Community-themed space a welcome move

Coconuts being broken as the project takes off

The East Indian community, one of the indigenous communities of Mumbai, is all set to get an East Indian-themed park at Juhu Koliwada. There was a coconut breaking ceremony held at an open space in the upscale western suburb on a Monday morning. An extensive report in this paper cited how promises were made a year ago that the East Indians will be allocated a community-themed space. Now, those promises by local political leaders seem to have fructified, marking the start of the project.

At the function to celebrate the space and green light given to the project, MLA Ameet Satam made an interesting point. He said that it is important we make the city's indigenous communities, such as East Indians, Agris, Kolis, and their lifestyle and culture a part of official tourism itineraries. Visitors to the city will learn about the culture of the sons of the soil, how they balance contemporary living while retaining their old lifestyle, the struggle to keep it alive and all the important landmarks and milestones about the community.

It certainly is a concept worth exploring. While one does have sporadic ‘walks' and ‘learning tours' into gaothans to learn about their life, a sneak peek or thumbnail sketch into these people who call Mumbai their ‘gaav', a more formalised process with government tourism organisations can make this more streamlined, formal and organised.

Also read: Community-themed space a welcome move

We have tours where visitors are shown brick ‘n' mortar historical sites, yet, the community itself is part of the city's history too, and their stories need to be learnt and celebrated.

A more cohesive approach to weaving this into the tourism calendar, good guides, youngsters who are to take the legacy ahead and a walk through their villages or some unique homes can surely make people connect with the community and understand their roots. More power to this concept.