A bureaucrat writes of encounters with the women of Kamathipura, Mumbai’s sex-work area

Amina and Khaled were waiting for the right opportunity to get together in bed again. But in a family of so many people, it was not so easy. One day, while Amina was combing her hair, Khaled caught her from behind and tried to kiss her. Amina moved his hands away angrily and ran away. She could not afford to take a risk. She could not be a fool. No one should have the slightest hint about their equation. She had to be very cautious.

A few days after that was the “jatra night” in their village. Jatra or yatra, which meant “journey”, is a traditional folk theatre form that has a phenomenal journey of evolution. Its origin goes back to the Bhakti movement propelled by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, a Hindu religious leader widely worshipped as a reincarnation of Lord Krishna, and thus belonging to the sect of Vaishavism. Jatra was his way of spreading the name and celebrating the glory of Krishna amongst the masses, roaming from place to place in processions while singing and dancing to the tune of religious songs. Eventually, Jatra became the most popular form of theatre across the villages of West Bengal, Odisha and Tripura in...

Read more