Indulge without guilt

A Roberto Cavalli shirt helps puts three square meals on the table. A set of 12 test-tube shot glasses encased in a hand-painted chest gives books to those who want to learn. In a city characterised by a stark contrast between the haves and the have-nots, is it possible to turn the tide? Well, Prabhadevi resident Radhika Dhawan and Cuffe Parade resident Maya Goyel are doing just that.

A non-profit initiative, Back Alley, the brainchild of Dhawan and Goyel, attempts at creating a thrift shop experience with the ambience of a vintage pop souk. Given the plethora of shopping destinations and easy access to designer items, it is no wonder that the city of Mumbai is gradually bearing a resemblance to a giant overflowing closet. But the city is also home to those who, in addition to having a large closet, also possess a heart large enough to give away some of their prized possessions for a worthy cause. This is where Back Alley fits in; receiving goods from the haves and reselling to those who covet them and finally, passing on the benefits to the have-nots.
The goods to be resold this year are mostly crowdsourced and range from new and unused apparel, books, home décor artefacts and more. The proceeds of these will be given to three NGOs in Mumbai—Maharashtra State Women's Council, Rotary Sanskardham Academy and Bal Asha Trust.

So what prompted the two enterprising women to start something like this, we ask. "I wanted to do something for the cause of education and Maya and I came up with the idea of a pop-up shop to resell interesting stuff," explains Dhawan, "We knew that it would help us raise funds and we would ultimately be able to do our bit for society." For Goyel, it was as simple as connecting a resource with a matching requirement. She elaborates, "Radhika is an ace in fashion and I am great at event conceptualisation. What's more, we had so much stuff lying around that we did not know what to do with it, which is when Back Alley came into existence." The third edition of Back Alley, this year, will reflect a middle-eastern pop-souk teleporting visitors back in time. The team takes great care in filtering every product before it goes on sale.

Bal Asha Trust, one of the three NGOs who stand to benefit from the sale proceeds, implement education sponsorship projects for children, whose mothers are single women and the sole bread earners in their families. "Bal Asha Trust is grateful to the Back Alley team for extending support to our cause," expresses Sunil Arora, Executive Director, Bal Asha Trust, "This initiative will create the much-needed funds that will help us provide quality care, including food, medicines and basic education to the children entrusted to us. We are thankful to each visitor who will buy in order to support all the charities."

The best part about bagging a dainty Magpie set or hand-painted ceramic plates is that you're doing it for a good cause. "Back Alley is guilt-free shopping, knowing that the money you're spending is geared towards a good cause," beams Ria Shah, a Khar resident, "Both Radhika and Maya ensure that the product quality is not compromised with. Kudos to them for introducing sustainable fashion."