If you travel on the streets of Mumbai, you will stumble upon street kids who go about begging to earn a living. These kids are young, enthusiastic, curious, bold and have learned to deal with adversity the hard way. One thing that really motivates these kids is Bollywood. Kanan Shah, a Pratt Institute graduate, is someone who loves to design and dance. She is also a big fan of Bollywood. Born and raised in Mumbai, one thing that has always been on her mind is -  Can anything be done to help street kids in the city?  She wants to use her talent in visual and performing arts and Bollywood as a medium to improve the lives of these children.

Kanan took up a project – “Between the Green Lights” as her Masters thesis topic. In this project, she created a documentary to showcase the talent these kids possess and the passion they have for Bollywood. All the kids want to be the next Shahrukh Khan or Abhishekh Bachchan. Kanan wants to use Bollywood and art as a medium to provide the kids with a basic education (basic Math, English, Dancing, Singing, Acting) so that they have a chance to live their dreams.

Her vision is to eventually create a performing arts school only for the underprivileged children of Mumbai. This institution will give the children the opportunity to specialize in one particular area of performing art based on their interest. Some of the specialization areas could be filmography, professional dancing and dialogue writing. Similar to other art schools, they will also be taught the history behind the area they choose. For example, if someone were to choose professional dancing as their line of interest, they would also learn the history of dancing, the basic principles of movement, the greatest dancers of all times and so on. Therefore, combining studio classes with theory, these kids will be given a comprehensive education.

Kanan wants to reach out to various Bollywood stars (like Jackie Shroff, who himself once lived on the streets) and ask them to help promote this vision that could end up being a non-profit organization focusing on providing the less fortunate children of India a better future. This way they will realize that not everyone can become a star and being a star is not easy. But who knows, a few of them might actually become the next Bollywood superstar! This might be a small step in providing a brighter future for our country’s next generation.

Featured image on the homepage by Louis Vest

Studio X in Mumbai last month hosted the launch of a book that highlights women’s access to public space. Titled, “Why Loiter?” The book is an effort of three women; Sameera Khan a Mumbai based journalist and writer, Shilpa Phadke an assistant professor at the Centre for Media and Cultural Studies at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai and Shilpa Ranade architect and partner at DCOOP in Mumbai.

It chronicles years of meticulous research that attempts to understand how women from different communities, classes and minority groups in Mumbai have limited access to public space and often do not feel safe or comfortable in the public realm. The three women wonder why in a city where men wandering alone or in groups is acceptable but if a woman is on a leisurely stroll then it is assumed that she is up to no good. Loitering is purposeless occupation of space and defiling of public space is not acceptable.

In India, Bombay girls compared to women in other parts of the country are envied for the freedom they have yet women’s access to public space is taken for granted. Women’s access to public space is limited to bazaar’s for running errands and traveling in trains. There is a widening disparity in access to public space.

Men and women cannot date or have a consensual relationship. Paternal protection and affection act as further deterrents as parents are concerned for the future of their daughters. Parents are often concerned about what neighbours will think when they see their daughters loitering.

In it’s effort to discuss the idea of what public space means to Mumbaikars the book gives a good summary of the present day scenario. Each individual occupies his or her own Mumbai. For the roadside tapori(loafer) the 2 feet by 2 feet spot that he stands on is his Mumbai and for the rich elite these loafers are a nuisance and encroachers of the public realm that they are being taxed for. The elite have now privatized public space and so their idea of public space is restricted to malls, sanitized clean public space devoid of the taporis.

Book hawkers once lined the footpaths on D N Road from fort leading to churchgate. A path that once was active and provided a blanket of security for women walking to and from the station late at night now lies deserted and is deemed unsafe.

Before 1995 when Mumbai was Bombay it was an industrial and manufacturing oriented city. A city that thousands migrated to fulfill their dreams. Also post the 1993 riots in Bombay the city has become less accepting of outsiders.

The social and political fabric of the city has changed – it is hostile to outsiders and the poor. The recent 26/11 attacks on the city in 2008 and the 1993 riots continue to haunt the imagination of the city. The image of cosmopolitan Mumbai has been shattered. The city has become more regressive and less accepting of outsiders. The poor are the most affected by it.

The book besides discussing women also talks about how outsiders(non Mumbaikars), Muslim communities, the lesbian and gay community and various other minority groups are denied access to public space.

The second part of the book is entitled, “In search of pleasure.” This part of the reading was presented in a dramatized format by theater artists. Amongst all the neighbourhoods of Bombay, Bandra is considered to be the queen of the suburbs. Within Bandra,

Bandra West is the place where women are most articulative of pleasure and have a breathing space but a breathing space with a boundary. Women can dress as they like, loiter around but in some places – a stroll along carter road late at night is off bounds.

The perception that most Mumbaikar’s have is that women on Mohammed Ali Rd are devoid of fun and pleasure but women here feel differently – they “can go anywhere in a riddah,” said a dawoodi bohra.

