The idea of community profiles emerged out of the tremendous support received from the youth of Dharavi. Whilst their involvement was informal, through the process the Mythologies of Mumbai team realized that each of these individuals had stories of their own; they belonged to groups with unique characteristics, history, traditional occupations, religious and political affiliations.
It was this that prompted us to undertake profiling based on these very aspects, especially the occupational sectors, given that Dharavi has a huge informal employment sector. The Mythologies of Mumbai team has created 23 community profiles in Dharavi. The team conducted interviews, profiled communities through mapping and clicked photographs of specific communities over regular intervals. The aim is to track the changes in the social fabric of the area and get a sense of the changing attitudes to traditional occupational forms.
* The information has been gathered through personal interviews of local residents of the 23 communities in Dharavi.
