Spatiality of Roughness & Softness on Streets (Mumbai) by Yash Bhandari

SPATIALITY OF ROUGHNESS/SOFTNESS OF STREETS

Thesis

School of Environment

Architecture

Architectural by Yash Bhandari

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the dissertation entitled “Spatiality of Roughness/Softness of streets”

Is the work of Yash Bhandari whose signature appears below as an author. The author certifies that this is the original work carried out by the author and is not paraphrased, copied in whole or in part (except for those statements and graphics mentioned along with references), or submitted in any form to any other institution for the purpose of obtaining an academic degree.

The Supervisors, whose names and signatures appear below, confirm and certify that: the above-mentioned dissertation is the original work of the above-mentioned author; it is carried out under their supervision; and, the work is of acceptable quality necessary for partial completion of the course to obtain the Bachelor of Architecture Degree. The External Examiners whose names and signatures appear below confirm and certify that: they have evaluated the author’s work in a Viva-Voce; and, that the work is of an acceptable quality necessary for partial completion of the course to obtain the Bachelor of Architecture Degree. The Director, whose name and signature appear below, certifies that the supervisors and external Examiners are appointed by the School of Environment and Architecture for the purpose of mentoring and evaluating the above-mentioned work. Based on the evaluation of the supervisors and external examiners, the above work is acceptable for the partial completion of the course to obtain the Bachelor of Architecture Degree from the University of Mumbai. Author

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Acknowledgement

This research and thesis would not be possible without the constant help and support of my friends, family and faculty at the School of Environment and Architecture(SEA).

I take this opportunity to thank my parents for their support and for inspiring me, which has allowed me to fulfill this venture. I am grateful to them for providing me with all the resources and tools that helped make my thesis possible.

I would also like to thank my mentors Prasad Shetty and Vastavikta Bhagat, for their efforts in guiding and pushing my questions and thoughts to new extents.

To all the faculty, the staff, my friends (Preet Waghmare, Kalyani Wadhai, Paras Burande, Rishabh Chajjer, Jayesha Chimanpure & Akanksha Thakur) as well as other acquaintances at SEA, I thank you all for your moral support and guidance over the past five years. Our continued conversations, teachings, knowledge, and work methodologies helped me shape my own

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Streets are and have been for most of us places of varied activities, they consist of an array of events which blur its identity altogether, especially streets in India. Uneven street edges, Construction in between streets, dug up sewers, potholes, garbage dump, collision of various activities and events and overall rigidity of emotions of oneself is what sums up understanding of this thesis and this phenomenon could be termed as “Roughness.” Roughness could be perceived through various modes and at various places. In order to understand this phenomenon if the reader would situate themselves in the given space.

Throughout the thesis while analysing rough edges/spaces, one comes across few nodes where halting, stopping, diverting allows newer possibilities, the experience enhances one’s behaviour this could be termed as’ Slowness is defined as ‘The quality or state of being slow - roughness appears to induce slowness.

In the context of public spaces/streets slowness could be, while defining roughness we come across specific terms such as ‘halts, obstructions, diversions, blurry edges, events etc’. These instances may stand out as interruptions to the user but they become these spots of commerce, leisure where varied transactions take place. These spots/nodes allow newer possibilities, newer forms of architecture to evolve, sustain into narrow, crooked, limited spaces.

In this study the spatiality of the street appears to be that of a spongebeing able to absorb activities and lives through its corrosions. In many ways this is the softness of the street.

