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As a college student in Churchgate, often what was more appealing than the confines of the classroom was the neighbouring Kala Ghoda- drinking in the many cups of culture it has to offer. Home to hipster cafes, art galleries and bohemian boutiques it is an art lovers haven, with South Bombay’s bustling soul. However little did I know that the legacy of this historic neighbourhood lay in the now modest establishment, a building away from the beloved Rhythm House-Chetana. Established by journalist Sudhakar Dikshit in 1946, it was once a hub for the city’s renowned intellectuals, thinkers, artists and poets. Long before “experimental art spaces” had entered the urban vocabulary, Chetana had modelled itself to serve the arts through a refined multi-disciplinary approach. Now famous for its restaurant’s diverse and lip-smacking thalis, the winds of time have considerably changed Chetana, though its ancient bricks still whisper stories of its artistic legacy to those willing to lend a ear. We surely did and the reward was, to say the least, enlightening.
The Epicentre Of Arts And Culture
“Soon after India’s independence in 1947 there was a curiosity in people–they wanted to know about their own art heritage that had been shadowed during the British rule. It was with this thought that Chetana was born,” said 80-year-old Chhaya Arya who took over the running of the space when her father passed away in 1990. Chetana, which currently has three businesses – its restaurant, bookstore and craft centre–was once an open space of 2500 sq.ft. where art, literature and philosophy was celebrated through seamless interconnections.
“It was nothing like it is now,” says Arya recalling Chetana from six decades ago. “It used to be huge hall, with bay windows that overlooked the Rampart Row. The entrance boasted of an antique Rajasthani door, there were small tables with square tops of primary colours with hand-painted shlokas on them where the coffee and snacks were served. As Mumbai’s first art gallery, its high walls were covered in jute and the paintings of artists like M.F Hussain, K.H. Ara, Akbar Padamsee and F.N Souza displayed on them. It was at Chetana that these artists showcased their work for the very first time,” reminisces Arya, making Chetana the birthplace of the Bombay Progressive Arts Movement. This movement, with its rejection of the national aesthetic and projection of modern sensibilities, was being boycotted by conservatives throughout the nation. Like the Indian counterpart of the Salon des Refusés in Paris which was the only gallery to house the works of the revolutionary Impressionist Art movement during the 19th century, Chetana had been the trailblazer to patronise contemporary Indian art.
“One of my fondest memories of Chetana is returning from college and having long conversations with the artists whose works adorned Chetana’s walls, over countless cups of coffee,” recalls Arya who herself is a trained painter from the JJ School Of Arts. When not serving as the beating heart of Bombay’s fine arts community, Chetana would also host many classical music and dance recitals. From the likes of Ustad Allaudin Khan (the guru of maestro Ravi Shankar), to the enigmatic Kandyan dancers from the hills of Ceylon, many icons have graced the stage of Chetana. “We often saw Sitara Devi and Gopi Krishna come for these programmes,” says Arya, naming perhaps the biggest legends of classical Indian dance.
“For an art gallery to thrive you must always keep it active,” says Arya, explaining the multi-purposes of programming at Chetana. “Once we had an exhibition of the ancient pichvai paintings from Nathdwara (near Udaipur) that depict Lord Krishna. For this particular show I had Rajasthani musicians sing bhajans of Krishna. Endeavours like these were my way of keeping the gallery constantly alive,” shared Arya.
Though it’s hard to imagine that Chetana would be anything but constantly energised with culture as poetry readings, literary forums and philosophical discussions were always at full swing on its premises. These gatherings were attended by India’s literary intelligentsia, including the likes of Hindi poets Dinkar, and renowned novelists Mulk Raj Anand and Raja Rao as well as the country’s celebrated satirical cartoonist R.K Laxman. Even the glamorous film industry could not resist the many charms of Chetana. Directors like Kedar Sharma (the man who launched the careers of Bollywood icons like Madhubala and Raj Kapoor) the legendary Ashok Kumar himself, the talented Gita Bali and actor Rehman who was an integral part of Guru Dutt’s inner film circle, were regulars at Chetana.
