Street groupwork in Kolkata

The authors use the term ‘street groupwork’ to present the practices of Bharat Bhavna (literal translation: India thinking), a community-based movement in the Maniktala district of Kolkata (Calcutta), West Bengal. Notions of time and place are used to contrast street groupwork with more formalised groupwork, referencing the Gandhian notion of swadeshi, a commitment to immediate surroundings. This is not a parochial devotion, and the chapter explores how street groupworkers build alliances with other groups, linking groupwork with community organisation. Street groupwork is fluid, inventive and improvisational, and the group leaders live the lives of the community with whom they work. The style of their work is best described as immersive and the range of activities is enormous, from small group Indian dance classes to large-scale environmental and social justice campaigning. An explicit social and political philosophy lies at the heart of street groupwork – the Maniktala manifestation is environmental and socialist – with a mission to educate ‘the street’ to develop political awareness through group activities. The authors make the case that it is important to recognise the groupwork in street groupwork, and its significance for the wider family of group practice.