A poetic walk in Kala Ghoda

17 April,2017 08:29 AM IST |   |  Kopal Jain

Real and imaginary characters from Mumbai's history will recite the precinct's secrets on a dramatised walk



Spectators listen in as the actors perform during the walk

The cocky pi-dog from Arun Kolatkar's poem won't wag his tail or bark at you here, he'll guide you through his 'ilaaka' - Knesset Eliyahoo Synagogue, the David Sassoon Library, the University of Mumbai and other landmarks of Kala Ghoda.


Spectators listen in as the actors perform during the walk

This is a walk as the iconic poet would have imagined it to be. Get ready to meet David Sassoon, the Ogress of Ropewalk Lane, Annapoorna the idli lady and modern poets like Kamala Das and Nissim Ezekiel, as actors bring them to life in a dramatised heritage walk in Kala Ghoda. "When I read Kolatkar's poems, I thought it would be a great experience to read these verses while walking past the places he has written about," shares Eloise Lisboa, one of the four actors, who will be performing at the walk. She is a former radio producer of British origin, who now resides in Mumbai. The event also features Max Double-yew, Vikrant Dhote and Anish Vyavahare.


Spectators listen in as the actors perform during the walk

The idea of an hour-long heritage walk was conceived when Lisboa came across Kolatkar's poems in the book, 60 Indian Poets. It sparked her curiosity in getting to know more about the history of Mumbai.


Eloise Lisboa

The event debuted at an arts festival earlier this year. The walk will be followed by a poetry workshop to be held at Artisans' on April 23. The aim is to share the writing skills needed to write about the history of a place.

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