Day 3, October 10, 2014

Dharavi Clinic

Today I visited the Dharavi clinic.  This is the third clinic that Barefoot has produced and it is located in the slums of Dharavi.  To read more about this part of the city you can click on the Wikipedia link. This clinic is located in one of the most famous slums.  As a foreigner it is difficult to set up shop in this closely protected community.  Barefoot was invited and sponsored there by a few of the Jain merchants.  Without them, this project would not have been possible.  

There are some companies that give tours of the slums and indeed in one of my posts from my first visit to Mumbai, I took that tour.   It was well executed and informative.  However, there is nothing like knowing that you are a part of it somehow, now working with the people.  As a foreigner, it is not really accepted to walk around there unattended.  And even less so to take photos as it was not allowed in the tours.  However, I was very grateful for the personal guide who was one of the patients and permission to take photos.  

The energy here is really incredible.  It is alive and thriving and this is just a normal day for them.  Businesses are busy and people are visiting amongst themselves.  I've never seen this in the US, not of this magnitude.  And there is something wholesome about seeing the children mixed in with the elderly and merchants of every possible trade.  

Here, people are making shoes, selling saris and jewelry, weaving textiles, pottery, tanning hide, making soap, recycling plastic.  The enterprises here are tremendous, estimated to be worth at least 500 million dollars annually.  The next time I see an item labeled, "made in India" I will certainly be thinking of these people as it is likely that some aspect of the finished product passed through these people's hands.  I do wish that working conditions were safer and sanitation revamped.  And for all the money that is coming through, how much of it ends up with the workers?

The guy in the yellow shirt on the right side was my guide.      

Life here is extremely difficult and labor intensive.  I would never romanticize this lifestyle and yet I have tremendous respect for these people.  They have found a way to live together and a way to survive.  Also, I often think of the women who have to clean their homes daily, cook meals, wash clothes by hand, care for the children, and care for the parents.  

Children are safe here.  The community looks out for them.  It is common to see the children running about on their own or in groups.  This is the same for the elderly.  While it is a great responsibility for the adult children to care for their elderly parents, it doesn't seem to be questioned, but rather expected.

The clinic is a joy to work in.  The floors are covered in polished white marble.  The windows being on the second floor look out over the alleys.  The patients sit quietly in the waiting room and the atmosphere is cheerful and steady even with a stream of people coming in and out.  

Satish started the morning with a meditation that included the patients.  I have to start doing that in my own office.  It was a great way to set the mood for the morning.  Thank you, Satish!  

Tomorrow, I will cover Satish and Vrushali.  I interviewed them this morning and need to get my notes together before writing.  Stay tuned!