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Abstract

1. Introduction

1.1 Poor Street conditions , uneven pavements, abundance of activities lead to an uneasy or rather discomforting environment, Behavior Patterns

1.2 Edge / threshold conditions (spatiality) of a street shapes experience (Behaviors)

1.3 To map the relationship between the street edges / threshold conditions and the behaviors they generate

2. Literature Review

3. Operational Concepts

1.4 Roughness

1.5 Slowness

1.6 Mixed Use

1.7 Practice & Claim

1.8 Spill-over spaces

4. Research

Methodology

1.9 How do spatialities of roughness of streets affect their experience?

1.10 Observing daily commuters, mapping movements, Case studies

5. Research Findings

1.11 Case 1.Hanuman Road (Akurli, Kandivali East)

1.12 Case 2. Null Bazaar (Bhuleshwar, Charni Road)

1.13 Case 3. Kalbadevi (Churchgate)

1.14 Case 4. Station Area (Dadar)

1.15 Case 5. Station Area (Borivali)

6. Analytical Framework

1.16 Behaviour Analysis

1.17 Movement Analysis

7. Conclusions

1.18 Softness

1.19 Re-imagining Streets

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Fig 1.

INTRODUCTION

~ “This place feels too filled-up for any more people to squeeze in, and yet anyone can find a foothold here. Some come here to display, others come as spectators. Even when bodies are still, eyes travel. Everyone seems propelled forward by the movement of all the others around them. In a crowd it isn’t forbidden to follow the gaze of another, to go where someone else may be going. It’s as if the entire city is out on the streets. If night were not to fall, the thought of returning home may not occur to people for days.”.

~ (Eleven Streets).

Streets are and have been for most of us places of varied activities, they consist of an array of events which blur its identity altogether, especially Indian streets. Uneven street edges, Construction in between streets, dug up sewers, potholes, garbage dump, collision of various activities and events and overall rigidity of emotions of oneself is what sums up understanding of this thesis. It started during my commute between Borivali link road & Dahanukar Wadi metro station where there were a lot of activities, rather abundant or overlapping events which affected this commute and at times made me feel disoriented or restless, it affected behavior and ability to move. The space felt overpowering that movement was governed by them

This commotion also enhanced the way one performed, overtaking, shifting to the wrong way just to get out of that congestion, revving through small patches or gullies formed through such traffc.

The factor to be considered here is that these were peak summers of May, so riding a motorcycle with helmet on was in itself a task, the continuous glare and humidity just added to the discomfort of the journey. There were instances where people were seen galloping and rushing in between roads and pavements due to various storefronts occupying the sidewalks, gutters being dug out, cows crossing the streets, milk vans unloading crates of milk bags onto the edges, etc.

To juggle through these events as well as maintaining the ride drained out the user and at times also created an image of these places. So it became inevitable for daily commuters to drive properly, people would rush through these streets as fast as possible, which lead to traffcjams,congestions,quarrels,rashdrivingas well as increased the possibility of accidents over this patch

Over a period of time such events took place on almost every street, similar pattern, the sidewalk condition, street edges either on or near. It interested me to ask. Why?. That a planned space like the Link Road is not able to adhere to such conditions? To occupy these events and activities, to allow such occurrences to prosper.Similar instances were recorded on Hanuman Road at Akurli, Kandivali. Here the street almost completely disappears due to overlapping instances and events.

Similarly on a street, where simple act of walking or driving is layered with such activities/ events nuances, which changes or defines its identity, allows newer possibilities to happen

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Fig 1.1

RESEARCH CONCERN

*POOR STREET CONDITIONS , UNEVEN PAVEMENTS, ABUNDANCE OF ACTIVITIES LEAD TO AN UNEASY OR RATHER DISCOMFORTING ENVIRONMENT, BEHAVIOR PATTERNS

The sidewalks become more public as compartments or patches occupied by store owners, Hawkers, beggars . so the basic task of walking becomes restricted or unfamiliar. Also there was this peculiar force which affected certain actions and behaviors in certain places. Like the masses residing or claiming some patches of the street seem to be governed by actions based on morality, societal acceptance, preconceived notions etc. which would indirectly segregate or exclude someone based on certain activities the person is doing. These actions would also blur this realm of public space . Along with them also certain events alter user’s movement for eg, a police car parked near a pan shop or a guard standing outside a society gate, A homeless person sleeping naked on road divider, An ambulance passing by, street side temple, a public festival, A procession (marriage, death, religious, community based events, protests ) etc, therefore Poor Street conditions , uneven pavements, abundance of activities lead to an uneasy or rather discomforting environment, Behavior Patterns

PROBLEM STATEMENT

*EDGE / THRESHOLD CONDITIONS (SPATIALITY) OF A STREET SHAPES EXPERIENCE (BEHAVIORS)

Streets are defined on the basis of visibility both from a distance and up close, accessibility plays an important role here for parking turnover and ideal for public transit, walking and biking and one of the most important factors being convenience in going from point A to point B smoothly.

