Live in Bombay

LIVE IN BOMBAY

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LIVE IN BOMBAY

CITY GUIDES // BOMBAY

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LIVE IN BOMBAY

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LIVE IN BOMBAY A guide to the best performance spaces in the city

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TABLE OF CONTENTS 01 INTRODUCTION 02 ARTS & THE CITY 02.1 THEATRE & BOMBAY 02.2 MUSIC & BOMBAY 02.3 COMEDY & BOMBAY 03 RISE OF ALTERNATIVE PERFORMANCE SPACES 04 VENUES 04.1 NCPA 04.2 PRITHVI THEATRE 04.3 CANVAS LAUGH CLUB 04.4 ROYAL OPERA HOUSE 04.5 CUCKOO CLUB 04.6 THE HABITAT 04.7 JEFF GOLDBERG STUDIO 04.8 CAFE ZOE 04.9 BANDRA BASE 04.10 HARD ROCK CAFE 04.11 SITARA STUDIO 05 RECOMMENDATIONS 06 BIBLIOGRAPHY

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01. INTRODUCTION Bombay & the Performance Arts

Performance art can be defined as an art form which relies on the artist/performer and their gestures, expressions and presence as a medium of translation and expression of their art. Since it relies deeply on the interaction and the bond formed between the performer and the audience, witnessing performing arts is an experience in itself!

Over time, Bombay has emerged as the crowning jewel for the performing arts in India. Ever since the colonial era, it has served as a centre for arts and culture. Initially it saw a number of halls and auditoriums constructed for the purpose of entertainment for the colonisers. Thus, the British cantonment, located in the southern tips of the reclaimed lands of Bombay, saw theatres such as Grant Road Theatre, Bombay Theatre and Theatre Royale develop. But over a period of time, these spaces became much more than just performance centers: they evolved into being incubation centers supporting and developing the various art forms that the city had to offer. Much like the earlier artists who enjoyed the patronage of kings and rulers with temples as their dedicated performance spaces, the artists in Bombay found a healthy patronage from the wealthy colonisers and the new elite Indian business class and a slow rise of infrastructure followed.

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Being one of the earliest metropolises of the country also helped Bombay’s case further. Artists and performers flocked to the city from all over the country and contributed to the developments of the cultural fabric. Nurturing the arts became fashionable and slowly the city acquired a taste for the same. Thus, unlike other colonies and capital states, Bombay emerged as the hub of cultural events and arts. With the establishment of institutions by philanthropists and businessmen around town, such as the NCPA, Lalbaug Palace, Royal Opera House and Prithvi Theatre, Bombay cemented its place in the cultural map of the world. It soon became India’s window for the best of arts and culture that the world had to offer. Orchestras, actors, dancers/ballets, films, etc. – all found a loving audience in the city.

With the developments in the realm of recordings, mass consumption of performing arts became popular.

A thriving film industry in the form of Bollywood also developed and took many performance-based art forms such as music and dance under its wings. Slowly, the film industry came to incorporate a commercialized version of all the arts and the live performances industry was unable to cope with its reach and popularity.

Both artists as well as audiences preferred to consume cinema as means of entertainment.

But over the last twenty years, the city has seen a revival of performance arts. With the growing commercialization of cinema, performance arts have come to be viewed as a purer and more enriched version of the arts.

Performances are able not only to grab the attention of the audience and create it into an experience but also manage to generate dialogue and foster interaction of the art form with the city. Thus, many art forms such as dance, theatre and music revamped

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themselves and became popular critical players in the cultural pulse of the city. Economic diversification has also helped performance arts lose its dependency on the elite section of the society and has enabled new art forms such as comedy and street theatre – art forms which are able to reflect the pulse and concerns of the citizens – to rise in the city.

Although performance arts are something which is no longer unique to the city, its rich history and popularity makes Bombay the best place to witness them. It is an experience which has become unique and helps explore and feel the city in an entirely different manner.

With more and more people creating an aptitude for the arts and a growing audience ready to consume more experimental content, there cannot be a better time to witness the astounding world of live performances.

This guide is deliberately designed to be concise in its outlook of the performance spaces around town. It focuses on the best of spaces which the city has to offer and dwells a bit into its history and architecture in order to give viewers a glimpse of the magnitude of importance it resonates. The guide covers venues which are forerunners in the drive to create and curate the new-age cultural revolution and are focused on serving as platforms for the revival of performance arts in the city. Its an attempt to help readers experience the very best of cultural dimensions of the city of Bombay!

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02. THEATRE IN BOMBAY History & Relationship between the artform and the city Theatre has been one of the most popular and the oldest art forms to exist in Bombay. Viewed as a form of storytelling, the art form flourished as early as the colonial times. It was already an established art form in the West and upon coming to India, makeshift theatres were established in order to host plays in English for the purpose of entertainment for the British soldiers. But slowly, theatre saw locals adapting and internalising the art form in order to make it more than a medium of entertainment. This development is deeply tied with the mill workers movement and the rise of street theatre culture. “For the mill workers, with workings of the new urbane in the city and facing an entirely new set of laws and restrictions, came a variety of problems. These included new manifestations of the caste system within the colonial city as well as problems related to workers’ rights. As a reaction to these problems, street theatre began to grow as an art form of the oppressed in Bombay.” (Ramanathan 2015) Regarded as a dynamic and creative space, the theatre circuit in Bombay has propelled since the 1950s. It is a space which has become synonymous with experimentation and freedom of expression and opinion. Bhulabhai Desai Memorial Institute, Walchand

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Terrace and Chhabildas School Hall emerged as the pioneer venues which not only promoted theatre as a professional art form but also helped develop the theatre culture of Bombay. Theatre grew more than just a one-off performance and often invited dialogue, discussions and original storytelling. In the Bombay circuit, ‘the new’ consciously opposes ‘the old’ and results in the kind of theatre that forces people to reconsider their definitions of ‘good’ theatre, says Shanta Gokhale in her book ‘The Scenes We Made: An Oral History of Experimental Theatre in Mumbai”.

Bombay also emerged as the setting stage for the development of Marathi theatre – one of the most culturally rich theatre traditions in the country. For centuries, Marathi theatre had been represented solely by the folk forms. “The idea of a glorified past was explored in the Marathi theatre tradition, and it helped resist the influences of the British and other Christian missionaries in the 19th-20th century,” says Makarand Sathe – an architect-turned-playwright. In the 19th century, modern Marathi theatre was born and Bombay was at the cusp of it. By 1909, theatre came to be driven by market forces instead of state patronage. “Bombay was the place where the seeds of professional Marathi theatre were sown and rightly so. This could not have happened in any other place but the city of commerce, because Bombay had the money, the infrastructure and the ability to carve out the formal performance spaces to help it grow.”

Theatre has for a long time seen as a hybrid of dance and classical music and emerged as a popular

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performance art. Due to limitations of recording, theatre was amongst the earliest art forms in the city to dictate a cultural setting around it and get recognized as a performance art. It became extremely popular in Bombay as the city itself was becoming a melting pot of identities and theatre provided everybody a stage to voice their opinions. “Ordinary Mumbaikars provided a backbone for theatre to develop in the city. Playwright Premanand Gajvi was a Bombay Port Trust employee, Vinda Karandikar taught English at a city college and Vijay Tendulkar was a journalist,” narrates Makarand Sathe. Thus, unlike film actors and classical musicians or dancers, theatre actors and writers were viewed as members of the ordinary society and thereby more approachable. They weren’t celebrated as figures larger than life but were treated very affectionately.

But despite raging popularity and success of theatre groups, actors were forced to act as travel theatre companies and perform in whatever space was available- from dying old theatres to refabricated cinema halls to open grounds near chawls. “From grounds like the Jambori Maidan, which hosted the month-long Kamgar Fest (the oldest theatre festival in this city) in 1938-39, to a cult play like Vastraharan, whose 5,000 shows have been performed by mill workers from Lower Parel and Naigaon, plays were performed in chawls and in bylanes,” recalls Ramu Ramanathan.