With about 6.5 million people living in the slums and occupying just about 8% of the land parts of Bombay have transformed into Slumbay. The street is an extension of their home. With absence of privacy, can they even think of having fun?

The book clearly indicates that women and minority groups in the city are living under social constraints. The third and final part is Imagining Utopia. The three women wish and hope that one day they can take a book and head to a park and read without any inhibitions. Hope society and planners are listening. For Mumbai to be a global city it needs to provide the infrastructure that will allow these women and minority groups to celebrate loitering and have fun.

Mumbai as a city is expanding with public spaces diminishing. Studies indicate that 2 hectares of quality open space per 1000 residents in dense urban settings is an acceptable benchmark. Mumbai has a severe dearth of parks and playgrounds to cater for it’s rapidly increasing population. The quality of public realm in our cities is essential if we are to make our cities livable and working environments suitable.

A quick assessment of current open spaces indicate that existing parks or maidans (playgrounds) are over-utilized. In addition, a lack of accessible community sports facilities means that parks originally designed for passive recreation now have to cater for active recreational usage. As a result available open public spaces have been degraded and the role of footpaths have been transformed.

In downtown Mumbai some of the significant public spaces are Oval Maidan, Azad Maidan and Cross Maidan. Presently many of the cricket clubs use the maidans to play formal and informal matches throughout the day. Many of the local dailies recently reported that prominent citizens and top bureaucrats met with the chief minister of the state to discuss a proposal to turn these South Mumbai maidans into plush parks on the lines of New York’s Central Park and London’s Hyde Park. The multiple cricket pitches have been an integral part of these maidans and this is where many cricketers like Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar took their first lessons in cricket.

Shivaji Park another prominent park is often misused for political rallies and facilities around the park are used as political party offices. Byculla houses the Jijamata Udyaan formerly known as Victoria Gardens, a zoo and garden. The zoo has records of poor animal welfare  and zoo authorities are hoping to resolve these issues by proposing a Rs430 crore (approximately US$ 95.7 million) upgradation plan that includes squeezing in 25 new species of animals. Animal welfare organizations believe that Borivili National Park on the outskirts of Mumbai would be a better place for the animals. Byculla zoo happens to be a trove of botanical treasures, which has the potential to be converted into a beautiful park. It also houses the Bhau Daji Lad Museum formerly known as the Victoria and Albert Museum, the oldest museum in the city that showcases the history and culture of Mumbai.

The lack of open public spaces has redefined the role of footpaths, that are no longer used just for movement of pedestrians but form an integral part of the city. A range of informal economic activities now take place on footpaths; from selling homemade products, to hawking household items, vegetables and cooked food. Jane Jacobs in her 1961 book, The Death and Life of Great American cities urges urban researchers to understand streets and sidewalks for how they actually function rather than for their intended use. She believed that streets with the greatest signs of outward chaos – for instance children playing, old people sitting on steps and in the case of Mumbai people drinking chai at the corner chai stall and other street vendors are the people that make the streetscapes – vibrant, safe and livable urban spaces.

With rise in development and high employment in the construction sector, migrant labour constitutes a large segment of workers in the city. Also many migrants move to the city to be a part of the domestic workforce. These migrants in most cases are landless poor people that live in makeshift tents. Research architect and author of publications such as Alice in Buleshwar, Kaiwan Mehta highlights the life of migrants in the city that claim a part of public space in most cases footpaths and make it their own. In his essay titled, ‘Your city of Insatiable Angels’ for the promised city project Mehta states that “sleeping, waiting, looking out, loitering continue to be part of this landscape, construct a space of experience and everyday living.” He illustrates his point by referring to contemporary artist Sudhir Patwardhan’s painting titled, ‘Street Corner.’  In his work Patwardhan encapsulates and showcases how the private lives of many in the city becomes a part of the public realm in Mumbai. Mehta realizes and appreciates the contribution of migrant workers in the city. Often people that belong to a different level in the socioeconomic structure of the city often forget that and consider these workers to be a nuisance. Migrant workers in the city certainly make the landscape vibrant and active but live under unhealthy circumstances.

Street Corner by Sudhir Patwardhan

There is an urgent need to mitigate the decline of public spaces and elevate the quality of these spaces. An evaluation of current existing spaces is required to aid the process of design. The solution needs to be inclusive and integrated that is arrived upon by a democratic process. Active participation of people is needed for the development and management of these public spaces.

Development of private-public spaces in Mumbai so far has been restricted to multiplexes, atriums and malls that is not accessible by all and social development has been neglected by the government. More responsibility needs to be placed on corporate houses and sectors that are benefitting from this one sided growth of Mumbai. Real-estate developers are marketing gated communities with self-sustaining lifestyles that are choosing to look away from this degeneration of public spaces.

