The Guts of Mumbai

Staying in South Mumbai during my trip in February, I was looking forward to photographing some of the important but not popular parts of the city - Sassoon Dock, Chor Bazaar and Dhobi Ghat. These three places are not very far from each other. We got up at 4:30 AM to capture the morning sunrise from Sassoon Dock, a very busy wet fish market in Mumbai. The fish consumed in most 5-star restaurants in Mumbai come from this market. Sassoon dock is one of the oldest docks in Mumbai, built in the 1870s by David Sassoon, a Baghdad Jew who was the leader of the Jewish community in Mumbai. The dock is vibrant early in the morning with a mix of vendors, fisherfolk and shoppers. Fish is traded in an auction every morning. I was amazed at the level of participation in the auction by both men and women. The diversity of this market is something to brag about. Women are equal participants in the business and there is a sense of camaraderie among all the people making a living there. I was extremely proud of Mumbai for its display of diversity and the "can do" attitude. Sassoon dock also hosts some great mural art depicting the spirit of Mumbai.

After Sassoon Dock, we went to Chor Bazaar. "Chor"is the Hindi word for "thief". The original name for this market was "Shor" Bazaar. "Shor" is the Hindi word for noisy. The British could not pronounce "Shor", and they changed it to "Chor". During the British rule, sometimes stolen items were sold in this market and the name stuck. It is ironic that the British called this "Chor" Bazaar. Currently this is a flea market for used items, and they are not absolutely stolen! We found an amazing collection of furniture, spare parts, books, fruit and of course local Mughalai delicacies.

Our final destination was Dhobi Ghat. This is one of the largest outdoor laundries in Asia. This place generates approx. 100 crores INR annually and there are approximately 7000 people washing clothes daily for 17-18 hours. This place receives approximately 100,000 clothes daily from all over Mumbai - hospitals, hotels, wedding planners etc. The current day dhobi uses machines to wash, but the entire workflow is managed very efficiently. Working here can be extremely challenging in the humid/hot weather and getting exposed to chemicals all day long.