Cops, cars and singing stars

This is that fascinating road where the countryrsquos banking history meets police history and freedom history meets art history A convergence of wide and varied narratives as emotional as they are engagingBritish soldiers en route the East especially to Burma halted in barracks on Pochkhanawala Road behind the Worli promenade These were converted into police barracks postIndependence and then the Armed Police guard division whose members exercised on the parade grounds This stretch is now home to the Traffic Police Headquarters mapping the cityrsquos vehicular gridAn interesting family lends this street its name In 1911 Sir Sorabji Pochkhanawala founded the countryrsquos first Swadeshi bank Central Bank of India pitched determinedly against the Britishdominated banking system Saker Apartments and Om Ratan named after his wife and younger son respectively skirt the Pochkhanawalasrsquo ancestral seat Buena VistaSir Sorabji Pochkhanawala founder of the Central Bank of IndiaThe roadrsquos first building in the 1930s Buena Vista had verdant gardens sprawl at the site of Saker Apartments Om Ratan rose where its badminton courts previously stood behind the tennis courts Cobras slithering down the Worli Hill dongar of red mud and laterite rock were drawn out of the soil by snake charmersldquoOur garden had champa badam and jambul trees My grandfather constantly battled kids of policemen knocking down the fruitrdquo laughs Farhad Pochkhanawala whose father Noshir was Sorabjirsquos older son ldquoLampposts doubled as wickets for gully cricket and study spots from sunset On the seafront we werenrsquot allowed to wander near the jail which later became the dairy And we were strictly warned never to ride in Dr Phil Phiroze Banajirsquos speeding silver Jaguarrdquo Farhad remembers his legendary aunt Pilloo Pochkhanawala encouraged him to model clay while she welded experimental masterpieces in material like scrap metal Among her brilliant public works Spark installed at the old Haji Ali Circle was supposedly named so on account of being commissioned by the BEST Alpana Piramal Chinai with her parents Vijaya and Dr MohanlalPointing from his Saker Apartments balcony Farhadrsquos cousin Shahrook Munsiff says ldquoIn 1970 I could distinctly see from Rajabai Tower to Santa Cruz airport in opposite directions our view spread that unobstructedrdquoArt connoisseurcollector Sheriff Jehangir Nicholsonrsquos villa Westmore which is the Kathiwada City House culture hub today was a veritable treasure trove Nicholson would be up at midnight to rearrange his precious antiques books and paintings which adorned every inch of Westmorersquos walls Pursuing diverse hobbies including photography and motorcar racing his need for speed made him a familiar figure dapper at under five feet in height whizzing in his blue BMW Nicholsonrsquos family business Bruel and Company was a raw cotton selection and purchasing agency He declared his passions were three Cs cars cameras cottons Rowed with Westmore Dinath Court housed police officers like ES Modak who set up Bombayrsquos first riot control squad Deputy Commissioner of Police VS Sami lived here with his family his daughters being the singer sisters Indira Srinivasan Uma Pocha Usha Uthup and Maya Sami Srinivasan says ldquoIt was an equally happy holiday home for the grandchildren too full of fun laughter and musicrdquo Other Dinath Court residents were supercop Julio Ribeiro and actress Hansa Wadkar inspiring Shyam Benegalrsquos BhumikaPiramal Bhavan in 1967Further north a crossborder saga of friendship and humanity unravels with the Kapurs of The Cliff imposingly designed by Claude Batley on the streetrsquos north flank Preceded by ancestors who survived Partition JK Kapur emerged as a film distributor in Bombay and the proprietor of Copper Chimney restaurant since 1972 His father Amolak Ram Kapur a lawyer defending Bhagat Singh in the Lahore Conspiracy Case left No 4 Fane Road Lahore overnight in 1947 Their Pakistani neighbours the Kasuris helped the Kapurs flee to Delhi before they reached Bombay ensuring their belongings followed in trunks Amolak Ram gratefully wrote to Mian Mahmud Ali Kasuri quoted by Alirsquos politician son Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri in his memoir Neither a Hawk nor a Dove ldquoAap ke liye dil se dua nikaltee hairdquoldquoIn those times of trust and integrity life unfolded remarkably for my parents whose total possessions fit in two suitcasesrdquo says Dimple Rai the daughter of JK Kapur ldquoMy father handed me a pair of diaries describing the journey from 4 Fane Road saying lsquoKeep these with your jewelsrsquordquoCulinary heirlooms were as cherished Saluting legacy the Copper Chimney menu introduced traditional dishes from undivided India like Dal Maharaja spinning off from the black dal of JK Kapurrsquos motherrsquos kitchen and Kashmiri Soda inspired by the tangy drink pushcart vendors hawked in little Lahore bylanesThe memorial offering tribute to Constable Tukaram Omble braveheart of the 2611 terror attacks PicAtul KambleJK Kapur Chowk the intersection displaying the INS Mumbai warship model lies not far from Minni Kapur Chowk honouring his wife JK Kapurrsquos civic initiatives were transformative Distressed to see students read under streetlights he supported the greening of open ground beside The Cliff The result was Lion Garden or Simha Garden as it is commonly called because of leonine statue gateposts Dimplersquos brother Joy Kapur says ldquoA hardcore environmentalist Dad was President of the Worli Woods Local Kolis loved him so much