The Shoeshine Men

My 7 years of traveling by the Mumbai local trains, have yet never stirred any need to polish my shoes at the station. If at all the rare occasion arose, polish and a shoe brush were always at hand at home. So you can imagine how walking toward a local Boot-polisher for a tête-à-tête must've felt. His deftness at his trade was only compounded by my awkwardness as he prodded me to place one leg then the next on to his box. I marveled with quiet obedience and awe while he allowed me no inch to speak. So with a failed attempt at conversing behind me, I moved on; on my quest to learn more about the men in Prussian blue.

A slow walk to the other end of the platform ensured I wasn’t caught off guard and allowed the dust to settle on the squeaky clean shoes. Uttam Sinha - Professional Shoe Shiner, Age 32, peered up at me as I came to a halt before him.

Shoe shiner or Boot polisher is quite simply a person who engages in polishing shoes with shoe polish. Since the profession traditionally falls in male domain they are often known as Shoeshine Boys. A bootblack is another popular term in the leather fetish communities. While the role is deplored in much of the Western world, there are children that earn an important wage for their family in many countries. Some boot polishers offer extra services, such as shoe repairs and general tailoring, depending on the skills they have learned.

I placed my high heels on Uttam's Boot polish holder and he began his routine. A Boot polish holder is a rectangular wooden box which houses inventory like boot polish, brushes, insoles, etc. all paramount to his trade. It also serves as a footrest for polishing boots. Shoe polish (or boot polish), usually a waxy paste or a cream, is a consumer product used to polish, shine, waterproof, and restore the appearance of leather shoes or boots, thereby extending the footwear's life. Shoe polish is applied to the shoe using a rag, cloth, or brush. Three kinds of Shoe Polish: black, brown and cream (white), determine the price of the service.

Their holders are mostly left to the mercy of the platform for the night. Some chained along with other boxes to a pole, some inside stalls on the platform and others are just left there in the hope they will still be there waiting the next day. Uttam adds that he has been warned by his brothers (other boot polishers) about people stealing or breaking the boxes. I exploit an opening to speak of his trade and learn that he has been polishing shoes since he turned 15. Earlier he worked for a few years in a Shoe factory and is amongst the fortunate few who have learnt the skills of a cobbler. His head droops as he recounts the day the factory shut down and he had to come back to this very Platform 4 years ago. Setting up a cobbler shop is on the cards and is currently saving up for the same. Most of his family has migrated from Bihar with some family members if not the whole family. The same can be said for most.

Ashok Singh, 38 yrs, from Bihar, shared the existence of The Mumbai Harijan Boot polish Kamgar Audhyogik Utpadak Cooperative Society. This Society is in charge of boot polishers that fall under a zone that extends from Khar Road to Goregaon railway station on the Western Line. Mumbai’s entire boot polish industry is run by 12 such societies spread across the three railways lines. According to Ashok, the society was formed around 1988 and has been looking out for the welfare Boot polishers ever since. The society issues Identity Cards that need to be duly stamped by the Station Master of the station which grants him right to work at that particular station. In case he does want to move shop to another station, he has to get a new identity card and a fresh stamp. This card gives them not only security but a sense of belonging that makes them part of a whole. Such a measure legitimizes their occupation and protects them from being evicted by Police or Municipal workers. The society performs just like a union and is welcoming to everyone. Here, recruitment into this profession is not restricted by caste or religion.

Despite being open to converse about their trade, I sensed reluctance towards talking about caste. They all had the same rehearsed answer, - “We are harijans, and we come from the same family (Pariwar)”. It almost felt like they had been instructed to give this answer by a higher power. I could not make any head-way into this observed peculiarity.

Most of these workers hail from Bihar and the poor financial state of their family has forced them into this occupation. One such boot polisher Santosh, 30 yrs old narrates how he hails from a family that owns no land so there was never a choice of agricultural occupation. Boot polishers do not associate themselves with cobblers or their work. They are neither encouraged by the Society to learn the skills of cobbler and nor do they have the time, like Ashok Singh highlights, “If I start to learn something else, when and how will I earn tonight’s dinner?” Talk of education or schooling and they compare it to unfulfilled dreams, but they insist that they are working towards changing lives for their coming generations. Some have never gone to school, while others have just about completed primary education. Their day begins with sunrise as commuters pour in and out of stations, and ends only late in the evening.

Around 25 such workers occupy big railways stations, though the numbers vary. Boot polishers are granted access to sit anywhere on the platform. The prime locations like the bottom of a staircase or entry-exit points of the station force them to sit all day under the sun with little respite from the heat. They wear the similar blue shirts and sit within close distance of one another, mostly seated in pairs either next to each other or with their backs against another.

My first encounter with Rajesh and his colleague saw a crowd gathered around me. The unnatural duration of time spent at their post attracted not just people on the platform but also nearby boot polishers, who inquired about my identity and motives. It was refreshing to see such camaraderie. Each one is very protective of the other, yet the competition was evident. They all spoke highly off their respective society, to the extent of proclaiming to being proud members. One even called a Society Secretary a Godsend.

Some of the boot polish holders had something nailed to their sides. It brought up another association, namely - The All India Schedules Castes/Schedules Tribes Railway Employees Association, Mumbai. This association was founded on 19th of Sept. 1959 at New Delhi. It falls under the category of Government Activities and works for Scheduled castes and schedules tribes who work in various zones of Indian Railways. A closer look disclosed that the acrylic sheet is more of an ad for Prime Plywood rather than the association.

The objectives of the association as per their website http://aisctrea.com/ include promoting co-operation and unity among its members, working for the Education, Social, Religious and Economic well being of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Railway employees and their dependents; and removing untouchability amongst the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes themselves; among a long lofty list of 25. The boot polishers do not know of what this association is supposed to do for them, but the ad helps them get “noticed” on the platform. They seem to be unaware of its existence, but there is someone from the association who comes with the acrylic sheets and helps them nail it to their box.

Some kind of fear is manifest as many refused to talk to me regarding a Society’s activities and detailed working, while others simply directed me towards others. The Society seems to be doing a good job and the numbers are increasing, which leaves me wondering whether such societies glorify such professions hence attracting more people and adding to the informalisation.

When asked about their troubles, the defense of their community, society and its work is unnerving; questions on ambition promptly protect their occupation and its simplicity; the future of their children are left to the lord and his might.

They may have begun as an offshoot of the shoemaker and/or cobbler occupation, but they seem to have made their mark in the city’s informal labour sphere. Visualizing Mumbai railway stations without the clattering sounds of their brushes and boxes should they be evicted is an impossible feat. The boot polishers have been absorbed into the image of the city. They are proud yet vulnerable, but most of all they lack awareness, especially amongst youngsters who are barely out of their teens. The ones that have came to this city for their dreams; it’s like a first step- Towards self-reliance, self-respect and knowledge about the world around them. Dr. Ambedkar said that the caste system was not just division of labour but also division within labour, but the boot polishers seem to have created a family that is united by such divisions.

Somebody once said you can't judge a Book by its Cover, but can you judge a Man by his Shoes. Most people get their shoes polished to look perfect for their engagements of the day, but rarely do they realize what kind of life the boot polishers live. Sleeping in small rooms with 4 other men, earning daily wage around Rs.150 to 250 barely enough to survive in isolation, let alone the subsistence of an entire family and yet holding their heads high. These are the people who add that spark and confidence to people’s lives from the ground up.