However, with the growth of movies and success of Bollywood, the traditional theatre circuit lost its public popularity as a channel of entertainment. Due to its ability to record and replay, the film industry started

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scaling up at an unprecedented rate which became impossible for the theatre circuit to cope with. Although most of the established Bollywood actors can trace back their origins to the world of theatre in Bombay, their popularity or wealth was rarely reciprocated in the theatre circuit of the city. As a result, besides loss in terms of dedicated spaces, theatre also began to lose its patrons and audience.

But in the recent years, theatre has come to regain its popularity in the city. With the extensive commercialization of Bollywood, many patrons are turning to theatre which is viewed as more intense and more respectable art form for acting. A big role in this shift has been played by Bollywood actors themselves. From actors like Prithviraj Kapoor and Shashi Kapoor, who continued acting continuing in theatre despite being at the prime of their Bollywood careers, to the emergence of Prithvi Theatre as an independent venue for hosting and staging theatre in the midst of the city, theatre in Bombay has been reborn. Today, many actors continue to perform in the theatre circuit as they view live performances as a platform to improve and develop their skills.

Besides a regained interest from the actors’ fraternity, the other major factor behind the resurgence of theatre in the city has been the rise of alternative performance spaces. New venues spread across the city have allowed more and more theatre groups to establish, rehearse and perform regularly. Theatre has also undergone some changes in order to adapt to these spaces. The productions have shifted their focus

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from props and sets to quality of acting and content portrayed itself. New spatial configurations such as black box theatres have further allowed theatre artists to break the formality between performers and audience and given rise to artforms such as immersive theatre and experimental theatre. “It is not possible to have anonymity, unlike when you perform in an auditorium.

Also, in an alternative space, the audience is willing to accept different work. In alternative spaces you can concentrate on ideas and not worry about the visual aspects of production. It is tougher to perform in an alternative space compared to a conventional one,” muses Sunil Shanbag, a veteran theatre actor-director.

The rise of alternative performance spaces have also allowed productions to revamp the idea of theatre and become innovative. Quasar Thakore Padamsee, an actor-turned-director, says, “Nostalgia Brand Chewing Gum was a play about four friends meeting up for dinner. So, when we staged it at a cafe, we tried to include the audience into the performance and provide them with a 360-degree experience by serving food in the same setting as the play. It was a great experiment in breaking the fourth wall. The whole space becomes the set.” The rise of alternative performance spaces and the simultaneous growth of English, Hindi as well as regional language plays (Marathi, Gujarati) have been vital factors behind theatre regaining its popularity in the city.

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03. MUSIC IN BOMBAY History & Relationship between the artform and the city

Music as a performance art has flourished in Bombay for a number of years. Although Bollywood and its music industry has had a strong hold over the city, Bombay has become a breeding ground for new musicians as well. During the 1920s, Bombay played a vital role in popularizing jazz in the country and during the 60s, it became a stage for rock and metal musicians to establish themselves in urban India. Live events and prospects of concerts have seen many stalwarts perform in the city; from Michael Jackson’s iconic tour in 1996 to the packed concerts of Coldplay (2016) and Ed Sheeran (2017), Bombay is well-known as an international musical venue.

Over the years, Bombay has also seen itself transform into a stage for indie musicians and homegrown talent.

With a number of recording studios available, musicians from all over the country come to the city. Musicians ranging from classical singers to rap artists have been able to carve their own spaces in the city and were the first performance artists to emerge here. For a long time, Bombay’s nightlife and pub culture was ruled and governed by music.

One of the most premier institutes to emerge and promote music in the city was the National Center of

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Performing Arts (NCPA). Located at the Nariman Point, the center has multiple venues established for the preservation of music, dance, theatre and film in India.

Opened in 1969, the NCPA, till date, is an intrinsic part of the cultural fabric of the city. Designed by renowned architect Philip Johnson, the theatres are known for their incredible acoustic and lighting properties and makes the centre the most prestigious stage in the city. NCPA was a pioneer in promoting live music performances and provided exposure to acclaimed international artists. The NCPA is by far the most exquisite and wellequipped facility in the city and is known to stage rich performances such as operas, ballets and Broadwaystyle theatre productions and the best of Indian classical music. In 2010, it also became home to India’s first and only orchestra- Symphony Orchestra of India, which regularly hosts performances at the venue.

Apart from it, the other venue which integrated live music into everyday city life was the iconic Blue Frog.

It was one of the first venues to capitalize on the trend of being an alternative performance space, financed by the accompanying F & B service. Located in Lower Parel, the 6400 sq. ft. warehouse was skilfully designed as an acoustically rich space accompanied with iconic ‘seating pods’ – which allows for large groups to sit together at multiple levels, all oriented towards the stage. It opened its doors in 2007 and due to its location, it invited an audience from all walks of life. The music presented was equally variant as the stage was open to all artists ranging from Indian rock bands to instrumentalists, from international funk acts to bass DJs, everybody. The ambience, the location and

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the dedicated calendar which allowed for live music performances six days of the week helped it emerge as the premier spot for catching live musical performances in the city before shutting down in 2016.

Stemming from the lack of such spaces, many new venues have emerged in the circuit. Mehboob Studio’s – one of Bolllywood’s most renowned production studios started ‘Live from the Console’ as a stage for alternative music performances. Many spaces tried to work on the model of acting as pure music performance spaces and got quite popular as well. International franchises such as Hard Rock Café opened in the city and attracted many rock bands. ‘Not Just Jazz By The Bay’ also emerged as a popular venue for live music for a number of years, but due to rising rents, it was unable to sustain itself. One of the more successful examples has been the acclaimed chain of resto-bars, ‘Social’. It started ‘Anti-Social’ in Khar as a music-oriented performance space in 2016.

It had live musicians and acts five days a week and presented a diverse soundscape. With nominal prices it allowed for new artists such as rappers and singersongwriters a shot at the stage and became an instant hit. It led to a revival of the trend of live music being an intrinsic part of every restaurant/bar.

Music in Bombay is on the rise once again. More and more venues such as cafés and bookstores are opening themselves for acoustic open mics and providing a platform for more singer-songwriters to flourish and develop. The shift from gears and equipment has led to more focus on the content of the music. Smaller rooms emerging as alternative performance spaces have

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allowed musicians to experiment with their content and break the fourth wall with their audience – a limitation of established theatres and auditoriums. The musicians are able to engage in conversations with their audience and this has allowed music to share stage with other performing arts such as poetry and stand-up comedy.

Music is an intrinsic part of nightlife in Bombay and one of the best ways to feel the pulse of the city.

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04. COMEDY IN BOMBAY History & Relationship between the artform and the city

Unlike popular perception, stand-up comedy isn’t an art form which is new to India. For years, comedians have existed, although limited to the realms of local languages such as Marathi, Punjabi, etc. and outlets like cassettes and television. Due to limited exposure many of the early comedians remained limited to the domain of mimicry and impressions. Thus, comedy was seen as a filler element which came to be used in Bollywood and as an act to be performed in between musical/ dance performances. Gradually comedy started getting consumed in the form of audio recordings but still hadn’t evolved as a performing art form. By the early 2000s comedy had emerged as a genre but stand-up was yet to be recognized as an art form.

Comedians in India blossomed to fame and recognition upon the rise of English stand-up comedians. It all started with the Comedy Store- a renowned establishment from UK expanding and setting shop in Bombay. It became the first alternative performance arena which was dedicated to stand-up comedy. Founded by Don Ward, the club was dedicated towards exposing Indian crowds to the best of western stand-up comedians and forms of comedy. Apart from that it also provided a stage for emerging stand-up comedians from India.