Observisnng & experiencing these streets by walking on them on an everyday basis and also at different times of the day, Such instances of storefront goods on sidewalks, abandoned vehicles, or occurrences were altering or affecting people’s behavior and movement patterns. people were seen jumping/shifting up and down the pavements onto the street and at times completely disconnected from the sidewalks and walking all over the street. Even if a person decided to maintain their route on these sidewalks they were directed to the street . What was causing this and how was this affecting one’s behavior?. What was this invisible dialect between oneself at the street condition which made them perform differently? Is where the aim lies. Also to understand this phenomenon/condition of the street.

OBJECTIVES

*TO MAP THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE STREET EDGES / THRESHOLD CONDITIONS AND THE BEHAVIORS THEY GENERATE

As a method for mapping the street taking strolls in areas with high density footfall and noting down observations. So as to get a Point of view in terms of movement and behavior. Further developed a narrative through photographs and videos concerning walkability.

In my study I came across a bunch of instances where certain events which were acting as practices to initiate a change in behavior and movement patterns. These triggers were an outcome of practice, territoriality, habit, claim, affordances and physicality and the outcome was mixed use of spaces, congestion, change in environment hence directing users movement.

Talking about movement ,to understand how to map them and on what basis, so to link them with the spatiality of these streets and what output/solution could evolve through them to maintain ease of commute. This would also determine the functionality of the place along with future strategies to be considered when designing these elements of streets

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OPERATIONAL CONCEPTS

*ROUGHNESS

Roughness could be perceived through various modes and at various places. In order to understand this phenomenon if the reader would situate themselves in the given space.

Let’s think of a Chair as a prime example for what roughness would mean, a chair in our household is a leisurely object. But most of the time there are clothes hung over it or sometimes even things which generally would allocate a shelf with. But this everyday object seems to capture more of the everyday than usual. It’s used as a stool to climb or a wardrobe to stack clothes etc. this brings about a halt to its identity as a chair, is it a chair now? Yes, it does more than that, but eventually defeats the purpose of sitting. This is what I mean by “Roughness”. This phenomenon exists in our everyday lives almost everywhere.

and remade continuously. This is the context of blurry claims and forms, where much of the city – its enterprise, property relationships and much of its life – gets worked out. It is these blurry conditions that not only make the city, but are the city”. (Bard Studio 2012)

*CLAIM & PRACTICE

*MIXED USE

Mixed use is defined as an object or space suitable/used for several different functions and events. Street in context with mixed use is what has been defining streets in India altogether, here the term Public & Private diminishes . It’s blurred.

Historically streets were defined on the basis of events or activities solely. In the Pre-Greco- Roman era .The Greeks evolved a variety of building types for distinct functions and a sophisticated way to lay them out in an intermingled fashion around public open spaces. Offering an opportunity for various kinds of activities to be performed in public open spaces . Most cities were predominantly pedestrian oriented and “wheeled traffcwasnotallowedduringthedaytimeinthe streets of Rome”.The Industrial age brought a boost to the population growth. This resulted in emerging squatter settlements along street edges and pavements. These activities laid out the mutation of several identities, folding and smudging. As the footfall increased new markets emerged. New shops juxtaposed into another which emerged a new typology or method of reading streets called as claim. “The city seems nicely messy with an overlap of objects, activities and smells. Its logic gets structured through numerous and simultaneous claims: of shop owners, two feet shopkeepers, vendors, pedestrians, car owners, buyers, and of causal walkers. Its form is shaped by constant morphing and mutation of building envelopes, plot shapes and street edges where boundaries are made, erased

