Aashim Tyagi has some beautiful images of B. Merwan & Co. the most famous Irani café in Mumbai. At the start of the year there was a frenzy in Mumbai concerning the news that Merwan was closing down for good. Long lines and longer eulogies were written. Thank god for us…..they were all wrong. Rayomand… Continue reading B. Merwan & Co. : No One Ever Asked Us.
Category: Bombay
The Irani Brothers: Last Two Parsi Police Officers Left in Mumbai
There is an update to the article since it was first published. See below Decades ago, on the last Wednesday of every month, the Mumbai police commissioner would take a group of senior officers — all Parsis — to Apollo Florist, opposite Colaba police station. Fuelled by freshly baked bruns, khari and tea, the gossip… Continue reading The Irani Brothers: Last Two Parsi Police Officers Left in Mumbai
Bombay Meri Hai : Hot Beat for Bombay
Bom bom bom bom“ the staccato rang out. How my brother and I chuckled as children to first hear that syllabic quartet. Our giggles muffled by mouths stuffed with an edge of the living room curtain we hid behind. Little dreaming that quirky snatch of chorus was to end up beyond being funny repetition. Or… Continue reading Bombay Meri Hai : Hot Beat for Bombay
The dying profession of disposing of the dead
The gradual disappearance of vultures years ago almost led to the collapse of the Parsi ‘s doongerwadi system of disposing the dead. While the tradition now continues with the help of solar panels, the community may face yet another setback – a shortage of pallbearers. Article By Jyoti Shelar | Mumbai Mirror Pallbearers or khandias… Continue reading The dying profession of disposing of the dead
Mapping Mumbai: Gardens With Something To Tell
What could a Parsi knight and a Cross-crowned fountain on the grounds of the city’s first Anglican Church possibly have in common? Article by Meher Marfatia | Times of India To answer this riddle about Sir Cowasji Jehangir and St Thomas’ Cathedral, turn the pages of an almost 100-year-old book.Dinshah Wacha’s Shells from the Sands… Continue reading Mapping Mumbai: Gardens With Something To Tell
How BMC completely lost the plot: Wadias Demand Land Back
The BMC is on the verge of losing a 40-acre parcel of land worth Rs 1,300 crore in Aarey Colony. The city corporation obtained the tract from the FE Dinshaw Trust in 1972 and reserved it in 1993 to provide housing to those who do not own a home in the city. The municipal corporation… Continue reading How BMC completely lost the plot: Wadias Demand Land Back
Marzban Colony: Springing forth from history
The Marzban Colony in Agripada, south Mumbai, gets a new lease on life Article by Meher Mirza | DNA India The story of ‘The Lal Chimney Compound’ begins in the 19th century, with Mancherji Marzban, who was a many-splendoured man. In 1892, he was elected to become an Executive Engineer of the Bombay Municipal Corporation… Continue reading Marzban Colony: Springing forth from history
Requiem For A Bird: Documentary on the Towers of Silence
Requiem for a Bird currently stands as a last chance to document the singular relationship of the Parsi and the vultures. The two have been linked through death for centuries, with the bodies of the Parsi faithful brought to a Tower of Silence, and as final act of generosity, laid out for consumption by the… Continue reading Requiem For A Bird: Documentary on the Towers of Silence
Cafe 792 Opens in Dadar Parsi Colony
Be it cold cuts, set lunches or quick bites, Café 792, tucked inside Dadar’s leafy Parsi Colony, offers a variety of delicious chow, especially when you are on the go. We treaded on a gravel-laden path one afternoon, on the rear side of the quaint Dina Manzil. The café’s name (Cafe 792) was hand-painted on… Continue reading Cafe 792 Opens in Dadar Parsi Colony
