Cityscapes
Heart of a metro
ZERIN ANKLESARIA
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Soundly researched and well-written, this is a must-read for anyone interested in Bombay’s history.
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Zero Point Bombay: In and Around Horniman Circle, edited by Kamala Ganesh, Usha Thakkar, Gita Chadha, Lotus Collection, Roli Books. Rs. 695.
Looking across from the western side of the Oval Maidan, one can see both the Bombay Stock Exchange known in earlier years as ‘a den of inequity’ and Rajabai Tower of Bombay University, the emblem of intellectual liberalism. Built in antithetical styles, the Victorian Gothic and the Modern, there are strong historical links between the two despite their incongruence as Jawahir Mulraj points out. Premchand Roychand made his money on the Stock Exchange during the boom caused by the American Civil War, and used it to build the Tower in memory of his mother; and the cycle of boom and bust in the Exchange is as inexorable as the passage of time imaged by the famous clock in the Tower. Such witty, impressionistic pieces enliven this weighty book.
Zero Point, from which all distances are measured, is identified with Horniman Circle, the centre of the original Bombay, the ‘Fort’. Roli’s new issue, soundly researched, well-written, and moderately priced, is a steal for anyone interested in Bombay’s history. There are scholarly essays by historians, architects, economists, sociologists and bureaucrats; and light-hearted reporting of conversations with people working in the precinct, their leisure and reading preferences, and what they eat.
Saroj Merani is eloquent on the topic of food, describing with mouth-watering gusto the bhel puri, vada pau, and “cutting chai” dished out by hawkers, in contrast with “Five Spice”, an up-market Chinese Restaurant with a baffling array of starters and a range of desserts such as Death by Chocolate which lives up to its lethal name.
Financial centre
A number of financial institutions cluster round the Circle. In the 19th century there were 27 banks here cheek by jowl, chief among them being the State Bank, then known as the Bank of Bombay. South of the Circle is the Stock Exchange, and its great grandfather many times removed is the huge banyan tree standing today just outside the Horniman Garden fence under whose shade brokers traded their stocks in days gone by, when the place was called Bombay Green.
Nearby is the Reserve Bank, the nerve centre of the country’s economy. This imposing building is part of a complex that includes the Mint and a Monetary Museum where the displays of coins, notes and financial instruments take us through 2,500 years of Indian money. Gupta coins, for instance, were aesthetic objects and a Mughal coin is inscribed with a poetic couplet in honour of Nur Jehan. Coins commemorated historical events, and victorious kings overstruck those of the conquered, leaving for posterity the symbols of their hubris.
The most historic part of the precinct is the Town Hall, meant originally to be a meeting-place for citizens. Electricity, the wonder of the age, was first displayed here in 1847, and here eleven years later Lord Elphinstone announced the transfer of the East India Company to the British crown. A century later the urn containing the ashes of the Mahatma was placed in the great hall as a grieving city paid its final homage. Now it is widely known as the home of the Asiatic Society , its renowned library and priceless collection of manuscripts.
Chief among these are a richly illustrated 16th century Mahabharata and an equally eye-catching Shahnama with miniature paintings. The most precious item is the illuminated copy of The Divine Comedy donated to the society by its erstwhile president, Mountstuart Elphinstone. The story goes that Mussolini offered a million pounds for this treasure, and was promptly refused.
Changed role
Portraits and statues of scholars and other worthies who contributed to the making of Bombay line the corridors of the Town Hall, and its famous 30 steps provided a platform for rousing speeches. Nowadays plays are performed here, open to all.
The concept of alfresco theatre has spread to the Garden where music and dance performances, plays and poetry readings are regular features. Sanjna Kapoor gushes about this “magical space” where people come and go as they please free of charge, yet at her Prithvi Theatre valid ticket holders are barred entrance till the Interval if they come even a minute late. Strange!
There are chapters on the heritage architecture, the Mumbai Collectorate to the East, and a lively one titled “From Manor House to Marine Base”. In this manor, now the Headquarters of the Navy’s Western Command, the formal transfer of Bombay from Portugal to Britain was signed in 1665. Horniman Circle and its precinct encapsulates the history of the city over four centuries but remains a living entity, the vibrant cultural and economic hub of a metropolis of more than 17 million people.
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