LONDON - DELHI 2010-2012
Riverfront - Spectacle's Film
LONDON - DELHI 2010-2012
River front - London's relationship to the river Thames is very like the one Delhi has with the Yamuna. Along the Yamuna were large informal settlements and small farm holdings. The River front is now being cleared of 'jhuggis' (shanty homes), and plans are in place for new housing, stadiums and waterparks. Along the Thames bank exist informal and formal houseboat communities and informal settlements such as the Kew Bridge Eco Village, slogan "The Land is Yours", who are protesting against the privatisation of river front public spaces and the development of exclusive gated communities. There are plans in place for new river front luxury housing and attempts to clear the riverfront of houseboats.
We were happily (un)surprised to find the theme resonated locally in Kew Bridge. For our response we also draw on our Active Archive of videos, footage from the Land is Ours from 1996, Manor Gardens Allotments and Clays Lane Housing Co-op on the site of the London Olympics, and an interview with Shack Dwellers from South Africa on how winning the 2010 World Cup will actually impoverish those struggling to earn a living street selling fast food.
