First look: New and improved Crawford Market in South Mumbai

Shoppers in the bustling quarters of Crawford Market have ample reason to give their bargaining a break and set their eyes on the fresh look sported by the marketrsquos faccedilade Shedding its old grimy coat the heritage block of the 147yearold market has returned to its former glory marking the conclusion of phase one of its restoration that kicked off in September 2014 This included restoration of BMC offices housed on the first and second floors and sprucing up a readytochime clock in the central towerThe clock tower offices and facade of Crawford Market have been restored in the first phase of Crawfords restoration PicsDatta KumbharRestoration has been carried out by the Municipal Corporation of Great Mumbai MCGM and conservation architect appointed by the BMC Abha Narain Lambah and the projectrsquos goal is to give the market renamed Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Mandai in independent India a makeover before its sesquicentennial year celebration in 2019The balconies overlooking DN Road had concrete laid in the 1970s Now they have restored with woodwork as was intended by Crawfords architect William Emersonmidday visited the restored GradeI heritage block which on first impression looks understated But roll back a few years when the structurersquos neglected interiors ousted the BMCrsquos market department for fear of crumbling down and you can tell the differenceA basrelief by Lockwood Kipling and students of JJ School depicting scenes of the city has also been restoredUnsarkari officeThe purpose of restoration is to ensure longevity of a historic structure and to enhance its original design says Sanaeya Vandrewala associate conservation architect with Lambah The restoration team have saved as much as possible from the historic structure while using original material that was used in the structurersquos construction Rotting rafters made of Burma teak for instance havenrsquot been replaced entirely just the decayed bits were substituted Hexagonal ochre and earth brown Minton tiles originally imported from Britain have been painstakingly removed by hand before floorrepair and then replaced Broken tiles have been switched with new ones but it will be hard for you to tell the differenceThe original chimer from the clock towerDesigned by architect William Emerson the Gothic market was named after the first municipal commissioner of then Bombay ndash Arthur Crawford Standing at the intersection of DN Road and LT Road it was built in the fashion of Victorian markets back in Britain but keeping in mind the warmer Mumbai weather Crawford comes with four elegant balconies far wider than their British counterparts to offer better ventilation ldquoThe most satisfying aspects of the restoration were the balconies that overlook the DN Road side Sometime in the 70s the timber balcony facing DN road had been removed and replaced with reinforced concrete We restored it to the authentic timber designrdquo says LambahThe clockface changed by the BMC to Marathi writing will soon start ticking once the architects finalise the mechanismThe restored balconies and the basreliefs made by Lockwood Kipling and students from the JJ School of Arts are sure to draw the attention of passersby But rather than Juliets we should find BMC officials standing at the balconies for these floors will see the return of the market department which currently functions out of Dadar ldquoWhen we initially saw the space the ceiling was propped up with rods there were aluminium partitions added over the decades layers of pink green and blue paint and the rafters of Burma teak were rotting at the ends With no structural repairs performed since construction the building has seen 146 monsoons as isrdquo says LambahThe facade of the heritage block of Crawford Market before restorationThe new office interiors continue with the woodwork theme rather than the stainless steel cupboards or unremarkable cubicles that we often associate government offices with The nonAC rooms have allowed for wide ceiling space and nonstuffy cabins with glasswork cut into wooden partitions to allow light to penetrate Even lighting will now emit from vintagelooking lamps commonly seen across Mumbairsquos Irani cafes instead of tubelightsThe BMCs market department as it existed in the upper floors of the block and the BMC market departments new office which continues with the woodwork themeWe have timetravelled to a centuryold office but with all the amenities of this era we realize when Vandrewala says ldquoWhile we havenrsquot changed the design we donrsquot wish to museumise the marketrdquoWill so much wood survive Mumbairsquos humidity ldquoGood quality wood lasts the ages If regular maintenance is done it means an overhaul can be prevented laterrdquo she thinksPreserve and progressA fire in the main market in October 2015 which gutted almost 60 shops threw up concerns about the need for fireproofing across the cubby hole shops Measures have been taken in the restored section towards firesafety by fitting sprinklers smoke detectors wetrisers and PA systems The extensive woodwork has received a fireretardant lacquer coat But the spiral staircase still poses a challenge as the only exit out of the building says Lambah ldquoAs a GradeI heritage structure we cannot build a new staircase We have done our best with the heritage block to provide enough firesafety measuresrdquo she saysThe restoration of Crawford was set to initially commence in 2007 but dillydallied over a redevelopment scandal that proposed the building of two towers in the rear portion of the heritage wing The BMC wished to sell the prime market property to a developer for which the then municipal commissioner Jairaj Phatak received much criticism When things finally kicked off in 2014 Lambah and her associates did not find old plans for the heritage portion of the market ldquoWhile plans for the main market existed for phase one we didnrsquot have a choice but to refer to photographs of other structures from the time as reference We asked ourselves what would a Victorian market of the same vintage be like The answer lay in Londonrsquos iconic Smithfield Market built around the same time as Crawfordrdquo says LambahWhile a year may seem like a long time for a partial restoration Lambah says this is normal ldquoEach basalt stone had 150 years of soot and oil pollution smothered on it We did not use acid or highpressure cleaning Restoration is a labourintensive process and we were careful not to clean more than necessaryrdquoThe conservation architect who is a UNESCOawardee says the MCGMrsquos team of officials engineers and staff have been instrumental in the restoration which will now commence in the main market area While restoring public heritage buildings comes with its own set of challenges ndash and scandals ndash Lambah is clear she would rather be doing this than picking fabric for a luxury private homeTicking timeCrawford Marketrsquos clock tower was built almost a decade before the Rajabai Tower ldquoIn the urban landscape of erstwhile Bombay these were not just the landmarks but also the time everyone followed The tallest buildings of that time were Crawford Rajabhai tower and the belfry of St Thomasrsquo cathedral In some way these iconic institutions indicated three things ndash commerce a temple of learning and religionrdquo says LambahThe historic clock tower which has undergone changes in the last few decades was the part of Crawford that needed urgent attention In the mid20th century the old chiming bell was replaced with a modern mechanism for the clockface which has also become defunct now Lambah and her team are currently working on a new mechanism for the clock which bears Marathi writing since the 70s and passersby will soon be able refer to the trusty clock and its new chimeThe bell which is the same age as the market is a story in itself It was made by Dent and Co lsquoClockmakers to Her Majestyrsquo Lambah estimates that given its size installing the bell must have been an engineering feat It is most likely that the clock tower was finished off after the bell had been installed and not in the reverse way The retired bell will continue to rest in the tower since it is primarily difficult to transport it out of the structure But more importantly Lambah and the BMC wish it to be part of its original history ldquoWe donrsquot want to remove the bell from its context We are going to preserve it here with a plaque for detailsrdquo says Vandrewala