A tale of two sisters in Delhi
The article profiles two sisters who grew up on the streets of Delhi, detailing their struggle with poverty, substance abuse, and the pursuit of a better life. It highlights the generational cycle of hardship and the resilience required to seek education and stability.
Why it matters
It provides a humanizing perspective on the systemic issues of homelessness and substance abuse among marginalized youth in urban India.
(The names of the two sisters have been changed to protect their privacy)
Shobha, 46, lives in a makeshift home along a road in Old Delhi’s Yamuna Bazar. She came here two decades ago, from Kanpur, in Uttar Pradesh , after she separated from her husband and found no support from her family. She brought her five children; one of them went missing as a baby and another died, she believes, of a drug overdose. Initially, she begged for survival, but soon realised it was not enough to feed her children. She started selling stickers, earning ₹100-150 a day. “I dream of my daughters living their lives without having to beg for safety and freedom. I know I haven’t been able to provide for them but despite that, they have done way better than me in their lives. I am also changing because of them,” she says.
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