11 murals that give Mumbai an artistic makeover
Murals are a way of expressing emotions and opinions and over the years the walls of India are transforming from a mundane and paan-stained street to a piece of art. These sudden bursts of creativity are where people stop, stare and take selfies. The trend of murals is taking its baby steps in the country and from what we feel, is that these colours on a withered wall are consciously or subconsciously having a dramatic impact on the attitude of the citizens whether it is the place where they live or work. The city is home to several murals but Bollywood occupies the major share with murals of iconic actors like Amitabh Bachchan, Madhubala, Dilip Kumar-Saira Banu and Amrish Puri’s character from Mr. India Mogambo. The latest to add to the list is the larger-than-life rendition of Mahatma Gandhi outside Churchgate railway station. Here we have compiled a list of murals in Mumbai that will leave you spellbound.
Mahatma Gandhi
Globally recognised Brazilian street artist Eduardo Kobra and his friend Brito Pereira Agnaldo has painted the mural of Mahatma Gandhi on the South and East facing sides of Churchgate railway station building. The mural is 25 metres long and 8 metres wide. In the art, Bapu is seen clutching a book and walking stick and alighting from a train compartment which is red, green and yellow in colour. The mural is a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative by NGO St+art Indian Foundation and Asian Paints. The mural will adorn the Churchgate station for three years.
Address: Churchgate station
Amitabh Bachchan
This is the second mural of Big B in Mumbai. The 230-feet tall mural of his iconic look from the movie ‘Deewar’ is a project by Bollywood Art Project (BAP) and is curated by Abhishek Kumar Singh as a tribute to Amitabh Bachchan on his 75th birthday. Singh chooses the Deewar look as he believed it truly does justice to his ‘Angry Young Man’ image. The artwork is titled ‘Bachchan Bemisal Pure 75 Saal’. The total surface area of the project is 8,000 square feet.
Address: Durga Society, Kadeshwari Mandir Baug, Bandra West
Ocean of Hands
The mural art in the Rhythm House lane in Kala Ghoda area is created by illustrator and visual artist Sameer Kulavoor and the Bombay Duck Studio team. The mural showcases an ocean of hands holding and crafting an array of objects that showcase the command that we hold within our hands. The art starts and ends with a small cat, and includes a tree with hands that portrays people coming together, threading a needle, camel belt, folk art, tetrapod-like the ones spotted at Marine Drive, a hand with an election ink, printing blocks, pottery and basket making, among others. With Kala Ghoda being a locality buzzing with boutiques, galleries and restaurants and also a place that nurtures cultural economy, the illustrator has picked yellow, black and white hues for the artwork that celebrates the power of handmade.
Address: Artisans’, Dr. V B Gandhi Marg, Kala Ghoda, Fort
Amitabh Bachchan
The mural is dominating Pereira Road in Bandra since many years. If you walk across the Pereira Road you will come across the young man of Bollywood. The mural covers the wall of a two-story building which shows young Amitabh Bachchan stretching out his arms behind his years. The image is from the film Deewar (1975) which shows Amitabh Bachchan waiting for Peter to come and fight with him. There are reports that when the artist tweeted about the painting to Big B, he soon finds a photographer clicking the process. On being asked from where he came he just said, “From the bungalow”.
Address: Bandstand, Bandra West
Anarkali
The Anarkali mural at Bandra’s Chapel Road marked the debut of the Bollywood Art Project (BAP), a brainchild of Ranjit Dahiya. The project works on creating murals of iconic Bollywood stars on Mumbai’s walls. In April 2012, Dahiya wished to paint the city Bollywood and walked down Chapel Road and knocked on a door with his request. The owner of the house gave him the permission and on the same day, he started working on the 23-feet-high wall.
Address: Near Duke’s restaurant, Chapel Road, Bandra West
Rajesh Khanna
In 2012, Rajesh Khanna’s demise left Dahiya with a heavy heart and it when he decided to create a mural of the actress where his fans could see the superstar every day. Unfortunately, he didn’t he didn’t have the required funds to create the art. His friend lent his some money and soon he began working on the mural. It was just a week after Dahiya created Big B’s mural. The still has been taken from Rajesh Khanna’s film ‘Andaaz’.
Address: Pereira Road, Ranwar Village, Bandra West
Dadasaheb Phalke
On your drive from Western Express Highway to Bandra, you must have come across a yellow building with a silhouette of a bespectacled man looking at a film negative. The man is none other than Dadasaheb Phalke, the father of Indian cinema. The mural created on a 126 feet high and 159 feet wide MTNL building is created by Bollywood Art Project in collaboration with St+art Project from Delhi.
Address: MTNL Building, Bandra Reclamation, Bandra West
Nawazuddin Siddiqi
This mural is based on the Nawazuddin Siddiqi’s character in the movie ‘Manjhi – The Mountain Man’. Siddiqui’s larger than life portrait is a promotional mural and was inaugurated by Siddiqi. The movie features Nawazuddin Siddiqi and Radhika Apte and is based on a true story of a man from Bihar who breaks a mountain with a chisel and hammer.
Address: Opposite Imbiss Restaurant, Waroda Road, Off Hill Road, Bandra West
Dev Anand
There is more than one reason why we refer Dev Anand as the evergreen actor. He is the one who gave romance a whole new meaning, his style and charisma made him the first urbane hero of Bollywood. The mural is taken from his movie ‘Taxi Driver’. Do we even have to mention that the artwork is created by Ranjit Dahiya?
Address: NM Design Studio, 17 Boran Road, Hill Road, Bandra West
Image source: Indiatimes
Amrish Puri
The bad man of Bollywood. He was so good at portraying negative characters that we love to hate him. The first thing that comes to anyone’s mind you watches the mural is ‘Mogambo Khush Hua’. The mural of Bollywood’s favourite villain Amrish Puri is made on a 20×20 feet wall. The still has been taken from the movie ‘Mr. India’.
Address: Behind HIVE, Gulab Nagar Society, Bandra West
Madhubala
Madhubala’s mural on the wall of Bandra’s Chapel Road is another Bollywood gift by Ranjit Dahiya of the Bollywood Art Project. No doubt Madhubala is one the gorgeous actress Bollywood ever had and this mural with the actress in her quintessential pose is to die for. The mural stands on a 25 feet wall and has been taken from her movie ‘Barsaat Ki Raat’. It is said that the owner of the house even today keeps the curtains of the window open so she can see the visitors who halt there to take pictures.
Address: Near Duke’s restaurant, Chapel Road, Bandra West