Overview

Located in the heart of Mumbai, Dharavi is estimated to be the largest slum in Asia. Often referred to as ‘Little India’, it has been home to thousands of migrants from across the country providing opportunities for work and livelihood. As such, Dharavi presents a fascinating paradox: the convergence of stereotypes associated with the slum — poverty and misery — and an effervescent economic vitality, impelled by globalisation and international capital flows. Bringing together 20 years of painstaking fieldwork, this book reveals the social, economic, political, and urban complexities that define Dharavi beneath the shadow of Mumbai, the financial capital of India. It provides a rare account of the slum’s history, with a special focus on the original populace of leather workers — who form the backbone of its urban informal economy — their work, organisation and increasing political awareness. Dominated by a population of ex-‘untouchables’, conventionally stigmatised by poverty and low status, Dharavi illustrates how traditional caste-based occupational and regional divisions continue to be strong and affect structures of political governance and economy. At the same time, it testifies to an intimate encounter with consumerism, liberalisation and technological innovations, and its resultant cultural globalisation under the heady influence of media, advertising and cinema transmitted by the city of Mumbai. This book traces the mega-slum’s gradual transformation as a thriving trade centre, through an informal economy’s successful adaptation to global markets, in turn establishing an urban paradigm. It will be useful to those in sociology, anthropology, urban studies, politics, public policy and governance, and to those interested in globalisation, transnational migration and town planning.

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9781138660328

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Having started her investigations in 1993, she has witnessed the progressive invasion of her research object by journalists, fellow researchers and activists - an evolution she vividly describes. More specifically, her book stands out on three grounds: scope, depth and focus. - Juliette Galonnier, Books & Ideas.net Marie-Caroline Saglio-Yatzimirsky deserves praise for bringing in detail, the social, economic and political dimensions of the attempts to redevelop Dharavi to the fore. Her book matters also for planners, professionals and especially inhabitants of many more slums, in Mumbai and elsewhere. - Hans Schenk, University of Amsterdam (retired), International Institute for Asian Studies Newsletter

Having started her investigations in 1993, she has witnessed the progressive invasion of her research object by journalists, fellow researchers and activists - an evolution she vividly describes. More specifically, her book stands out on three grounds: scope, depth and focus. - Juliette Galonnier, Books & Ideas.net Marie-Caroline Saglio-Yatzimirsky deserves praise for bringing in detail, the social, economic and political dimensions of the attempts to redevelop Dharavi to the fore. Her book matters also for planners, professionals and especially inhabitants of many more slums, in Mumbai and elsewhere. - Hans Schenk, University of Amsterdam (retired), International Institute for Asian Studies Newsletter

Having started her investigations in 1993, she has witnessed the progressive invasion of her research object by journalists, fellow researchers and activists - an evolution she vividly describes. More specifically, her book stands out on three grounds: scope, depth and focus. - Juliette Galonnier, Books & Ideas.net

Author Information

Marie-Caroline Saglio-Yatzimirsky is Professor, Social Anthropology of South Asia, Institute for Oriental Studies (INALCO), Paris.

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