BOMBAY DECO - Art Deco Mumbai
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CoverStory
BOMBAY
DECO
Mumbai ’s Nod to the Art Deco Movement
Mumbai has the second largest concentration of Art Deco buildings in the
world, after Miami. In the mid-1900s, these architectural gems transformed
Bombay, as it was then called, putting it in an exclusive club of fashionable
cities of the world. Today a cluster of these buildings is a
UNESCO World Heritage Site.
By DEEPALI NANDWANI
At the southernmost tip of Mumbai, wedged be- now recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.
tween the Arabian Sea and the sprawling metropolis, The rich legacy of this trend that flourished in
stands The Oberoi, Mumbai. Besides its restaurants, it the 1930s and 1940s continues to endure in our times.
is also famous for its endless views of the ocean, and Within the aforementioned Oberoi Hotel is the newly
of the Marine Drive boulevard—an iconic vista in a opened The Eau Bar, an elegant space with an outdoor
space-starved city. Colloquially known as “The Queen’s deck. Taking its design cues from some of the oldest
Necklace,”—for how its streetlights appear from afar buildings along that stretch, its rounded corners and
at night—Marine Drive is at the heart of Mumbai’s striking red velvet walls are reminiscent of the indul-
famed Art Deco district. Boasting dozens of these styl- gent jazz bars of the Art Deco era.
ish structures—homes, offices, hotels, and cinemas— Art Deco is a style of visual arts and architecture
this famed boulevard, along with another cluster of that influenced the urban cities across the world in the
such gems, surrounding the nearby Oval Maidan, is early 1920s. The style, born in Paris and introduced to
the world at the International Exhibi- buildings much before the explosion of
tion of Modern Decorative and Industri- Art Deco brought on by both Indian and
al Arts in 1925, blended modern sensi- British architects. The influx of Art Deco
bilities of the times with diverse motifs enhanced the skyline of the area with
influenced by emerging aesthetics from a rich mix of architectural gems that
around the world. It was adopted by ma- earned it the enviable UNESCO citation.
jor cities such as New York, Miami, Lon-
don, Amsterdam, and finally Mumbai. The glory days of Art Deco in
The erstwhile city acquired its Art Mumbai
Deco treasures thanks to the Indian The Backbay Reclamation Scheme—
royal families who had a presence in an ambitious undertaking in 1920—to
the city, as also to the well-travelled expand the limits of this landlocked city,
merchants and entrepreneurs express- was envisioned as an area that would
ing their love for contemporary ways offer a welcome relief from the con-
of living they had experienced in Eu- gested spaces of the native city. A beau-
rope. Thanks to the Brits, Mumbai was tiful promenade and public squares be-
already home to Victorian and Gothic ing part of the plan, the upscale project
The rich legacy of Art Deco continues to endure: the new Eau Bar at Oberoi, Mumbai
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naturally lent itself perfectly to the ris- ‘The future is here.’”
ing ambitions of those who were scout- “Some of the best buildings con-
ing for ideal locations for their new- structed in the Art Deco aesthetic style
found love of Art Deco. faced the Arabian Sea in a spectacular
The approximately 440 acres of re- crescent and spelt the advent of moder-
claimed land stretching from the west- nity in India,” says Lambah who worked
ern edge of Oval Maidan and Church- on the UNESCO dossier with several res-
gate to Sir Pherozeshah Mehta Road, MG idential bodies as well as the Art Deco
Road, and Marine Drive thus evolved as Mumbai Trust (AMDT) to secure the rec-
Mumbai’s Art Deco Precinct—one that ognition as a World Heritage Site. The
writer Salman Rushdie described, in one buildings were partly inspired by local
of his novels, as “a glittering Art Deco design elements, earning the moniker
sweep … not even Rome could boast.” ‘Bombay Deco’ for the city’s Art Deco.
