A small facility of Johnson&Johnson produces surgical thread from goat intestines and probably produces the best of its kind surgical thread. The interiors of the laboratory may not be as high tech as one would imagine, but it is as clean as any lab in the world. Now, why must one emphasise on clean? One does, because this facility is located on the outskirts of perhaps one of Asia?s largest slums.
A view of Dharavi from a distance reveals a homogenous sea of thousands of huts, disappearing into the base of Mumbai?s towering skyline in the background. But it?s an economy of far greater magnitude than it appears to be, catering to global industries as well. Precisely what Dharavi: Documenting Informalities brings out.
Incidentally, the production of surgical thread is directly linked to Dharavi?s huge leather industry. In fact, there are a umpteen number of small ?factories? that make this slum a key manufacturing industry zone in Mumbai. Most of the production here is done from homes with families engaging in common investments and producers cooperating with other workshops in the area, providing opportunities in employment to not only the residents, but a lot of other workers who come to work at Dharavi?s many factories every day. The complex arterial lanes of the slum are dotted with hundreds of dingy manufacturing units. Dharavi?s recycling industry is one of its largest and buzzes with activity 24×7. From careful sorting of plastic garbage to the actual process of recycling the plastic into various products and raw material, all is performed within the locale. These are then exported to all over the globe and end up being a part of even high-end products.
The huge leather industry of the area is a story in itself as it is one of the earliest industries to set foot in Dharavi. The processed hides are sold to the national and the international markets and even locally as a production chain of leather goods can be found in Dharavi itself. To the consumers in the extensive global market, Dharavi remains an entity in the oblivion, as the origin of the products is mostly never established. However, with the lack of infrastructure and deplorable conditions, even the most basic laws to prevent pollution and protect the health of the workers and the residents cannot be followed here.
It is then not hard to believe that the pottery and printing industries of the area have national and international customers and other industries like textiles form a considerable part of Dharavi?s total production output.
Dharavi also encapsulates stories of personal dreams, struggle and success. Kanchan could have opened her beauty parlour in other parts of the city, but Dharavi is where she wants it to be and grow. For Kanchan, who speaks perfect English as she once lived in London for several years with her brothers, returning to Dharavi was a natural choice. She feels at home at Dharavi and it is far more convenient for her to run her parlour in the locality, where she and her parlour are popular. So, while products around the world might never establish or boast of their Dharavi connection, the fact is that all of us have at one point or the other inadvertently patronised the ?Made in Dharavi? tag.