Stop Haggling, Change Lives...

"Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself."

---Leo Tolstoy

Anklets, of various kind, are spread across the polythene sheet. Some silver coloured, some golden-coloured, some adorned with bright-coloured beads... each one with a different design, making tinkling sounds when you hold them in hand and examine which one is better. The middle-aged man, who is the owner of the makeshift stall, has nothing but these few anklets to offer to his customers. Beads of sweat line his forehead in the hot summer afternoon. His crinkled skin and the fine lines in his face tell the story of his daily struggle- struggle to make both ends meet with nothing but a few anklets to lure his customers with.

I was returning home after a shopping expedition with my mother when his anklets caught my attention. Some women are genetically programmed to love sarees and jewelleries. And I am one such woman. I immediately knew that I am going to buy at least one pair of anklets from this vendor. After examining a few, I zeroed in on a pair of silver-toned anklets. The anklets were looking stunning with multi-coloured crystals. 

"Dada, ei nupur-er daam koto?" ("How much do these anklets cost?"), I asked him.

"200 taka" ("200 Rupees"), he replied.

"Etar daam kokhonoi 200 taka hote pare na. 150 takay debe ki?" ("These can never cost as high as Rs. 200. Will you sell them at Rs. 150?"), my mother jumped into the scene and started to haggle immediately.

"Dite parbo na didi. 150 takay dile amar to kichhui labh thakbe na," ("Pardon me. I can't sell these at Rs. 150. That will leave little profit for me."), replied the vendor.

These kind of haggling with small-scale street-side retail sellers is a very common scene in street-side footpaths of India. People routinely bargain to settle for the lowest possible price. But the irony is that we can't bargain in this way when we buy from big shopping malls. Their products come with a fixed price-tag and we happily buy the same product at a much higher price from big shopping malls or shops with reputed brand names. We don't regret then, just because of the fact that the product bears the tag of some reputed brand. In the process, its these already impoverished street-side vendors who suffer. I convinced my mother that day to buy the anklets at Rs. 200, the price the vendor had fixed. If we all stop haggling with these street-side vendors and start buying their wares at the price fixed by them, we will not end up being impoverished for simply parting with a few more extra bucks, but these little acts of kindness can make a big difference in their lives. We can't change the world, but at least we can try to bring positive change in the lives of people around us. We can be a little more kind, a little more compassionate to fellow human beings. And believe me, if everybody become a little more kind, we can usher in a tidal wave of change. All we need is just to take that one small step - a step towards making the planet a little better to live in. Remember the quote of Albert Einstein: "The world as we have created it is a process of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking."

Every change begins with a small step, whether it’s a change within your family, or the whole country! India’s hero, Padman, had its digital premiere on ZEE5, on 11th May. Don’t miss this inspiring true-life story, only on ZEE5. Download the app and subscribe now. For every subscription, ZEE5 will donate Rs. 5 towards the personal hygiene needs of underprivileged women.