Mumbai through a blind man's eyes

What is it like to be blind in a city known for its potholes dugup roads collapsed flyovers savage traffic rotting garbage heaps and suffocating crowds for the last 40 yearsIm talking about Mumbai of course a city that has looked ruined and bombed out as long as Ive lived here Roads are perpetually potholed and under repair flyovers collapse pavement are always being dug up for laying one cable or another mounds of garbage fester in the middle of thoroughfares scavenged by stray dogs cats crows and cowsWhat if you had to move this nightmare city completely blind In February 1991 I blinded myself for a week to find out the answer Entering the dark black world of the blind meant taping circles of black cloth large enough to block out most of the even peripheral vision over both closed eyesI had spent a week at the National Association of the Blind in Worli learning the basics of pathfinding with the redandwhite cane used by the blind There wasnt much to it you sweep side to side about a foot in front of you to detect obstructions I practised for several days in the corridors of the NAB itselfThey say that when you shut off one sense others develop to compensate In my case I realised that my skin specifically on my cheeks and nape had become extra sensitive to light heat and air A tingling warmth I felt on my skin would tell me I was near a window or doorI started my day at Worli near what used to be the passport office one of Mumbais most crowded spots then with vendors bus stops and passport and visa seekers With me was a photographer but we had agreed that she would stay at a discreet distance behind or in front of me intervening only in an emergency If I stumbled she was not to come to my helpOver three days I travelled sightless through Mumbai by bus train and on foot from Churchgate and Worli to Dadar and Matunga I did not bump into anyone though five sighted people collided with me I somehow managed to get about feed myself and enter and exit a local train at peak hour But by the end of the day I was a quivering clammy wreck of raw nerves I learned not how handicapped I was but how handicapped Mumbai was in providing for its most vulnerable populationsId never thought having a Udipi dosa and coffee could be so traumatic My snack arrived on a wobbly plate clearly not designed for a blind customer which rotated arbitrarily each time I touched it shifting chutney and sambar I groped for the sambar missing it spilling it soiling my clothes quaking with anxietyAt the counter I realised I had not organised my money All the currency notes felt alike as did many coins People stepped up to help my money was taken from my hands and counted back to me and the restaurant paid somehow If any of them had pocketed some notes I would never knowOf all venues in Mumbai none has people more selfobsessed than at a public toilet When I found one in the afternoon bladder bursting I was savagely pushed aside or crashed into by more people in five minutes than in the entire day A blind man has no way of knowing when he is standing exactly in front of the urinal or whether he is aiming correctly Peeing is Russian rouletteBy evening at Churchgate station I was amidst the worst crowd of the day with no one apparently concerned or even aware that I was blind My cane was of no use I had no way of knowing when I was too close to the platform edge Worse if the empty space in front of me turned out not to be the door into the train but the empty space between coaches Id only find out when I fell on the tracks Fortunately just then the train clanked in I was helplessly swept into it by a tidal wave of passengers like a leaf in a stormMy experiences as a blind man in Mumbai were printed in the Indian Express and triggered a flood of responses from both blind and sighted persons pointing out a slew of ways in which Mumbai could be made friendlier for the sightless leading to an ambitious twoyear project called No BarriersForty years later Mumbais environment is if anything worse for its residents both blind and sighted Next weeks column will dig deeper into how Mumbais issues of civic access have turned it into a lethal city not just for its blind but also its children elderly and sightedHere viewed from there C Y Gopinath in Bangkok throws unique light and shadows on Mumbai the city that raised him You can reach him at cygopigmailcom Send your feedback to mailbagmiddaycomCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates