A person who makes a living by washing
clothes in India is called a dhobi. There was a time when many people were
engaged in this profession. Today there are very few of them. They used to
visit homes on the weekends to collect the dirty clothes. The clothes were
washed and ironed and returned the next weekend. They charged a certain amount
for each piece. Today many people have washing machines and do not rely on
them. They do get some business from the bigger establishments like hotels and
hospitals but now some new cleaning companies have started to take away this business
too. The future looks bleak for the dhobi. Old business has to give way to the
new.
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| Washing clothes - Kadappakada, Kollam |
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| Drying clothes - Kadappakada, Kollam |