they touchingly carried his ashes for immersion in a convoy of decorated fishing boatsrdquo A longtime neighbour of the Kapurs misses the boats sighted over larger distances ldquoI watched dhows docking at Mahim Bay and saw Hotel Sea Rock coming up till it opened in Bandra in 1978 Almost provincial the patina of Pochkhanawala Road changed in the 1980srdquo She still enjoys an unusual wealth of birds fluttering to her windows overlooking Lion Garden even vividplumed kingfishers casting iridescent flashes through the trees According to publisher Meera Ahuja four of the six flats in Suraiya Manormdasha hop awaymdashwere requisitioned during World War II Three went to each of the security forces and the fourth to her film producer father Balraj Kohli under a Partitiondisplaced quota ldquoOur flat belonged to Suraiya If she ever lived there it was before my parents did in the late rsquo50srdquo Ahuja says ldquoAs children we played with policemenrsquos kids Many years after moving I stopped my car at a Warden Road corner Suddenly a cop banged on the windscreen I thought Irsquod parked wrongly but he shouted lsquoMeerarsquo recognising me from way back in Pochkhanawala daysrdquoJK Kapur extreme right with Dilip Kumar and Prem Chaddha outside Copper ChimneyRoughly midroad the picturesque Adya Shankaracharya Udyan with dual entrances from Pochkhanawala Road at the top and Police Camp below is a popular playground Erected with noble intent Marlow was raised by stevedore Ratanji Dubash It sought to distribute funds for charities from its rental income informs Meher Dadabhoy a resident Her auntinlaw just a girl when she attended the opening admired the beautiful gardens ringing it Prior to occupants from the navy Marlow briefly housed a section of Cathedral and John Connon School The top brass of Metal Box living there built a pool over the garages which got demolished Once SF Engineer bought Marlow in the 1980s naval tenants exited the building was redone and flats sold In 196364 Minoo Shroff established Shroff Automobiles in Marlowrsquos rear compound a garage tending to every swank car brand of the day mainly VolkswagenNext to Marlow at The Clifflet lived writerhistorian JRB Jeejeebhoy who vitally documented the decline of Bombayrsquos 19thcentury architectural heritage One example was his birthplace Mazagaon Castle the palatial home of his maternal greatgrandfather Sir Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy First BaronetBetween Marlow and a bit beyond Piramal House facing the Police Mess was a police maternity hospitalAlpana Piramal Chinai shares that her grandfather Seth Piramal Chaturbhuj from Bagar in Shekhawati Rajasthan bought Piramal House as an originally threestoreyed structure It seemed perfectly situated with their mills off Worli Naka When the plot was divided to accommodate the expanding family one half became Piramal Bhavan Among other notables were Nehrursquos sister Krishna Hutheesing and her husband Raja who resided in a black stone bungalow presently Red Rose Apartments ldquoThey had a grey convertible Mercedes 190 SL with red seats When she died Indira Gandhi came paying her respects A redletter day for Pochkhanawala Roadrdquo pronounces Burjor Banaji the third generation in a line of eminent ophthalmic surgeons starting with his grandfather Dr Burjor P Banaji Senior followed by Dr Phiroze Banaji whose son he is Growing up at The Cliff built by his paternal grandparents Burjor says ldquoI was thrilled to hear the police bugle daily at dawn and sunset the sound of waves breaking on the shore and the 3 am putterputter of motorboatsrdquoIn her bungalow next to Red Rose the actress Nimmi was often spotted by Naina Kamani in Ram Niwas the building that used to be Ferohin combining the names of Dr Framroze Moosrsquo sons Feroze and Rohinton ldquoListening to Rohinton playing Western classical pieces on his piano was akin to having a private concert treat on our balcony in the hamletlike quiet of our areardquo Kamani says Alongside memories of grace and grandeur residents do recollect experiencing fear during violent flashpoints like the August 1982 police riots when labour tensions flared with constables demanding better pay and working conditions They were joined by textile workers already striking for seven monthsPoliticos occupying the ShubhadaSukhada housing societies and similar governmental presence notwithstanding both Upper Pochkhanwala Road and Lower Pochkhanawala Road remain quiet swathes of street ldquoThe road retains its calm homogeneityrdquo says Dr PS Pasricha the traffic plan authority who retired from a distinguished police career ldquoPolicepublic cooperation began in Worli Not depending only on the BMC people like JK Kapur triggered proactive residentsrsquo associations in Cuffe Parade Bandra and Chembur soon afterrdquoThe transport expert centralised Traffic Police headquarters at midtown Worli in 1980 rather than stay cooped in the lane behind the LIC building leading to Marine DrivemdashldquoThatrsquos lopsided efficiency I told the Antulay governmentrdquo At Pasricharsquos suggestion the AntiCorruption Bureau also shifted here ldquoIt lay tucked away in the deserted Doordarshan Tower lane Ladies couldnrsquot be expected to approach ACB on such a lonely path The force should always serve with consideration and competencerdquoThank you Sir May a hundred Pochkhanawala Roads bloom1972Year when JK Kapur opened Copper Chimney restaurantAuthorpublisher Meher Marfatia writes fortnightly on everything that makes her love Mumbai and adore Bombay You can reach her at mehermarfatiamiddaycomwwwmeher marfatiacom