Immerse in this theatre performance by the women from Mumbai's Kamathipura that dives into the meaning of home

Participants draw a map of India during an Independence Day workshop. in Kamathipura. pics courtesy/@_ashwinimane_

The question, "Where do you really feel at home?" can be an open-ended, complex one. Is it the place you were born, the city where you have built a life, or somewhere you are still fighting to claim as your own? For the women at the centre of Jagah, a theatre production being developed by Haan Hum, under Ahead Foundation, the answer isn't easy.

With the sex workers of Kamathipura, space is not just about having a roof over their heads. It is about where they can live, work, travel and gather without being made to feel that they do not belong or cannot occupy these spaces with dignity. This forms the starting point for Jagah, Haan Hum's second theatrical production, currently in its initial stages of development.

A lane in Kamathipura. File pic

For Neethu Venkateshaiah, director of Ahead Foundation, the production brings together 11 participants who have worked with the organisation for five years. Tentatively scheduled to be staged across Mumbai in December, the production has emerged from a repetitive and recurring question of what makes a place truly yours.

"Over the last four to five years that we have been operating in Kamathipura, the question always comes down to Jagah (place). We often don't find spaces for workshops, residencies or even to simply sit down as there is always somebody telling you, you can't stand here, you can't eat here, you can't do your business here, you can't live here," explains Venkateshaiah.

Neethu Venkateshaiah

Developed through the ideology of Theatre of the Oppressed, Jagah uses participants' experiences to examine the circumstances that shape lives. During a recent Independence Day workshop, participants were asked what freedom and, eventually, India meant to them. Their responses echoed ideas of ‘matrubhoomi' and ‘karmabhoomi', freedom, and who got to be independent, alongside one very strong resonant assertion: "Mujhe yaha se koi nahi nikal sakta," translating to, no one can remove us from this place. "We drew inspiration for our work from the participants themselves and the conclusion was to explore the sentence, ‘Mujhe yahan se koi nahi nikal sakta,'" Venkateshaiah points out.

The cast during the rehearsal phase of the play, Jagah

The production will follow the women through spaces that make up their everyday lives - from their homes and spaces such as kitchens and bedrooms to the streets where they work. At the centre is the local train, a complex space for participants commuting from Nalasopara to Kamathipura. As most of them live in places like Nalasopara, Virar and other extended suburbs, the local train is more than a mode of transport; it becomes a common place where stories of familiarity, judgement and belonging intersect as they travel.

For now, Jagah, at its heart, is a simple question: When belonging is constantly negotiated, who gets to decide where we belong - and when does a place finally become home?

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