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The likes of Vir Das and Papa CJ were amongst the prominent artists who really pushed the envelope of English stand-up comedy and went on to start the culture of hosting open mics in the city. Thus, Bombay emerged as the breeding ground for a fresh crop of comedians and its audience.

Having said that, open mics and spots in breweries and clubs were a rarity as late as 2010 and there were very few established comedians in the circuit. But within the last decade, comedy in India has grown manifold and leaped into a premier source of entertainment and the most popular art form in the city. The initial push towards comedy in the city came from corporates. According to Samar Singh Sheikhawat, Senior Vice President of Marketing at United Breweries, companies started booking stand-up comedians for its events in response to requests from their invitees. “Our audience is very Internet-savvy, very aware of trends, so for them humour is a part of life,” he says. More corporate shows meant that comedians could start earning through the art form and pursue it as a career. Papa CJ recalls that he had to convince reluctant bar owners to host open mic nights on Sundays or Mondays, when business is slow.

“I would tell them: ‘Sunday night you normally have five people. I’ll have 80 people spend 3.5 hours.’ It works.”

The comedy store paved doors for the art form to develop in India and seeing the profitability of the venture allowed other proper tiers the confidence to venture into the performance arts circuit. After that many venues such as the Canvas Laugh Club, the Hive and the Cultural Shoq started hosting stand-up comedy

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and open mics. This allowed more people to give the art form a try and evolve it in their own unique way. “ With the opening of several mediums, comedy is growing at an insane rate. Thanks to internet and the rate at which viral marketing is happening, TV channels and films are looking at the Internet, and the only people actively doing content on the Internet are comedians.

So automatically, you start getting a lot of work, with people approaching for space and spot,� Kenny Sebastian, one of the most celebrated comedians of the circuit, explains.

Today, with the growing popularity of stand-up comedy, Bombay has emerged as a cultural haven for comedians.

The numerous venues round town have enabled them to perform multiple gigs every single day of the week.

This popularity has also led to increased awareness among the audience and has allowed the growth of various types of comedy in India such as Improv comedy, Observational comedy, Sketch comedy and Musical comedies. In the light of controversies around offence and boundaries of comedy, many comedians have restrained from posting their content on the internet and are re-emerging in the stand-up circuit. Thus, stand-up comedy as a live performance art is gaining popularity once again as established artists are relying more and more on live, interactive shows to showcase bold, new and intrinsically funny content.

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05. THE RISE OF ALTERNATIVE PERFORMANCE SPACES

Alternative performance spaces are reshaping the cultural fabric and urban landscape of the city.

Providing new spaces, free of predefined program, grants the freedom to the performers to own and adapt the space. It opens doors for everybody- new artists in an established art form or a new art form itself, and allows them to gain exposure and interact with the city. Over the recent years, Bombay has been the hub of alternative performance spaces and has led to a dynamic cultural shift in the way entertainment is consumed in India.

Spatially, the venues follow the open plan model, making them apt and capable of holding all eventsranging from workshops, talks, screenings to dance performances, theatre, stand-up comedy and live music gigs. These spaces are not only giving a nurturing ground for budding artists but are also critical in shaping and giving birth to an audience who is more culturally aware and engaged with the arts. By providing un-hindered spaces of expression the various art forms are able to experiment and survive as well as develop its own audience- a sustainable approach for preservation of the arts unlike the past. By providing a stage, these venues have granted status of recognition and appreciation

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for arts such as stand-up and slam poetry- which for a long time were performed in ‘borrowed spaces’ such as living rooms and couches and were thus seen as hobbies more than an art form. Even established art forms such as dance and theatre have turned towards alternative spaces as they believe that these spaces allows for greater engagement with the audience and opportunity to become more accessible to the public Comedy store, founded by Don Ward was one of the first unconventional performance oriented venues to come up in the city. Having been established in England, the club dedicated towards exposing Indian crowds to the best of western stand-up comedy. It paved doors for the art form to develop in India and seeing the profitability of the venture allowed other proper tiers to gain the confidence to venture into the performance arts circuit. Careful curation of events with appropriate pricing in sync with the audience’s tastes and lifestyle have been the key behind these ventures becoming economically sustainable.

“There’s insurmountable risk involved in opening venues like these. We have to keep reinventing ourselves in order to survive and be at the centre of the next cultural wave.” Says Sharin Bhatti , The Founder of The Hive (2014) and The Cuckoo Club (2016) The growth of alternative spaces however has been rather organic. Due to constraints such as high rents, these venues have propped up in all corners of the

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city. However, their scattered presence has in a way allowed them to cater to a larger audience, and in turn cultivate a life style amongst locals of working and entertainment as a routine exercise. This feedback has in turn allowed more artists to perform and develop their craft at the level of international acclaim.

Apart from the space and platform within, the coming up of these alternative performance spaces have enabled the cultural fabric of Bombay to grow beyond NCPA, (Nariman point)- a multi purpose cultural center setup in 1969 and Prithvi theatre, (Juhu)- started by veteran Bollywood actor Shashi Kappoor and family.

From traditional lodgings turned into a performance space, in fort area of South Bombay to Hard Rock cafĂŠ bringing the culture of live music in Andheri, new localities in Bombay have come to be associated with art and culture. These spaces which had initially started out due to the lack of space available for artist, have grown and developed as cultural centres attracting many patrons.

Alternative performing spaces in Bombay can be categorised into two groups. First are spaces which serve solely as a performance space. These spaces have varied business fronts and thus have alternative sources of income. For example, The Hive serves as a co-working space cum centre for alternative arts and helps fund the Cuckoo club- 100 seater black box theatre dedicated to performances. Similarly, John Goldberg studio holds acting, theatre and directorial classes and workshops and thereby is able to keep the

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tickets of the performances nominal and affordable. As a performance center it follows an open door policy and hosts a number of varied events.

The other kind of spaces are ones which are riding on the cultural wave of growing interest in performance arts, and have reinvented themselves as alternative performance spaces. From restraunts, café’s, pubs to libraries and galleries, all the traditional venues in a space-starved city of Bombay are helping the cause of performance arts. Although these venues aren’t equipped with proper professional requirement most of the time, the artists are rarely seen complaining. “When you’re testing material, this format is perfect. It has its own challenges and pushes you to experiment,” – Akarsh Khurana (Akvarious productions), which is involved in performing theatre at eateries and breweries.

The constraint has led to the birth of new artforms in India aswell. For example, Immersive theatre, interactive theatre and improve sketch comedy have all come to grow over the years due to the availability of such venues. These venues with limited seating capacities, have rebranded themselves as theatres of intimate performances and become fashionable over the years.

The smaller scale and comforting ambience helps the new consumers of the art, feel at ease rather than get intimidated by the aura and legacy of established venues like NCPA. The ease of access in terms of communication and content availability are the reasons behind the success of this trend according to Deepa Gahlot., head of theatre programming at NCPA.

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“In auditoriums, performances are impersonal and transactional in nature. At offbeat venues, there is a certain intimacy with the audience,� says Sunil Shanbag, a veteran theatre actor-director, who has performed plays even in gyms and residences.

Apart from breweries and restraunts, the new players to have ventured into this space have been malls and libraries. Malls in Mumbai have come to replace large scale, off the course concerts and libraries and book stores have desperately reinvented themselves in order to prevent their death- a threat already imposed by online retailers. For example, Trilogy by The Eternal Library (Lower Parel) is now the venue for the Talking Myths Project (talks on comparative mythology), while Kitab Khana (Fort), hosts Mumbai Local (inspirational talk sessions); and the Mcubed Library (Bandra), hosts workshops and movie/book club activities.

The rise of alternative performance spaces in the city has brought about essential shifts in the way it is perceived by businesses and artists: For businesses, having a diverse range of curated events, helps attract visitors from all walks of life and having big artists perform helps converts fans into customers of the venue. Venues become centers of interaction, and this dialogue helps them get mapped on the cultural circuit and gain public interest.

