Art Deco, a legacy preserved

My journey into documenting the spaces, structures and storeys happened rather serendipitously. It probably started the day someone broke into my apartment in 2010, and stole my computer and hard drives. I lost most of the tangible memories I had collected over the years, including my initial years in Berlin

I am a big fan of Ruritanian Romance. Which is why it is no surprise that I started drifting away into a world of my own while walking through the streets of Berlin, where I lived for 15 years. Much of my inspiration, which I later realised, came from the works of Wes Anderson and Stanley Kubrick’s films. Berlin, a city with its grey tones and layers of history, made the perfect backdrop for capturing moments from everyday routine around which entire stories could be woven. I realised that the same is possible everywhere. Even in Mumbai, which for me is home.

Art Deco, a legacy preserved

However, my journey into documenting the spaces, structures and storeys happened rather serendipitously. It probably started the day someone broke into my apartment in 2010, and stole my computer and hard drives. I lost most of the tangible memories I had collected over the years, including my initial years in Berlin.

When I returned home in 2014, I was going through a personal transition, negotiating the space and recalibrating my life. I was saddened to see the city’s architectural landscape rapidly change and disintegrate amidst modern redevelopments. I noticed that several buildings, bungalows and many other structures that were around before I left for Berlin had suddenly disappeared, or were lost behind imposing bridges and hanging wires.

One of the best ways to imagine what Mumbai looked like in its heyday is to walk the lanes of the older areas just around the break of dawn. So, this became my agenda for many Sundays back then. I would grab my phone or my camera and walk. It was difficult at first to find the right angle to photograph many of Mumbai’s structures as urbanisation and unprecedented growth have engulfed Mumbai’s beautiful and eclectic architecture. Wires, hoardings and cellular towers infest most facades. Buildings are crumbling due to erratic laws and lack of funds. I started to capture this transition.

Beyond Gothic, which is a big reminder of our colonial past, are the beautiful Art Deco structures, which mark the last modern and world-inspired architectural movement in the city. This style of design is predominantly every architectural photographer’s muse, which originated in France and quickly made its way to the growing city of Mumbai in the 1930s. From the geometrical window patterns to the sunburst murals on their façades, this iconic style is synonymous to the city of Mumbai.

I find an interesting co-relation between how Art Deco’s journey in Mumbai began and my own path upon returning home. Art Deco emerged at the time when we were still a British colony. We were slowly weaning ourselves off the legacy of the Raj and its impact on the cultural influence -– turning inwards and creating a cityscape that was more Indian but reflected a global outlook. Back then, I was finding my own path upon returning home.

I had started to document a lot of my visual language on Instagram. My time in Berlin hugely attributed to the project I lovingly call ‘Doors of Mumbai’. What was once #BerlinFacades and #BerlinTiles, soon became #MumbaiFacades and #MumbaiTiles. I got to work with now famous photographers Michael Schulz aka @berlinstagram and Thomas Kakareko aka @thomas_k.

Over many walks and new processes, I realised the importance of neat lines and clean angles for capturing spaces and structures. One Indian photographer once told me that my images were clinical. I took that as a compliment because that’s exactly what I wanted – a neat and clean depiction of erstwhile simple, yet glorious buildings of the city.

In 2014, there was an initiative called ‘Empty Project’ in Berlin and London. Departmental stores and museums were inviting photographers and “instagrammers” to shoot creative images inside their respective houses on days they were shut to the public. I tried the same as well. I approached theatres such as Eros, Regal and even the owners of Capitol Cinema (VT). The idea was to allow photographers and enthusiasts from all walks of life document these beautiful cinemas, which aren’t just landmarks, but also symbols of Mumbai’s glorious past. Sadly, all of them declined.

In 2017, I approached the subject once again. A colleague and I were scouting for locations for a shoot when I visited Liberty after exactly 21 years. I remember the exact timeline because I went there for a movie premiere just before I left for higher education in 1996. That shoot never happened. But one thing led to another and what we now see are one of the results of the best two hours of my life that I spent inside a cinema hall. It wasn’t exactly an “empty project,” but it was empty for me, and it gave me the chance to celebrate finer art deco design details.

It was a rainy August day, and the sunlight was pouring in through the doors in bits and parts. The theatre’s proprietor Mr Nazir Hoosein had instructed his staff that if I wasn’t coming in anyone’s way I could walk around freely and capture all the spaces and corners I wanted. The lights were dim, the mood set, and my inspiration suddenly was film noir. I hope we don’t lose this symbol of India’s freedom and like any other iconic structures gone.

A vignette of this large body of work is currently on view – again, rather serendipitously – at a beautiful Art Deco bungalow, Kathiwada City House. The exhibition ‘Space. Structure. Storey. Art Deco Through the Lens of Kuber Shah’ of the limited-edition photographs is a small leaf of the ‘Doors of Mumbai’ – a project that raises awareness about the city’s eclectic architecture and hopes to document some of the most beautiful buildings this city might soon lose.

(Kuber Shah is an interior and lifestyle photographer.)