Old and new clash in rurban Mumbai

The Gaothans, Koliwadas and Adivasipadas may not be the city’s identity markers like the Gateway, but they have first claim to Mumbai, before rapid urbanisation reduced them to colonies within an expanding conurbation. The dwellers of these village sites, however, persist in retaining their subculture. DNA visited some of these rurban areas, or cities within the city, to trace their origin story first-hand and see how the people here are negotiating through life in modern-day Mumbai, which has all but forgotten them. 

Their expectations from the administration hinge on an urge to sustain their identity while the world around them undergoes incredible transformation. The two Gaothans at Kurla and Manori have identical concerns, but distinct ideas of how they should be addressed. While one pines for have better connectivity with the world outside, the other feels it would be content if only it had hospitals and colleges. Both believe the establishment must intervene to preserve their heritage and culture. 

The Koliwada in Worli laments the rupture in the enforcement of laws here. Like Gaothans, it has restricted access to outsiders, to become a locality dense with its own, where civic needs of families with traditional means of living are unmet, and illegal construction proliferates. 

The Adivasipada in Aarey Colony is the most unfortunate. It is the least linked to the city and struggles for bare and basic necessities, like the supply of drinking water.