shopping is in the bag.

MUSIC: "Mera Naam Chin Chin Chu"
by Geeta Dutt

Naushad can't wait to
show off his new toy

with a spin round the block.

And he's not the only one.

If you really want to impress
the neighbours,

there's nothing like rolling up
with a brand-new camel.

Johora's two daughters are back
from their religious boarding
school for the festival.

They've been away for two
whole months.

Even Ashique's taking time out
from his fat rendering
to be with his family.

Top on both his daughter and his
wife's list is some make-up.

These are the very products
that may contain his fat.

The tally is mounting fast.

MUSIC: "Photo Rakh Ke"
by Bups Saggu

It's the morning of the festival.

Johora must feed the entire
extended family

for the biggest gathering
of the year.

The business is going well
and the gangsters are off her back.

But there's one remaining problem -

the rift over the new van
with her son-in-law, Tinku.

Today is her opportunity
to resolve it.

At the heart of the family's
festival is Naushad's new companion.

But the slaughter of his cow
is the day's central moment.

It marks Prophet Ibrahim's
willingness

to sacrifice his son
as proof of his devotion to God.

The sight of all this fresh meat

is reminds the men of the house that
they are able to cook, after all.

Shabnam is married to Tinku,
Johora's estranged business partner.

The feast is ready and there's still
no sign of Tinku and Shabnam.

Keen not to let the whole day
be spoilt, Johora dishes up.

But Johora's festival
isn't complete.

At last, the family's together
for the final celebrations.

There's nothing like
the promise of a new baby

to patch up family relations.

Tinku's so happy he even offers
to buy a round of ice creams.

The festival's been a huge success.

The family's back together and have
held a feast to be proud of.

And looking ahead, there are big
plans for the business.

Things for Johora and family
are certainly looking up.

HE LAUGHS

MUSIC: "Streets Of Calcutta"
by Ananda Shankar

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd