DAHISAR & ME GREW TOGETHER By BHARAT P. BEDI

DAHISAR & ME GREW TOGETHER

More than 70 years ago my Grandparents, Paternal (Bedi’s) & Maternal (Punjabi’s), settled in Dahisar. Dahisar, an idyllic village was the entry point station of Mahanagar Mumbai, formerly known as Bombay. Dahisar was a small village within a mega city. Dahisar check naka is the entry point to Mumbai from the Northern side.

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There are some assumptions of the meaning of word Dahisar.  Dahisar was made up of 10 hamlets namely Gaothan, Kandarpada, Navagaon, Ovaripada, Ghartanpada, Ketakipada, Rawalpada, Dahivali,, Bhagalipada & Wadarypada. East Indians, Panchkalshi, Agri, Koli, Warli & Dubli were the original residents of Dahisar & “Dahi” stands for ten in their language. The other assumption is that the ancient Prakrit language of which a sanskritised version would be Dadhisvarah or Dadhishvar.

As per Parish records of the Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church, inhabitation in Dahisar is since early 1630’s. Borivali Taluka was merged with Bombay Suburban District in 1956 till then Dahisar was in Thane District.

Dahisar railway station was built in 1856 & originally was proposed as Mount Poinsur station. Opposition from the locals forced the authorities to name it as Dahisar station.

1959 i.e.62 years ago, when I was born, Dahisar was a 5 road & 5 Mandir place.      

5 road i.e. Bharucha road, S.V. Road, Level crossing road connecting west to east, Subway road from west to east & L.T.Road running adjacent to railway tracks on the west side. There was no direct connect from Dahisar west to Borivali west. L.T.Road ended at Irani Wadi further down from level crossing thru Tawde Wadi & Pereira Wadi.

5 temple village i.e.Bhatala Devi Mandir on Bharucha Eoad is one of the oldest temples since Mahabharat Yuga & is connected to Pandavas, Datta Mandir at Mhatre Wadi, Vithal Mandir near Gaothan, Gaondevi Mandir opposite Misquitta Nagar near Subway. Bhavdevi Mandir atop Dahivali Hills in Kandarpada.

Earliest planned residential areas of Dahisar were Maratha Colony in East & Mhatre Wadi in West when migrants from Sindhudurg settled here. Datta Mandir in Mhatre Wadi was the cultural center where classical music & bhakti sangeet was regularly organised. Life was a struggle but familial bonding & strong relations with neighbours helped ease trying times.

 

I was born in a house named Mehta’s Bungalow, now Raja Apartment, on the west near the Railway station. I am the chubby child with my cousin sister on our Mundan day at Terrace of our house. Mhatre wadi, Manu villa, Ahuja cottage, Dr. Bhandarkar’s house & Kamath Bungalow were our immediate neighbours. Our residence had a big play ground around it.

At the time of my birth, population of Dahisar was around a few thousand. Dahisar was so small that most of the inhabitants were known to each other or were acquainted. Railway station was the division between East & West Dahisar. Dahisar was a mixture of all cultures with majority of Marathi & Gujarati speaking population.

Most of our waking hours was spent on the grounds playing in mud, sun, dirt & darkness. School was just a few hours of studying but majority of time was spent playing in unhygienic conditions, as per today’s parameters, but still we are fit & fine.

It was pure fun & bliss. Flying kites, making our own manza from glass shreds & rice paste, playing marbles, Gilli danda, driving or rolling tyres, were some of the indigenous games from a vast range, which  helped in boosting our immunity & our reflexes. Kabaddi, KhoKho, Hide n seek, lagori like games helped us build our stamina & strength.

Standing in Ration, milk & water queue was major obligation towards our family. We had to devote a major part of the day in ration queue. As most of our friends would be part of the queue we used that time to play & enjoy by reserving our place in the queue by keeping a stone or container or cloth.

Main road was the best cricket playing ground for us. We had the road to ourselves as there were practically no taxis, rickshaws, vehicular traffic & public movement was limited to train timings. Smooth Tar road was an ideal pitch for us to play cricket.

Cricket tournament & other team games were played in paddy fields. On the East side touching Railway station, now a part of which is known as Jani Maidan, on the east where we would hold matches with teams from East side areas like Bhatia Chawl, Patel colony, Upendra Nagar, Maratha Colony,  Bharwad Chawl, Madina Manzil near Simplex Mills & now Movie Gem Theatre, Misquitta Nagar near subway, Chuna Bhatti, Petrol Pump.

On the West side our ground was paddy fields on the other side of the river. A 400 year old foot bridge constructed by Portugese invaders was the only way to cross the river. On the way we had to cross a very famous & spooky well known in Marathi as Beduk Bawdi or Frog well. Teams from Kandarpada, Navagaon, Vanmali chawl near pond/talao & Gaothan would participate in the games. Dahisar river was a Salsette Island river.

Vithal Mandir at Dahisar Gaothan was a famous meeting & cultural centre. It was a place for organising Community activity & Sarvajanik Festivities. Temple had a soothing aura & a verandah where Bhajans & Aartis were performed. 

There was a big open space in front of the Temple & empty L.T.Road was an ideal spot for open air screening of popular Hindi & regional movies. It would be a great & eagerly awaited occasion for all young & old.

As I grew there was a dilemma of getting admission in a good school in Dahisar. There was no private English medium school in Dahisar. Behind Vithal Mandir & next to the river, was the only Municipal school with English medium upto primary standard. 

