Which camera is this?” a German lady asks the Metrolife lensman showing interest in photography. “It is my hobby to take pictures and work on them on computer to create picture books of my holidays with my husband Robert. But I need more time to learn Photoshop,” says Maja Hoellrigl.
A self-confessed ‘techno-freak’, this European lady is the president of marketing and operations at Encraft (a company that manufactures UPVC windows and door systems). Hoellrigl draws admiration for deftly manoeuvring her car through the maddening South Delhi traffic to reach her home in Gurgaon.
“Driving in India requires full concentration unlike in London, where I lived with my husband for 32 years,” she says, adding that the uncertainty of traffic movement in Delhi keeps her amused. “I see women riding pillion on two-wheeler, carrying a child or reading a book. It’s amazing!”
It is this surprise element in Delhi, and India as a whole, that inspires Hoellrigl in a positive way. “Once I saw a man transporting a double mattress on a bike. If it would have been in England, the receiver would have refused to carry! This spirit of ‘can do, will do’ is peculiar to India.
Infact, there is also a certain sense of contentment with life here, that I missed when I was in London. I see street kids playing cricket outside my home and the smile on their faces shows that they are happy, no matter what circumstances they are in,” she elaborates.
Though she had earlier been to India in 1995, before taking up her current position in 2013, she doesn’t get dissuaded by the opinion that others have for this country. “To me, India teaches you patience.
In the West it’s all about becoming bigger, better and faster without appreciating what we have got. It is not the same here. If you smile while looking at 10 people in India, nine will smile back. This doesn’t happen in London atleast!”
Her first trip to India left such a positive impression on her that she decided to come back and settle here someday. “All thanks to my friend who showed me this country. As we drove in our car on the busy streets of Delhi, my guide-cum-friend Sanjeev told me ‘If you think you will die, then you will die’.
I remind myself this sentence each time I face a difficult situation and I am able to sail smooth,” she smiles informing that she recently managed to find the same friend on a social networking website and attended the Diwali party at his place wearing a salwar-suit.
“I would love to wear a saree one day. When we (Maja and her husband) were driving from Delhi to Fatehpur Sikri we saw women working the fields wearing saree. The certain spots of colour in the green fields made for an artistic visual but I personally thought I can’t wear a saree even if I have to do household chores,” she laughs admiring the Indian garment.
Published 24 February 2015, 15:09 IST