Have you stepped into a public toilet? Never a happy experience! Would you like to share your experience with a group? Or how about putting forward some suggestions to improve the situation?
Team Recyclebin, a group of young architects, invites you to spare your time for toilets this Sunday.
Enter ‘Kakkoos Kavadam’ (Toilet Gateway) at Poojappura Mandapam and be a part of Toilet Kathakal (Toilet Tales), an event where you can listen to some stories and first-hand experiences about public toilets, indulge in discussions, watch some thought-provoking art works and performances on the topic and be a part of a change for better rest rooms.
Keeping track
It started a year ago when Ganga Dileep, Geethanjali M.R. and Meenakshi Meera decided to go on an impromptu trip to Tamil Nadu.
“We didn’t book rooms in advance and had to depend on public toilets most of the time. They weren’t spic and span but caretakers did their best to keep it tidy. When we reached Kerala, we were aghast by the way the caretakers of the toilets here approach their work. From then on, we decided to keep a track of the situation and even planned to launch an all-India toilet expedition! It was then that the City Corporation asked us to make a design for public toilets. As part of documenting information we visited 30 public toilets within the city limits,” says Ganga, architect and urban designer.
The group was appalled by what they came across. “Even though a toilet is a necessity, it is always found in the backyard, in a filthy corner away from the public eye. The irony is that it is inside in a toilet that you shed all exterior pretensions, it is a place where you are really honest!” Ganga adds.
The group found that in many places there are no separate toilets for women.
“It is considered a space only for men. Women and transgenders never enter them. And even if there are toilets for women, many never use it. In East Fort, for example, the women have to make way through an open public bathing space to go to the toilet and therefore no woman goes there. In Chala, we were advised not to go near the toilets. There are locations where these buildings are under the ownership of a particular union and are kept locked. We also found that since it is punishable to smoke in public places, some find these toilets the best options to have a puff. There is no annual maintenance done. As for e-toilets, many can’t understand the mechanism and so refrain from using it,” Ganga explains.
Although Kerala has been declared an open defecation-free state, the reality is rather disheartening. “Once we collated the findings, we decided to start a campaign. There is so much discomfort when we think about this topic, but we want people to shed their awkwardness and look into the gravity of the situation,” she says. They want to convey the message that the toilet is not just a space and it is not a trivial issue. For, toilets is all about sanitation, health, privacy, gender equality, dignity and more.
On the agenda
On November 19, from 10 am onwards, participants can come up with guidelines, art works and photographs. Discussions and debates involving stakeholders will also be held. An art installation and a performance featuring theatre artiste and folk musician Shylaja Ambu are other highlights.
Ganga reiterates that the event is not just meant to throw light on the state of public toilets. “We are aiming at a toilet literacy campaign. People need to cultivate a civic sense when using toilets. It is the responsibility of the caretaker as well as the user to keep the toilets clean,” she points out. Contact: 9495406904
App for toilets
Team Recyclebin will launch an app, Kakoos App by which you can spot the public toilets near you. The crowd-sourced app developed in three days will review the toilet based on hygiene, accessibility, maintenance and security. The locations could be a government office, hospital, railway station or bus stand
Team Recyclebin
Ganga Dileep C., Geethanjali M. R., Meenakshi Meera, Harikrishnan, Devi S. and Dinesh Reghunathan. When the city Corporation organised an expo at Sree Chithira Thirunal Park showcasing alternatives for plastic carry bags, the team had put up an art installation using discarded plastic bottles.
