Bekar Odalari (Bachelor rooms)

Altan Bal – Bekar Odalari – 2003

The term “bekâr” means “bachelor” (or “the bachelors”) and derives from the Persian bî-kâr (jobless). In the Ottoman context, however, it referred to the figure of the male migrant worker. Migrant workers at the time came to Istanbul from different parts of the empire, such as the western Black Sea region, central and eastern Anatolia, and the Aegean Islands, to seek a better future in the city. They worked in a variety of mostly unskilled jobs and lived on the margins of society, frequently grouped together in collective tenements, called bachelor rooms, or bekar odalari. These dwellings were located mostly around commercial areas and docks, close to the workers’ places of employment. They ranged from modest barren rooms to huge structures that housed several hundred migrants and were often owned by Janissaries or city clerks. Contemporary photographer Altan Bal initiated this photography project in 2003, to highlight the persistent marginalization of migrant workers in Istanbul today. Forgotten by society, these men of mostly Kurdish background continue to be stigmatized and isolated from the rest of the world.