Further fuelling the cultural current of Chetana was its bookshop, that though small and quiet now, can still be accessed through the restaurant. It houses books on Hindu philosophy, religion and spirituality and has also published several treatises including Nisargadatta Maharaj’s ‘I Am That’ (1973), which has since been translated into 15 languages.
“My father was never interested in the food business, because before anything he was a journalist, and philosophy and its books were his first love. He would spend hours proofreading manuscripts himself before they were published under Chetana. I will keep running the bookstore as long as it’s sustainable,” says Arya of the bookshop that was once the pride of Chetana.
A Pre-Descendent Of Mindful Living
When the neighbouring Jehangir Art Gallery opened its space for artists, the prospects of the smaller Chetana gallery which was never interested in “money-making” looked bleak. “It was me who decided to convert the art gallery into a craft centre in 1990. Incidentally that’s where my committed involvement with Chetana began,” says Arya who who was previously engaged with her painting.
Housing handlooms and textiles from all over India, Chetana’s craft centre was opened under the direction of individuals like Kamla Devi Chattopadhyay, the driving force behind the renaissance of Indian handicrafts and handlooms in independent India, and another pioneer in Indian crafts, Roshan Kalapesi of Paramparik Kariagar. On my visit to the centre I found intricate kalamkari saris, vibrant ikat pants in contemporary silhouettes and and the soft mangalkari cotton crafted in ethnic tunics. These indigenous crafts from Andhra Pradesh are just some of the several collectables that make Chetana one of the first sustainable fashion stores in Bombay, long before the slow fashion movement had gained momentum in India.
Though for Arya the craft centre is just her personal labour of love, born out of her love for travelling and discovering artisans from remote corners of the country. “I would go to the Weaver’s Service Centre in the city, take down the addresses of the local craftsmen from each of the states I was visiting and then go from town to town connecting with these talented craftsmen. I would return home with my bistar-bandh wrapped in these local fabrics. The coolie at the station could never figure out why my bedding was so heavy!,” chuckles Arya, whose handpicked designs were regularly picked from her craft shop by the likes of Shabana Azmi and Shobha De.
An Everlasting Memory
Today Chetana is no longer, as M.F Hussain described it, the “nucleus of cultural life not only in Bombay but India.” Chetana’s clientele has vastly changed. From intellectuals, poets, thinkers and artists it now caters to business people working at the many offices around Kala Ghoda, lawyers of the High Court, and political figures from Mantralaya and groups of foreign tourists, all of whom come to relish its delicious thalis served with an unusual combination of warmth and rapidity. However, nostalgia finds a way to sweep in and out of Chetana from time to time. “Many NRIs who would accompany their parents to Chetana as children now come here for a meal whenever they visit India. They tell me that they have personal memories attached to Chetana that bring them back each time,” confesses Arya who, as a little girl spent, most her time in Chetana.
As for me, having missed the glory days of Chetana, I find myself with a strange desire to be able to time travel. In present day, where the norm for survival seems to be the speed at which an establishment can satisfy the thirst for “newness”, Chetana is grounded in simplicity, integrity and foresight–making the fact that it quietly spearheaded a cultural revolution a marvel.
“Do you think the present generation would really care about Chetana?” asks Arya bringing me back to the ticking present and the pragmatic reality of relevance. Between the mushrooming “concept” cafes and “creative” haunts of Mumbai, perhaps today Chetana won’t make it to most of our Facebook check-ins. Then again is it really competing for a chance in the limelight? Distinguished filmmaker of parallel Hindi cinema, Shyam Benegal answers this question best when, referring to Chetana he says, “It’s the Dhruva (North Star) on the charming Rampart Row, the only reminder of those gracious days.”
*Quotes by M.F Hussain and Shyam Benegal were taken from Chetana’s 60th anniversary memoir, which is available in print.
Photo Courtesy for all images - Rashi Arora for Homegrown
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