Mumbai celebrates 100 years of BEST buses with rare tickets, photos and vintage models

A century of BESTrsquos motorised bus service was celebrated at the David Sassoon Library and Reading Room in Kala Ghoda on Saturday with an exhibition that brought together old tickets photographs bus models and memorabilia from Mumbairsquos public transport historyThe programme lsquoBEST Motorised Buses 100 ndash A Journey Through Time on Mumbairsquos Iconic Busesrsquo also saw the launch of lsquoCentenary of Motorised Bus Servicersquo a book by Swamynathan RThe exhibition featured old BEST tickets collected by Nirmal Sarkar Vijay Sonawane and Ankush Kalantre along with detailed paper models of BEST buses made by Yatin Pimpale Rare photographs and stories documenting the evolution of BEST buses were also on displayCurated by Yogesh Shah and Arvind Dave the event brought together transport enthusiasts historians and collectors to mark 100 years since motorised buses were introduced in Mumbai in 1926 Retired BEST Deputy Chief Manager Planning amp Control Pravin Shetty also held a questionandanswer session explaining how BEST buses operate and how the cityrsquos bus network has evolvedOn displaygtgt 1926 omnibus ticketsgtgt 120yearold BEST tram ticketgtgt Vintage bus and tram ticketsgtgt Paper models of BEST buses and trainsgtgt Old Bombay photographs and postcardsgtgt Vintage coins currency and stampsgtgt Cinema and theatre ticketsgtgt Edmondsontype railway ticketsgtgt Autographs and other memorabiliaMumbai on a ticketFor collector Nirmal Sarkar Mumbai remains a favourite theme His collection includes BEST bus and tram tickets of different designs and denominations including 100yearold omnibus tickets in different colours He also has a 120yearold BEST tram ticket featuring a tram route map of Bombay City Sarkar has also been collecting currency notes coins and stamps for the past 28 yearsCollecting historyJigar Desai began collecting BEST tickets about 20 years ago starting with a rare 1926 omnibus ticket priced at one annaldquoI have tickets of different denominations advertisement tickets featuring themes such as Priya Gold biscuits tickets from the early motorised bus era and modern BEST ticketsrdquohe saidldquoFor me these are not just tickets mdash they are little pieces of Mumbairsquos transport history each one capturing a different era of the cityrsquos journeyrdquoFrom bus tickets to old BombayRetired ACP Vijay N Sonawanersquos collection goes beyond buses and trams It includes centuryold Bombay tram tickets vintage coins cinema and drama tickets antique rotary phones postcards of old Bombay autographs and Edmondsontype tickets from Indiarsquos first railway the Great Indian Peninsula RailwayldquoOne must have some hobby in his life Hobby gives pleasure and happiness to your mind By arranging exhibitions I am trying to motivate the young generation too Collecting something is nothing but preserving heritage The collection acts as a time machinerdquo he saidBuses made of paperPimpale a retired BEST museum curator displayed paper models covering different eras of public transport mdash from horsedrawn trams and roofless doubledecker buses to modern AC buses and trainsldquoI started making paper models of buses during my childhood when I was in the sixth grade and since then there has been no looking backrdquo he saidPimpale said his collection now covers almost every BEST bus model as well as railway trains including engines He is currently recreating a model of the first train and its coacheslsquoThese are not pieces of paper but memoriesrsquoFor Ankush Kalantre the fascination with tickets began in childhood His collection includes BEST TMT KDMT and other transport tickets besides railway tickets from different parts of the countryldquoThe tickets are not merely pieces of paper They carry details of fares routes destinations and in many cases advertisements and other information printed on their reverse side For a collector these tiny pieces of paper become historical documents These are not pieces of paper but memoriesrdquo he said