Even though India has never really been considered as one of the leading sea faring nation, it's maritime history goes way back to the Indus Valley Civilization. Trade and maritime activity over the years expanded all over the Indian ocean. And India has exerted considerable naval authority over this part of the globe. The trade routes were extensive and the web in due course of time emerged as a complex one. Mumbai grew into a major port city and consequently the became the trade capital of India. Paying a tribute to the rich maritime history of the city is the Mumbai Maritime Gallery which has tried in its own way to make the people of the city conscious of Mumbai's maritime past.

Located at the World Trade Centre at Cuff Parade, the gallery occupies barely 1000 square feet on the ground floor but it unfolds a vast wealth of the Indian maritime history. Promoted by Vasant J Sheth Memorial Foundation of The Great Eastern Shipping Company the gallery has been an earnest effort to bring together the fragments and give a integrated image of the naval annals of Mumbai. The interiors of the gallery is in the shape of a ship's hull and the image is complete with anchors and propellers. An natural harbor, Mumbai has a dockyard which has many untold tales to offer.

According to Asha Mehta, chairperson of the trust, "The city's rise as India's commercial and financial capital is largely due to the port and the harbor - and the gallery is an effort to pay tribute to its contribution." The gallery depicts the growth of Indian shipping through images, models and photo panels which gives insights into Mumbai port.

Mumbai had been the leading shipbuilding centre since 1735 and some of the best ships came out of the Wadia yards and pictures depicting them are on display at the gallery. From schooners, sloops, pilot vessels to brigs and gun boats and streamers, all were manufactured at the Mumbai dockyard. At the gallery one can marvel at glimpses of the growth of Mumbai habour. The gallery traces some of the landmarks of the city, the Ballard Pier, which had been set up to facilitate the landing of passengers, the unnamed lighthouse set up in 1884, the oil terminal, and commissioning of the Jawaharlal Nehru Port. There are the pictures of Darukhana which is one of the most bustling ship breaking centers in the country.

Set up at a cost of Rs 1.5 million, the gallery hopes to build up mass awareness not just in terms what "the sea has to offer but also about our richest natural resources that we have" said Asha Seth, who adds,"it is high time that the people learned to conserve it. Our aim has been to evoke the maritime character and history of the city and hopefully we have been successfully done it ."

For further Information, contact:

Address:
Mumbai Maritime Gallery,
World Trade Centre Arcade,
Tower 5, Cuffe Parade,
Mumbai - 400 005.
Phone: 218 3165 / 218 3137
Fax: 216 0845
E-mail: vab@greatship.com

By: Sharmistha Chatterjee
Photographer: Vinayak Prabhu