Through her lived experiences and a lifelong study of the city’s cultural history, Shanta Gokhale explains what makes this Deco neighbourhood special.
Gallery
May 17, 2022

DCB Bank building, Sandhurst Road.
Original name: Ismalia Bank Building.
Original owners: The Ismalia Co-operative Bank.
Architect: Yahya C. Merchant, A.R.I.B.A. (Lond.)
Contractor: M. V. Nayak.
Coloured Cement Plaster Work by: Simplex Concrete Works and Construction Co.
Image 1: With its sweeping angles and central block topped with a turret, DCB Bank building could have very well served as our mascot. Source: The Modern House in India by ACC.
May 17, 2022

DCB Bank building, Sandhurst Road.
Image 2: Fashioned in typical Bombay Deco, the erstwhile Ismalia Bank Building continues to retain its identity as a building housing a bank. But today, it is seen through a different lens, through cobwebs of modern life — electric wires and box grilles.
May 17, 2022

DCB Bank building, Sandhurst Road.
Image 3: Quite noticeably, the turret has gone away and DCB Bank Building stands with a reduced stature.
May 17, 2022

DCB Bank building, Sandhurst Road.
Image 4: An exceptional, detailed and bevel edged apron lines the building’s window. A closer look also tells us that like most banking buildings from that era, DCB Bank building also uses Malad stone cladding for its walls.
May 10, 2022

Shanti Sadan, Matunga.
Original name: Giani Manzil.
Architects: Adalja & Noorani.
Once a pristine duotone establishment, now Shanti Sadan finds itself scrambling to reinforce its Deco identity — lost to the noise of urban living and neglect.
Image 1: This street corner building’s former avatar as Giani Manzil. Source: The Modern House in India by ACC.
May 10, 2022

Shanti Sadan, Matunga.
Original name: Giani Manzil.
Architects: Adalja & Noorani.
Once a pristine duotone establishment, now Shanti Sadan finds itself scrambling to reinforce its Deco identity — lost to the noise of urban living and neglect.
Image 2: Shanti Sadan’s current form of Deco dysfunction. It wears a bright crown in yellow but the central window block wears a sepia tone, worn out over time.

Inventory
An inventory of Art Deco buildings with an interactive map showing you where they are located. Explore neighbourhoods, buildings, features and elements.
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MUMBAI'S ART DECO
Princely States and the Emergence of Art Deco in BombayRead about the lesser known history of royal patronage in Mumbai's Art Deco, and the far-reaching impact of this modern aesthetic.

MUMBAI'S ART DECO
The Modern Bathroom and the Home - A Story of Style, Aspiration and Social MobilityThe story of the long journey of the bathroom’s emergence in our lives, and its contentious entry into the boundaries of India’s modern homes.

MUMBAI'S ART DECO
Movies, Cabarets, a Ladies Band – Eros Theatre and the Recreational Promise of 20th Century BombayMovies, an open-air restaurant, and an all-female live band, only at Eros Theatre – how this Art Deco picture palace influenced Bombay's public culture.

MUMBAI'S ART DECO
Ideals for the Modern HomeThe first exhibition of its kind ever to be held in India, Ideal Home Exhibition of 1937, Bombay, advocated the ideals of modern interior decoration for the Indian home of the future.