Alimuddin Shaikh

I’m based out of Room Number 5 in Municipal Chawl No. 1 at the transit camp on Tank Pakhadi Road. It’s a very busy part of Mumbai, and space is something you learn to live without. My room is small, so I have to be very careful about where I put everything. If I leave a box in the wrong place, I end up tripping over it for the rest of the day. The chawl is loud and there’s always something going on, whether it’s a neighbor’s television or someone cooking right outside the door. I’ve been here for a while now, and you just get used to the rhythm of the place. I do my work on a small folding table that I put away when I’m done. It’s not a permanent office setup like you’d see in the movies, but it’s where I get everything done. The light isn't the best, so I have a small lamp that I keep clipped to the edge of the table. People around here know me, and sometimes they drop by just to say hello or ask for a bit of help with something. It’s a tight-knit community, and you never really feel alone. I don’t try to make it seem like more than it is. It’s just a room where I work and live, trying to keep things moving forward one day at a time.