Maid and MaYed in Mumbai

 Maid and MaYed in Mumbai

I was talking to my Kerala friend about encouraging the MSMEs when he interrupted and asked if I was  talking about MaYde in India policy. It took me only a second to understand that he meant Made in India policy because the Malayalees pronounce Blade as BlaYde and Table as TaYble adding a nasal Y accent to these words.  As I was already thinking of writing a blog on the iconic institution of the Maids of Mumbai, I decided to extend the scope of the blog to include the goods  of MSMEs which are  MaYde in Mumbai. 

  Dharavi in Mumbai ,with an area of 535 acres and  a population of more than one million, is considered as one of  the world's largest slums and a highly diverse settlement religiously and ethnically.   It has also the distinction of being the Maximum city's MSME hub  of a 1 billion dollar economy  with its  5000 businesses in some 15000 single room factories. The products manufactured are primarily garments, rexin and leather goods , soaps and detergents, potteries, furniture and food items. Additionally there are units engaged in tannery, tailoring, plastic recycling . In the case of leather and rexin goods , there are units making  hand bags of international brands , belts, shoes and and their imitations at a lower price. its products are exported to USA , Europe and the Middle east.  The congestion and lack of infrastructure here  has necessitated a plan for its  redevelopment .

  The Maids of Mumbai are the thousands of Kaam Bais working as part time cooks,  house-keeping karmcahris , care providers for children and the old and the infirm and a score of other ad-hoc jobs.  . They are mostly second or third generation Mumbai  Maharashtrians and are known for their honesty , sincerity and worth ethos. They undertake the work on a jab by job basis like sweeping and dusting , washing, cleaning utensils , each considered as a job and a wage  rate specific  to each. Regularity and  punctuality is their hall mark ,  mansoon or no mansoon. 

The cooks among them learn the different cuisines desired by the employer . Very presentable in  colourful sarees and well -fitting blouses or kameez and pajamas , oiled and groomed hairdos with some flowers tucked on the bun ,  they project a picture of good health and  hygiene . Some of them  look  even more sophisticated  and polished than perhaps their lady employers making some husbands leer at them.   They send their children to good schools, have the saving habit and not dreaded to discipline their men if  the need arises.  They may be servants in  others homes but they are certainly the  masters in  their own  homes. They are not shy of asking for a raise in their wages every year , a months salary as bonus on Diwali and 2 days leave with pay every month. Though not unionised, one can not sack them without their consent. 

What would life  be  in Mumbai without  Dharavi and the Kaam bais is hard to imagine.