Street vending provides employment to a large section of the population in India. The poor, middle class sections in the city are able to procure their basic necessities mainly through street vendors. What differs them from general shop owners or food shops?The answer lies on the streets.Vendors selling fresh vegetables and spices usually concentrate in areas adjacent to the municipal markets, Chaat, drinks and food stalls accumulate near public spaces like railway station adjacent sidewalks or near bus stands where there is a surety of pedestrian footfall. Here the politics of practice play an important role since this builds a relationship between one’s practice of laying out a stall and one’s practice/routine from work to home. This works since there is an ease of accessibility for daily commuters to come in contact with their daily needs. Even the idea of placing their stalls in direct eye contact from the station entrance or in between street edges makes it easier for people to communicate. Fish vendors are the most prominent claim owners of the street, they define their space via scent, spatial configuration. These claims do not limit just to spaces but also culture, most of the vendors in streets of mumbai are Koli women who familiarize themselves with their cultural identity which builds association for buyers of genuinity. In most of the street edges where a community of women sell fish, there won’t be any overlap of other vendors even after they have vacated the space. Such invisible authorities of claims could also be stated as identities of the street also exist near dadar station’s ‘Flower Market’. This street market begins at sharp 5 in the morning and the flower baskets empty at around 7. yet the fragrance resonates in between those edges.)

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Fig 1.3 Fig 1.4

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Many of the underlying ideas that form the basis of this thesis have been drawn from the current literature review and operational concepts in the fields of spatiality of the street, behavior sciences and movement patterns. From street planning norms, reliable internet websites, daily commute, photographs, videos this multi-methodological approach to collecting data has enabled an understanding of not only how streets are shaped by the claim owners but also how certain issues impact and influence the users. Also by drawing and diagramming through time and space. identifying slowness, interruptions and redrawing the street with these interruptions.

RESEARCH QUESTION

* HOW DO SPATIALITIES OF ROUGHNESS OF STREETS AFFECT THEIR EXPERIENCE?

Through Space & Experience there are a lot of notions and understandings we perceive and these perceptions is what builds this argument so to ask the question How?. How are these series of elements, events, practices and movement patterns shaping experience?. What is the framework to understand this?. What are the units to analyze?. To understand how this works, how a basic entity like the street with the design for ‘ease of movement’ could do so much more, house so many possibilities which create these experiences. “Mumbai is made of such diffusions where building edges, boundary walls, sidewalks and carriageways fuse together. Display and storage spaces extend into the streets from shops along them. Two feet deep shops, with one foot anchored inside a plot or a building protrude out the other foot onto the street and establish themselves as independent property. Street vendors do business during the day either on the sidewalk or on the street.” (Bard Studio 2012). The author here puts forth this dimension of diffusions between building and the street. The relationship between a shop and a sidewalk. This brings in the idea of mixed use or spill-over spaces where the identity of the street is defined, where shops act as nodes and establish certain domination over spaces. One gets to experience a subtle growth of densities. How is this relationship established? What governs such constructs of public space or do they just happen?

DEBATE

* HOW ARE SIMILAR SPACES PERCEIVED AS “ALIVE & HAPPENING” AND “DISCRIMINATED, UNSAFE & ROUGH”?.

“There was a certain chaos, maybe…. but not disorder, a creative chaos…the kind out of which life evolves” (Shinkre 2015,150). “Even as one somewhat sentimentally embraces the possibilities of walking as dreaming, realistically that it is a little more than a pipe dream, for walking in Mumbai reassembles much more closely a nightmare that refuses to end even after you wake up”(Phadke 2008, 283) very contrasting ways of looking at “Roughness”.

