THE talk on February 10, entitled India, Pushkar and the Taj Mahal, was given by John Wilson, a professional photographer.

It was illustrated by a wide variety of slides.

Some of these were of historic buildings going back to the Mogul era of the 16th Century but his principal interest was in people and that provided most of his photographs.

Members saw the great contrast between city and village life and also the differences from their own culture.

Our sense of order is alien to the Indian people. The everyday sights of city life appear to us as chaos.

There was a strange array of transport carrying goods, some adapted from pedal tricycles, others adapted from petrol-driven vehicles.

The sight of unaccompanied cattle walking through the streets is common. These animals are sacred to Hindus and they are left in peace.

The slides revealed the everyday tasks of women. In the cities, they are involved in tasks such as building construction, while the men take a more laid-back approach to supervision.

In the country areas, the principal task of women is the conveying of water, often over vast distances. This is carried on the head in heavy containers.

In spite of the fact they have to do their washing in dirty rivers, the women were dressed in clean, long flowing robes.

The monotony of everyday life is alleviated by occasional fairs and festivals, often requiring a long trek to get to them.

The over-riding impression gained from the slides was the smiling faces of the people, who often have little to smile about when compared with our expectations.