Public toilets are honest footprints of our culture. It is a reflection of genuine social behaviour and responsibility of the governance summing up to give a testimony of multi-dimensional social aspects. Deciphering the layers of association between public toilets and social dimensions would open opportunities of exploring and engaging with the phenomenon in multiple ways.
It all began from a journey… A journey that began from Trivandrum and continued through various parts of Tamil Nadu. Throughout the journey, only public infrastructure was used including public toilets. An interesting observation from the trip was the stark contrast in the way public infrastructure, especially toilets, are seen in both the states.
While in one case the infrastructure resonated with the essentiality and inevitability of the bodily function, the other case displayed a sheer indifference and hostility to the same.
In the light of the journey, on November 2017, toilet tales by Recycle Bin was launched to study, quantify and enhance the toilet culture of Kerala. The campaign was initiated with a study of the toilets in Trivandrum, the capital city of Kerala.
The research traces three major aspects relating to public toilets.
Toilet stands as a testimony of the culture and mindset of a society which roots itself to the behaviour of each individual using it.
The built structure and its facilities being the tangible aspect to which people relate, the image put forth by it is instrumental in deciding its equitable usage.
Maintenance and timely monitoring of toilets often pose a conflicted sense of ownership among the users, the toilet keepers and the providers.
NRA E42, Prabhamandiram
Peroorkada P.O, Trivandrum
695005 Kerala, India
Studio Recycle bin, 49/13,
Habibullah road, T nagar,
Chennai-600017
toilettales.recyclebin@gmail.com
rerecyclebin@gmail.com
Mobile: (+91) 7042 338 318
Mobile: (+91) 7200 272 681