A streetscape postcard of the Dockyard road that shows the circular structure of Bombay's ice-house, constructed in 1843 from a public subscription of Rs 10,000. Ice was imported into Bombay from New England (U.S.A.), and the voyage in the age of sail took roughly four months.
Image courtesy: Eminence Designs Pvt Ltd. Bombay The Cities Within (1995) Courtesy: Eminence Designs Pvt Ltd.
27 October 2016

Breaking the ice: U.S. trade with Bombay

The trade between Bombay and America’s north eastern ports 200 years ago was unique as it coexisted with the period’s territorial colonial monopolies. This article retraces those routes to riches in light of the Indo-U.S. Strategic Partnership.

3.1. Cotton bales lying at Bombay terminus  Photo Dr. Jehangir S. Sorabjee - Copy Courtesy: Dr. Jehangir Sorabjee
20 October 2016

Bombay and the founding of Shanghai

The recent inauguration of the New Development Bank in Shanghai has made that city a focal point of international financial transactions between the five BRICS countries. This occasions revisiting some of the ways in which Bombay has been historically linked to it

IMG_0463 Courtesy:
13 October 2016

Bombay-Burma links run deep

Mumbai and Myanmar share a historically significant link that is little known today as ties weakened after the military takeover of Myanmar in 1962. But now its newly democratic, globalising presence offers a window of opportunity for Indian businesses, both big and small, to make a foray

14th July 1904 Courtesy: Consulate General of France in Mumbai
6 October 2016

Mumbai’s historic diplomatic enclave

A vibrant foreign diplomatic corp that has been present in Mumbai for the last 200 years has contributed both to its political and economic life and imparted a social and cultural cachet

beijing skyline Courtesy: pixabay
19 November 2015

Creating sustainable infrastructure

As the discussions at a recent meeting on sustainable infrastructure hosted by the Economic Policy Forum showed, many of the building blocks are already in place. The challenge now is to focus on macro public policy issues, and ask if the short-term compulsions of governments and the private sector will continue to create infrastructure that is unsustainable.

Mumbai naval uprising Courtesy: Jahnvee/Wordpress
13 August 2015

Bombay’s tryst with destiny

The Royal Indian Naval uprising of 1946 in Bombay was a catalyst that hastened the countdown to India’s Independence on 15 August, 1947.

Crews (from museums archive) Courtesy: Turkish Museum archive
27 April 2015

Ottoman ship Ertugrul’s Bombay linkages

The Turkish naval ship TCG Gediz was in Mumbai recently, retracing the Ottoman frigate Ertuğrul’s 126-year-old voyage, when it stopped here while on its way from Istanbul to Yokohoma. To commemorate this anniversary, the Consulate of Turkey in Mumbai and Gateway House jointly hosted a lecture by Sifra Lentin on the significance of this historic passage

Mumbai Courtesy: wikimedia
7 November 2014

BRICS headquarters in Mumbai

Globally, metropolitan cities are becoming powerful centres that sustain entire countries. In the case of Mumbai, the government can work backwards by stitching the infrastructure and governance together. The tried-and-tested technique is to host an international institution or event. Gateway House argues that Mumbai is most appropriate to be home to the headquarters of BRICS

Khilafat_1 Courtesy: Cibin Varghese
13 August 2014

Revisiting Khilafat House

The Khilafat movement started in Mumbai nearly 100 years ago in response to the dismantling of the Caliph-headed Ottoman Empire by the Allied powers. The present revival of the office of the Caliph by the Islamic State in West Asia, although rooted in a different context, evokes this sliver of Mumbai’s history

26/11: Lest we forget
25 November 2013

26/11: Lest we forget

26 November, 2013 will mark the fifth year since Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists went on a rampage in Mumbai, claiming several lives. Although the only insurgent captured alive was hanged last year, the masterminds are still free. Why is it imperative to keep this incident from fading from our memories?