Matter of migration

Narratives of female migrant workers are often unexplored believe Bhavya Gupta Neeraj Shetye and Mithila NaikSatam mdash the trio behind Unheard Voices a digital storytelling platform It was created to showcase reallife experiences of Mumbairsquos women migrant workers presenting various systemic challenges they have had to overcome during the pandemic in the form of video storiesBhavya Gupta Neeraj Shetye and Mithila NaikSatamThe idea was prompted in 2020 with designer and the thenstudent of Parsons School of Design Guptarsquos thesis project which won her the Schmidt Futures Reimagine Challenge Grant Gupta who was passionate about working on projects that dealt with social causes and representing her SouthAsian identity in the States joined hands with relief organisation Khaana Chahiyersquos members Shetye and NaikSatam Soon after winning the grant the project was developed into what it is todayldquoIrsquove worked with Shetye for over six years on various projects I reached out to him last year when Khaana Chahiye was established in March Since I was stuck here in the US I wanted to contribute to help those back home in which ever way I could as a designer So I began helping him out with a few design elements such as brochures and some social media work When the time came to think about the thesis for my MFA in Design and Technology and since I was more inclined to work on projects relating to social issues and impacts I decided to join hands with Shetye and Khaana Chahiyerdquo reveals GuptaThe platform was also created in support of the organisationrsquos policy intervention initiative Hunger Map ldquoWith Hunger Map we didnrsquot want to do a traditional policy brief and recommendations we wanted to do something different We were looking into the prospect of a new way of digital storytelling to present our observations and bring out suggestions using design and technologyrdquo adds Mumbaibased ShetyeThe trio has interviewed women from communities at Reay Road in these videos and their faces have been covered with a creative illustration allowing the stories to speak for them ldquoTherersquos a gap that exists between technology and many communities in our system What stands out in what Gupta has captured here is that the stories are told through the voices of the women giving them a sense of dignity and anonymity Although we have their consent to show their faces we havenrsquotrdquo NaikSatam saysThe women reside behind the factories and mills next to the centuryold railway station The stories highlight their socioeconomic constraints and how the pandemic worsened the same For instance in one of the stories a cancer survivor reveals how she had to survive on relief aid throughout the lockdown after losing her job ldquoThese are unregulated slums that authorities arenrsquot interested in developing because these residents donrsquot have voter IDs and relief aid also doesnrsquot reach themrdquo explains ShetyeHowever despite their difficult situation the women voice their aspirations especially for their children In one video a woman shares that she hopes to provide quality education to her children something that she didnrsquot receive The videos have been shot in a horizontal template The site flows horizontally as opposed to the vertical scroll that is the common view In the coming months the trio plans to share similar stories from more communities on the siteLog on to unheardvoicesin