Full flowing river was the beautiful view from my class window. I still remember Desai Sir & Banerjee Teacher. They nurtured & tutored us with full care & devotion. During recess School would feed us with a bottle of milk full of cream with Biscuits or fruits or sweet bread to go with it. That was the best time of my life & I can still feel the taste of its purity. 

After 4^th std. I was admitted to the Poorna Prajna Education Centre School. The only English medium school in Dahisar was established in 1962 as a College by Udupi Sri Admar Mutt Education Council, Banglore & later converted as School. Our school had a good faculty lead by Principal Mr & Mrs..Sharma Teachers-Pillai sir, Kurien sir, Rao sir, Patel sir, Mrs. Pejawar, Verma, Carol & others.

Vidya Mandir, a Marathi medium School, was established in 1962 for the benefit of the locals. This was & is a very prominent school producing good students &  State level sportsmen especially in Boxing, Kho Kho, Kabaddi, Volleyball & Gymnastic.

Fish market near Dahisar Gaothan was a bustling & flourishing market. It was also a popular meeting place for local residents. Other side of the river was known as Kandarpada & Navagaon. A beautiful pond/Talao & Bhavdevi Mandir were the cultural & religious centres of Kandarpada. Dahivali Hill was a beautiful place full of huge boulders, greenery & beautiful view of Gorai/Manori creek/sea.

Bhavdevi Mandir atop Dahivali Hills was popularly known as 75 stairs Temple because we had to climb 75 steps to reach the Temple. It was a famous picnic spot because of its beautiful location & breathtaking Panoramic view of Sea, Greenery of Jungle & Hills surrounding Dahisar. This site was most sought after location for some iconic & famous films.

Dahisar was a picturesque locale with all the natural beauty surrounding it. East was bounded by hill & jungle of Sanjay Gandhi National Park. West was bounded by Manori & Gorai creek leading to Arabian sea & Dahivali hills which housed Bhavdevi Mandir. Dahisar River which originates fromTulsi lake in SGNP is the dividing line in the South. Water of Dahisar river flows into the Manori Creek of Arabian Sea from North side.

River, Pond, Hills, Huge Boulders, Greenery, actual Village, Dense Jungle, ancient Temples, Bhoot Bangla & heritage bridge made Dahisar an ideal place for film shooting. This was one of the reason for my Grandparents settling down in Dahisar as my Grandfather was associated with Filmistan Studios.

My progress from school to college coincided with a new motorable road bridge over Dahisar river directly connecting Dahisar west to Borivali west. BEST buses started plying from Borivali bringing Dahisar into Mumbai's transport network. This was around mid 1970's to early 1980's. 

My college days saw 4 Doctor/Physician Dahisar started attracting new medical practitioners including a few Nursing homes. A bus depot came up near the river. Bus services extended from Borivali to Goregaon to Andheri to Mahim. Infrastructure was getting upgraded attracting new residents & complexes. This was in 1980's.

My progress from college to job stability led to proportional development of Dahisar thru increasing the number of railway platforms, building of new bridges, opening up of new direct road parellel to railway tracks thru Irani Wadi, now Rustomjee, to Borivali station west, New Flyovers, Doubling of Subway. Construction activity took steam during after1990's to till 2000's.

As I grew & progressed going through various phases of life like marriage, parenthood, I also witnessed growth & upgrade of Dahisar’s Infrastructure. Railway lines increased from 2 to 4 & platforms were extended to accommodate from 9 to 12 to 15 coach trains.  New Multi storeyed Housing societies held sway. As my retirement drew near my Son's marriage preparation were on. This was from 2000's to mid 2010's.

Dahisar was also going through a complete change over. Facilities & development swallowed with it the old village atmosphere of Dahisar to display a new developed part of Mumbai City.

Dahisar had lived an open life grounded in nature breathing in fresh air. New gated complexes were full of facilities but it choked the freedom of friendship & relationship which we enjoyed. Those were the times when friends & neighbours houses were our extended house. We never had to take permission before visiting each others house.

We both progressed simultaneously but the old residents receded to the background giving space to new upgraded residents. Original residents still try to get in touch with each other & be in relevance in changed scenario. Dahisar gained in stature but lost in personal touch.  Most of the charm of old Dahisar started vanishing to accommodate new facilities & structures. At present Dahisar is preparing for Metro Train Services. Trial runs have already started.

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Growing Times

Poem by BHARAT P.BEDI

When we were born

city`s roots were firming up

people were growing

life was picking up; 

Home was small,

house neighbourhood,

doors always open

hearts were gold,

each other`s needs

were filled with ease,

city was growing

life was picking up; 

No tension of studies

no tension of grades,

mud healed wounds

nature showered energy,

childhood was full

of fun & games;

city was growing

life was picking up; 

Neighbourhood was such,

needs were basic

demands limited,

sorrow was shared

happiness celebrated

tune from a radio

filled music in our lives,

tring tring of a Telephone

would spring everyone to life,

car was a rarity

cycle was our ride,

art of adjusting

angle of TV antenna

was source of pride,

Our life was in a line

ration line for subsistence

water line for growth

milk line for energy

milling line for dough

many lines mingled

with each other,

connecting Friendship,

relationship & Love,

city was growing

life was picking up; 

Striving In Cramped tenement,

struggling to survive,

strength of togetherness,

helped us grow with time,

limited means meant

responsibilities to adjust,

share to survive,

city had grown

life had picked up; 

Growth opened up life,

world is in our hands,

we instantly relate, to

virtual world around, but

reality is out of bounds,

togetherness left, for

selfishness to survive,

relations lost touch

responsibilities are passe,

proximity is abhorred

neighbourhood is past,

life has picked up

world is closer,

but personally

lives apart.

city was growing

life was picking up.