If you are a resident of suburban Mumbai, traveling by the Veera Desai road is probably a daily occurrence. But did you know that this road was once used by factory workers and used to be flanked by stone quarries?
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If you are a resident of suburban Mumbai, traveling by the Veera Desai road is probably a daily occurrence. But did you know that this road was once used by factory workers and used to be flanked by stone quarries?
Today a bustling street in the heart of Andheri, flanked by restaurants, media production houses, and offices, the bylanes running along Veer Desai road have become a spot for residential areas in Andheri. Named after the stone quarry called Veera Desai and Company that was functional in the 1950s, the road has been named after the two owners of the quarries, as per a report by the Indian Express.
Veera Desai road was taken up for improvement by the BMC a few years later and was named as we know it today. In a statement, an electronics shop owner, Veera Desai and Company said, “When I first opened shop here in 2005, people around would tell me they used to call this road Venice. They didn’t do so fondly but in outrage. This area would flood in every heavy rainfall.” He adds that he remembers the area to be lush once but says that the green cover has depleted over the years.
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The road, once known as Venice, lived up to its name when the August 29 and September 19 deluge hit Mumbai, with waist high waters flooding the entire arterial road. As per historian Deepak Rao, Veera Desai road has no historic buildings or architecture from the British Era, “It was only known to be an industrial belt. Just like Charkop, which was a military centre during the Second World War, to manufacture arms and ammunition. People would take tanga (horse-drawn carriage) to go to Versova. The area in between was open land with industries.”
He added that Andheri and parts of Veera Desai road became a part of Greater Mumbai on October 1, 1945 and does not boast of any rich history like its counterparts in South Mumbai. Residents, however, remember how the area grew swiftly. As per Pallavi Kakkar (29), a producer, “As a child when I used to visit my uncle’s flat 20 years ago in income tax quarters near Gilbert hill, Veera Desai area had mostly slum-like dwellings.”
Shaibali Vashani, who shifted to the area 11 years ago after marriage said, “In the last five years, the nightlife has rapidly grown, so have office rentals and diagnostic centers.” She adds that over the years the Andheri Sports Complex has also played a significant role in putting Andheri on the map, what with several Bollywood events held at the sports complex and now several production houses including Yashraj Studio.
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