According to Abha Narain Lambah, “Tropical imagery, ziggurats, nauti-
a Conservation architect, the Backbay cal designs, and geometrical patterns
Reclamation Scheme propelled Bombay are some of the distinctive features
from a 19th-century Victorian unique to Bombay Deco,” says Atul Ku-
town to a modern, internation- mar, founder of the AMDT, a not-for-
al city. It was the first Art Deco profit conservation, documentation,
district in India, creating blocks and advocacy body.
of such buildings starting in Vishaka Bhat, a researcher and doc-
1929 and extending in waves umenter with AMDT, who often takes
of construction from the 1930s people on the Oval Maidan Art Deco
to 1940s. “Decades before the walk, says that the architects of Mum-
construction of Le Corbusier’s bai brought two important changes to
modern icons of Chandigarh, the style: inclusion of tropical imagery
Bombay’s Art Deco had given like palm fronds and elephants, and
India its first tryst with the new climate-responsive elements, such as
architecture of reinforced con- windows designed to promote cross cir-
crete,” says Lambah. culation.
Few cities on the subconti- For Mumbai, this represented not
nent could rival the dynamism merely an architecture style. “It, instead,
unfolding in Bombay at that mobilized the aspirations of Bombay
time. Author Gyan Prakash, post-Independence,” contends archi-
who wrote about Mumbai’s evo- tect Ashish Shah, who grew up in one
lution in his book, Mumbai Fa- of the Art Deco buildings along Marine
bles, says, “Art Deco was synon- Drive and has designed modern homes
ymous with a new fashionable amidst some of the old treasures that
lifestyle that proudly declared continue to survive. “Though minimal
Above and Right: The iconic
Liberty Cinema from the heydays
of Bombay Deco. (Photo: Courtesy,
Art Deco Mumbai Trust)
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CoverStory The Taraporevala Aquarium, flaunting its
unique design and architecture.
Harbinger of social revolution
The Art Deco movement also
brought in a social and cultural revo-
lution of sorts. Interestingly, what be-
gan as an ‘elitist’ trend in the affluent
neighborhoods of Mumbai spread its
way through suburbs such as Dadar,
Matunga and Sion. Many of the Gujarati
and Jain traders living in these suburbs,
in a bid to be seen as ‘fashionable’ south
Mumbai residents, built buildings in
this style for their joint families.
With gaining popularity amongst
varied strata of Bombay’s upwardly mo-
bile, the infusion of traditional Indian
influences into this trend was bound to
happen. This fusion of the ancient and
the modern was yet another unique
aspect of Bombay Deco. “The Art Deco
elements included statues of Goddesses
and a lot of Hindu religious symbolism,
weaved into the fabric of what was then
a modern style,” says Kumar.
The somewhat egalitarian spread of
Art Deco had interesting consequences
on the social fabric of the city. By that
era of the mid-1900s, many Indian fami-
lies were moving away from a joint sys-
Silver Foil, the residential building in tem to live as nuclear families in urban
central Mumbai has projecting balconies areas, says Michael Windover, associ-
and continuous chajjas (overhangs) ate professor in the School for Studies
made from reinforced concrete, a
in Art and Culture at Carleton Univer-
construction material which was new
in the 1930s and allowed several sity, Ottawa, Canada. “The rich invested
architectural interventions, thought Sanghrajka House, located in Matunga, in these Art Deco buildings, and then
impossible earlier. (Photo: Art Deco a western suburb of Mumbai, was built rented them out to the new migrants to
Mumbai Trust) by Architect Taraporewalla & Co. The the city,” says Windover, who has stud-
building is marked by the white vertical ied Mumbai’s Art Deco heritage. “These
band created by chajjas, recessed
buildings allowed people to leave the
balconies and clean grill work. (Photo: Art
Deco Mumbai Trust) rigid caste structures behind in their
little towns and live cheek-by-jowl with
in style and far less ornate than what people from other castes and communi-
the best of Indian architecture tradition- ties. It helped define Mumbai’s cosmo-
ally represented, it also marked a move- politan subculture.”
ment away from the austerity of Ma- The UNESCO citation said it the
hatma Gandhi. Art Deco was a radical best, when they stated, “The Victorian
alternative. Several industrialists and and Art Deco Ensemble of Mumbai
home-grown architects, who worked forms an architectural development of
with the British architects, adapted it Outstanding Universal Value embody-
as a sign of Bombay’s future as a great ing urban re-engineering in the context
global port city.” of colonial cities over the 19th and 20th
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clean lines, much like the buildings we
referenced. We were also influenced by
Anurag Kashyap’s movie, Bombay Velvet.”
