A blog on Mumbai - the city, its people, its culture. Three of us write here - my daughter Aishwarya, my mom Janaki, and I. If you like something, leave a comment!
- Deepa
The Magic Room is a textiles and crafts store in Sion, which I opened this month.
This pic is from our Navratri Exhbition, when my mother and daughter were both present and we got a 3-generation photo. Of course, I had to put it here!
The Magic Room is social enterprise that supports handmade products from India, with a focus on sourcing fairly from craftspersons, and supporting women entrepreneurs wherever possible. We also have a tailoring livelihood program for women (and men!) from low-income areas of Mumbai.
Do drop in at 331, Champaklal Estate, if you would like to see all the nice stuff we have on offer.
We've all heard stories about exploitative middlemen in Indian agriculture. They're charged with shortchanging farmers, and causing high food prices for end consumers.
I wanted to figure out how agricultural produce makes its way to our local bazaars. Who is in charge of ensuring that the farmer gets a fair deal?
The answer, at least in the 50's and the 60's, came in the form of Agriculture Produce Market Committees (APMCs). Agriculture is a state subject, and several states set up their own APMC Acts to regulate the sale of agricultural produce.
At APMC market yards, licensed agents connect farmers to wholesalers and other buyers. Prices are decided based on auctions, instead of giving the middleman the ability to set the price. APMCs also mandate the use of fair weighing machines, as well as fair payment for loading/unloading labour.
Today there are ~2500 principal APMC markets and ~4800 sub-market yards in the country.
Vashi APMC Market
However, as it turned out, the APMCs weren't as good as envisaged. For starters, the APMCs impose multiple high fees on all actors that operate in them, distorting prices. Farmers often ultimately bear the costs of these levies. The intermediary agents can form cartels. Prices can be manipulated, because the markets function quite opaquely. The market is regulated by the APMC committee, who are elected from the agents operating in the APMC, leading to a conflict of interest.
To encourage states to reform their APMCs, the central Ministry of Agriculture formulated a Model APMC Act in 2003. It requested state governments to amend their laws to bring them in line with this model law.
Some of the suggested reforms in the APMC Model Act include:
1) No more government monopoly on setting up APMCs. Anyone can apply to set up a market
2) Farmers are not compelled to sell in the APMC but can go to any market, outside the APMC, or take up contract farming
3) The Act attempts to better regulate contract farming to give farmers more options
4) The Act also streamlines fees and levies.
Several states are now in the process of amending their acts, though progress is slow. In 2016, Maharashtra for example, exempted farmers from having to sell fruits and vegetables at APMCs, despite opposition from APMC traders.
Some states like Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Punjab and Haryana have experimented with 'rythu bazaars' or 'apni mandis', where farmers sell their products directly to consumers. But not all farmers have the capability to bring their products to urban markets. So the middleman provides a necessary and useful service to them, and the direct-to-consumer model has very limited applicability.
The central government is also working on connecting multiple APMC markets across the country using a single electronic platform called the electronic National Agriculture Market (e-NAM). The e-NAM is still taking baby steps. I wonder how the agricultural markets will evolve in future. More options for farmers and more transparency in general seem like the way to go :)
I had a meeting at the World Trade Centre; and it coincided with the first day of the Paramparik Karigar exhibition. So a bunch of us decided to make an outing of it.
Paramparik Karigar is an association of craftsmen from around the country. It was formed under the guidance of Roshan Kalapesi and Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay (Crafts Council of India). I visit their exhibitions often, because they really bring the best of Indian crafts to consumers. There were so many stalls, each with their own specialty craft or textile. I started to photograph things, but within a couple of minutes, I decided to put my camera away :) and focused on enjoying myself.
Tholu Bommalata of Andhra Pradesh by Sindhe Sriramulu
With Padmashri Laila Tyabji at GV Sarees (Kanchipuram)
Our shopping haul
We ended with lunch at Status, their fabulous thali. Overall, great retail therapy! And here's me, enjoying one of my acquistions, a beautiful organic cotton stole from Khamir. Isn't it gorgeous?