The development has also brought about spatial changes. Seating and lay outing of spaces are

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purposefully done in a manner which allows flexibility and creating of a focal point. A raised platform is provided to act as the stage. The Interiors and décor have become more informal and sensitive to acoustics and lighting.

For the artists these spaces have brought their own sense of pros and cons. The content become less relient on props and costumes and instead the focus shifts upon quality of writing.

“It is not possible to have anonymity, unlike when you perform in an auditorium. Also, in an alternative space, the audience is willing to accept different work. In alternative spaces you can concentrate on ideas and not worry about the visual aspects of production. It is tougher to perform in an alternative space compared to a conventional one.” Sunil Shanbag Performing in new localities helps engage with newer audiences. Established spaces helps venues gain reputation and in turn frees new artists the hassle ad cost behind promotion and attracting the artists. Once the venues develop themselves as cultural centers people are more willing to consume newer content.

Also, alternative performance spaces have increased the shelf life of performanes and shows.

“The idea is not just to do one-off shows now, but to develop a relationship with the venue and cultivate it as a space that theatre audiences can frequent.” – Choiti Ghosh, actor and director

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The rise of alternative performance spaces have allowed locals and visitors to experience the city in a new manner altogether. The city is no longer limited to certain pockets but instead has become culturally vibrant and interactive with its people. “The alternative performance space and their curatorial vision welcomes art that is neither defined nor particular about its ‘audience type’. Unsurprisingly then, they have become havens of free speech and dissent as they initiate conversations around taboo topics would otherwise be censored in the public domain.” By visiting these venues and witnessing the events, a visitor is made to experience the whole spectrum of life in Bombay. This guide is an attempt to help visitors navigate through this journey with ease and experience the best of the city.

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06. PERFORMANCES SPACES IN BOMBAY LOCATION // HISTORY // ARCHITECTURE

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18.9257° N 72.8189° E

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NATIONAL CENTER for the PERFORMING ARTS est. 1985

NCPA Marg, Nariman Point Mumbai, 400021

Nearest Railway Churchgate Station Station + 20 min walk Nearest Bus Stop B.E.S.T Bus routes 108 and 137 Nearest Landmark Nariman Point + 5 min walk Events inquiry +91 22 6622 3724

+91 22 6622 3754

www.ncpamumbai.com boxoffice@ncpamumbai.com

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photo (Exterior)

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The NCPA is one of the most legendary venues of the city. Situated in the scenic surroundings of Nariman point, it is the county’s most celebrated cultural center.

Formally known as the National Center for Performing Arts, it was founded as a multipurpose complex in 1969 by eminent businessmen and philanthropists JRD Tata and Dr Jamshed Bhabha. The objective of the venues were two folds: to serve as a platform to provide Indian audiences the exposure to world class music and theatre aswell to serve as a stage encouraging preservation and promotion of India’s classical, traditional and contemporary performing arts. NCPA for a long time dictated the cultural pulse of the city and promoted the interaction of art and urban life. It played hosts to a number of performances ranging from classical music recital to photography exhibitions.

The complex spans over nearly 340, 000sq ft of reclaimed land and was designed by world renowned modernist architect Philip Johnson. Accompanied

by Rustom Patel (Patel Batliwala & Associates) as project architect and illustrious acoustician Cyril Harris, the venues over the years have come to be known as architectural marvels – appreciated for their spatial layout aswell as excellent acoustic qualities.

The centre has 5 different venues- each dedicated to a different art form.

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Jamshed Bhabha theatre The largest of them all, it serves as the perfect venue to host full scale operas, ballets and orchestras.

The auditorium has a seating capacity of 1,100 people and has been operational since 1999.

Tata Theatre Due to its intricate triangulated interiors, it is the most famous venues in the complex. Known for its spectacular acoustics, the auditorium for a long time staged performances without the use of microphones. It has a revolving stage and a restored organ making it the apt setting for musical concerts (Indian classical asswell as western chamber music), theatre and film screenings. With a seating capacity of 1000, it has been operational since 1982 Experimental theatre As the name suggests, this is the most unconventional of all venues present in the complex. Designed like a black box theatre, it has a flexible seating accommodating 300 people and a movable platform. Over the years, the auditorium has been home for experimental and innovative theatrical productions. It is also a popular venue for workshops and rehearsals and has been operational since 1986

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Godrej Dance Theatre Designed intricately keeping in mind the requirements and comforts of dancers, the theatre is one of the best equipped dance venues. Over the years it has seen performances ranging from regional dance arts to ballets and musicals. With a seating capacity of 200, the intimate space serves as the perfect platform for film screenings, talks and seminars. It has been operational since 1985.

Little theatre As indicated by the name, the venue is the smallest in the complex but is the oldest amongst them all. It serves as a platform for nurturing young talent as thus serves as a multipurpose hall as well as an excellent recording studio. The venue has a seating capacity of 114 and has hosted performances for emerging musicians, dancers, actors and poets. It has been operational since 1975.

Apart from hosting a number of cultural events, the NCPA is also home to a beautifully rich library and research center. It has been the pioneer in shaping Bombay as a cultural center and has curated a number of festivals over the years. In 2006, it gave birth to India’s first and only orchestra- the Symphony orchestra of India, which often trains and performs at NCPA, apart from touring around the world.

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NOTES & SCRIBBLES

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PRITHVI THEATRE est. 1978 20 Janki Kutir Juhu Church Road Mumbai, 400049

Nearest Railway Ville Parle Station + 35 min walk Nearest Bus Stop Juhu Hotel + 5 min walk Nearest Landmark Juhu Beach + 15 min walk Events inquiry 022 2614 9546 www.prithvitheatre.org mail@prithvitheatre.org

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photo (Exterior)

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Prithvi Theatre is more than just a performance venue. Its cultural richness as well as historic significance makes it one of the pioneer performance spaces in the country.

Despite being owned and operated by one of the most famous acting dynasty of Bollywood -It has served as a platform for promotion of theatre, music, performances and most importantly, conversations. Nestled near the beaches of Juhu, it is haven for artists and patrons alike.

Its history can be traced back to the year 1942 when Prithviraj Kapoor had established himself as one of the stalwarts of Bollywood. What was unique in his story though was despite rising steadily in his film career, he kept in touch with his theatrical background and in 1942 ventured out to establish his own theatre company. In the years to follow, the theatre group established itself as a traveling company and started touring– a rarity in the Indian context. The group staged nearly 2600 plays in the years to follow- some becoming iconic landmarks for Hindi theatre circuit.

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But despite its raging success, the company often faced trouble finding quality spaces to perform. Due to lack of empathy and knowledge around the art form, they like others, had to perform in dying old theatres or refabricated cinema halls. After Prithviraj Kapoor retired he wished to harbour the company as a patron of Hindi theatre in Mumbai and looked to foster emerging talents.

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Prithviraj Kapoor’s youngest son, Shashi Kappor, inherited this love for theatre and joined the Prithvi theatre company. On one the tours, Kapoor invited the patrons of the legendary Shakespearean Theatre company. This proved to be a defining moment – both for the company aswell as the personal life of Shashi Kapoor as it through this interaction that he first met Jennifer Kendal – his future wife and the driving force behind the establishment of Prithvi theatre. Being the daughter of the owner of the Shakespearean Theatre Company, Jennifer shared the same passion for theatre as the Kapoor family. But when she shifted to Bombay, she noticed a severe lack of opportunities and spaces for nurturing theatrical talent.

In 1972, Shashi and Jennifer Kapoor took upon the challenge of establishing an independent performance center which could serve as the center for promotion of Hindi theatre and the perfect platform for emerging and nurturing fresh talent. In order to reflect these values and goals spatially, Shashi and Jennifer Kapoor hired the Architect Ved Segan. Not only did they pitch in to design the look and feel of the space, they also commissioned him to tour around Europe and study the architecture and mechanics of the iconic performance spaces.