(Shinkre 2015,150) has lived his childhood in Dadar, Mumbai where he describes his experience as (liviing, working, worshipping, resting, toiling, hurrying, loitering, eating). He states the streets as a mixture of roadside shanties, family mansions, shops, workshops, flower vendors, acrobats etc, anything one could possibly imagine, and he calls this chaos as a creative chaos...kind out of which life evolves. He also states that these mixed uses/ diverse agencies make him aware of how sharing same territory, co-habiting was allowed by the built environment. The author talks about how this change that the city has encountered over the last decade like “Taller buildings rest on parking podiums and the gated communities are self suffcientislandswithinhighcompoundwalls s ”. He states that these spaces “extract life from the city”. He shares his agony of how retail activity is organised in mall’s open spaces and greenery happens only in the podium level leaving or rather desolate street scape lined with high compound walls”. He further adds this disconnnect between street and facades of building, of how single layered curtains allow transperancy but no dialogue.

The city is a complex phenomenon the writer quotes, “where the whole is not the sum of its parts, just like a forest and its trees”. He concludes by asking “Its intresting to note that in the 20th century when exact sciences like mathematics and physics test the need to develop an approach to deal with chaos and uncertainty when architecture has lost the very important ability it inherits”.

(Phadke 2008, 283) the author open up with a question as how can one ‘see’ a city? and how can one ‘claim’ a city?.

she then states that the streets of the city of mumbai ‘Are not for walking’. she points out the fact that there are 200 new cars linning up the streets everday as well as new public modes of transportationn are growing rapidly. hence ‘Walking is actually in suspect state’ She talks about notions of gazing, looking as a “big no no” on the streets of mumbai as they are seen as crime, as well as ‘just walking at night’ seems like a crime to her given the ‘Over Zeleous enforcers of the law’ haul her up.

There is alos this ‘fence’ the author talks about which carefully seperates people into categories of public-private, recreational-commercial etc. for eg. A gated society park, society gym, where even though they lie in between public areas are treated as private or only specific kinds of people are entertained. on other hand she states that the ‘Streets are not for kissing’, here the author opens up that perhaps in-betwen public-priavte there is this clearly gaurded boundry for ‘Women’ & ‘Public display of affection’. she points out certain important facts as to say that “women are considered ‘out of place’ if there is no male presence or if they are not outside for a speccific purpose”. this makes gender a very important factor to consider while talking about streets and roughness.

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CASE 2: HANUMAN ROAD (AKURLI, KANDIVALI EAST)

Western express highway marks the start of this site, now overlapped with ‘Akurli’ metro station which stretches from Akurli Rd along Hanuman Nagar this site of around 250 m length is situated between ‘Vadar Pada’ slums. Mahindra & Mahindra mark the end of this street after which this street joins ‘Lokhandwala’ The street displays a variety of shops and stores, but what was peculier of the site was that the storefronts were extensions to one’s homes/tenements. The overhangs of the shops claim sidewalks. The road is the main spine which circulates in between, what stands out is the traffcandinfrastructure,cro okedpathslead to smaller alleys and gullies into the slums.

Auto Rickshaws are prominently seen, constant honking and deterrence overpowers the street/road.

There are a lot of nodes here through which footfall/traffcisinducede.g.,CFFX blocks, open gutters, construction steel, etc.

There are some residential buildings as well, the storefronts of these buildings are quite offset.

These nodes/obstructions eventually push the footfall onto the road, this causes even more commotion.

Given the narrowness of the street and array of shops throughout the street make walking/riding experience a nuisance for whom? . The street at times makes oneself feel squeezed in between lanes since there is almost no space for anybody to either walk or drive. The sidewalks are diminished or one would define them as private spaces of the shop owners (storefront) so unless one wants to shop something people do not utilize the sidewalks. Then there is a layer of infrastructure which adds on to this already rough experience. Events like digging up of gutters so the excavation is collected in heaps near sidewalks, barricades of RTO (Regional transport offce)occupyroadspaceinfunnyways. In events like a bus/truck/RMC passing through the street since there is construction going on, the two wheelers & auto rickshaws tend to take the wrong way around. This has become a common practice. This has gained attention of traffcoffcersonthestreet,whichaddsontothegrowthoftraffcand d chaos on the road. Some two wheelers even get-over sidewalks at times to get past through the traffcduringmid-daymovement.

