Chawls in Girangaon, a mill locality in central Bombay, were built for the purpose of housing textile mill workers in the early twentieth century. These chawls were built both by private builders or property owners, mill owners as well as the government. Thus there are several building typologies that are considered as chawls, each representing the different communities that reside in them. Characteristic features of these chawls are shared social spaces and resources meant for the entire community of residents.
The following images have been taken from the archives of PUKAR, Partners of Urban Knowledge, Action and Research. They are part of a project carried out by PUKAR called ‘Mythologies of Mumbai, archiving the mills, chawls and communities that constituted Girangaon’. For further information, visit http://www.mapmythologies.pukar.org.in/