The Freedom Compartment: A Photo Journal Of Ladies Coaches On Mumbai Locals

John Berger says in his book Ways of Seeing: “A woman must continually watch herself ... From earliest childhood she has been taught and persuaded to survey herself continually. And so, she comes to consider the surveyor and the surveyed within her as the two constituent yet always distinct elements of her identity as a woman.”

Women are always surrounded by men—at home, office, or in public spaces. The ladies compartment of the Mumbai local train becomes a unique space that feels like it has been specifically designed for them—a space devoid of men. I feel women use this space to liberate themselves from any male gaze—or at least I have.

Each of my experiences in local trains has led me to begin a new journey, one of sharing these stories with the world. Through this virtual diary, shot on phone, I explore how humans engage and familiarise themselves with spaces by building relationships with complete strangers who eventually become close friends. The train itself became my inspiration.

#traindiaries, my project, is a journal of photos and observations that I experience every day in the ladies compartment. I wanted to capture the essence of my travel, the relationships I forged, my own visual affair, and, most importantly, the people. I realised we don’t need to travel to distant places to find human interest stories as there is always a new one on the same train on a different day. This project has helped me get closer to understanding the people, especially the women of Mumbai. It has given me an outlet for my creativity. It has led to the realisation that you can find art and beauty in simple things around you, just through the power of observation.

The ladies compartment of the Mumbai local gives women a sense of freedom and belonging in a room where they are accompanied by strangers. Sometimes it begins to resemble a theatre, where various actors come and act and I, along with the viewers of the images, are the audience who seek to learn about our own lives through the lives of others.