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Rashi Karkoon and Upasana Patgiri-Proposal

Sab-ki Mandi: Enhancing the Markets of India as an Inclusive Public Space for the Elderly

Aging is an inevitable truth of life that carries with it a myriad of habits, memories, and experiences. Senior citizens in India have their own set of unique habits embedded in their daily activities that provide them with the comfort of familiarity of the bygone times. Going to Mandi every weekend to buy household necessities and vegetables for the week is one such habit that is engrained in every senior citizen of India. As we move toward internet websites and applications to meet our needs, the elderly continue to find solace in the modest acts of purchasing vegetables in a Mandi-built setting. In loose terms, Mandi can be explained as a large marketplace of vegetables and fruits, where thousands of colors are spread across the space with a display of all vegetables and fruits that can be bought, where shopkeepers are sitting on the ground in small pockets of areas with sheets spread across, and where there is a constant sound of vendors and buyers bargaining. Such a space is typically a daily or weekly temporary setup that has no built aspect and yet is defined by its vendors, buyers, and their interactions. 

Visiting a Mandi becomes more difficult as one grows older in India. This issue, which is frequently overlooked, was actually highlighted in a survey we conducted of about 25 elders in our local community. They missed the independence of being able to visit a market alone that was lost due to various physical barriers such as difficulty in navigating in crowded spaces, constantly bending to inspect the vegetables on the ground, carrying heavy bags after shopping, and long-standing hours due to a lack of seating spaces. When confronted with such large physical impediments, such a minor task of daily life can foster a sense of interdependence in the minds of older citizens, which can lead to poor mental health.

Along with the customers, in a Mandi, there are various elderly vendors who have sold vegetables their entire lives and, as they age, they face a new set of physical challenges. They encounter obstacles that directly influence their incomes and livelihood, such as long sitting hours on the ground, a shortage of public toilets, and an inability to shout and compete with their young counterparts.

Our proposal for the senior citizens of our local community will be to create a marketplace, a Mandi for the elderly that is led by the elderly. With raised platforms, and seating the space will have an accessible design for both the aged vendors and buyers. With such design interventions to the old scapes of an Indian marketplace, it will bring back a sense of familiarity and comfort, serving the mental, physical and economic needs of the senior citizen. The Mandi is a concept based on an age-old idea of the Indian market that allows elderly buyers and vendors to create a market that breaks free of all physical barriers and mental inhibitions.