Kashyap recreated the Art Deco
era painstakingly for his 2015 ode to
Mumbai’s evolution as a glamorous port
city, complete with the machinations
and scheming of the leading lights of
that era. He modeled his buildings and
homes, nightclubs and streets in the
exact image of what Mumbai, or Bom-
bay, was in that time. “Back then, there
was optimism in the air, which can be
seen in the public culture, in cinemas,
jazz bars and the Art Deco buildings,”
Kashyap says.
Preserving a priceless heritage
“We are one of the few cities where
the Art Deco heritage is a ‘living heri-
tage’, which means there are residents
who still live in these buildings and use
them,” says Kumar of AMDT.
The Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan,
centuries. The demolition of fortifica- Among the residents is Dhun Len-
a culture and arts institutions
boasts a geometric brick façade tions to restructure the Esplanade fol- tin, whose family has lived in the beau-
made of concrete and Indo-Sar- lowed by the ambitious Backbay Recla- tiful Soona Mahal since 1939. Her three-
acenic (once known as ‘Hindoo’ mation Scheme was emblematic in Asia bedroom house has a curved balcony
style or even Indo-Gothic) domes and the world, of a development stage facing the south-western seafront and
made of cement, a blend of two
in human history, the shift from forti- windows running down the front. “We
different architectural styles.
(Photo: Art Deco Mumbai Trust) fied colonial towns to commercial cit- were among the earliest residents,”
ies in a modernising world. Collectively, she says. “Malabar Hill and areas around
this ensemble of Victorian and Art Deco
buildings is unparalleled in its reflection
of international modernity of the 19th
and 20th centuries and influences the
narrative of modernism in Asia.”
Inspiring pop culture
Over the years, a number of film-
makers, artists, product designers and
even jewelry designers have recog-
nized the city’s rich Art Deco heritage
in various ways. For instance, jewelry
brand Caratlane paid homage with its
Bombay Deco collection two years ago.
“We chose buildings such as Eros Cin-
ema, Liberty Cinema, Empress Court,
Regal Cinema, and Metro Cinema that A semi-circular verandah with a cantilevered
canopy projecting from the center of the building,
are recognizable for their distinct Art
into the drawing-room was the unique feature of
Deco elements,” says designer Chetan Mafatlal House, built in 1937. (Photo: Art Deco
Sharma. “This was a collection with Mumbai Trust)
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because of the pride involved
in it, some have fallen by the
wayside,” Kumar says. “In the
suburbs, where there are no
heritage laws controlling their
redevelopment, many Art Deco
buildings have been replaced by
modern edifices.”
An ornate staircase in the Deco style inside Lalchand This is where a body like
Mahal, on the UNESCO listed Art Deco stretch in Colaba. It
ADMT has played a substantial
abuts an intricately detailed metal elevator. (Photo: Deepali
Nandwani). role. Kumar says that his work
Two neglected Art Deco buildings in Andheri. Lack of Heritage laws combined with the rigid Rent
Control Act passed in 1947 in Mumbai took a toll of some these buildings that were rented out. (Photo
courtesy: Deven Verma).
