It was in January 2014, when the news that B Merwan &amp; Co was going to shut down surfaced, that Simin Patel, founder of Bombaywalla.org and freelance photographer Hashim Badani &mdash; both self confessed city buffs, decided to set the ball rolling to create a concrete legacy centred on Mumbai&rsquo;s popular Irani caf&eacute;s.&nbsp;
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/2014/jul/03sassanian.jpg" alt="" /> Sassanian Boulangerie at Dhobi Talao retains the interiors of a typical Irani caf&eacute;, including frames from their homeland, Iran, marble top tables and wooden furniture. PIC/dhara vora
Patel, who runs the popular blog along with Badani, Sitanshu Shukla, Hersh Acharya and DJ Murty, had been featuring these caf&eacute;s regularly. In fact, a chapter of her PhD, which she is pursuing at University of Oxford, traces a wave of migration of Zoroastrian famine refuges to Bombay in 1871-2. &ldquo;The book happened unexpectedly. Priya Kapoor, editorial director at Roli Books was in touch with Hashim who connected Priya to me and it nicely fell into place,&rdquo; she shares via email.
The Delhi-based Kapoor was toying with this idea for nearly four years: &ldquo;I was surprised that such a book hadn&rsquo;t been done before. We want it to be a social history and a tribute to these landmarks that are sadly, seeing a decline.&rdquo;
Badani, by virtue of having a photojournalist bent, had been documenting the changes within the old city for five years, and &ldquo;the Irani caf&eacute;s, were naturally, an element to this,&rdquo; he says, adding, &ldquo;It&rsquo;s inevitable for these caf&eacute;s to be mentioned whenever talk veers to Mumbai&rsquo;s food-scape. These cafes reflect the perfect example of diversity, where lines are not drawn according to class. It reminds me of a Rohinton Mistry novel about old Bombay,&rdquo; he reveals.
Kapoor was clear to get Patel and Badani on board for this title, &ldquo;I was familiar with Hashim&rsquo;s work on the city, while Simin came across as someone who understood its culture and the character. We aren&rsquo;t looking at recipes and the food aspect only, but the overall picture of how and why this community arrived in India, their beginnings, how these family-run restaurants flourished, their importance and eventual fading out.&rdquo;
Patel shares about the roadmap: &ldquo;There has been no in depth study &mdash; one that combines a historical archive with an oral one,&rdquo; adding that the media tends to focus on the current state of the caf&eacute;s &mdash; their impending closure or unexpected reopening. &ldquo;All the attention attests to how well-loved and cherished the caf&eacute;s are. The more they are in the limelight, the better it is for everyone,&rdquo; she believes. The documentation should take about two or three months of solid work. &ldquo;We are keen to record the interviews of all the proprietors, Zoroastrian and Muslim Iranis,&rdquo; she articulates.
Both agree that their biggest challenge would be to get caf&eacute; proprietors to participate and cooperate. &ldquo;Some are friendly, helpful and eager to share their stories, while others can be rude and dismissive. We will have to charm them into cooperating,&rdquo; she encapsulates.

One of Mumbai's most endearing albeit fast fading icons &mdash; the Irani caf&eacute;s &mdash; will be chronicled in a coffee table book that is set for a late 2015 release

Finally, a book on Mumbai's Irani cafes

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One of Mumbai's most endearing albeit fast fading icons &mdash; the Irani caf&eacute;s &mdash; will be chronicled in a coffee table book that is set for a late 2015 release

Finally, a book on Mumbai's Irani cafes

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Finally, a book on Mumbai's Irani cafes

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