In 1978, the Prithvi theatre was officially opened. One of the key aspects of the design and spatial layout was the fact that it was more than just a closed auditorium.3 It was accompanied with a generous 4gallery space which was equipped with a café’. The compound was designed in a way that it had no main gate filtering entry.

Till date, it just has an opening forming a cul-de-sac from

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the street, gently inviting people within the compound.

The theatre however for all its fame and glory, is quite small in size. An octagonal stage holds the primary attention of the small room and makes the theatre feel like an intimate space open for interaction and experimentation. The hall is technically equipped extremely well from all sides and is dressed in matte black interiors in order to help the audience focus ahead. From exposed pipes to channels for light, all carry a sophisticated matte finish and disappear in the darkness when the performance is on.

It has an intricately designed backstage which allows a theatre group the comfort and environment to make it their home rather than just a performance venue.

What has been truly remarkable is Prithivi’s ability to hold on to these old, utopian ideology and yet revamp itself continuously in order to remain relevant and the cultural heartbeat of Bombay. 2Over the years, Prithvi theatre has opened up to include many activities ranging from plays in various local languages (Marathi, Gujrati etc) to live musical performances – one of the few venues to host gigs without amplification even today. Since its evolution into a cultural hub, everything in Prithvi has gained an iconic status. The accompanying café’ meant to originally serve as a kitchen catering to patrons and actors has evolved into a popular hangout spaces where many a tales have been scripted. The foyer has slowly evolved as a performance space itself and has recently started to get used as a platform promoting spoken word, open mic and standup comedy.

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NOTES & SCRIBBLES

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18.9981° N 72.830° E

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CANVAS LAUGH CLUB est. 2010 Top floor, No 462, Palladium Mall, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel, Mumbai, 400021 Nearest Railway Lower Parel Station + 12 min walk Nearest Bus Stop KV Yadav Chowk + 5 min walk Nearest Landmark High Street Pheonix Mall Events inquiry 022 43485000

+91 9004603115

www.canvaslaughclub.com https://canvaslaughclub.com/index. php?route=information/calendar

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Located in one of the most popular malls of the city, Palladium Mall (earlier known as Phoenix mall), Canvas Laugh club can be termed as the ‘mecca of comedy’ in India. It has been at the forefront of the comedy revolution in the city and have continuously served as the venue hosting the best of comics in the country.

The club was started under the banner of the Comedy Store- an outlet of the legendary venue started by Don Ward, in 1979 in UK. With tremendous experience in the field, Don ward opened a store in the city in 2010 to help introduce and establish stand-up as an art form in India. 1“In the initial 2 years, we had to fly down international artists to perform. Gradually we started hosting open mics and launched the academy to help promote and encourage local talents” says Amar Aggarwal, the Indian partner of the UK based franchise.

2 After a fall out, Amar – the owner and managing director of the ‘Spa group’, started their venture and named it Canvas Laugh Factory. Educated in the United states he was well versed with Standup comedy and saw a real potential for it in India. The journey however was not easy. “3You write a cheque, you get a club. The biggest challenge is finding talent. You can’t pull talent out of a supermarket shelf. It takes time” says Amar. Thus slowly Canvas laugh factory became a venue dedicated to hosting open mics and nurturing new comedians. “4Open mics and trial sessions are usually the hub of comedy. It’s what brings the new guys into the scene and keeps the old ones going,” says comedian Anirban Dasgupta.

Many of today’s most popular talents emerged out of the atmosphere and platform created by Canvas

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Laugh Factory. 5In 2014, the club rebranded itself to be known as Canvas Laugh Club and introduced the style of comedy in languages apart from English. This was the paradigm shift which allowed more comedians to join the circuit aswell as the audiences to connect more with the performances. Witty observational comedy, polished through rigorous rounds of performances as a dedicated platform allowed comedians to create a wider audience for themselves and help recognize standup as an artform. In the meantime, CLC became one of the first venues to provide facilities of recording shows and releasing standup comedy as content on the internet. The medium became extremely popular and saw a boom for standup comedy- countrywide.

Since it was one of the few places which focused on performances first and services as food and beverages later, the club began to witness a fan following of itself.

It became a destination audiences kept coming back to in order to witness new talent and have a good time.

Today, the Canvas Laugh club is located at the top floor of the High Street Pheonix mall and has well curated shows- every single day of the week. Over the years, it has broadened its horizon from just standup and has become a platform for various other artforms aswell. For example, immersive theatre, sketch comedy, improve comedy etc.

One of the most distinct characteristics which sets it apart from other venues is the spatial layout of the space. Designed like a movie theatre, the club is significantly larger than other venues in the city. It has theatre like cushioned seating arranged following a fan layout around the stage. This give appropriate comfort

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aswell as proximity to the performing artist. The club has well-arranged food and beverages counters at the rear ends of the theatre and remain out of site during the performance. Being one of the few dedicated ‘comedy clubs’, it has a very well arranged backstage providing scope of interaction amongst budding and established comedians. The scale of the space aswell as the theatre like velvet red colour scheme, allows the space to feel familiar and dictates a comfortable aura which helps you relax and have a good laugh.

The stage is simply a raised platform and remains below the eye level of the audience. The cushioned seats, the thick drapes making up most of the backdrop and the carpeted flooring and walls account for good acoustic treatment- a helpful feature in terms of live recordings. However due to fixed seating arrangement, it is restricted to certain styles of events such as standup and improve but becomes unfit in terms of a venue for theatre or music. The club is supplemented with a large foyer space with a dedicated lift for access

Following the success of Canvas Laugh club in Bombay, many other franchises have opened up all across the country. Spa group itself has two more outlets located in Noida and Gurgaon currently and plans to open many more in the years to come. Although other venues are available, they fail to command the atmosphere and the significance associated with the CLC. Given its history and its all important role in the Indian comedy circuit, it remains our top recommendation even after 8 years.

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NOTES & SCRIBBLES

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18.9561° N 72.8157° E

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ROYAL OPERA HOUSE MUMBAI est. 1911

Opera House, Charni Road Mumbai, 400004

Nearest Railway Charni Road Station + 7 min walk Nearest Bus Stop Pandit Paluskar Chowk + 3 min walk Nearest Landmark Girgaun Chowpatty + 5 min walk Events inquiry +91 22 23668888 +91 22 23690511

www.royaloperahouse.in www. royaloperahouse.in/upcoming-events/

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The Royal Opera house is one of the most renowned and elegant performances spaces in the city. A jewel located on Charni Road, its aura and grandeur surpasses all the other venues that the city has to offer.

Serving as India’s only Opera house, the venue is an experience in itself and something extremely unique to Bombay.

Its history can be traced back to early 20th centurywhen Bombay emerged at the zenith of artistic and cultural dynamism. In 1908, Maurice Bandmann,, a famous entertainer from Calcutta joined hands with Jenhangir Framji Karaka- a philanthropist who headed the coal broker’s firm, to conceive the proposal of Bombay’s first Opera house. They aimed to create a platform to showcase the best of arts and culture for the enjoyment of the city’s elite- with the quality at par with the global standards. In 1911, the Opera house was inaugurated by King George V and completed its construction in 1916. The beautifull building followed the elegant Baroque style of architecture and was ornamented using European and Indian motifs. Apart from lavish staircases and iconic columns, the theatre also boasted of having a wonderful ceiling- carefully designed as an acoustics enhancer enabling great quality of sound for every audience member.

