From Shared Spaces to Shared Struggles: The Political Role of Mumbai’s Chawls

Abstract

Mumbai’s chawls, first built in the late nineteenth century to house mill workers, soon became the heart of the city’s political life. Their shared corridors, courtyards, and proximity to textile mills created spaces where workers not only lived but also discussed their struggles, organized unions, and planned protests. Chawls played a central role in nationalist activities, hosting meetings addressed by leaders like Lokmanya Tilak and Mahatma Gandhi, and became grounds for cultural initiatives such as Tilak’s Ganeshotsav, which carried strong political meaning. These spaces fostered collective consciousness and gave ordinary workers the confidence to participate in larger social and political movements. Over time, chawls became the strongholds of trade union activism, labour strikes, and reform movements that defined Mumbai’s working-class identity. They were central to the rise of the Mill Workers’ Union, the 1982 textile strike, and also provided the setting for Ambedkarite struggles against caste discrimination. Chawls further shaped movements like the Samyukta Maharashtra campaign, where mill workers and residents were at the forefront of protests. By combining lived experiences with political action, chawls transformed from simple tenements into extraordinary centres of solidarity and resistance, leaving a lasting imprint on both Mumbai’s history and India’s larger political journey.