A relic of terror attacks to be rebuilt as luxe hotel

The original building, damaged irreparably by the March 1993 blast, was pulled down in mid-2000s.

Mumbai: Bandra resident and aviation geek Debashish Chakraverty remembers hearing stories from his pilot father of glamorous parties at Sea Rock Hotel. At one such party on the evening of January 1, 1978 to celebrate the new year, he heard of partygoers at the hotel’s poolside watching in fascinated horror the Boeing 747 Emperor Ashoka careen and crash into the Arabian Sea.

Restoration underway at Hotel Sea Rock which is at the fag end of Bandra Bandstand.The five-star Sea Rock which will get its expertise and knowledge for the restoration from the Taj groups, which had 440 rooms, was known for its rooftop restaurant, the only revolving restaurant in Mumbai other than the Ambassador in Churchgate. It shut shop after it became one of the targets of the 1993 blasts that caused huge damage to the structure and a loss of ₹9 crore for its earlier owners - HT PHOTO BY SATISH BATE 06/12/09 - DEC09 2K9 (HIndustan Times)

The Mumbai-Dubai flight had crashed two minutes after take-off from Santacruz airport killing all 213 on board.

Chakraverty recalls himself experiencing similar horror when on the afternoon of March 12, 1993, he heard about the blast that gutted Sea Rock Hotel. It was part of the coordinated 12 blasts that took place in the city. A terror attack that has been called India’s 9/11.

In all three hotels were targeted and destroyed—Sea Rock, Juhu Centaur and the Santacruz Centaur. As the underworld faded from the city’s fabric the hotels too reinvented. The airport Centaur was bought by Subroto Roy and rebuilt as Sahara Star. Juhu Centaur was acquired by hotelier Ajit Kerkar in 2001 and rebuilt as Tulip Star Kerkar could not run it successfully and after a long battle in the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) it was sold to CEO and managing director of Macrotech Developers Abhishek Lodha who will use the land to develop luxury housing.

Now the last and most famous of the three blasts-hit hotels is set for resurrection. On February 10, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and Tata Sons’ chairman N Chandrasekaran will preside over the groundbreaking ceremony for a new ₹800 crore project, Taj Bandstand. In place of the hollowed-out Hotel Sea Rock, the Indian Hotels’ Company Limited that runs the Taj group of hotels will build a 40-storey luxury hotel. This will be the sixth Taj hotel in Mumbai. Across the road from Sea Rock is the group’s business hotel, Taj Land’s End.

But the redevelopment has been fraught with litigation. The original building, damaged irreparably by the March 1993 blast, was pulled down in mid-2000s. But prior to that it had been acquired by Claridges which sold 85% of its stake to IHCL in 2005. “I continued to visit Sea Rock until the last pillar was taken down. IT holds many memories,” actor Jackie Shroff, who had a permanent room there, told HT last year.

According to the proposal submitted to the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority for CRZ clearance, the hotel has been granted a Floor Space Index of 5.5. The 40-storey building that will sit on the edge of the Arabian Sea will have 639 rooms, a three-level basement that will provide parking for 527 cars and which will accommodate over 100 two-wheelers. There will be a swimming pool on the third floor and a number of restaurants and banquet halls in addition to a bar, gymnasium and a spa and salon.

Debashish Chakraverty, who holds many memories of the old Sea Rock and especially its Chinese restaurant, says he is looking forward to going back when the new hotel comes up. “It’s a great location that offers spectacular views and good connectivity.”