Maggie Hasting-Evans
INTRODUCTION
Q: What were you hoping for when you signed up for Masters & Servants?
A: I liked the idea of seeing how a TV programme was made. My husband Graham liked the idea of playing at masters and servants. Edward thought it would be a fun family thing for the family to do. Geraint thought it would make him famous!
Q: Which bits of Masters & Servants did you enjoy?
A: I enjoyed the religious ceremony. I enjoyed Shavani dancing. I enjoyed going shopping, we went to some nice old-fashioned green grocers. You don't get shops like that down our way any more.
Q: Which bits of Masters & Servants did you hate?
A: At the beginning we had to give away our credit cards and cash. I didn't like that, it made us feel very dependant.
I didn't like having to dress Jyo. I can't say why I didn't like it, I just found it weird.
I was exhausted much of the time. I found all the house work in a strange house very tiring.
BEING A MASTER
Q: Was it difficult ordering servants around?
A: No, I didn't. But I had given up by that point. I was past caring. I just gave them their tasks and if they didn't do it, apart from one or two flash points, I let it go.
Q: Do you think you could get used to having staff?
A: I liked it when I lived abroad. But it is only good if you can choose your own servants. You need to find people that you can really get on with to form an effective working relationship.
BEING A SERVANT
Q: Did you find it hard to take orders?
A: No, I didn't find it hard. At least, I didn't consciously find it hard.
Q: What was the worst thing about your masters?
A: They were disorganised. If they said a meal was at 6, there was a good chance it would start at 8. Their kitchen is a mess. In my kitchen I put all the frying pans next to each other. I know to within half a cupboard where anything is.
I have to be organised … It comes from having had many years where I combined a career with long hours and having a family.
Q: What was the job you really hated doing?
A: There was a window sill that had never been cleaned. That was disgusting.
CONCLUSION
Q: Did you learn anything from doing Masters & Servants?
A: Nothing life-changing but it was definitely an interesting experience. I learnt a lot about Hindu culture.
Q: Do you think you are more cut out to be a master or a servant?
A: I could be either. I could do any job if I needed the money. But in real life, it's much better being a master.
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Jyo Mehta
INTRODUCTION
Q: What were you hoping for when you signed up for Masters & Servants?
A: We wanted to show what our culture is like. We wanted to show that diversity is good for Britain. Indian families tend to be stereotyped as corner shop owners; we wanted to show a different side of Indian culture.
Q: Which bits of Masters & Servants did you enjoy?
A: I enjoyed being Master. Who wouldn't enjoy sitting down and ordering people about?
Q: Which bits of Masters & Servants did you hate?
A: Cooking the beef was disgusting. I've never handled or bought meat before. It was horrid. I had nightmares about the smell.
I wasn't keen to do it, but I wanted to prove myself. Millions of real servants all around the world don't get to choose which orders they follow. When I tried to judge it ethically, I thought it is not my money so I'm not taking on this karma. It's my masters taking on the karma.
BEING A MASTER
Q: Was it difficult ordering servants around?
A: I did find it difficult. All my family told me I was scared of the servants. I tried to be masterful, but I was scared they were going to walk out.
Q: Do you think you could get used to having staff?
A: Yes, I could. But they would have to be trained properly. If the servants were like my family and myself, it would be terrible!
BEING A SERVANT
Q: Did you find it hard to take orders?
A: No, I think we are used to working around authority in our day-to-day lives. As long as they didn't ask anything below the belt, we were happy to do whatever they asked.
Q: What was the worst thing about your masters?
A: The boys. Geraint has such a big head. He thinks he's it. He was like 'I'm not going to eat your food' when I had been slaving away all day. I didn't appreciate that.
Q: What was the job you really hated doing?
A: Cooking the beef was terrible. Apart from that, I didn't much like cleaning the toilets. But they weren't a messy bunch. They were quite good.
CONCLUSION
Q: Did you learn anything from doing Masters & Servants?
A: We learnt that we are a strong family and we can pull through almost anything.
Being a servant isn't the best thing in the world. You might think you've got a roof and food, how hard can it be? But it is tough. You are knackered, you are spilt up from your family, you make this food but you can't eat it.
Q: Do you think you are more cut out to be a master or a servant?
A: Master. I think I'd crack up if I was a servant for moore than a few weeks.
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