Talk:Chawl

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I am editing this article a bit. Perhaps, someone can help here. Can we ascertain which areas of India are involved, and what happened after the 1980s. Also I m not sure what the situation with the bathrooms is. Did people take care of their bathrooms, take pride in them or were they trying to have their own bathrooms? Dieter Simon 00:16, 26 Jan 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Answers to Dieter Simon's Questions

1. "chawl" is a Marathi word. Although similar tenements exist in other Indian cities, the word chawl is used only in Mumbai (Bombay).

2. I don't agree that a major change took place in the 1980s. New construction dating as early as the 1950s showed a departure from the minimalist chawls. That is when we see the emergence of apartment buildings with each apartment having its own toilet.

On the other hand, the old chawls have not simply vanished or been abandoned. The need for space and the cost of tearing down / rebuilding are just too great. Another hurdle is the often-contentious relationship between landlords and tenants.

I grew up in a chawl, and my family still lives in one. So, chawls are definitely still a fixture of Mumbai life.

3. As for the latrines - far from there being any pride in them, there was a certain resigned acceptance and rather too much neglect. The latrines in the chawl where my family lives, were unlit until well into the 1980s when an active tenant association was formed and it took over the upkeep that was neglected by the landlord. The latrines were supposed to be maintained by the cleaners hired by the landlord, and I suppose they did whatever they could. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough and the latrines were quite unclean.

On the other hand, the latrines were "public" and so no one took "ownership" of them. They were used by people who did not live in the chawl - including itinerant vendors of vegetables, "servants" - the workhorses who washed the dishes and clothes of the tenants - and even mendicants and street performers who passed through. In a sense, the latrines were an uneasy equalizer.

I disagree with the statement that chawl inhabitants belonged to the lower economic stratum. At the time the chawls came into existence, the inhabitants were solidly middle class and included teachers, bank employees, and accountants (among others). As time went on, the common latrines made chawls an undesirable option, especially for newcomers to Mumbai who had newer apartments available - albeit much farther from the city center.

The people who lived in chawls continued to live there for several reasons.

First, they loved the proximity to downtown Mumbai, for it meant shorter commutes to work and an escape from the monumentally overcrowded local trains.

Second, many people saw the pluses of living in a chawl. They had easy access to all the cool Mumbai spots - the beaches, public gardens and parks, movie theatres that screened the better Hollywood films, the British Council library and so on.

Third, the rents were much more affordable than what would have to be paid to purchase an apartment in the suburbs.

But as families grew, first one son and then another would per force, end up buying a flat in the suburbs and moving on / out.

The last 10-15 years have seen a construction boom in Mumbai. Old chawls that sit on prime real estate are being torn down and high rise apartment buildings built in their place. The good news is that the rights of the tenants are protected because they are entitled to an apartment in the new building. So, after decades of staying put and making do, the tenants are seeing their fortunes turn for the better.

Finally, the Marathi play "Batatyachi Chawl" epitomizes chawl living in even the minutest detail.

NandiniP 12:47, 2 October 2005 (UTC)