Kamathipura — Asia's Reddest Light

Our first ever field trip as student reporters was to Kamathipura—(in)famous for being Asia’s largest red-light district, and one of the world’s largest too. 

Our task was to find a certain Ramabai Chawl. 

Kamathipura is an amalgamation of 16 narrow lanes sandwiched between Grant Road and Byculla-Mazgaon district of Mumbai, and the first thing that hits you when you enter it is claustrophobia.

(click to enlarge)

The lanes are so cramped with illegal encroachments, vehicles, garbage and people that we couldn’t help but get the feeling that we’re in a dirty, dingy maze with no way out. So we were quite amazed to actually see Ganpati pandals being constructed in the middle of the lanes and multi-axle buses making their way through.

One of the lanes (click to enlarge)

The lanes are bordered by two-three-storeyed houses and buildings—most of which were in a dilapidated condition, but still bustling with activity. Some, or probably many, of these buildings were brothels. The prostitutes could be seeing loitering around on the verandas and on the streets, looking to entice their customers.

One of the bigger chawls (click to enlarge)

As we made our way deeper into the maze looking for a seemingly inexistent Ramabai Chawl, we were amazed by the amount of activity transpiring in front of our eyes.

Small tapris were preparing their iftar menu; hawkers were hawking everything—from condoms to combs; small toddlers were defecating in the middle of the streets, while their elder siblings were harassing the stray dogs; some people had placed themselves down in a corner of the street to gamble, while a lottery waala walked around offering them another means to earn a quick buck.

The activity transpiring in closed doors goes without saying.

As we scoured the lanes one-by-one looking for the chawl (we did not have a lane number), we came to realize the might of the maze engulfing us.

No two people had the same opinion about the whereabouts of the said chawl. Some people tried to flaunt their proficiency in the English language, while others babbled away in Bambaiya Hindi.

There was even a disparity among the residents regarding the number of lanes in the area. The range given to us was from 13-16. Without a lane number, it was like looking for a needle in a haystack.

A witty shopkeeper enlightened us with the fact that the area was also called Hairan Galli-Pareshan Mohulla.

After giving up all hopes of finding dear Ramabai, we made our way into Arab Galli—a predominantly Muslim area on the outskirts of Kamathipura. The galli was even narrower than the lanes of Kamathipura, but the activity was the same.

Arab Galli (click to enlarge)

As we walked down the galli, we saw an elderly man running a laundry who was feeding his two multi-coloured birds.

Basha Sattara, 51, resident of the nearby Bapty Road, is originally from Bangalore but was born and brought up in Bombay. He has been running his laundry which backs up into his home for the last 30 years.

Mr. Sattara (click to enlarge)

Mr. Sattara receives about 50-60 clothes per day and earns around Rs. 15,000 per month. He also has a helper who aids him in running the laundry.

Mr. Sattara, a Sunni Muslim, told us that in spite of being located in Arab Galli, he did have a few non-Muslim customers too.

Right across Mr. Sattara’s laundry is the Fauziya Maternity and Nursing Home.

Dr. Faraz Mohammed Ijaz Aftar, a young Resident Medical Officer (RMO), practices here in the general ward. His expert opinion is open for all and he deals with a variety of cases and diseases—malaria and typhoid being the protagonists.

The 23-year-old Sunni Muslim hails from the Buldhana district of Maharashtra’s Amravati region resides near Noor Hospital and earns Rs. 10,000-a-month. He speaks English, Hindi and Urdu.

A few paces down the road, Mohammed Nasser works as a cook at the Qureshi Catering House. While he prepares the iftar meal, he tells us that he originates from Delhi and currently resides at Daud Baug on the nearby Sukhlaji Street.

The 30-year-old’s wages vary from anything between Rs. 3000-5000 per month depending on his performance. He speaks Hindi and Urdu.

Such is the contrast in the lives of people residing in and around the Kamathipura area of Mumbai. It is a melting pot of vocation, religion, caste, language, etc…but it is a smooth-running machine.

(click to enlarge)

Most of the residents have been living here for years and years, they belong to different communities and backgrounds, but they live in harmony with each other. They might hurl expletives and something more at each other from time-to-time, but you may be rest assured that they’ve got each other’s back.