But over the years, the Opera house saw a number of changes. During the 1920’s the theatre and opera culture faded out and the venue was used to screen films. In 1935, it was acquired by Ideal Pictures Ltd. and

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refurbished completely as a cinema hall. In the times to come, it was stripped off all its ornamentations, intricate doors and engraved windows. In 1952 it was brought over by Maharaja of Gondal- Shri Vikram Sinhji. Over falling into a dilapidated condition, the Opera house saw its curtains drawn down in 1992. But in October 2016, after nearly 23 years in sabbatical, the Opera house was re-opened. Painfully renovated by Ar. Abha Narain Lambah over a period of 6 years, the Opera house today stands in its original glory- both architecturally aswell as culturally. The triple tiered iconic auditorium has a seating capacity of nearly 600 and since its re-opening, has been extremely active in curating and functioning as a performance arts center.

It has become a well-loved venue for elaborate theatre production, has staged full-fledged operas, served as a stage for standup specials and regularly hosts musical recitals.

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Apart from its rich history, it also attracts visitors through its recently added Jazz bar called Quarter. Designed like an intimate, alternative performance space, the Quarter. It consists of four spaces – Live: meant to serve as an art deco style jazz bar with a capacity of 80 ; Drink: A colonial styled bar with a capacity of serving 25; Dine: A in house exclusive restraunt with an elegant menu catering to 100 and Café’ : a alternative performance cum working space with large bay windows overlooking the streets. The aim of the bar was to create a listening environment where the audience was much closer to the arts and thereby engage in conversation reviving the cultural aura of the space. What is most interesting about the venue is the fact that it is run and curated by musician Ranjit Barot and founder of the iconic venue blue frog- Ashutosh Pathak. They aim to curate events which focus on ‘exploration of improvisation’ and have organized gigs ranging from pop music to electronic, everything with a focus on Jazz. Designed

by Acousticians Andy Munro and Kapil Thirwani- who have worked with Coldplay and bluefrog in the pastthe acoustic of the small spaces are excellent and do not interfere with the surrounding or the main auditorium.

“The venue is planned to keep guests lingering. You start with a pre-show glass of wine, then the show at the opera house, followed by dinner and coffee, and the after-party at the jazz club”

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NOTES & SCRIBBLES

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19.0612° N 72.8268° E

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THE CUCKOO CLUB

BY THE HIVE est. 2016 5AA, Mac Ronells Compound,Pali Hill, Saint Andrews Road, Bandra West Mumbai, 400050 Nearest Railway Bandra (West) Station + 25 min walk Nearest Bus Stop D. Monte Park + 2 min walk Nearest Landmark Candies Learner’s Academy Events inquiry 096199 62969 www.facebook.com/toocuckoo community@alivehive.org

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Cuckoo club is one of the pioneering alternative performance venues that the city has to offer. Located at the end of a narrow cul-de-sac next to Candies in Bandra, it is owned and operated by Sudeip Nair and Sharin Bhatti- the owners of the Hive located in Khar.

Started in 2016, the history of the cuckoo club can be traced back to Nair’s original venture- Culture shoq.

Started in 2009 and operated out of a small one room office near Carter road, the Culture shoq was a platform for conducting open mics and curating cultural events in the city. It was one of the first venues to take the culture fabric out of NCPA and Prithvi and ventured into a more community run alternative performance space.

The idea soon developed into – The Hive – of the earliest co-working spaces in the city. Opened in 2013, the Hive looked to integrate co-working spaces with alternative performance spaces and supplemented it both with a café’ to built a community around it.

The Hive operated out of an old bungalow in Bandra and was imperative in formulating the image of Bandra as the new cultural hub of the city. The Hive was a first of many – from introducing the concept of hot desking to accommodating living room like setting for performers and artists, the Hive was extremely popular and revolutionary. Xircus- the intimate black box theatre space located in the Hive could accommodate close to 50 people and was a platform open to all artistsbe it musicians, actors or comedians. “The primary idea behind Hive was to create a space to share and learn through experiences. Eventually, we realised that we needed a slightly bigger and serious space oriented towards curated events and that is what led to the birth

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of cuckoo club” says Nair. After curating and cultivating a culture of alternate performance spaces the Cuckoo club initially opened as the extension of Hive which was oriented towards curating larger events.

Located in a refurbished banquet hall, the Cuckoo club is approximately 1500 sq ft split between two levels. At the ground floor is a black box theatre with flexible seating arrangement and at the upper floor is a bar and balcony seating. “We’ve left some parts of it bare so that when artists come and start using it, we can modify the space based on their feedback and usage” says Bhatti. The interiors however are inspired by the philosophy of DIY, as championed by the usage of bare bamboo framework in the Hive. At the cuckoo club, the walls are treated with a fabric and painted tar-black. Many of the services and wires have been left exposed so that they give the chic, unfinished look to the space. Although it lacks a proper wings and foyer, the room has cleverly located nooks at the corners for the provision of recording and filming. The architecture of the venue is reflective of the indie roots of the organizers and their philosophy. Thus, it also has a workshop cum studio space and a co working space on the upper floors.

Where the cuckoo club lacks in space, it more than makes up for in offering the content. Officially titled as a center for education and performing arts, the cuckoo club has played a crucial role in promotion of standup comedy and improv theatre. Built on the idea of discovering artists and providing them a platform to explore and express, the shows are kept cheaper, and the content is allowed to be bolder. The small scale of the room helps supplement this ethos.

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NOTES & SCRIBBLES

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19.0704° N 72.8398° E

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The HABITAT Habitat cafe’ // Above the Habitat

est. 2016 1st and 4th Floor, Hotel Unicontinental, Road Number 3, Khar West Mumbai, 400052

Nearest Railway Khar Rooad (West) Station + 3 min walk Nearest Bus Stop Khar West depot + 3 min walk Nearest Landmark Jamia Masjid (Khar) + 5 min walk Events inquiry +919833358490 www.facebook.com/indiehabitat www.in.bookmyshow.com/venue/ the-habitat-mumbai/TFST

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Initially known as the Tuning Fork, The Habitat is one of the most recognisable alternative performance spaces in the city. Opened in 2016, it had a seating capacity of 50 people. But what made the Habitat stand out was the unique model it was built on. Instead of functioning as a restraunt to finance the expenses of acting as a performance space and paying big artists to perform and gather the audience, the Habitat functioned as a recording studio-performance space-restraunt all at once. Instead of paying the artists for their performance it provided an incisive deal of providing state-of-the art recording facilities for the performers. Unlike other venues where provisions for recording were either dependent on performing artist or an after-thought retrofit, special emphasise was laid on recording facilities here.

Artists were given a studio recording time equivalent to the duration of their performances along with a video recording of their act.

With many young artists trying to make it big in the internet frenzy world, the venue became instantly popular. The Iconin wooden backdrop made the space feel even cozier and warm- setting the mood for a non judgemental audience who readily acknowledged fresh material and provide much needed support to budding artists. Thus, it became like an incubation space for young artists and established artists to try out new material-without the fear of funds Unlike other venues the Habitat did not just have dedicated seating around the stage but instead maintained the restraunt arrangement, oriented towards the stage. It allowed the provision of food and drinks to

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be served during the show. “The menu is modelled in a way that the price an artist pays for studio time can be redeemed using food coupons. “The phrase ‘Sing for your supper’ took on its true meaning,” says Balraj Ghai-one the three owners of the café’ cum studio.” The model accompanied with organized open mics for music twice a week helped in the revival of live music and performance scene post the shutting down of Blue Frog.

The venue later changed its named from the Tuning Fork to The Habitat and opened its stage to host a number of performing arts- ranging from standup comedy to theatre to film screenings to poetry. In just a span of one year, it has became one of the most profound places to experience live events.

