New Delhi, June 5 -- Madhe Gowda, a fruit vendor in Bengaluru's Whitefield area, noticed the rising heat in the city about four years ago. Working for more than12 hours a day, mostly under the scorching sun, means headaches and falling sick frequently. "There isn't a way for us to avoid this heat," he says. Gowda is among the over 400 million informal workers in India's labour force who bear the brunt of heat stress every day.

A new exhibition in Bengaluru, Sweat and Concrete 2025, explored how art can draw focus to the heat stress crisis. The exhibition was organized on 29-30 May by People First Cities, an initiative by social movement incubator Purpose. "If you look at the narrative around heat stress right now, it's alarming. How do w...