Whenever I go to the markets, I wonder about the women who sit there, running small businesses. What sort of life do they have? How do they survive in the city? Recently I came across this coriander-and-lemon seller.
She was wearing her traditional green bangles and mangalsutra, but she had switched from cotton to synthetic sarees. She probably finds synthetics easier to wash and maintain, especially in the monsoons. And there is less wear-and-tear on the sarees, making it more economically viable.
I tried to imagine what her day was like. She has probably woken up at 4 am, and gone to the big market at Dadar or Vashi or Byculla, to buy at wholesale rates. It is likely that she had no time or inclination to make tea at home. Perhaps the rest of the family was fast asleep at that time. It is likely that she travelled by train, with an empty basket on her head. At the wholesale market, she must have walked around, trying to find a good rate. After buying her stock, she probably stopped to have some sweet milky hot tea.
Then, she must have made the journey by taxi and train, to her little roadside spot in the local market. I tried to estimate what she spends on her commute. Probably around 30 to 50 rupees each day, getting to work and back.
The total stock in her basket is probably worth somewhere between Rs 800 to 1000. If she sells it all, then she will probably make somewhere between Rs 200 to 300 per day. She probably needs to spend around 30 rupees on food, because she leaves home too
early to cook and carry a meal. Perhaps she also needs to spend around
5-10 rupees on using a public toilet. After expenses, finally her profit for the day is unlikely to be more than Rs 100.
She is unlikely to work every day of the month; due to illness, or family constraints, or festive occassions, or village visits. So my estimate is that she earns not more than Rs 2500 per month. Of all the vegetable vendors in the market, the lemon-seller is probably among the lowest earners.
The markets of Mumbai are full of women, with small stalls of their own. Here's a kad-dhanya shop, I think her stock is worth around Rs 5000 (she had lots of stuff under the table as well). She is wearing her traditional khuna blouse, and green bangles, and the tattoos, but her saree is also synthetic. My estimate is that her income is around Rs 4000 per month.
This photo below is actually a temporary shop, which came up in Bhuleshwar around a festival. It's only a day's affair, and she will make probably Rs 500 on this day if she sells all her stock (quite likely). She is also wearing a synthetic saree, as you can see. It is quite clear to me, that cottons are dying out.
Most of the women I see selling vegetables are 40 years or older. I rarely see young women. Perhaps fewer younger women are entering this
sort of business? I will keep my eyes open for younger women, next time I
go to the market. And I will ask some of the older women whether their daughters or daughters-in-law are going to follow in their footsteps.
When a restaurant has only one item on the menu, you know it's got to be something pretty special. Especially if that restaurant was set up in 1897 and has been serving just one item since then!
Ladies and gentlemen, today I give you the 120 year old Mumbadevi Jalebiwala. Makers of the city's most drool-worthy jalebis!
Have you been there yet? Small little blink-and-miss-it place, near the Mumbadevi temple. Can you see the Jalebiwala board in red text in Hindi? Big signboard, but tiny shop underneath. It was a bit of a battle to get there on a busy Saturday evening; but it was worth it!
I got piping hot jalebis. Served with their papdi and papaya chutney. I asked if they would serve us bottled water, they said no. Thums up? Coke? Nope. Only jalebis and papdi. The jalebi still comes on a leaf; the papdi has moved to a recycled paper plate. Go. Eat. Enjoy.
Among Mumbai's many monsoon delights is this - white corn. It has small, dense, white kernels, which are satisfactorily grainy and chewy. It is leagues bettter than the sweet yellow variety that has flooded the market these days.
The masala-bhutta that is made with the white variety is a true delight. The starchy non-sweet white corn really works well with the lemon-chilli-salt rub and makes a big difference in taste. Once upon a time, the thela-walas only sold bhuttas of white corn. But now they've switched to yellow, and very few of them sell white corn bhuttas any more. I was lucky to find this guy near my house; he had both varieties on offer. No prizes for guessing which one I bought.
