The Help - Round 2

This weekend, we decided to begin to look in earnest for the perfect servant.  One that would not only clean and iron, but cook, shop and handle the interface between the household and the outside, Hindu speaking world.  We understood that we would also need to spend a little more than the $100 a month that we currently pay.  

On Saturday, we perused the Delhi ex-pat websites and forums seeing what was available as other expat families departed for greener, or at least slightly cooler, pastures.  We came across many ads, but only two really caught our attention.  Both ads were placed by the current employers on behalf of the servants and both were highly recommended and met the criteria for which we were searching. We reached out to their current employers and set up the interview for the next day. 

The first woman, Yanchee, arrived at 11:00am sharp.  She was upbeat and very open to the needed work.  Her English was good and she seemed to have the right attitude.  The downside was that she had only been in the service of her current employer for 6 months and had only done the cleaning and nannying, as they had others to do the remaining work.  Although she claims to be able to cook, we did not have any references for this. She did, though, live just down the road with her daughter who worked for a private house with a separate servants quarters, so she would not require a transportation allowance.    

The second, Veena, was a much more seasoned veteran.  In her mid 40s, she had been in this line of work for the good part of the last 25 years and had worked exclusively in the expat community.  She had references from several embassies, including Russia and Spain, and recommendations from several high level embassy staff members for whom she worked over the years.  Her endorsements highlighted her exceptional cooking and proactive ability to run all aspects of the household. Her English was excellent and she immediately understood and could articulate the needs of the house.  She was uncommonly, albeit respectfully, upfront about her salary requirements, Dawali (think of it as Indian Christmas) bonus and holidays on which she would not be working.  As well, she was pretty clear on her working hours.  

After the interviews, my wife and I discussed the pros and cons.  The first woman seemed to have the right attitude, but limited experience.   We could, as one sister suggested, work with her and mold her into a great servant.  This would take time, effort, patience and, since she was not coming at a huge discount, money.  The second woman had impeccable references, a proven track record in household management and was reputably a gifted cook. The down side was she was a tad headstrong and I am not sure I am up for being bossed around by another person at home (just kidding, dear). The balance to this is that her "confidence," if harnessed for good, would be a huge asset in keeping the laborers and other nefarious people out of our pockets.  All this upside, though, would cost us dearly.  


In the end, it was a hard choice.  Experience and costly versus pleasant and moldability.  There was much cogitation, but we eventually settled on the uber custodian, #2 Veena. 


Her new adventure starts September 1!