Smoker's Corner, which opened in 1953, was mostly visited by bankers and lawyers, who made up a chunk of the office-going population in Fort. Pics/Ashish Rane

Though situated in one of the busiest areas in South Mumbai, this bookstore, which sits on the fag end of Sir Pherozeshah Mehta Road in Fort, can easily miss the undiscerning eye. The decrepit board with the unlikely name Smoker's Corner, which appears to have missed a fresh coat of paint in years, and refuses to gleam under the harsh afternoon sun, is not something that would easily arrest the attention of passers-by. Neither is the array of pulp-fiction and children's titles displayed at its entrance, which incidentally, opens into the foyer of the near-century-old Botawala Chambers. To many, the store would seem like a sorry example of neglect. But, this is how fans of the 55-year-old bookstore remember the space, which is a stone's throw away from Strand Book Stall. Like its counterpart, which downed shutters last week, Smoker's too is looking in the face of an end.