But really, a few exceptions aside - white corn has more or less disappeared from the market now. There are only a few pockets in the city where they are available - I've seen them at Matunga Market, Bhaji Gully, and BB Dadar.
There are many reasons why the white variety has lost out to the yellow one. The sweeter taste of the yellow corn is popular with everyone. The yellow variety can be grown all through the year; the white one grows only in the monsoons. The white one has only 1 cob on a stalk; whereas the yellow ones, they have multiple cobs on a stalk (increasing the farmer's yield per hectare). The yellow ones are larger in size and heavier - and they also are more consistent in size and weight - so they offer better returns for the farmer.
So what's wrong with the yellow one, you ask? It creates dependence on the seed companies, that's what. Seeds from one year cannot be saved and used for the next year. This yellow variety is "one time only". Means the farmer has to buy seeds each year.
Sigh. I think soon this white one will go extinct. Unless there is customer pull, to bring it back to the market. Join me, won't you? Every time I go to the market, I ask for white corn. So that the shop-keepers know that some people still want it!
Monsoon Treasures Series:
For those who want to see the two previous entries with more monsoon treasures: here are the two links: Part 1 of the story Part 2 of the story
I was walking in BB Dadar today, when I spotted this stall opposite Girgaon Panche Depot. A temporary shop had been set up for the evening, using an upturned fruit crate.
The board says: Alibaug che gaavti kadwe vaal yethey milteel. Bitter field beans, from Alibaug, sold here. The word 'gavti' means rustic. Alibaug is known for these beans.
Vaal are soaked overnight, sprouted, and then the brown covering is peeled to reveal a white inner bean that is slightly bitter. A long-winded process, but there are whole armies of Maharashtrian people who love vaal and think nothing of the effort.
Vaal is used to make various dishes, but one of the most popular ones is valache birde. It's a sort of gravy curry with garlic, chillies, coconut, kokum and spices. Super yummy with hot chappatis. The CKP-style vaalache birde is well known; so if you know someone who is from the CKP community, try and get an invitation for a home-cooked meal :)
My friend Shekhar owns a farm, and they have a tradition of "popti", which is a sort of village style barbecue in an earthern pot. A fire is made with dry coconut fronds, placed upside down. Vaal and various other leguminous pods, pieces of chicken or meat, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and special edible leaves are placed in an earthern pot. The mouth of the pot is blocked with a set of leaves, from the almond tree, and the pot is placed upside down on the fire. Shekhar says "Its a heady meal goes down very well with beer deep into the cold night on a farm" :)
If you walk from Dadar Station to Hindmata, you'll come across this little khau-galli type scene. There are motorbikes and scooters parked in a row, and behind that, under the shade of some trees, you will see a series of bright umbrellas with food carts.
In one of the stalls, there's a vada-pav seller. At first glance, he looks like any other vada-pav guy, selling batata-vada, palak-bhajji etc, but if you have a keen eye you'll soon spot his larger than usual batata-vadas (see them at the back?).
It turns out that those are not your regular batata-vadas at all. What they are, is Inside Out Vada-Paos. This little stall has flipped the regular vada-pao inside out. They've taken the batata-masala, and stuffed it inside a bun. Then they dip the bun in the batter and fry it.
This simple reversal trick has created a delicious Inside-Out Vada Pav, which I have become addicted to. I went shopping with my mom and sister, and stopped to eat it. Then I went with my aunt from Bangalore, and tried it again. And then I went by myself and had it yet again :)
By the way, I've also had a very upscale (and very expensive) version of this is at Masala Library @ BKC. That was pretty awesome too, but it didn't have the crazy chutneys that I got in Dadar. The Inside-Out Vada Pao at Dadar is served with a green chutney and a strange orange chutney. Both are delicioso, but I have no idea what the orangey thing is. It felt like tomato and kaddu and god knows what else. I have to charm the guy into telling me. Usually he is pretty busy and tends to not talk much. I'll report again if I get him to speak :) :)
One of the pleasures of wandering around in winter in Chor Bazaar: this is Hara Chana, roasted in hot sand, over a chulha (wood fire). They're lightly salted. Simple and super-yummy. What a pleasure to eat them hot!
