The Bombay Diary - Day 4

Of all the places to spend the evening, today we chose the most unlikely place that a tourist from Bangalore would opt for. Today, we spent two hours at the Strand Book Festival (yes, the same thing that is held at the Chinnaswami Stadium in Bangalore), and of course, I bought books from here too.

The morning was extremely successful! We finally got to eat dosa for breakfast – well, almost…provided you can really call it a dosa. But then, something is always better than nothing. Today we decided to attack the museums in Mumbai. Our first destination was the National Gallery of Modern Art in the Kala Ghoda Art District. Since when I became a connoisseur of modern art (why stress on “modern”?), I do not know. But it was always worth experimenting. Unfortunately it was closed for the day, thus perhaps saving me the blushes. To avoid a complete alteration of our plans, we decided to call up the next museum to check whether they were open. Thankfully they were.

If you walk through the Fort area in the Mumbai, you cannot miss the buildings. The big gates of the Naval Docks stand imposing upon everyone driving past them. Adorning the walls of the docks are colorful murals depicting the maritime history of India. As you walk further, the huge white façade of the Mumbai Town Hall lords over Horniman (no pun intended in the name) Circle. The building also houses the State Central Library and the Asiatic Society, and the steps leading up to the doors are a favorite haunt for people to spend some time in the evenings. A little further, towering above everything in the vicinity stands the massive towers of the Bombay Stock Exchange. As the road winds itself past these buildings, one comes up against the huge red walls of the Reserve Bank of India.

Not many people are aware of the fact that there exists in the Reserve Bank complex, a unique museum. It is dedicated to what is perhaps one of the driest topics to discuss – money and finance. The Mint Museum, as it is popularly known, focuses on the currency and coinage of India through the centuries. The intricacies of money and banking are described in a simplistic way. The museum narrates the history of coinage and currency right from the prehistoric times, through the different dynasties that ruled India, to the present day monetary system controlled by the Reserve Bank of India. Not surprisingly, the museum lives up to international standards.

Returning back to the Kala Ghoda Art District, we met one of Mumbai’s defining images – a Dabbawala. The old man was very sporting, and allowed us to click a photo of him. We could not but help smile remembering yesterday, when another old man selling wind vanes at Chowpatty beach, ran away at the thought of getting his photos clicked. Clicking photos of the common man seems to be the order of the trip for me, and it seemed like a coincidence when our next stop turned out to be the photography exhibition of Ketaki Sheth. The subject of Sheth’s photographs was the life in the streets of Mumbai – profoundly bewitching photographs of the common man and his struggle. I ended up buying her book of photographs (“Bombay Mix”).

On the street side on Mahatma Gandhi road, can be found a unique art gallery – the “Pavement Art Gallery”, where people exhibit their paintings on the pavement itself, and it was a unique sight. However, the more famous Jehangir Art Gallery, which stands opposite to the sprawling Victorian building of the Elphinston College, was a familiar experience to last year. There was an exhibition of the paintings of Satish Mondal, who seemed quite obsessed with bald heads and different birds and insects sitting on them. But then, I’ve never been able to figure out how people judge art. This turned out to be true as the next room contained what I thought were some amazing paintings. But whoever judged them never seemed to have thought so, since there were quite a few “awarded” paintings which I could not make head or tail out of.

Ketaki Sheth’s photographs seemed to have made a profound impression on us, since we spent the next one hour sitting on the pavement, clicking photographs of people passing by. But we still have miles to go before we reach her level of expertise.

Oh…and a small note. If I mentioned that the buildings in the Fort area are difficult to miss, I would not be entire true. Walking along Shahid Bhagat Singh Marg, you would barely give a second glance to the run down, decrepit building, which stands opposite to the brightly decorated walls of the naval docks. For those who do, a marble plaque announces its importance. Formerly known as Admiralty house, it was the residence of the Admiral from 1764 to 1792, and also served as the Chief Court of Bombay until 1879. Today, it stands in utter negligence. So much for heritage!

Quote of the Day:
Gazing up at the famous Regal cinema house, SS asked: “But why is this building so famous?”
Me: “Because it is old.”

Pic of the Day:
If only he could find a better future inside that...