EASTBOUND: Slumdogs for millionaires

Arriving in Mumbai by night is exactly as you would picture it. Bright lights, big city. A place shared by slumdogs and millionaires. A dimlighted boulevard crowded with taxis, cows, tuktuks, motorbikes and people connects the airport and Colaba, the touristy heart of city. Tiny cardboard houses of "the pavement dwellers" are put up in front of the molded remnants of impressive colonial British buildings. The crowd is a mix of beggars, sleek touts and trendy young Indians.

In a city of 19.4 million people (the official number, the real population is estimated to be closer to 24 million), 55% lives in the slums which occupy only 8% of the land. It seems that you have not seen Mumbai, if you have not visited its slums. Dharavi, starring in Oscar winning movie "Slumdog Millionaire" is Mumbai's most famous slum. With its million inhabitants it is a city within a city, one unending stretch of narrow lanes and cramped huts, shops and schools.

Picture by Andreas Grosse-Halbuer

There is an ongoing debate about slum tourism or "slumming". Apparently, there is evidence that the slum experience has perpetuated social motivation to do good and has prompted political demands for greater social justice. Critics argue that the dignity of slum dwellers is violated by the tourist gaze. Taking a tour with Reality Tours (www.realitytoursandtravel.com) seems a smart option. Before bringing in any tourists, they got the informal consent of the community which also increases the safety of the tourists. There is a strict "no camera" policy (understandably, but torture...the place is so photgenic) and 80% of the profits go back to the slums in the form of a school and training centre for young adults.

Picture by Andreas Grosse-Halbuer

Picture by Cory Goldberg

Dharavi has severe problems with public health, due to the scarcity of toilet facilities. There is only one toilet per on or about 1,500 residents. The local river is widely used by local residents for urination and defecation, leading to the spread of contagious diseases. In other respects the slum is thriving, with schools, shops, mobile masts, electricity and running water (for part of the day). It is surprisingly clean, nothing like the open sewer in Varanasi. The people are busy and smiling. An annual turnover of 665 million rupees a year is made by recycling plastic, oil and paint containers, aluminum and other garbage. Dharavi is India's second largest exporter of goat and sheep leather. Dolce & Gabbana and Prada are their customers. Slumdogs for millionaires.

It is definitely an eyeopener and very different from the depressing townships I have seen in Africa.