it were occupied by high-ranking
British officials and wealthy Indian with various citizens associations and
families. But more modern families like NGOs revealed to him the need for
mine, who had come into wealth by residents to be involved in the conser-
then, preferred the flamboyance of the vation process. “We can pass all sorts
Art Deco buildings.” of legislation, but if there is no contri-
After partition, Punjabis and bution from the people who are living
Sindhis from the other side of the there, conservation won’t work,” he
border became the new tenants of says. “That is how the idea of the as-
these buildings. sociation was born. It is an outreach
Some unique factors posed a set- program which combines social me-
back to these stylized buildings. In 1947, dia, workshops, lectures at architecture
Mumbai passed the rigid Rent Con- academies, documentation, research
trol Act, which froze the rents to the and an online inventory.”
amount prevalent at that time. Un- While the core team comprises
fortunately for property owners, rents trained architects, and handles most
remained the same for more than 50 of the research and documentation,
years, with small increases permitted interns carry out fieldwork on a proj-
since 1999. These artificially subdued ect basis. AMDT also offers restoration
rents—a slap in the face of actual mar- consultancy on a pro-bono basis to
ket rents—turned off many owners residents who approach them. The self-
from their otherwise prized posses- funded body works with schoolchildren
sions. “While some owners continue to educate them about the need to con-
to look after the Art Deco properties serve and preserve this heritage.
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“Young- The Shiv Shanti
er genera- Bhavan, opposite
Oval Maidan,
tion like
was built in 1934
mine needs and featured
to continue trios of windows
to live here lined with curved
and make shades, called
‘eyebrows’.
it its own.
(Photo: Deepali
There is no Nandwani)
Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap’s reason why
Bombay Velvet painstakingly the interi-
recreated the Art Deco vibe of ors cannot be made modern or why
the city you can’t adapt it to modern lifestyles
without changing or harming the
façade,” says Shah. Indeed, the real
conservation lies in adapting these
buildings to modern times.
The Windcliffe was built in 1940’s by Architect:
G B Mhatre, and is known for its uniquely winged
facade. (Photo: Art Deco Mumbai Trust)
The tiered facade, zigzag
pattern and minaret of Eros Deepali Nandwani is a Mumbai-based
Theatre inspired the design of freelance journalist, a columnist on luxury with
these diamond earrings from CNBC-TV18, and an aficionado of everything
Caratlane. heritage.
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CoverStory
of some of Bombay’s most significant
Victorian public buildings—it housed a
fully air-conditioned theater even back
in the heyday. Its neon-colored facade,
Single-screen, bold green interiors, and an under-
ground parking garage attracted the af-
Art Deco
fluent residents of the neighborhood to
spend evenings at the cinemas. Regal,
like most other of its Art Deco compa-
cinemas
triots, screened only Hollywood movies
back in the 1940s. It was also home to
ice skating rinks and restaurants.
While Regal is on the verge of clo-
sure due to competition from snazzy
multiplexes, many older theaters such
as Metro and The Liberty Theatre have
reinvented themselves for modern
times. Nazir Hoosein, Liberty’s curator,
historian and preservationist, inherited
the cinema from his father Habib, a cot-
The Art Deco movement shaped ton trader with a passion for cinema.
not just apartment blocks but also sin- His father ran 45 cinemas of which The
gle-screen cinemas in Mumbai, which Liberty, designed by Canadian architect
came up in the 1930s and 40s. Regal M. A. Riddley Abbott and Indian archi-
was the first to get off the ground and tect J. B. Fernandes, was said to be the
change the city’s popular culture. most glamorous when it opened in 1949.
Built in 1933 by architect Charles The theater, which hosted premieres of
Steven—son of F. W. Stevens, designer movies such as Mehboob Khan’s Andaz,
has been preserved in a pristine condi-
A sketch depicting two of the most iconic cinema houses of Mumbai: Liberty tion and now hosts theatre performanc-
Cinema and Eros Cinema. (Photo: Art Deco Mumbai Trust) es, film festivals and other events.
