5 Years Without a Dustbin: How One Mumbai Family Made Sustainability Simple
Every day at Sonika Bhasin’s Mumbai home unfolds with a rhythmic routine. On the kitchen countertop sits a large container, ready to collect the peels and ends of vegetables — remnants of meals yet to be prepared. By evening, these organic scraps find their way into an earthen composter, snugly nestled in a cosy corner of her balcony.
Sonika smiles warmly, her eyes twinkling with a blend of pride and wonder, as she describes the magical transformation that unfolds within its layers. “The process is natural alchemy: time, microorganisms, and a balance of greens and browns create rich, earthy compost — nature’s black gold,” she says.
This compost feeds her garden, turning kitchen waste into vibrant basil, mint, tomatoes, lemons, and curry leaves, which find their way back into her kitchen, completing nature’s beautiful cycle.
Instead of throwing them away, Sonika collects all organic scraps like fruit peels into an earthen pot to make nutrient-rich compost.
Her son, Abir, wide-eyed with curiosity, marvels at this daily miracle, learning the invaluable lesson that waste need not be wasteful.
Mindful choices beyond the compost
Sonika’s commitment doesn’t stop at composting. Her home is a testament to conscious consumption and mindful choices. She has dedicated a bag to collect all dry waste, such as plastic items, paper, cardboard, glass, aluminium, and e-waste. “Every two weeks, a recycling service called 5R Cycle visits our home to collect the accumulated dry waste. This has been our practice for the last five years,” she says.
Beyond dry and wet waste, there’s also a third category known as reject waste — items like used sanitary pads and diapers, which are neither recyclable nor compostable.
“We strive to avoid producing this kind of waste by minimising disposable usage. We prioritise reusable products, such as cloth napkins instead of tissues. I use a menstrual cup or period panties, ensuring that my menstrual cycle generates no waste. When my son was in diapers, we exclusively used reusable cloth diapers,” she adds.
Sonika says cloth diapering her son was the starting point of her journey towards a low-waste lifestyle.
By focusing on these approaches, Sonika significantly reduced her household waste. As she explored more, she began discovering waste-reducing options — often hidden in plain sight.
“We actively seek out packaging-free options, especially for groceries, as packaging is a major contributor to household waste. Many kirana (grocery) stores offer loose products. Instead of relying on their plastic or paper bags, we bring our reusable cloth pouches and containers,” she explains.
Every purchase, Sonika believes, is a vote for sustainability. “Household necessities come from Indian sustainable brands, wrapped in minimal plastic-free packaging. Even shopping for clothes, previously a frequent indulgence, is now a purposeful act. Thrift stores and second-hand finds adorn my wardrobe now,” she adds.
Cleaning, too, became a conscious choice. Sonika has replaced chemical-based floor cleaners in her home with natural bioenzymes. “It is remarkably easy and cost-effective to make. Created using leftover fruit peels, the process is both simple and sustainable. Follow a simple 3:1:10 ratio — three parts fruit peels, one part jaggery, and 10 parts water. Leave the mixture to ferment for a month. The result is a concentrated liquid that can be used for cleaning.”
An added benefit of the bioenzyme is its versatility. After mopping with it, Sonika uses the leftover water for her plants, as it acts both as a fertiliser and a natural pesticide. “In my experience, it keeps pests at bay and works well for cleaning surfaces — from glass tables to kitchen counters, even silver jewellery,” says Sonika.
“In terms of cost, a litre of bioenzyme only requires a small amount of jaggery, making it extremely affordable to produce. This is a great example of how sustainable products can save money,” she adds.
Citrus peels like oranges or lemons lend a particularly pleasant scent. Pineapple peels also yield a fragrant result, making mundane cleaning feel a bit more delightful. In the summer, mango peels create a lovely aroma as well.
Five years without a garbage bin
Sonika had always been aware of environmental issues — a background hum of headlines and reports about climate change, plastic pollution, and growing landfills. But it wasn’t until the birth of her son six years ago that the hum turned into a call to action.
