Amid redevelopment, Dharavi’s potters refuse to dim Diwali’s light

You can feel the chaos of Dharavi invade your senses way before you actually reach it Standing outside one of the many entry points of Kumbharwada we see men carrying out diyas on their shoulders to the main road and loading them in tempos We also see senior women with paathi basket balanced on the head carrying out 10 to 15 kg of diyas that will light up your homes this DiwaliWe come across Jeevi Bai clad in a red saree and green blouse carrying an empty basket on her head She tells us after pausing for a second to do the math in her head that shersquos 73 Loose skin hangs from her arms hoisting the basket above mdash a testament to a hard lifeJeevi Bai is one of the few women who continues to earn her living transporting earthenware out from deep inside the belly of Kumbharwada ldquoThis is my roziroti I have been doing this since I was strong enough to carry weight on my headrdquo she saysA couple turns freshly made pots towards the sun to dry PicNimesh DaveIn Kumbharwada while the men handle the kiln the job of carrying the wares out into the world falls on the shoulders mdash and heads mdash of the women ldquoThere was a time when anything made here would only go out in our paathi but now we have labour from other states toordquo says Jeevi BaiItrsquos a hard job especially in the blistering October heat but for Jeevi Bai itrsquos a question of survival ldquoAt this age if I didnrsquot need to do it why would Irdquo she asks with a touch of anger to her voiceBoth life and livelihood now seem uncertain amid talk of Dharavi being vacated for redevelopment But the community is putting up a strong front demanding fair terms for their rehabilitation before they give way to the project In June this year surveyors entered Dharavi and the hallowed ground of the pottery makers only to be chased out ldquoDehleez paar nahi karne di they couldnrsquot cross our thresholdrdquo residents told this scribeA cotton base furnace bakes Diwali diyas for over three days the cover is removed and the diyas are rotated to get the heat on all sides PicsArpika BhosaleDespite the bravado they are acutely aware that this could be their last Diwali in Kumbharwada a thought that has cast a sombre cloud on festive preparationsAlthough Diwali is their busiest season the wadarsquos cultural fingerprint is all over the lives of Mumbaikars from birth to death Workshop after workshop has walls lined with pots ldquoYe matke ghar mein bachche ke janam pe aur antim yatra mein dono waqt pe use kiya jaata hai this matka is used when there is a birth as well as in the last ritesrdquo says Adam Kasim Jala who has come together to make a group with other elders of the community that represent the wada in the Dharavi Bachao SamitiJala a cardboard seller is a fifthgeneration Kutchi Muslim whose family came to Dharavi over 100 years ago He is now actively trying to ensure that the redevelopment is fair to the wadarsquos residents and offers alternatives for both their homes and businessesMeena Kumari right Jeevi Bai carries diyas out in a paathi basket to the tempos that will ferry the wares to retail storesThere are around 3500 kumbhar homes in Kumbharwada and over 15000 kumbhars Jala tells us ldquoWe are not opposing the redevelopment but we want it to be fair and profitable to us as wellrdquo he says as he takes us around the wadaWe run into Mansuk Chitroda whose family migrated from Chittorgarh We ask if he is considering returning to his hometown if and when the redevelopment takes place ldquoGo and do what thererdquo he asks ldquoThere is nothing there to go back to in Mumbai you can at least work and earnrdquo he adds as he removes baked diyas from a square furnace which holds at least 50000 piecesIt usually takes a total of 10 days to make a single batch of diyas from scratch informs Chitroda when he is interrupted by an elder who gently reminds him to ensure that all sides of the diyas get even heat in the kilnMansuk Chitroda Mani Ben Adam Jala and Hasmukh ChawdhaldquoWe need it to cool down for at least 24 hours but itrsquos been only 12 hours and there is just too much demand I am beginning to sort out the broken onesrdquo he says with a note of pride creeping into his voice ldquoHardly any are broken because of the way we make itrdquo We look around and hardly witness any broken matka diya or earthenware lying around mdash a testament to the skill that has been passed down through generations therersquos no shoddy craftsmanship and no wasteThe huge brick furnace is fuelled by waste cotton from the mattressmaking market in Dharavi Placed at the bottom of the furnace the cotton scraps are then covered with wooden slats to temper the heat and get it ldquojust rightrdquoIn the cityrsquos collective memory Kumbharwada is a place to get affordable earthenware and a part of Dharavi which has the dubious distinction of the being the ldquoworldrsquos largest slum settlementrdquoJayanti TankBut if you were to visit the wada itrsquos much more than that Itrsquos a community where everyone is on a firstname basis where each personrsquos grandparents were friends with yours Itrsquos a place where young hardworking hands never remain idle Take Ravi Kumbhar who didnrsquot get a chance for