[Reader-list] Posting I

[mmdesai]

My Sarai topic is "Women and their Spatial Narratives in the City of Ahmedabad". I am Madhavi Desai: an architect, teacher, writer and researcher. This research is the coming together of my interest in the built environment and gender. Though quite a bit of work has been done in the West in this field, it is in its nascent stage in India. This work is an attempt to get a closer look at local level and to develop a methodology to do it.

This is the abstract: Situated on the banks of Sabarmati River, the city of Ahmedabad has its roots in the medieval times. It has a historic inner city core and extensive modern development all around. Seventh largest city in India, it has population close to 4 million today. The basic premise of the research project is that though the city is theoretically available to all citizens, women are not fully able to physically and culturally participate in it. Focusing on the middle class, this research attempts to document the spatial activities and experiences of women in Ahmedabad in the traditional as well as the modern sections. The objectives are as follows: To trace women's mobility patterns with respect to their neighbourhood and the city, within their social network and outside it. To analyse women's connection to urban institutions and services such as banks, post office, etc. To understand women's activities and sites of leisure such as hotels, restaurants, parks and multiplexes. To look into women's notions of what a city is in terms of their image and descriptions. The research methods used will include observation, questionnaires and interviews; map analysis and perception drawings by women as well as library research.

I attach the questionnaire I have developed. I will appreciate any specific suggestions for the topic as well as the questionnaire. 

 

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