There are no trees on the periphery hence the humid weather of the city and heat waves generated from moving vehicles add on to the discomfort. During monsoon the service road of the western express highway floods causing human movement diffcult.Vehiclesgushthroughtheaccumulatedwatercausing splashes all over the space

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Fig 1.5

Hanuman Road - Akurli

A green horn is tempting fate today. All those already in flight have moved aside, they’re making room. On the ground, onlookers behold this sight, brace themselves. The earth steadies itself for the descent of fire from the sky; the airborne incandescence steels itself for the land fast closing in on it

~Eleven Streets

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Hanuman Road- (Kandivali, Akurli)

Hanuman Road - Akurli

Fig 1.6

CASE 3: NULL BAZAAR (BHULESHWAR, CHARNI ROAD)

Null Bazar is a well-known, large market place famous for its food. It was opened in 1867 and gets its name from the Hindi word nala, which means ravine, gutter, or drain. It is named so because in the past the main drain used to flow past the area. (Whitman, 2013)

Starting from ‘Gol Deval’ historically known as ‘Nageshwar Temple’ this site stretches along the sardar vallabhai Patel Marg (SVP) with the Null Bazaar market towards south and ‘Raudat Tahera’ masjid to its north and ends at ‘Zohar Chowk’. The site length is around 450m, with smaller gullies in-between. There are two major factions residing on either side of the street of the Muslim community that occupies most of the area. These factions determine the nature of shops that accumulate on the street. ‘Sunni’ & ‘Shia’ are the two major factions here. The Shia’s have set up shops along ‘Raudat Tahera’, these shops sell Quran, photo frames of religious idols, leaders etc. On the opposite facade the Sunni faction have set up shops selling garments, electronic items, dry fruits like dates etc. The street is packed with markets and handcarts, there are claims over goods, infrastructure, materials and practices. The sidewalks even though of walkable width are skewed down to alleys due to storefronts extended overhangs, their visual connectivity almost completely blurred due to claims by parked vehicles, temporary hawkers, floating shops etc. there is an array of handcarts crawling through these narrow gullies/streets overlapped with howls and screams of their owners to make way. There also exists a somewhat dilapidated structure with its maroon shiny corrugated roofs protruding from all sides covering its perimeter, stands on the southern side of the street.

This structure, once used to be a British mill, now serves as an open market selling everyday goods, vegetables & spices like garlic etc. This market has opened up `shops there also has been activity of vehicles loading/unloading goods along the facade where at different times of the day, trucks carrying ‘sacks of vegetables, meat, dairy products, electronic items etc’ block the street, this causes jams and diversion of vehicular movement. Along with the shops along the periphery there has been a hike in footfall around this area, this has motivated hawkers to set-up shops on sidewalks just opposite to this market. These encroachments/ claims have changed the movement patterns of people through the sidewalks onto the street. This adds on to the halts to the traffc aswellasbecomesa safety concern. The facade is layered on these streets with shops inset on the ground floor of the buildings, then the storefronts followed by the street vendors and the parked vehicles. This layering is the cause of transactions that allow the shopkeepers and hawkers to formulate agencies and create spillover spaces. Also, the facades are labeled with different banners, logos, names of stores etc.

A typical bazaar which extends and pours through gullies and junctions, where streets are filled with hand-carts and taxis. There is a mixture of opportunities and overlapping of events. The Gol Devi temple in the midst of this vast market area is surrounded with flower shops and newspaper readers, when you walk past this temple you’re welcomed with a variety of sweets and fruits situated on the street where the shops from small gullies and pathways for users to access, here there are patches of extreme darkness and tight dingy spaces, absurd events & claims

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Fig 1.7

Null Bazaar - Bhuleshwar

It is evening. Some shops are on the brink of closing for the day. There are people here – who show the way to someone who is lost, find an address for someone here for the first time, direct someone to the right shop, protect the lane from a danger that may appear from outside –but there is fear too. Ambiguity brings with it a helplessness in thought, a powerlessness that comes from not being able to think clearly. To wish for streets to vanish because of our fear of ambiguity is inappropriate.

