Mumbai’s cultural spaces just got more inclusive

Mumbai’s cultural spaces just got more inclusive

Now, the differently abled can make the most of museums, heritage walks and nature trails

    Earlier this year, when an exhibition unravelling the mysteries of ancient Egypt was on display at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, every Wednesday was set aside for visitors with special needs. One group of almost 60 youngsters came from the Helen Keller Institute. Some of them had both visual and hearing impairments. In order to help them understand the content, the museum staff created miniature models of the different exhibits, handed out Braille booklets on ancient Egypt and even printed cards with embossed hieroglyphs and the corresponding Braille alphabet. When the tour guide spoke, the teachers would explain using tactile sign language. “The teacher would start signing,” recalled CSMVS education officer Bilwa Kulkarni. “One person would be holding her hand and perceiving the signs. He would be holding another person’s hand and passing on the signs. It was like Chinese Whispers.”
    Several of the CSMVS’s visually challenged visitors find it difficult to wrap their heads around the fact that they are able to visit a museum and “see” an exhibition. In the future, though, the experience might not be so novel. Already there are ways in which the differently abled can engage with Mumbai’s history, culture and natural heritage from city walks to nature treks to museum visits.
    The Bombay Natural History Society’s Conservation Education Centre, for instance, has conducted short treks for special children during which they listen to bird calls and touch the trees they are learning about. Kille Vasai Mohim, a trekking and fort conservation group, organizes historical walks for the differently abled and CSMVS regularly welcomes these individuals.
    In spite of these strides, Mumbai is still a long way from becoming an inclusive city. In June, architectural designer Pallavi Shrivastava will host a walk from Juhu Beach to Bandra’s Carter Road promenade. The walk is part of the Jane Jacobs Walks movement, named after an urbanist who championed humancentric urban design. Shrivastava has invited people on wheelchairs to attend in order to demonstrate the vital need for disabled friendly infrastructure like ramps and sound-enabled assistance at signal crossings.
    The apathy and insensitivity of urban planners, though, hasn’t stopped tour companies from ferrying tourists on wheelchairs and crutches to Chor Bazaar and Dharavi. When asked how differently abled guests navigate these busy localities, Deepa Krishnan, who runs a city tour firm, said, “It is those who are ‘able’ that need a mindset change.”
    Krishnan estimates that between 3% and 5% of her Mumbai clients have mobility issues but all of them manage her basic city tour. On the itinerary are monuments such as the Gateway of India, well-paved stretches such as Marine Drive and open spaces such as Oval Maidan. “They can do a lot actually,” said Krishnan. “We take a slower pace, that’s all. Loo breaks are always a problem, so we have to plan the route such that we can get to a mall or a five-star.” Krishnan plans to share this itinerary on a Facebook page so that tourists with disabilities can better explore Mumbai’s attractions.
    Such a page, might even be useful for locals. Arun Sawant, a retired clerk from Sion Hospital, for instance, visited CSMVS for the first time with the Paraplegic Foundation. Initially, he was worried about navigating the building on his tricycle but was surprised to find that he could easily access almost all the galleries. Another paraplegic visitor, Rajendra Manjrekar, was fascinated by the stuffed bird specimens in the natural history section. “I used to get to see a lot of birds in my village as a child,” said Manjrekar. “So visiting the museum brought back memories of my childhood.”
    Dr Bhau Daji Lad Museum, the CSMVS’s main counterpart in the city, is accessible to people on wheelchairs and will soon have an audio tour. However, they have no special programming for physically challenged individuals. According to honorary director and managing trustee, Tasneem Mehta, this is because of a lack of space and funding. Each time a differently abled group visits CSMVS, the staff studies the disability and carefully plans the visit. Before welcoming a visually challenged group, for instance, they were taught certain techniques by visually impaired teachers. “To make them understand how long a mummy is, we make them stand at one end of the coffin and step towards the other end,” said Kulkarni.
    All the hard work eventually pays off. The CSMVS’s staff has seen the impact of their programmes firsthand when these groups create clay models of the various things they have learned or touched at the museum. “One of them did this rhinoceros model and I think that guy had only 30 per cent vision but you would think that a normal person with proper vision has done this,” recalled Kulkarni. “It was so beautiful.”

THINKING CAPS: Visually challenged kids try on Egyptian headdresses at the museum