Mumbai: Dharavi & Bandra

Day 1 of 2 in Mumbai.

Once Insignia was tied up at its berth at the Port of Mumbai, we geared up for the required face-to-face immigration formalities in the terminal. Frankly, I was dreading it. On RTW2017 these same formalities had taken three hours in Cochin … the first port of call in India on that voyage. How long would it take here?

The good news? While the process was tedious, and included stamping passports, fingerprinting, and photographing our mugs, and Pat had to return from the gate to the terminal to get her landing card stamped (after the guard in the terminal told her she didn’t need a stamp), the process took only about an hour. We were just 30 minutes behind our tour schedule when we left the port with our guide, Husaina.

For today’s tour, we were joined by Sonia & Boris and Pat & Norm. We’d all done the typical Mumbai tour and the trip out to Elephanta Caves previously, so I had booked something called “Bandra — from Village to Metro — and the Spirit of Dharavi.” I had also specifically requested Husaina, who had guided us in 2017. Once again, she was fantastic.

Today being Sunday, Husaina suggested we start in Dharavi, a suburb of Mumbai that is considered to be one of the largest slums in the world.

Established in 1884 — during the British colonial era — nearly 1,000,000 people live and work in an area that is less than 1 square mile in size. Husaina described it as a township … one that has been used as the setting in one scene in “Slum Dog Millionaire.” Our Dharavi guide would later explain that they don’t like the movie because a lot of artistic license was taken and the portrayal of the township is nothing like actual life here.

The tour write-up described Dharavi as the “Third Face of Mumbai.” Not the rich and glitzy Mumbai. Not the world of beggars. Dharavi is the place of the hard-working poor … with a fierce drive for survival and self-improvement. It’s a place where small industries — mostly based on re-cycling what everyone else throws away — have created an estimated economy worth $1 Billion!!!

We had a fascinating walk along the narrow roads of Dharavi, escorted by our “student guide,” Mustafa … born and raised in Dharavi … just as his parents and grandparents were before him. Our tour was not a commercial one. Meaning that the money we paid for it did not go to the tour operator. Rather, it went to the Dharavi community … in particular, to the student guides for their continued education.

During our wander, we saw how self-sufficient the community is. Everything they need is available right there in Dharavi. From homes, to shops, to hospitals, to places of worship, to restaurants and cafes. Anything you can think of … it’s there.

Everyone works … no one is lollygagging. Skilled workers can earn 12-15 dollars a day; the unskilled earn 6-8 dollars per day. Some of the people who live and work in Dharavi have become quite rich and could move out into more comfortable communities. Yet they opt to remain in Dharavi because it is their way of life.

We saw how plastic is recycled into pellets that are then made into bottles and such; how old appliances are taken apart to fabricate and sell new ones; how fabric remnants are sewn into clothing that is then sold to name brands that put their own labels and $$$$ price tags on them; how pottery is made using a hand wheel (motorized ones are also available), dried under the sun, baked in community kilns, and finished with decorative painting. And more. And all these industries have support industries and shops … such as thread shops that support the apparel makers, just to name one.

Yes, life in Dharavi is not up to the standards we might hold. But it is filled with industrious people making a living instead of waiting for a handout. Husaina had said at the outset that what we saw would make us rethink the definition of a slum. It has.

This was an eye opening and fascinating tour. One that had a surprise ending when we ran into a Dharavi wedding party. They welcomed photos. Soon we were dancing along the street with them as they invited us to join in the celebration.

(With the exception of the wedding party, no photos are allowed within Dharavi as the people value their privacy.)

Frankly, after Dharavi, the Bandra portion of the tour paled in comparison for me. But, before getting to that part of our day, we had a delicious lunch at the Salt Water Café.

Bandra, is known as the “Queen of the Suburbs. It’s not explored much by international tourists. In fact, we saw very few non-Indians on the streets. Its history dates back to the mid-1500s when the Portuguese gave the Jesuit priests several islands, including Bandra. Some of the churches built at the time are still in use today. Until the causeway was built, the community was a village of plantations … rice and vegetables. With the rise of Bollywood, it became the home of movie stars. Today, it is a fashionable address for the younger, hip population.

Our meander took us to Mount Mary’s Church, and then to the Bandra Fort nearby. Then we went for a stroll around one of the few original Portuguese hamlets. Here we were introduced to the “ice apple” … an interesting nut with 3-4 fruits that look like a clear jelly … Mui said it would be refreshing if eaten cold.

It was 5:00p by the time we negotiated the “no-traffic” — at least compared to what it would be like on a weekday — and found ourselves at the port.

Once again pulling out the landing cards — the size of an A4 paper — we showed them to the guards at the port gate. And again to the guards at the terminal. Considering how many times those permits have been folded and unfolded today, I think we need to put them in a clear document protector or they will be in tatters by the time we leave Cochin on 4 May!Read more