~Eleven Streets

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Null Bazaar- (Bhuleshwar, Charni Road)

Null Bazaar - Bhuleshwar

Fig 1.8

CASE 4: SHEIK MEMOON STREET (KALBADEVI)

Kalbadevi is an old neighborhood in Mumbai (Bombay), India. It is named after Goddess Kalbadevi, the Hindu Goddess. Kalbadevi area is one of the busiest areas during peak hours. The area has mostly traders in watches, bicycles, steel utensils, etc. It has a large Gujarati population. (Wikipedia, 2022).

Starting from ‘Zaveri Chowk’ this site stretches along the Sheik Memoon Street with the Crawford market towards south. The site length is around 190m. Juma masjid marks the entry to this site, the street is situated between an industrial patch and ‘Dubash market, Lohar Chawl’. The significance of this narrow street and how spillover spaces form claims. It’s a one-way street but the claims and affordances allow minimum to none vehicular movement.

There are a variety of shops on either facade of the street, they increment into various directions, also there are shops which have come up through residual spaces. This mutation is also interesting. The facades of buildings surrounding the streets have very different layout, some are seen jutting out some inset to the building with names of shops protruding out with different lighting effects, font styles, Air conditioners, rusted street signs, glass windows, banners, handcarts, tarpaulin sheets etc, define the nature of this street, there are punctures to these facades as well, some construction work taking place somewhere, some overhangs shading the sidewalks, motorcycles parked, etc.

Human movement here is a task as there are no clear walkable spaces, one has to juggle through barriers of roadside shops, parked vehicles, unloaded goods on storefronts, trash, hanging items etc.

There are furniture goods, clothes, mattresses, bedsheets, stationary, plastic goods, toy shops, etc traders selling all kinds of things. Also, the movement here is quite dispersed and random, one could not determine exactly what motive one has or where one might halt. This dispersion depends on what products one is looking for or which shop a vehicle halt to load/unload goods.

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Memoon Street - Kalbadevi

Memoon Street -(Kalbadevi)

Fire and fog dance, side by side. Not to erase each other, nor to wear the other down, but to give fuel to each other. Everyone hurries towards them, to fold themselves into them, to immerse their bodies in their vapours and, so, become untraceable. There is such joy, so much laughter here. From the heights they have soared to, they look down, seeking a patch of land that can hold them..

~Eleven Streets

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Sheik

Memoon Street - Kalbadevi

Fig 1.9

CASE 5: RANADE ROAD (DADAR STATION)

Senapati Bapat Marg under Kavi keshavsut flyover stretches through ‘Ranade Road’ at around 190m and ends towards ‘kabootar khana’. One walks in through the flower & vegetable market opening towards suvidha mall to the right, the street is packed with markets and hawkers, lining the road with taxis, buses & footfall of daily commuters. There are few old shops, ‘Patwardhan Brothers’ is one of the shops which has been serving this street for over 75 years. These shops are the identity of Ranade

Marg, they describe the community and lifestyle of the area. A Major Hindu Marathi community resides here.

For everyday commuters ‘Panshikar’ piyush serves as a resort to tackle the humidity of the city. These nodes are spread all over the street including ‘Shree-Krishna’ vadewale in chhabridas lane etc.

Market Road - Dadar

Fig 1.10

Ranade Road -(Dadar Station)

Who is this? Not a life crafted to be hemmed within the pegs of a few questions. What is the air that passes through it? It’s a life that has never cared for boundary walls. A life that considers its own anyone who comes to it, becoming one with them for a while. This is the magic of one becoming many. It shades us in the changing spells of time..

Eleven Streets

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Photo: Phillip Tellis Fig 1.7

Market Road - Dadar

Fig 1.11

CASE 6: MARKET ROAD (BORIVALI STATION)

The site stretches from Borivali station- Platform no-3 through the market road and ends on ‘Raichura circle’. The site length is around 200m. With the BMC market to its north and Borivali police station to the south. Smell of vegetables, especially ‘coriander’ overpowers the site.

