Dadar: A Small Magical World of Its Own

Being born and brought up in the city of Mumbai is an experience inimitable. Two things automatically flow through your veins apart from the obligatory blood; movies and cricket but of course. The ones who claim they don’t like cricket or the “silly Bollywood films” are immediately looked down upon with a sharp and menacing frown. As for the unforgiving lessons of life, the ones who have survived in this city even for a year on their own have learnt them all.

Now if you have lived your life in the Dadar side of city, it gets even more fascinating. One and all would agree to this, while still being very much a part of Mumbai, Dadar is a small world of its own. One of the most celebrated areas of the city, Dadar has played a very important role in the illustrious history of Mumbai (even India for that matter) for years innumerable. The area has a lineup of one landmark structure after the other that has an immense significance to the people.

Dadar is home to the celebrated Sharadashram Vidyamandir High School which, apart from being a school level cricket champion, is also known to have among its alumni; names like Ajit Agarkar, Vinod Kambli and the god of cricket himself, Sachin Tendulkar. Then there is the fundamental Shivaji Park Maidan which has given birth to a string of known and also unknown cricketing legends. These include names such as Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin Tendulkar, Pravin Amre, Padmakar Shivalkar and Sanjay Manjrekar among others. The long stretch of Dadar Chowpatty (pathetically polluted) gives a beautiful view of the The Bandra–Worli Sea Link. The Lokmanya Tilak Bridge has the title of being the oldest bridge in Mumbai, built way back in 1923. The Ashok Vada Pav Stall near Kirti College is all Mumbai Renowned. The official Mumbai Mayor’s Bungalow is located at Shivaji Park. The renowned Shivaji Park Gymkhana recently completed its 100^th year anniversary, since its establishment. The Institute Of Hotel Management -IHMCTAN Mumbai is also located at Dadar. The celebrated Siddhivinayak temple located art Prabhadevi is also very much nearby. Chaitya Bhoomi, a spot where Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar’s last rites were performed, is also located at Dadar. This apart, when it comes to ethnic Mumbai and Maharashtrian food, Dadar has the best of it all. The area is also home to a number of respected celebrities, actors, artists, sportsmen, writers and other such prominent personalities. Then there is the Shivsena Bhavan, headquarters of the political party Shivsena. The landmark Plaza cinema which also suffered from the 1993 bomb blasts is also placed here. Dadar is also home to Raj Thackeray who stays at Krishna Kunj near Shivaji Park Maidan.

It is in these by lanes of Dadar that I grew up and it is here that I have learnt all the invaluable lessons of my relatively young life. I have plainly written of the land mark structures in this area. Although the heart yearns to write something more intimate, more personal, of my love affair with Dadar that, in the enigmatic city of chaos, is a small magical world of its own.

Dadar