photoessay

No matter how tall its skyscrapers or pungent the sea's odour surrounding it, Mumbai, or any city, can be narrowly viewed as just an island that operates on its stomach. It has many mouths to feed and produces very little of it. It serves as a destination, port, and junction for things that pass through to other places with mouths to feed. The city is of the stomach, by the stomach, for the stomach. Everything we do, we do it for food. Here is a window into a few prayers, search, fuel and labour that goes into the food the…

Dharavi, Asia's largest slum is in the heart of Mumbai. Spread over 535 acres, approximately 8.5 lakh people live in approximately 55,000 dwelling units in Dharavi with a population density of 3.4 lakh per square km. One of the many communities, living in Dharavi for decades, is the traditional potters community. 'Kumbhar' means pots and 'Wada' means colony. Dharavi's Kumbharwada is where the magic of clay has been happening for decades together. Kumbharwada occupies about 12.5 acres in Dharavi, and is home to 500 potters’ families. A well-settled and internationally famous colony, however, struggles during the rains. Production reduces drastically…

Mumbai's monsoon season is a spectacle of natural beauty and vibrant celebrations. As the dark clouds gather overhead and the first droplets of rain descend, the city undergoes a magical transformation. The monsoon showers bring respite from the scorching summer heat, refreshing the city with their cool embrace. Monsoon in Mumbai is not just a season, but a celebration in itself. Mumbaikars eagerly wait for the arrival of rains. Children are the most excited to drench themselves in the drizzle, their laughter blending with the sound of the rhythmic pitter-patter. "Clouds bring with them a lot of rain and I…