Another theater that has survived,
though not in the same pristine con-
dition as The Liberty or Metro, is Eros
Cinema. Its V-shaped structure, par-
tially clad with red Agra sandstone that
contrasts with the light cream painted
facade, is being restored. The ziggurat-
like tower is a familiar site for most
Mumbaikars who traverse the rush-
The buildings hour crush at Churchgate Railway sta-
tion. It serves as a visual marker in the
that Churchgate area within the Backbay
Reclamation Scheme.
defined the “I have travelled to many coun-
tries, but their Art Deco cinemas are
style nothing compared to ours,” says
Hoosein, who believes that these single-
screen theatres should be preserved
and showcased as tourist spots by
the government.
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patterns, is among the iconic Art Deco
buildings of Mumbai. Kumar points out
that Mumbai’s status as a coastal city
The buildings
finds an apt reflection in the nautical el-
ements across several of these buildings
in areas abutting the sea.
that Residential buildings were also
constructed on the plots that ran along
defined the the Queen’s Road (now Maharshi Karve
Road) facing the Oval Maidan, creating
style a unified urban fabric. “Most of these
buildings, such as Shiv Shanti Bhuvan
and Rajjab Mahal, have highly deco-
rative surfaces that evoke a sense of
flamboyance in the way they use color,
banding details, relief patterns, and mo-
tifs says Kumar.
Several of the Marine Drive’s build-
ings were financed, designed and built
Besides building extensive by Indians such as GB Mhatre. Credited
sets, Anurag Kashyap captured with some of the most stylish Art Deco
in his movie Bombay Velvet, the architecture in the city, Mhatre designed
beauty of Deco jewels such as Soona Mahal, among other buildings,
Dhanraj Mahal and Rajjab Mahal. according to ADMT.
Built in the 1930s, Dhanraj Mahal A wealthy Gujarati cinema tycoon
was the former palace of the Raja named a trio of identical buildings, Ke-
Dhanrajgir of Hyderabad, a family wal Mahal, Kapur Mahal, and Zaver
Dhanraj Mahal, the former of successful traders and bankers Mahal on Marine Drive, after himself
palace of the Raja Dhanrajgir of to the Nizams. Much like other traders and two of his children. The Kuwaiti
Hyderabad, a family of traders who travelled extensively to Europe, the royal family owned Al Sabah Court
and bankers to the Nizams of Dhanrajgir family was influenced by which was the home of a young prince
Hyderabad is now a Grade III
what they saw in the world’s trendiest during the 1950s. One of the Marine
heritage structure. Designed
by Gregson, Batler and King, cities, and recreated buildings that re- Drive buildings was also home to yes-
it displays early 20th-century flected global trends of the times. teryear star Suraiya, as well as Nargis in
Parisian design style in a Dhanraj Mahal, now a Grade III later years.
distinctive pink stone. (Photo: Art heritage structure, was designed by the Along the Marine Drive stretch are
Deco Mumbai Trust)
famous architect firm of Gregson, Batler also Art Deco hotels such as Sea Green
& King and constructed by Shah- South Hotel, commissioned by the
poorji Chandabhoy, says Humayun army and the security services during
Dhanrajgir, the former Glaxo chair- World War II. Most of these buildings
man and scion of the Dhanrajgir were built by Bombay architects, initial-
family. Built in the early 20th-cen- ly in association with the British, and
tury Parisian design in a distinctive then as independent firms. The native
pink stone, it houses a vast central architects were particularly innovative
courtyard surrounded by residenc- as they adapted Indian motifs onto their
es. Some continue to be used as Deco-style plans. Indian firms spear-
originally intended, while others headed by architects such as G B Mha-
have been converted into offices. tre, Master Sathe & Bhuta, Bhedwar &
Soona Mahal, built in 1937, has Empress Court, a magnificent Bhedwar, and Merwanji Bana & Co. were
a turret or viewing gallery that structure that reflects the symmetry the pioneers and executors of Bombay
affords the finest view of Marine
of nautical elements and geometrical Deco tradition.
Drive’s sweeping bay. (Photo: Art
Deco Mumbai Trust)
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