The space here acts as a continuum of shops and hawkers. The shops here mainly include the eateries and other commodities such as clothes and beauty products. The hawkers selling incorporates the floral items along with some occasional demand of products (festive goods) the street is a bustling street where there’s a hive of activity.

The street is parallel to the western railway line of Mumbai, during morning the Market Street is a chaotic area with different activities like small vendors, vehicular traffcandhustleofpeoplefollowingtheirdailyroutine.Themarket street begins with Series of vendors selling flowers with garlands hanging from the staircase of the bridge walking further - vendors majorly selling fruits and vegetables on the street.

On either side of road there are various types of shop of grocery stores, snacks and general stores and appliances

Vehicles - transport vehicles carrying good to supply to the market

Private vehicles of people visiting market

Public vehicle - people going towards station

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Market Road - Borivali

Fig 1.12

Market Road-(Borivali Station)

They are all here: the invited, also the uninvited, and even those who are yet to appear in our imaginations. But no one walks around with sealed identities through which we may say we know somone, not know someone, or call someone a stranger. A force prevails, which doesn’t let us recede away and insulate ourselves within our own self, and at the same time doesn’t permit us to merge into another, and so lose our self...

~Eleven Streets

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Fig 1.7

Market Road - Borivali

Fig 1.13

ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK

To understand the given instances and to draw conclusions from them, there were certain aspects which were taken under consideration, these aspects were understood on the basis of analysing users walkability, position, behaviour, setting of the place etc. To get an idea of how one experiances roughness in the given space.

*BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS

Venetin Aghostin Sangar states an interesting analysis of how and why people perform the way they perform in social spaces in their thesis ‘Human Behavior in public spaces’.

She states that the environment influences the mind through a series of physical, social, cultural or sensory features. The need for safety , love, belonging and the need for self actualisation or esteem is what sculpts the human environment realm. She questions what triggers it and what are its aspects. Her research states certain Environment-Behavior models such as

Arousal Theory

Stimulus Load Theory

Behavior constraint theory

Adaptation Theory

Environment stress Theory

Perception & Cognition Theory.

This thesis would later in the research methodology elaborate on which of these models affect and are of concern for the given context of streets.

*MOVEMENT ANALYSIS

Throughout the narrative I have been focusing on the aspect of behavior, claims, practices, congestion but the start of this budding process is through experience and this experience is a sum of actions and movements. These movements or actions are a response to the environment which bothers me. This thesis is trying to locate what causes this, hence I’ve placed both Movement & Behavior analysis together.

To understand movement I have looked at various artists, travelers, commuters, hawkers etc. An interesting analysis done by Rudolf Laban, a choreographer and a dancer. He is considered a pioneer of modern dance. He categorized human movement into four component parts:

• Direction

• Weight

• Speed

• Flow

•

Each of those parts has two elements:

Direction is either direct or indirect

Weight is either heavy or light

Speed is either quick or sustained

Flow is either bound or free

Hence this study is termed as the ‘Laban Movement’. It acts as a medium to map or understand the pedestrian movement patterns and also how streets “A dance Floor” respond. There are various instances on the streets where people, instead of a force act or move on impulses, it could be anything from running to catch a bus or walking through a crowded patch with a hot cup of tea or it could just mean standing at a bus stand and listening to music. These impulses give rise to movements of a physical character.

Walking through these sites and observing the kind of activities that take place, I was able to figure out some sets of instances which govern certain movements and events on the streets

These instances could be explained with the help of behavior analysis by (SANGAAR 2007).

*Behavior Constraint Theory

This is where people begin to believe that what they do has no effect on the environment and that whatever happens is out of their control. This can result in a sense of despair and feelings of alienation about the environment. In dark and deserted streets people may alter their movement patterns or avoid such places altogether.

*Stimulus Overload Theory

The Stimulus Load Theory is based on the notion that people have a limited capacity to process environmental stimuli. When faced with an excessive amount of stimuli, or ‘stimulus overload’, people have a propensity to ignore some features and give more attention to those that are perceived as more important to the task at hand.

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