Chickpeas are available all round the year, but usually in dried form. The fresh form is only there in the markets for a few short winter months. Make the most of it! You can make the most awesome chaat with it. You can add it to salads. You can sprout it. In recipes that have peas, you can replace the peas with chana. I'm even putting them in upma. Enjoy :)
It's fun to explore the markets during Diwali. So much buzz! I walked through the area from Plaza Cinema to Hanuman Mandir, then did a short side-foray into Ranade Road.
A few years ago, I clicked this picture of Koli fisherwomen at the Null Bazaar fish market. It was still the monsoon season, but the ban on fishing was over and fresh local catch was coming to the market.
Koli women at their stalls in Null Bazaar
Traditionally the Kolis have a self-imposed ban on fishing in the monsoons; they stop when the rains make the waters too dangerous and rough, and they commence fishing again on Narli Purnima after offering prayers and a coconut (this year Narli Purnima falls on Aug 10).
But there is also an official government ban in place, primarily for fish stocks to recover. June to September is the spawning season for many species. Also the ban helps fish to grow bigger, thus realising higher value when the fish eventually come to market.
Larger catch sizes after the monsoons
Now for the complications: In India, marine resources are a State subject, so each state on the West Coast has a different policy in place. There are different periods of the ban, and also differences in the way the ban is implemented.
Maharashtra, Goa and Gujarat, have a complete ban; i.e. all types of boats are banned from going into the water. But Karnataka, Kerala and Daman allow traditional non-motorised boats to fish during the ban, as well as boats with small motors below a certain engine size.
Non-motorised and motorised boats, Worli Fishing Village, Mahim Bay. They must all be moored during the 2 month ban period in Maharashtra.
Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka this year have fishing bans between June 10 and August 10 (2 months). However, Kerala and Goa have different dates. In Kerala, the ban is from June 1 to July 15, that is roughly 45 days. Fishing this year is banned in Goa between June 1 to July 31 (2 months). As a result of differences in the ban, there are routine complaints from fishermen that boats from neighbouring states are venturing into their waters. There is now a strong demand for a common fishing ban period.
Apart from the seasonal fishing ban, the fisheries departments also have rules restricting the total number of fishing boats, fishing methods and types of gear that can be used in backwaters and shallow inshore waters (some types of gear are particularly damaging to juveniles). Mesh sizes are regulated, and there are also species-wise minimum legal lengths for capture. In some areas, fishing is restricted; and in some other areas, fishing is completely banned as they are declared a Marine Protected Area.
Fisherman showing me catch using large mesh size, Worli
But many of these other restrictions / rules are not implemented in practice; and it is only the seasonal fishing ban which has been consistently implemented in India since the late 1980's. When the ban was initially implemented, studies of catch size and weight in the post-monsoon season showed the benefit of the bans; catch improved significantly. The introduction of seine fishing in the 80's, and its increasing popularity in the subsequent decade (when the fishing bans also came into effect), also helped increase fishing catch enormously.
Seine fishing, or purse-ring fishing. In this method, the boat quickly circles around a school of fish, drops the net, and then the noose is tightened like a purse-string. I clicked this photo in Bekal, Kerala, it is just near the Karnataka border.
In recent years, the catch has tapered off. The reason is not hard to guess: mechanised 'improved' trawling and seine fishing methods are destroying stocks; and even small motorboats have improved their techniques enough to bring in significant fish catches in the monsoons. I read an article recently in the Times, where someone in Goa complained that small boats were bringing in roe-laden mackerel, in the process of spawning.
The solutions are not very clear - it might help to have a longer ban period; consistently implemented across the West Coast, combined with a common set of rules for what types of vessels, gears, fish size etc are permitted. We need, especially, better rules for managing seine fishing and trawling, and we need better policing of the rules (difficult to implement). Alternative livelihood options for fisherfolk during the ban season is another area that needs attention.
