For the Mule family, life is a precarious struggle. Indeed, the burgeoning slums of Mumbai epitomise the city’s stark inequalities. In the city of towering skyrises, more than half the population lives in the squalor of jhopadpattis (hutments).
At Dyaneshwar Nagar, facilities are sparse. Most women have to queue at the community tap at 4 am since the tap runs dry in a couple of hours. "If you need five buckets, you queue up five times. I spend at least four hours fetching water," says Rajni Tambe, who lives a lane away from the Mule family.
And there are no more than a few toilets for the populace of over 5,000. Most men use the creek nearby. The monsoon is invariably devastating. Last year the situation was so bad that everyone had to desert their homes for a week. But there is no escaping from Dynaneshwar Nagar. With no other option, the Mule family holds on to its space and hopes the demolition squad doesn’t come by.
