Having a place like this has been a dream since I gained feminist consciousness,” Sabah Khan tells us, as we walk into the compact and newly-opened Guftagu, a space nestled between the cheek-by-jowl buildings of Mumbra’s Old Nasheman Colony. A tall glass of deep red kokum soda with swirling mint leaves is offered to us. “Every woman who comes here is served chai or a cold drink. This is a welcoming space for them,” says the social worker. Titles in Urdu pack a bookshelf in a corner near the door, while ludo, jenga, and chess are close at hand. A small blackboard announces the week’s upcoming events. 

“When a woman is stressed, where does she go?” Khan asks rhetorically, “Here, she has a few moments to herself.” Khan’s dream to host a space for women to get away from the drudgery of domestic service and caretaking goes back 25 years, when she worked with feminist collective MASUM after a Masters in social work. “Eight to nine of us used to hang out together, every day after work, and wonder—where are the spaces for women?” In 2003, she took a break and worked at Indigo Deli for three years. It was to understand the work required to run a co-working and hangout space.