22 August,2026 07:36 AM IST | Mumbai | Hemal Ashar
Metal artist Tyrell Valladares poses with his installations of cricketer Virat Kohli, footballer Sunil Chhetri, and actor Salman Khan in Bandra West. Pic/Shadab Khan
Bandra, the suburb with its zany blend of old world charm and new age energy, has started turning heads with its metal heads. Three legends got a head start at Bandra West's new Legend Square, located near the landmark Mehboob Studio. Installations of three icons: cricketer Virat Kohli, footballer Sunil Chhetri, and actor Salman Khan hold pride of place at the recently opened garden.
Metal artist Tyrell Valladares, who has crafted the installation trio, said, "The dimensions of each artwork are 16 feet in height and eight feet in width. They are made of mild steel with epoxy paint."
Valladares added, "Rahool Kanal of I Love Mumbai Foundation first thought about turning this space into a Legend Square, and we decided we should have idols that fitted the label of legend. Virat Kohli's half-smile has been captured in that visage; Salman Khan and Bollywood go together, while, as a footballer myself, I thought football great Sunil Chhetri, most-capped player and all-time top goal scorer of the India national team, deserved pride of place." Valladares, a Bandra resident, concluded that art is always open to interpretation but the effort was to capture the beating heart and soul of a suburb he proudly calls home. The message is that whether it is the artist, the concept or subject, it's all about: make some noise for the Bandra boyz.
Rahool Kanal, the president of I Love Mumbai Foundation, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) said, "We wanted a connect with people, and as Bandra boys ourselves, we wanted to send a message about local boys coming good and national icons inspiring the coming generation. I was supported by Anant Seva Foundation and BJP leader Ashish Shelar to bring this to fruition. This is an 8000-square-foot space with more than 8000 new plants, 52 large trees, and the installations. The location means it is a visible entry point into Bandra, so it makes a statement about the character of a unique suburb that has both - its own identity and, with its buzz, spirit and bustle, is quintessentially Mumbai."
Valladares's work started in September from his Metal Head studio in Marve. He booked a ground to work on in Marve as the art installations were huge.
Valladares said, "This is a compact space so we could fit in three artworks. If plans materialise for a bigger space, then we can look at legends in many fields, including artistic and educational ones."
[popcorn number="16 feet" desc="Height of the installations" class="Default"]
[popcorn number="Eight feet" desc="Width of each installation" class="Default"]