In 2017, the venue opened its new venture called ‘Above the Habitat’. Located two floors above the existing venue, the new addition is profoundly larger than the previous venue. “This venue is meant to serve as a supplementary venue. It has a seating capacity of nearly 180 and provides a larger stage for established artists to perform. The idea is for us to be a habitat for performers-at all levels,” says Ghai. The layout of Above the Habitat comes as a refreshing change to cramped up gig venues round town and provides some much needed breathing space. Unlike the Habitat which is supplemented with a restraunt run by famed chef Abhay Sabarwal, ‘Above the Habit’ serves strictly as a performance space- dedicated to open mics, live music gigs aswell as big comedy shoots such as hosting the past 2 seasons of ‘Son of Abish’. The larger space has allowed the venue to attract bigger, established artists aswell as allowed for the culture of BYOB venues to come up in the city.

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NOTES & SCRIBBLES

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19.0678° N 72.8329° E

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JEFF GOLDBERG Studio est. 1985 Links Building, 4th Floor, Corner of 14th Rd & Linking Rd, Khar West Mumbai, 400052 Nearest Railway Khar station (West) Station + 15 min walk Nearest Bus Stop Khar telephone Exchange + 3 min walk Nearest Landmark Patwardhan Park + 8 min walk Events inquiry +91 7506906927 www.jgstudio.in info@jgstudio.in

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The Jeff Goldberg studio is one the most exciting alternative performance spaces. Located in the pali village in Khar, just off Bandra, the modest studio has become a centre attracting performers from all fields.

Originally started as a training school, the studio is run

by Jeff Goldberg- a filmmaker from New York who has spend nearly a decade teaching, acting, writing and directing both films and theatre. The studio was founded to nurture the talent which was spread all around the city. “We offer a veriety of workshops- acting, director, cinematography. Each of the workshops is designed to specifically work on the various facets of working as an actor. Ever student begins in the foundation workshop. Each workshop is constructed in a fashion that teaches a series and set of tools for each actor to employ professionally.” These classes have been widely acclaimed and serve as the main source of income for the studio.

Apart from workshops and classes, the studio also engages in serving as a performance center. Following an ‘open door’ policy, the venue serves as a platform for artists to showcase their work and engage with a dedicated audience. The main concern behind the setting up of the venue, Jeff explains, was the fear that although art and artists were strewn all the city, there were very few spaces within the city where one could showcase and express this art.

We wanted to create a platform for artisists to generate a dialogue amongst themselves aswell as the larger audience of the city.

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Over time the 12000sq ft studio has curated film festivals, held talks, hosted theatre performances and even organised for standup comedy open mics. It has a seating capacity of 50-80 people and unlike make shift venues, it is fully equipped with light and sound system. The studio attempts to bridge the gap between celebrating an art form and nurturing young talent, and serves as a popular venue for rehearsals and workshops. It believes that audience has the power to determine the path of indie cinema and alternative arts and looked to serve as a stage to showcase that.

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NOTES & SCRIBBLES

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19.0001° N 72.8303° E

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CAFE’ ZOE est. 2013 Mathurdas Mills Compound, N.M Joshi Marg, Lower Parel Mumbai, 400013

Nearest Railway Lowe Parel Station + 10 min walk Nearest Bus Stop Empire Dyeing + 5 min walk Nearest Landmark DCB Bank tower + 5 min walk Events inquiry +91 9833231444 www.cafezoe.in www.facebook.com/CafeZoeBombay

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Started in 2013, the café’-brassserie is one of the most beautiful places to visit in the city. It was started with an intention to serve as a travel café’ with beautifully designed setting and interiors and an exquisite range of food. Tarini Mohindar, one of the three founding partners of the venue, says “The endeavor has always been to have a restaurant that lives up to international standards and embrace like-minded, easygoing people. I love traveling and a lot of my experiences have manifested into Café Zoe.” Located in Lower parel, the venue is a bit hard to locate. After navigating through the narrow lanes of the mills, you are led into the café via a narrow passage formed by palms. The dingy ally beautifully opens up to a warmly lit and book clad reception before opening itself up to a large, bright, naturally lit café.

The clever use of natural lighting showering from the big windows and falling gently on the raw exposed brick wall, supplements the black and pine colour scheme of the interiors beautifully. Employing the sawtooth truss, most of its light is reflected of the high ceilings which in turn are treated with white canvas. High tension cables and a beautifully array of money plants, located on custom designed white and wood planter boxes help lift up the spirit within the space. The venue due to its comfortable triple heighted space allows for ample breathing room and makes for an extremely pretty and peaceful space in the middle of the havoc of the city.

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Apart from the easy going, comfortable ambience the cafĂŠ also pays homage to a series of well curated events. Ranging from art exhibitions to film screenings, from live music to more recently interactive theatre performances, the venue has transformed as one of the largest spaces for alternative performances.

The long stage set within the eating area allows it to function more smoothly and allows to blur the boundary between the eatery and the performance arena.

Primarily serving as a cafe lounge, the venue lacks wings and makes the performers blend in with the crowd.

At the back of the stage is a bookshelf which makes the space aesthetically pleasing even in the absence of any performances. One of the major drawbacks of the venue however is the fact that a column is situated right in front of the stage hindering the view of the stage from certain angles. The acoustics in the large loft are also a challenging task but carefully placed speakers and ample seating split between two levels more than makes up for it.

CafĂŠ; Zoe is able to merge the boundaries between different spaces beautifully. the triple heighted loft converted into a relaxed diner and co working space, manages to be imbibe a wonderful mix of charactersand is able to dictate different aura between night and day. Designed by Studio Busride, the clean white surfaces and an intricately designed exposed steel structure manages to neither ignore its industrial past and neither makes it feel overpowering.

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19.0617째 N 72.8336째 E

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BANDRA BASE ANDHERI BASE

est. 2012 Baitush Saraf Building, Off Waterfield Road, TPS 3, 29th Rd, Bandra West Mumbai, 400050

Nearest Railway Bandra Railway station Station + 25 min walk Nearest Bus Stop National College + 3 min walk Nearest Landmark Patwardhan Park + 5 min walk Events inquiry 022 3091 6003 www.facebook.com/bandra.base bandrabase@gmail.com

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One of the earlier alternative performance spaces, the Bandra Base and Andheri Base were started by Meghna Ghai Puri- the daughter of Bollywood Filmmaker Subash Ghai.

“The idea came upon returning to india after my education abroad. I felt that there weren’t enough events or spaces culturally in Mumbai despite a rich pool of talent around. Thus, we opened two studios Andheri Base and Bandra Base to simply serve as performance spaces- places for performers to rehearse and perform their craft. It was intended to serve as a platform where artists could network, make friends and start a dialogue about art. These venues were started with the artist in mind and thus designed keeping their requirements in mind, more than the audience’s point of view. Luckily, over time, we found an audience who didn’t mind this and were happy to accept and promote different art forms.”

Today, the two venues serve as outcrops of the Whistling Woods International Institute- a school teaching film making, acting and directing. The venues serve purely as performance spaces and is run in collaboration with the organization- Wetheppl. The idea is to create and incubate a community of arists to lead the next wave of ideas and innovation in music, dance, theatre, comedy etc. The Bandra Base thus plays hosts to a number of workshops in dance, photography, film making etc besides serving as a stage for music performances- most famously jazz and acoustic gigs, poetry and dance recitals. Andheri base on the other hand plays hosts to a number of plays and standup comedy open mics.

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From being one of the main venues for ‘We love Bandra’ – a cultural festival to giving rise to Bombay Jazz club as initiative to create a platform for Jazz, Bandra base has been an ideal alternative performances venue.

Having said that, it is rather small in size and can barely accommodate 50 people. It has exceptional acoustics- which along with the intimate setting of the room, serves extremely well for singer-songwiters. The interiors consists of a warm wooden floor strewn with cushions and mats to serve as seating for the audience.

It replicates a casual setting which feels more like an extended drawing room and makes the performances light and casual.

