For this woman, nothing's lost in translation

Like any normal day, 38-year-old Bulbul Rai from Parel TT goes about her 'work' in an unassuming manner. Rai can be spotted talking to strangers outside Parel's Tata Memorial Hospital (TMH). Rai is totally at ease striking up conversations with relatives of patients who wait outside the hospital premises with the intent of helping them. Most of the people she talks to are from the northeast part of the country. For over a decade now, the 38-year-old has served as a 'translator' for the people of the northeast who seek medical treatment for family members in the cancer hospital.

Rai says she is more than happy to fit into the role of a 'translator' for northeast people as they find it difficult to understand and speak in Hindi. "A lot of what is said between doctors at the hospital and these people gets lost in translation. I try and bridge the communication gap. Some of them even go back home because they fail to understand what the doctor is telling them," she says.

Rai has also had her fair share of problems growing up. She lost her father to cancer as a child. After getting married about 12 years ago, Rai and her husband shifted to Mumbai from Kolkata. "I started extending a helping hand to people after I was privy to a conversation at a civic hospital in the city where a patient's relative was narrating how difficult it was to communicate with doctors due to the language barrier. I decided to do my bit to bridge the communication divide," she said.

Apart from her role as a 'translator', Rai and her husband sell blankets and sweaters on the footpath. They even appeal to their customers to help people by donating blood. "Quite a few of my customers donate clothes and eatables so that I can distribute them among the underprivileged," she adds. Rai also maintains ties with the people she meets and 'translates' for after they go back to their hometown.