They call it 'a dream fulfilled' -- new homes designed for (and by) slum residents

They call it 'a dream fulfilled' — new homes designed for (and by) slum residents August 1, 20267:14 AM ET By  Kamala Thiagarajan Pooja Gawali and her family left the tin shack in which they'd live and moved into a new apartment building. She helped design their unit, which, she says, gives her much needed privacy and the space to take on a hobby. Her sewing machine occupies pride of place in her living room. The construction project has won an award for its innovative spirit. Viraj Nayar for NPR hide caption toggle caption Viraj Nayar for NPR Pooja Gawali used to live in a one-room home with no indoor plumbing. The walls were tin sheets. The roof leaked when it rained. The 32-year-old shared the cramped space with her husband, her in-laws and her husband's two brothers. She never knew what it meant to truly relax, she says. The lack of privacy in her home meant that she always had to always be on alert — conscious of how she sat or behaved. That's not uncommon in Sanjaynagar, a crowded slum in the western Indian state of Maharashtra where she lives. On mud lanes slick with goat droppings, homes press against each other. Around 900 people are squeezed into 206 metal shacks. Sponsor Message Today, things are very different for Gawali. In 2022, she moved into an apartment on the second floor of a newly constructed three-story building with 33 units that houses not just her own family but 30 other families from her slum neighborhood. One brother-in-law lives in the apartment below hers; the other in one above. When their home was being built, the family had a request — they wanted their apartments to be connected through an inner flight of stairs. They got that wish –- and more. "I relish the privacy I have now," she says. "It's a joy to be able to live freely. We're still a tight-knit family, but life is so much easier when everyone has their own space." Residents have named the three-story building Swapnapurti — Marathi for "a dream fulfilled." It's easy t...