Breach Candy

Bhulabhai Desai Road, better known as Breach Candy or Warden Road is a niche up-market residential and semi-commercial locality of South Mumbai. Home to many of Mumbai's affluent class, it is also the location for the [http://mumbai.usconsulate.gov/ United States Consulate] in Mumbai.

The area has many famous landmarks throughout its long and winding stretch, from the [http://www.breachcandyhospital.org/ Breach Candy Hospital] to the Amarsons and Tata gardens. There's also the elite Breach Candy club with an American school next door. Just off Bhulabhai Desai Road is a girls-only Sophia College and the much sought-after [http://www.greenlawns.org Green Lawns school] .

The 18th century Mahalaxmi Temple, which honors the Hindu Goddess of wealth and wisdom, is closely situated on the edge of sea. It is one of the most famous temples of Mumbai and attracts millions of devotees and tourists each yearFact|date=March 2007.

The area falls under the 'D-Ward' of the Bombay Municipal Corporation and shares the postal code 400 026 under the Cumballa Hill post office. It lies 21 kilometers south of Sahar International Airport and just 2 kilometers from the Mumbai Central station. It is also well connected by local buses run by BEST.

Geographically, this road curls around the Arabian sea. Because of its picturesque location, real estate prices here are among the most expensive in the country.

History

In the past, Breach Candy was all jungle with very few bungalows and mansions built at long distances from each other. Most of the residents were Parsi aristocrats and colonial British. Some of these old bungalows and mansions still stand. The Breach Candy House, the Breach Candy Swimming Club and the Breach Candy Hospital have been present since the time of British rule.

At the northern foot of the Cumballa Hill, in the part now called Breach Candy, was a temple to three goddesses—Mahakali, Mahalakshmi and Mahasaraswati. A creek to the north separated the island of Bombay from the Koli island of Worli. This creek was filled after the completion of the Hornby Vellard in 1784. Soon after, the modern temple of Mahalakshmi was built here.

What is now the Amarson garden and Tata garden were landfills with abandoned construction trucks, cranes and bulldozers probably used in land reclamation projects.Fact|date=March 2007 A few of these trucks were parked in a truck-sized garage behind Scandal Point. Similarly, trucks, cranes and bulldozers were also seen abandoned on the land which is now known as Priyadarshini Park.

Famous residents

*Jagjit Singh - "Classical Singer"
* Aarti Chhabria - "Upcoming Actress"
*Salman Rushdie - "Author, born and raised here".
*Dinesh Hingoo - "Bollywood Comedian"
* Tanya Singh - "Bollywood Actress and Pop Singer, raised here"
* Azim Premji - "Chaiman and CEO of Wipro Technologies
* N.N. Sippy - "Bollywood Producer"
* Manhar Udas - "Famous Singer"
*Shibani Bathija - "Bollywood Writer"
*Supriya Sule -'M.P'
*Tara Sharma - Film Actress
*Partap Sharma - Author/Playwright/Theatre Personality and "The Voice of India"

Important numbers

*Gamdevi Police Station - 23803505, 23802912, 23804505

Picture Links

* [http://www.ans.com.au/~rampais/genelogy/ggphotos/urban/breach%20candy5.htm Gordon Gibbons Photographs of Breach Candy 1937-1940]
* [http://www.geocities.com/alienetwg/breachcandy.html Farhad's Picture Gallery of Breach Candy]