much of an education but when he asked around for work he was told that he could help in transporting the wares Jala introduces us to him ldquoHe is supporting his home with this work he has been asking us if we will have work for him if we have to relocaterdquoldquoIski shaadi bhi karwani hai Karni hai nardquo he asks Kumbhar slapping the 29yearoldrsquos shoulder and laughing The youth smiles shyly and rolls his eyes indicating that this is not the first time he has been teased about marriageIn another workshop Jayanti Tank is hyperfocused on his wheel his spectacles inching their way to the tip of his nose until theyrsquore hanging on for dear life It takes us a couple of tries before he even registers our presence ldquoI have been doing this since I was 15rdquo he says when he finally hears our question Tank has a 650squarefoot workshop that he works out of and has his home upstairs that he shares with his wifeBharat Solanki and Jetabhai Ramjibhai MajevaniyaHe has two sons and three brothers all of whom live in their own units in the wada With the family growing he is worried how they will manage if they are given only a single flat ldquoIf my grandchildren marry we can always raise another floor in this house to accommodate the new couples but if I get one flat how will my family my brothers live thererdquo he saysThe worry is writ clear on the faces of the Tank family members even as they carve diyas with their fingers ldquoItrsquos been a bit stressful for us I have refused the redevelopment surveyors access to our home because they are unwilling to tell us anything about how they will allot us homesrdquo says TankAs we head towards another home we run into a small meeting between Hasmukh Chawdha Jetabhai Ramjibhai Majevaniya and Vijaybhai Purshottam Tank who tell us that they too have turned the surveyors away ldquoThere is a bit of fear and uncertainty in the Kumbharwada airrdquo says ChawdaThe Solanki home is known for its water matkas Kanchan and Bharat Solanki are busy making the pots placing the still soft clay inside an iron mould The pots are then slowbaked on over a cottonfuelled fire and then cooledTheir life holds few comforts apart from the solace of community and familiarity with the wada and nearby areas Kanchan is worried about her 22yearold son who has special needs Currently he spends his days at an NGO in Mumbai Central ldquoThey keep him busy right now they are teaching them how to make small towels He travels on his own via BEST buses as of now If we are relocated I am worried about how I will manage to transport him to the centre every day It will be a huge challenge if itrsquos very far awayrdquo he saysWe ask Bharat what his plan is for the future ldquoWhat plan madam Our beginning is Kumbharwada our end is Kumbharwada toordquo he saysldquoIf they ask me to move I will move to the grave onlyrdquo cackles Mani Ben whom we encounter on our next stop ldquoMy left eye has a problem and my hands and legs are giving out ab kahaan jaungirdquoMani Ben and her sister Meena Kumari are the Solanki matriarchs who have both clocked over 70 years living in the area Their hands remain busy while they talk to us painting golden borders on diyas without missing a beat ldquoThe men make the pots or diyas and we decorate them This way we get a decent price and it looks more finishedrdquo says KumariA little way away is Abbas Galwanirsquos workshop where he graduated from regular pots to sixfootandabove versions that are moulded from iron coils Galwani sells each of these mega jars for R50000 to R60000 at his workshop but retailers often hike the price to over Rs 15 lakhldquoI just made one for Shilpa Shetty Many Bollywood actors buy these pots for their homes as do many people with bungalows in Navi Mumbai and Panvelrdquo he saysItrsquos not a simple matter of rehabilitating their setup at another location mdash there is no way to cut copy and paste all that is Kumbharwada Logistics pathways built over 50 to 60 years will be destroyed says Galwani ldquoright from the clay that we source right here to the labour to the kumbhar himself and the trade routes that bring in materials and take out the finished productsrdquoldquoThis is all the result of four to five generations of kumbhars creating those supply lines If they move us somewhere else these trade routes canrsquot be replicatedrdquo adds GalwaniAs we head out we canrsquot but be a little worried about the future of this small hamlet that feels a lot like our own native village The next second we remember that Kumbharwada needs no saviour to fight their battles mdash this is a community that has been here longer than most people in the city The thought fortifies us as does the quiet conviction of those like Veljibhai Bhagwanbhai Jethva who refuses to let anything dampen their Diwali spirit ldquoThis is life and we will face whatever may come But itrsquos Diwali and we will not let anything let us get down We are going to celebrate it like we always haverdquo says JethvaJala is quick to add his two cents ldquoWe are used to living every day as if itrsquos the last You might not find us here next Diwali but in this season of lights we are still hererdquo he says with a shrug and a smile15000No of kumbhars in the wada3500No of homes in Kumbharwada