Memory, Identity and Deindustrialization: Reflections from Bygone Mill‐scapes of Bangalore, India

Abstract

This study takes a closer look at the deindustrialization of the South Indian city of Bangalore with respect to its former cotton mill sector, nearly two decades after the closure of the first three composite cotton mills in the city. The study views deindustrialization from sectoral, city‐ and community‐centric perspectives. As well as identifying Bangalore as a significant site within the ‘bygone mills’ discourse in India, the article contributes to the less‐researched theme of deindustrialization in the global South. It provides a detailed look into the city's mill‐scapes, from their rise in the late 19th and early 20th centuries to their demise in the early 21st century, through a mix of archival evidence, spatial analysis and an interrogation of the collective memory of millworkers and their families.