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NOTES & SCRIBBLES

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19.0067° N 72.8294° E

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HARD ROCK CAFE’ est. 2006 Wadia International Center, Bombay Dyeing, Pandhurang Budhkar Marg, Worli Mumbai -400025 Nearest Railway Elphinstone Road Station + 12 min walk Nearest Bus Stop Bombay Dyeing + 2 min walk Nearest Landmark Axis Bank HQ + 2 min walk Events inquiry +91 2224382888 www.hardrock.com/cafes/mumbai-worli www.facebook.com /pg/HardRockCafeMumbaiWorli/events

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When it comes to alternative performance venues, Hard rock café’ isn’t a new entrant to the list. One of the earliest and most famous venues to be associated with this genre, the Hard rock franchise needs little introduction. It was one of the earliest restraunts to introduce the idea of live performance alongside Food and beverages and revolutionised the world view of the industry on treating music as a background score for ambience. For the first time, the venue introduced the art of curating gigs and bringing artists to the limelight as much as the food. It became a venue closely associated with music and the legacy of memorabilia of renowned artists as interior decorations only helped its reputation further. The hard Rock franchise has long outlasted its British-American roots and is today, present all over the world.

In 2006, it saw its way into India through Jay Singh and Sanjay Mahtani who opened the first outlet in Worli, Mumbai. The location for the same was a dilapidated dyeing mill compound which was nearly 6000sq ft. It was later designed to have multiple split levels to replicate the havoc of the urbane city aswell as provide an unhindered view of the stage. The café played a pivotal role in bringing music out of the shambles of big recording labels and helped launch more than 100 artists. In the background of a growing indie scene, the Hard Rock Café’ emerged one of the most essential venues for the growth of Independent music in the city.

“Slowly but surely, western rock found home in a country ruled by Bollywood. And this time, the kids didn’t have to play for food (or adrenaline) alone, but were given the stage to experiment and express their original works aswell” says Tirthankar Poddar.

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Over the years the cafĂŠ became extremely popular and decided to continue the story by opening subsequent outlets in other important cities. In 2008, the hard rock franchise expanded to Bangalore and Pune, and in 2009, it reached Delhi and Hyderabad.

However despite growing and branching out, the franchise remained focused on food and beverage with a special emphasis on curated music performance supporting the growth of rock, metal and independent music scene in the country. In 2013, the cafĂŠ opened in second outlet in Bombay and even after a decade of functioning, remains an integral part of the performance arts circuit.

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HARKAT STUDIOS and TAMASHAA STUDIO est. 2016 Bungalow No. 75, JP Road, Aram Nagar Part 2, Versova, Andheri West Mumbai, 400061

Nearest Railway Versova Metro station Station + 15 min walk Nearest Bus Stop Versova fish market + 5 min walk Nearest Landmark Versova beach + 10 min walk Events inquiry +91 98196 82673 www.harkat.in www.facebook.com/HarkatStudios

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A multi disciplinary art studio which doubles up as an alternative performance space aswell as a co-working space, Harkat is one the prettiest corners in town. “The studio is based out of Berlin and Mumbai and has a passion for films, new media, contemporary art and community art spaces. We are a collective of passionate storytellers from diverse business, creative and cultural backgrounds. Our core business and expertise lies in film. We create branded content, web series, short films, fashion films and digital commercials.” Initially tagged as an arts community center, it started curated and hosting events in 2016. Equipped with comfortable sofas and bean bags, the interiors make the space seem as an extended living room. The studio has organized many film screenings, photography exhibitions and played host to many performances ranging from dance recitals, plays and standup comedy.

The studio hosted its first performance in April 2016 - the play, Karl Marx in Kalbadevi by Manoj Shah. Curating about 12 shows a month, Karan and Michaela are diversifying into other fields such as installations and community art outreaches «We found that in a city like Mumbai, edgy or semicommercial artistes had a very limited outlet for their work. That alternate culture was always short on space and funds. And a liberal arts space, where one could have a feeling of home, was sorely missing. So, taking matters into our own hands, we decided to disrupt the idea of a performance space. It has been done, historically, all over the world, like the off-Broadway movement in New York or the apartment theatres in Paris in the 1800s, and we thought we could take inspiration and add our own twists.”- Karan Talwar

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We had initially meant this space to be an office for our work as filmmakers, and then expanded it into a co-working space for other professionals who could work seriously in a chilled out, homely ambience. Taking it a step further, we made it triple up as a performance centre for fellow artistes wanting to experiment. – Michaela Talwar The setup has inspired many other ventures in and around it. Studio Tamaasha setup in 2017 by theatre personality Sunil Shanbag, is a 50 seater theatre carefully designed keeping in mind the needs of performers.

«I enjoy playing to large audiences, but I was also looking for a more direct relationship, which is possible in a smaller, more intimate space. Also, I wanted to work on an idea without the pressure of having to mount a full-scale production. This is possible in an unconventional space where you have an audience that is prepared to see something different. I had always dreamt of working in a space where we could curate performing arts events, and share it with other practitioners»

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19.0123° N 72.834° E

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SITARA STUDIO est. 2012 Garage Galli, Kakasaheb Gadgil Marg, Lower Parel Mumbai, 400021 Nearest Railway Elphinstone road Station + 10 min walk Nearest Bus Stop Kamgar stadium + 4 min walk Nearest Landmark Punamiya Hospital + 2 min walk Events inquiry 022 2422 1666 www.facebook.com/sitarastudio team@sitara.studio

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Located as part of chawl in Dadar, Sitara studio is a fascinating venue. Started nearly 36 years ago, it has served as a location for various forms of shootingbe it for ad campaigns or films or photography. It is designed as a typical double heighted warehouse with a pitched roof. The form gives an additional space for the incorporation of trellis and formwork for other equipment.

Unlike other venues though, Sitara functions purely as a performance space. It doesn’t have any supplementary unit such as eatery and neither does it curate or organize events on its own. It is simply a lavish space which is readily available for performers. Over the past few years however Sitara has rebranded itself. In 2012, the studio was taken up by journalists- Shubhangi Swarup and Nikhil Hemrajani, with an aim to create an alternative perform space. One of the earliest ventures to take place in the venue for the creation of a jam room. Setup in collaboration with Singer/songwriter Aazin Printer, the space was meant for jam sessions.

But unlike the conventional practice of subletting to a band, Sitara Open Jam allowed solo musicians to come together and jam with others “The idea stemmed from the fact that there were no formal places for the artists to meet. Mostly you bump into them at gigs but you talk about it and forgot. This is a great way to meet and connect,” says Hemrajani.

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The venue really got recognized after it say a series of performances by Mikhail Mehra’s Oji, UK based Dubstep pioneers Skream and Benga and Vishal Dadlani’s Pentagram. The venue for appreciated for its ‘underground’ like setting and became a popular plays for bands and concerts. Hidden in the by lanes of Dadar and rather discreetly accessible only supported this image of the venue. The interiors too remained as barren as possible with basic acoustic panelling on the walls and unfinished treatment on the furniture. The venue relies almost completely on the artists to bring their own equipment and stage and doesn’t have any dedicated seating. This makes it much more flexible in nature however and equips it to hold workshops and theatre aswell. The shed like space relies completely on artificial lighting and in the recent times has falled off the cultural grid of the city.

The venue had played a pivotal role in the emergence of alternative performance spaces in the city and is gearing itself to rebrand and curate a number of events in order to successfully bounce back.

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AUTHOR’S RECOMMENDATIONS on the basis of genre

BEST VENUES FOR THEATRE PRITHVI THEATRE NCPA JEFF GOLDBERG STUDIO BANDRA BASE TAMASHAA STUDIO

BEST VENUES FOR MUSIC NCPA ROYAL OPERA HOUSE CAFE ZOE’ HARD ROCK CAFE LIVE! FROM THE CONSOLE

BEST VENUES FOR COMEDY CANVAS LAUGH CLUB CUCKOO CLUB THE HABITAT ANDHERI BASE

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BIBLIOGRAPHY Credits and References

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