Alley Galli Biennale: Art is good for you

Dharavi in Mumbai, India, is one of the largest informal settlements in the world. This month, it was transformed into the Alley Galli Biennale, a festival of art, health and recycling. The festival is the culmination of two years of passionate collaboration and has been supported by the Wellcome Trust. Helen Latchem looks after the Wellcome Trust’s international public engagement work and she visited the Biennale for its opening. This collection of vibrant photographs captures the spirit of the festival – the artists, scientists and activists who are taking part - and Helen explains why international engagement is so important…

Community engagement with biomedicine in low-income settings is fundamentally important, not only because health research is best directed and informed by people who are facing health challenges every day, but also because researchers working in areas like Dharavi need ways of engaging people with their research and ultimately changing things for the better.

This project began by looking at women’s health issues but has developed into something much deeper which delves into the underlying systems from which these problems, and many others, are born. It reveals, questions and celebrates many of the factors at play in a vast community like Dharavi, both medical and personal, but also environmental, cultural, economic and political.

I was only in Mumbai for two days, and I’m finding myself struggling to convey the power that this type of project has in portraying the complexity of the lives of Dharavi residents. It not only uncovers some of the intricacies of how people navigate the challenges and opportunities of their world, but also beautifully demonstrates that it is a world of huge contrasts.

As part of the festival, a stunning modern installation by artist Nitant Hirlekar called ‘Hope and Hazard’ explored the positive impact that Dharavi-based industry has on India’s economy, yet at the same time highlights the negative impact much of this labour has on the health and wellbeing of the residents. Workers in Dharavi are fundamentally connected to the system but yet in many ways as ‘slum’ dwellers, they are not recognised by it.

This project has grown into something bigger and more far-reaching than I think anyone ever expected. Beauty, art and telling stories have caught the imagination of people in Dharavi and this is spreading out into Mumbai and the rest of the world. Nayreen Daruwalla and David Osrin – the project directors – the core project team, local creatives and volunteers should be immensely proud.

I arrived at the inauguration event on Sunday, having been told on the way that the audience was modest like a ‘small wedding’, and was faced with hundreds of people engrossed by a drama piece about TB using giant puppets. It not only made me realise that weddings must be huge here but also that there was more interest and enthusiasm in that giant dusty ‘theatre’ than I’d seen at a lot of UK engagement events.

The exhibition spaces of the Biennale are tucked away in the alleys of Dharavi and visitors can happen upon them whilst going about their day. I found that the volunteers at each exhibition were so keen to articulate to me, despite the language barrier, the value and importance of the artworks to them. In particular with the images of women in colourful saris from a project ‘Provoke and Protect’ which were like magic eye pictures – on first viewing so happy and vibrant – until the Hindi was translated for me, and the message became clear: “Stop Rape”.

You can visit the Dharavi Biennale website here. This project is funded via a Wellcome Trust International Engagement Award and is featured as a case study on our website.

Image credits: Benita Fernando ©Dharavi Biennale, Sneha