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Dharavi is the best known and most publicized ‘slum’ in the world, even if it is no longer the largest. Most people think they know all there is to know about it, about the number of people who live there, the type of work they do, the quality of the lives they lead. However, there are some interesting bits of trivia about Asia’s so-called largest slum that you probably weren’t aware of, and they’re pretty interesting too.
The city now known as Mumbai was at one time a string of seven islands. These islands were separated from each other by creeks and swampy mangrove marshes. The creeks are still very much in evidence today. The marshlands have been filled and reclaimed and have slowly come to be the city that we all know today.
Contrary to popular supposition; the people of Dharavi are not a migrant population, or at least not any more. They have lived on the land for several generations.
With the sheer number of people who live and work here, space is at a premium. This means that most houses don’t have attached bath and toilet facilities and many people simply make use of the nearby creek.
With the number of small industries that abound in this area, it is perhaps not entirely surprising that the economy of the so-called slum is a well-developed and flourishing one.
Pottery, garments, and most of leather articles that are made in Dharavi are of world class quality and are exported to clientele across the globe.
The people of Dharavi may not be the richest dwellers in Mumbai, but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t tech-savvy. These young girls not only learned to use a computer but developed android applications, creating logos on MS Paint, to suit a variety of local needs. Registered users can sign in to know whose turn it is to draw water from the communal tap, there’s an app to ensure women’s security that has a distress call feature too, and one to help primary school kids learn their alphabet (in English, Hindi or Marathi) and sums.
Speaking of tech-savvy it’s not only the younger generation that have jumped on that band wagon. The older generation too is up on the use of smartphones. Factory owners click pictures of their finished products so that they can be whatsapped to paying sutomers before shipment.
DharaviMarket.com struck a deal with the well-known SnapDeal.com to create an exclusive online store for luggage, shoes, accessories, pottery, apparel and jewellery made in the slum.
Not only do these units recycle the huge amount of waste material from Mumbai’s ever-expanding population, but they are also responsible for recycling material from across India and several other countries.
The people of Dharavi are not short of pop culture either. The SlumGods have collaborated with DJ’s from Japan and California to create hit music.
Supported by an NGO, this festival showcases art created by the citizens of Dharavi and is held for three weeks a year. It is called the ‘Alley Galli Biennale’
There are several ‘slum tours’ that operate in Dharavi where tourist can get an indepth look at the living and working areas of the Dharavi residents.
A place filled with contradictions and anomalies, Dharavi is at once interesting, fascinating and brilliant, with every turn being unexpected and a surprise waiting around every corner