SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2016

Indian motorists wait for the signal to turn green at the corner of the Esplanade Mansion, formerly Watsons Hotel. In arty Kala Indian students gather under the porch of the Kipling Ghoda district, a 147-year-old mansion, formerly the resplendent Watson’s Hotel, frequented and written about by Mark Bunglow - the birthplace of author Rudyard Kipling - inside Twain, is a ramshackle shadow of its former glory. Now called Esplanade Mansion, it shows no signs of being restored despite the campus of the JJ School of Art in . — AFP photos ten years having passed since it were placed on a global list of endangered monuments by the New York-based World Monuments Fund. Kipling to Jinnah: Mumbai’s crumbling colonial homes idden behind a blanket of trees at the back Rudyard was born, the house was home to for the expansion of the game in ”, according Accoring to legend, the hotel went into decline of a university in Mumbai lies the dilapidat- Lockwood Kipling and subsequent deans until the to Cricinfo website. after Indian industrialist Jamsetji Tata built Hed, but once grand, former home of writer early 2000s, by which time it had sunk into such dis- A Mumbai inter-schools cricket tournament Mumbai’s iconic Taj Mahal Palace because he was Rudyard Kipling. Fallen branches, discarded chairs repair that it was rendered uninhabitable. “We feel called the Harris Shield is testament to his legacy, denied entry to Watson’s, which had a “Europeans- and even empty whisky bottles surround the 19th- that Lockwood must have had Rudyard stay here but his former home was allowed to come close to only” policy. Today the crumbling structure houses century building, while bird droppings mar a bust and write so we call it the ‘Kipling Bungalow’,” collapse before long overdue maintenance work a medley of dark cubbyhole offices. A lack of funds of Kipling, author of such beloved novels as “The explains Mishra, who wants the state started. The three-storey mansion, part of a public and arguments between tenants and city authori- Jungle Book” and “Kim”. government to restore it without delay. He says school, was out of use for three years until renova- ties have been cited as contributing to its descent “The bungalow is in very bad condition and officials plan to turn the building into a gallery tion began in June, and presently stands gutted, into ruin. needs desperate help,” the college’s principal, Rajiv Mishra said. “We feel cheated that such a beautiful monument has been neglected,” he adds, pointing to a rotting wooden post, precariously supporting the historic property in . The “Kipling Bungalow”, as locals affectionately call it, is one of several mansions in the teeming Indian city, once associated with famous residents but now in ruin. Nearby stands the former colonial home of Lord Harris, an ex-governor of then- named Bombay, widely credited with making crick- et the most popular sport in India. The gothic building housed school classrooms until four years ago, when pupils were moved out because the crumbling structure had become too weak and hazardous. A few kilometers away in plush sits the previously imposing residence of Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan and its first gov- ernor-general. The stately home hosted critical talks between Jinnah and India’s first Prime Minister Indian students’ bags sit under the porch of the Kipling Bunglow. on partition of the subcontinent, but today its downtrodden appearance belies its exhibiting students’ work and that of decorated surrounded by bamboo scaffolding. “It was basical- “The idea of heritage has just evaporated,” says historical significance. artists, and have issued a tender for the contract. ly falling apart and became too dangerous to be Naresh Fernandes, author of “City Adrift: A Short inside,” the school’s principal, Mohan Bhogade said. Biography of Bombay”. AFP contacted a number of Red tape Tug-of-war officials at the Brihanmumbai Municipal Heritage campaigners lament the demise of The building has been caught in a tug-of-war Jinnah dispute Corporation, regarding the Watson’s Hotel and the such buildings, blaming red tape and claiming between the college and the government for years In arty Kala Ghoda district, a 147-year-old man- Harris building, but none were available for com- politicians and developers are more concerned over what its restoration should look like, but sion, formerly the resplendent Watson’s Hotel, fre- ment. Jinnah’s house has been embroiled in a long- with constructing sparkly new luxury towers than Mishra hopes renovations will finally start in around quented and written about by Mark Twain, is a ram- running legal dispute over ownership between his preserving Mumbai’s architectural history. “The six months. Maharashtra culture and education shackle shadow of its former glory. Now called daughter, India and Pakistan. It lies empty in thick Kipling Bungalow is just a very sad reflection of minister Vinod Tawde failed to respond to repeated Esplanade Mansion, it shows no signs of being forest behind a padlocked gate. bureaucratic hurdles... creating the death of a his- AFP requests for comment on the issue. restored despite ten years having passed since it Lambah doesn’t believe the buildings owe their toric building,” renowned architect Abha Narain A short walk away, work has already begun on was placed on a global list of endangered monu- dilapidation to any sort of colonial antipathy, citing Lambah, who specializes in conservation said. the former Mumbai residence of batsman and ments by the New York-based World Monuments well-maintained British-era relics like the Bombay The wood and stone structure, its green paint acclaimed cricket administrator George Harris, who Fund. Watson’s, completed in 1869, is believed to High Court and the former Victoria Terminus train peeling, is situated on the grounds of an art school, was governor of the city from 1890-1895. Harris be India’s oldest caste-iron building and was the station. “It’s just sheer neglect and bureaucracy,” whose first principal was John Lockwood Kipling, captained England and during his tenure on the hotel of choice for colonialists and visiting digni- she says. — AFP Rudyard’s father. Built in 1882, 17 years after subcontinent “did much to lay down foundations taries during the British Raj.