The Freedom Compartment

#traindiaries is a photo journal shot in the ladies coaches of Mumbai locals. It explores how women engage and familiarise themselves with spaces by building relationships with complete strangers

- Anushree Fadnavis

JOHN Berger says in his book Ways of Seeing: “A woman must continually watch herself ... From earliest childhood she has been taught and persuaded to survey herself continually. And so, she comes to consider the surveyor and the surveyed within her as the two constituent yet always distinct elements of her identity as a woman.”

Women are always surrounded by men—at home, office, or in public spaces. The ladies compartment of the Mumbai local train becomes a unique space that feels like it has been specifically designed for them—a space devoid of men. I feel women use this space to liberate themselves from any male gaze—or at least I have.