Architects, artists, civic authorities, people from all walks of life should participate in this process of decision making to develop strategies for the implementation of programs to enrich public realm. Professionals must be challenged to compete for creative and unprecedented results. Architect and activist P. K. Das in his paper Re-visioning Mumbai attributes the success of Bandstand and carter Road’s success to, ‘the dialogue and understanding between professionals and the active community.’

For Mumbai to be a livable city with sustainable and cohesive neighborhoods public places, a sense of community and a sense of place are desired, in which all people, whether wealthy or not, can live in dignified circumstances. Such neighbourhoods require culturally appropriate and authentic public places that are accessible to all.

Photo courtesy Danish Siddiqui for Reuters

A few years ago who would have imagined that the most expensive house in the world would be in Mumbai. But then India is full of surprises – on one end you have the most expensive house in the world at the same time 42% of India’s population is below the poverty line. In the past few weeks Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director of Reliance Industries, India’s largest private sector enterprise has been in the news for his new billion dollar plus house that he will be moving into soon. He is touted to be the richest man in the world by 2014 as reported in Forbes magazine.

The house which is the world’s first billion dollar house is located on Altamont Road in an upmarket residential neighbourhood of Mumbai. The house which is 27 story’s high and believed to have a floor area larger than that of the Palace of Versailles is designed after consulting design firms Perkins+Will and Hirsch Bendner Associates.

A vertical palace; the first six-levels of which are dedicated for parking and an additional level for car maintenance, three helipads, a health spa, a fifty seat theater, multiple swimming pools, hanging gardens and a ballroom are a few of the included amenities in the building. It has been widely reported that the house will be occupied by Mr. Ambani, his wife and three children but managed by a support staff of six hundred.

Is such lavish display of wealth necessary and sustainable? The Guardian recently reported Indian Prime Minister Mr. Manmohan Singh calling on business leaders to “eschew conspicuous consumption” and “be role models of moderation.” Reactions to the house have been mixed as how much Mr. Ambani spends on his house for himself and his family should not be anyones business as that is truly subjective. But many people also feel that an expensive house like that in a city where millions live in slums without basic ammenities is a criminal offence.

Mr. Ambani is ranked just two ranks below Bill Gates in the Billionaire’s list of Forbes magazine. Many people feel that he should follow in Mr. Gates footsteps of philanthropy. Mr. Ambani has defnitely created jobs and is looking to invest millions in the agricultural sector to help farmers and give them better returns but his investments are not contributions, they are calculated risks with gauranteed returns.

The house is named after Antillia a mythical island located in the Atlantic ocean. The irony here is that the house does not stand alone but instead stands tall overlooking downtown Mumbai. The house is not independant but is just as dependant on Mumbai’s neglected infratructure. I however do appreciate that Mr. Ambani chose a vertical structure over a horizontal one as land in Mumbai is sacred. The house boasts of multiple hanging gardens and it’s walls are covered in folliage – the living walls are intended to increase green space and combat heat island effect.

Photo courtesy Jasem Pirani

A friend of mine that lives in the same neighbourhood feels that the building is an eyesore. The building stands tall and does not relate in scale with it’s surrounding buildings. Another building in the same neighbourhood located on Peddar Road that runs parallel to Altamont Road is Charles Correa’s Kanchanjunga. This building also stands tall and has 32 luxury apartments and boasts of terraced gardens but has been adapted to fit in it’s surroundings. Correa’s Kanchanjunga is by far one of my favourite buildings in the city. In the case of Antillia contextual and cultural relations have been sidelined in the need for an iconic structure.

Antillia definitely puts Mumbai on the map of expensive homes but are we proud of this achievement? Everyone is entitled to luxury and comfort but living sustainably is crucial. A diverse design approach is also appreciated but not when it intervenes with pre-existing patterns within the local framework. Sustainability is not just about green roofs and hanging gardens it is also about integrating responsibly within an existing cultural context.

Ritwik Dey is an Interaction Designer. For “Designers as ChangeMakers”, he talks about the sad state of the Indian education system and his struggle with it. He comes from an engineering background and talks about his growth as a designer and his love for information design and data visualization. Amongst other things he talks about his two projects – Mumbai Voices and EMCounter. Both the projects are based on data collection and cater to the needs to the emerging nations. Ritwik works at the digital ad agency R/GA and spends his spare time being a photographer.

Shweta Mudgal is an architect previously working with L&T in Mumbai and SOM in New York City on the Mumbai International Airport. Shweta acquired her BArch in Mumbai and her MArch from Southern California University of Architecture (SciArc).

For the second part of the Designwala feature – ‘Designers as Changemakers‘, Shweta talks about architecture as a profession in India, primarily in Mumbai where she grew up and went to architecture school. Among other things, Shweta brings up the roles that the Indian architects are playing which are primarily elitest. She talks about the divide between urban development projects that aim at creating a better city for all its inhabitants and the commercial architecture specifically aimed at the upper middle class and the rich. She outlines reasons regarding why the architects are building what they are building and how this could change in the future.