I found a fantastic video made by the South Indian Federation of Fisheries, which shows fishing operations on the west coast (Kerala); I have never seen such a fantastic account of seine fishing. It shows how the catch is done, to the fisherman's cries and songs. But it also shows what is happening due to overfishing, and it suggests sustainable ways to manage ring seining. Do watch it.
I took this picture of our neighbourhood poster guy, as he set up his pavement stall in the morning:
In one quick glimpse, I could figure out what people want to put up on their walls:
- Sai Baba of Shirdi
- Hindu gods and goddesses
- Bonny babies (including one baby + cell phone combo)
- Chhatrapati Shivaji
- Body builders
- Unrealistic Landscapes
- Bollywood movie stars
My favourite was this poster of Devi, showing the entire universe contained in her. It has such fantastic iconography, I stood there for a couple of minutes just trying to figure out everything that was going on. I wish I could meet the unknown artist, who put together this dazzling imagery of earth and its creatures, all the gods and indeed, the entire universe, contained in one form.
Here's a closer look at the lower half of the picture: what do you see? I see the natural world; elephants, fish, snakes, cows, swans; I see a thousand references to mythology, each one a complete legend in itself. I can't even begin to describe all of them. Amazing, to just find this on the street. This is what popular culture is about - there are no art curators, there is no knowledgeable prattle, and there are no fancy galleries with their rarified atmosphere. The market rewards the artist who best expresses what people want.
Here is a closer look at the upper half: the style tells me this was produced in the south of India, but I don't know where. If you click on it, you can see a larger version. The navagraha (nine planets) are represented in her eight arms and in her crown (the Sun God is in her crown). The entire universe is contained in her.
I looked more closely, and found that there were two names signed at the bottom: Siva and Jothi. I think Siva is the artist, and perhaps Jothi is the company that produced the poster? That spelling of Siva tells me this is likely from Tamil Nadu, where I see this spelling usually. Whoever it is, I hope they know they are appreciated!
A couple of days ago, I walked through Santacruz Market. It's great for photography, with lots of colour! There's a meat and fish market, a vegetable market, lots of spices and snacks, as well as fabrics and jewellery. I had only a camera-phone and I didn't really photograph everything in the market. But here are some photos of the food section.
Indoor market for vegetables
The fish market was nearby, with a busy looking kolin inviting me to check out the day's catch. There were a couple of men selling dried fish as well.
Neatly slicing with her curved fish-knife
The meat market was gross as usual, dirty and bloody. I walked quickly past it. I think Mumbai customers should make more of a fuss about how the meat is displayed and sold. No wonder people are buying super-market meats! It was a relief to come out to the open street.
General street view: The awnings of the shops offer protection from sun and rain
Jalaram Stores, selling tea-time snacks
Pickle and spice shop
Leafy vegetables being arranged. The daily stock arrives in jute bags and is cleaned and presented on bamboo baskets.
Several spice shops sell fried stuff. This shop had a board advertising various types of fresh-ground flours. Looks like pasta is very popular in Santacruz!
As usual, the most fragrant thing was coriander.
The coriander stall also had fenugreek and mint, as well as chillies, garlic, lemongrass, fresh turmeric, ginger and amba-harad. I was very tempted to buy some amba-harad for pickling, but I had a deadline and lots of other work in the market, so I reluctantly walked away.
The winter fruits were interesting too. They deserve a whole post of their own!
I'm definitely going back to Santacruz Market. Next time, I'll photograph the fabric markets and the little stalls that sell embellishments for sarees and salwar kameez. And I'll see what else I can find. What a fabulous market it is. I think a new bazaar walk may be coming up!
Janaki (centre), with daughter Deepa and granddaughter Aishwarya.
Mumbai Magic is on Nat Geo's Mumbai Destination Guide!
Here's what National Geographic has to say: "Cull cultural tips and highlights from this family's three-generational approach to Mumbai. The insightful photography and anecdotal writings stem from the three women's local expertise."
