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Journalism of Courage
Love Grove in Worli is all kinds of beguiling. Once a scenic vantage point coveted by honeymooners to view the rolling hills around the city, the spot is the site of a big stink today. It is home to major sewage treatment plants — a crucial element in any polluting megacity — but the loss of its romantic connotations has been lamented over for decades now.
In April 2021, Love Grove got a makeover as a vibrant street art site. Members of the Aravani Art Project painted a mural along the compound wall that stretches out on Dr Annie Besant Road. It’s a sight for sore eyes and tired minds that wait at the traffic intersection.
The Aravani Art Project is a collective of women and transwomen involved in collaborative public art projects across India. Like their other murals, the project in Love Grove is a series of portraits of people who frequent the area. Sadhna Prasad, co-founder of Aravani Art Project, describes the mural as showing “the everyday of the place”. They were invited by public art platform St+Art India, which arranged the logistics, paints and permissions for the mural.
“We celebrate every kind of person that passes by the area. People find someone they can identify with on the mural,” Prasad said. As art director for the project, Prasad designs the murals and they distinctly use geometric patterns and bold colours. The geometric patterns allow for ease of painting.
Seven transwomen from Mumbai and one from Jaipur painted the Love Grove mural, finishing it in about a week. Among them was Deepa Kathare (26), who was born in Worli and is now a Colaba resident. She has been with the Aravani Art Project for five years. Kathare, like many others from the marginalised community, makes a living by dancing and giving blessings at ceremonies and celebrations, such as housewarmings and weddings. “Many know of transgender people as beggars and dancers or sex workers, but they don’t know we paint as well. They are happy to see us do this,” she said.
The mural occupies an interesting space in Mumbai. The traffic intersection has roads leading to some of the richest homes of the elite in the city as well as to Worli Koliwada, home to indigenous fishermen who have been challenging infrastructure projects by the coast. While designing the mural, Prasad acknowledged the communities that exist close by. Koli fishmongers and fishermen are identifiable with their gold jewellery and unique caps. But, Prasad added, that’s not to say that the other portraits in the mural, a woman with a handbag for instance, don’t have Koli roots – this is especially true of a fishing community that has diversified into other occupations today.
“We make portraits, postures and clothes in the mural that people can relate to. It’s a mix of colours and people of the place,” Prasad said. It’s why the mural features portraits of policemen and a postman, made after the person who delivered mail at the sewage pumping station.
Prasad said, “The wall belongs to the people in the area. If they relate to it, they will protect it.”
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