A seemingly harmless purchase of cloth diapers led her down the rabbit hole of waste management and environmental impact. The discovery that disposable diapers could sit in landfills for centuries, leaching harmful chemicals, was a revelation that pushed her to reevaluate her family’s carbon footprint.
Sonika uses sustainable alternatives like a bamboo toothbrush and has also dedicated bags to collect all dry waste.
“Abir’s birth shifted my perspective on sustainability and the environment. As a parent, I felt responsible for my child’s future, recognising the urgency to provide a safe Earth. Overconsumption and waste, largely ignored, emerged as pivotal issues. Each purchase depletes limited resources, filling landfills. Reducing consumption and managing waste became my focus,” she says.
To the outside world, Sonika is a media professional. But within the comforting walls of her home, she is an eco-warrior — championing a sustainable lifestyle for her family and community.
Inspiring a chain reaction
What started as a personal journey has rippled outward, touching the lives of friends, family, and colleagues. Sonika’s home bursts with warmth, laughter, and conversations about sustainability — echoes that now reach far beyond her balcony garden. “Friends who visit don’t just see an alternative lifestyle; they feel inspired to embrace small changes in their own lives.”
“We’re using different products and composting instead of using a dustbin, so there’s no inconvenience for anyone. It’s the same life we’ve always lived, just with better choices. Friends have followed suit, realising it takes little effort and doesn’t disrupt daily life. Mindful decisions make all the difference,” she emphasises.
Sapna Melwani, who met Sonika after their children became friends, has been embracing small changes in her lifestyle for the past two and a half years. It began with the small things they noticed Abir doing, which motivated them to learn more.
“When we visited her zero-waste home, we learnt about composting, recycling, and sustainable shopping habits, like using cloth bags and reusable bottles. Our playdates, often at the beach or on nature treks, always embrace zero waste principles.”
She recalls that, initially, their family had concerns about compost smells and the inconvenience of carrying reusables. “But gradually, everyone adapted,” she adds. While they’re not completely zero waste yet, Sapna says they are committed to learning and reducing waste through composting, recycling, balloon-free and sustainable birthday parties, and embracing minimalism and low-waste living.
Meanwhile, Sonika’s colleague Divvya Hariharan says, “It was the conversations with Sonika that truly sparked this switch. She can open up your mind to things that were so obvious yet hidden in plain sight, like waste segregation, using hand towels, and carrying water bottles wherever we go. Though we’re not fully sustainable yet, Sonika’s example motivates us to imbibe these practices.”
Sonika’s impact isn’t limited to friends and colleagues — her online presence has inspired many others as well. In 2022, Eleena Sanyal Banerji from Powai, Mumbai, came across one of Sonika’s Instagram posts about the dangers of using wet wipes for children. She found Sonika’s advice clear, concise, and compelling, and it sparked a change in her own household.
Inspired by her, Eleena has been composting her wet waste in a terracotta pot for three years, ensuring that no wet waste leaves her home. She has also eliminated single-use plastics and encourages her family to do the same. “My young son once went to a birthday party and forgot to carry his cloth napkin. He came back and told me, ‘Ma, it felt wrong to use tissue paper!’ I knew that day that I had done something right in my life,” she says.
For Sonika, it’s been five years of sustainable living — five years of mindful choices, of embracing less to give more.
Transitioning from a conventional urban lifestyle to a sustainable one was not an overnight transformation. It began with curiosity, grew with research, and blossomed into a full-fledged lifestyle change.
Though she acknowledges the lingering anxieties of climate change, Sonika rests easy knowing that her actions, however small, contribute to a healthier planet for her son and generations to come.
“And it is this blend of hope, responsibility, and the everyday magic of transforming waste into wonder that defines my journey of turning simple acts into a life-saving harmony with the Earth,” smiles Sonika.
Edited by Khushi Arora; All images courtesy Sonika Bhasin
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