BMC looks to revive age-old band culture at Cooperage Gardens

After restoring the Cooperage bandstand in south Mumbai, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is also looking to revive the band culture at the landmark park.

A BMC official from the heritage department said they are looking at approaching schools to play music to start with and make Cooperage Bandstand a cultural hub that it was.

The official said, “We will soon inaugurate the renovated area and simultaneously, look for bands to perform, especially during the weekends.” As part of the restoration, the wooden structure, which had decayed over the years, has been restored completely.

The roof was also replaced with aluminium sheets to give it its original curve. The seating areas have been given a facelift for Mumbaikars to enjoy an uninterrupted view of the performances in the future.

Conservation architect Rahul Chemburkar of Vaastuvidhaan projects, whom the BMC had roped in to revive the park, said, “During the process of excavation, we also discovered an original Porbandar stone base and flight of steps were built in cardinal positions. We took steps to retain this and bring it to the necessary elevation."

The BMC had spent around Rs 50 lakh for the restoration of Cooperage Bandstand.

"The Cooperage bandstand was said to be a family excursion destination and a hub for musical bands in the late 1960s," Chemburkar added.

Similar bandstands had then come up at Horniman Circle, Girgaon Chowpatty, Victoria Garden, Hanging Garden, King’s Circle, Dadar Parsi Colony and Borivli National Park, all of which were maintained by the BMC.

Besides this garden, the civic body has been undertaking several restoration projects across the city. BMC will soon restore city drinking water fountains called as 'Pyaus' in south Mumbai and 16 British-era milestones.