Mumbai, Dec. 14: The city that never sleeps betrayed no outward signs of a bandh but the strike did hit home: over 25,000 household helps stayed away from work today.

“My maid has not turned up, and with two little kids to look after, I couldn’t go to work,” said Sujata, a radio jockey with Big FM.

Sujata, living in a city indifferent to strike calls, had no clue about the nationwide bandh. “I went to my neighbours to ask if I could borrow their part-time help and was surprised to find that she, too, had not turned up. I got to know about the strike only after speaking to a couple of people.”

Around one lakh homes in the suburbs, from Bandra and Juhu to Khar and Santacruz, were hit by the unexpected strike, which was meant to show solidarity with the Citu bandh.

The larger of the two unions of domestic workers in the city, the Aituc-sponsored Ghar Kamgar Mulkarni Sanghatan, joined the strike. The Bombay Houseworkers’ Solidarity, the older union with a dwindling membership of 7,000 now, did not.

Surekha Maity, 54, whose husband is a farmer in Midnapore, said she was participating in the strike because she needed the union to help her negotiate salary and perks with prospective employers as well as maid agencies.

“I worked as a live-in help with a family in Lokhandwala for eight years. One fine day, they chucked me out and the agency that brought me to Mumbai did not stand by me. That’s when I got to know the union people. Now whenever they need me, I am here for them,” she said.

Hailing from Bengal, Bihar and Nepal, along with some illegal Bangladeshi migrants, women like Surekha cook and clean in the suburbs. Most carry with them the political consciousness of rural Bengal.

The union office in Goregaon wore a festive look today as president Babli Raut addressed a motley crowd of domestic workers, their spouses and children, all turned out in their best clothes. Later the women, along with a few enthusiastic men, took out a rally against FDI in telecom and defence.