‘At least 80 per cent of the work for South Mumbai forest walk is done’

SoBo forest walk nears completion; loop trail to have viewing gallery

A raised jungle walk at Malabar Hill to give it its correct name and description is now a few months away from completion. The walking trail currently under construction is a walkway above the ground in the Malabar Hill forest, next to Siri Road. Rahul Kadri, architect and urban planner, said from his Worli office, “This is a raised jungle walk, which means it is above the ground. It is made of wood with steel columns. Work is on at a good pace; I can confirm nearly 80 per cent of the project is over.” Kadri has already explained in earlier reports about how the Siri Road site was a familiar childhood hangout. “We used to play near the forest, I would take my dog for walks. That space generally became a forgotten area of the city and it was fenced in later. During COVID times, I meandered there, and taking inspiration from Robert Frost. The woods or the forest was lovely, dark ‘n’ deep, and maybe I had a promise to keep? I decided this was an ideal location for a raised jungle walk,” said Kadri who was convinced this sight and site should be experienced by more people.

Sketch explaining details

Viewing gallery

Deciding to make the space more accessible, Kadri said a raised forest walk would prove a beautiful viewing spot for people. “I spoke to various citizen groups who were enthused about the idea. Three options of the concept designs were made, sponsored by Sangita Jindal and JSW Steel. The project was then pitched to Aaditya Thackeray who liked the project immediately and selected the best option,” said Kadri about the genesis in a nutshell.  A team was finalised and the walkway was started, “with Malaysian teakwood, which is suitable for this. The Indian Sal wood was a candidate too as it is a very hardy, strong material but it was slightly rough. The Malaysian teakwood gave a smoother finish.” Kadri added, “The raised walk is actually a loop, you come back to the start point, as you finish the circuit. It is 450 metres long (approximately 1,476 feet) and has a 1.5-metre width (approximately five feet). At some junctures of the walk, it is slightly wider.” Kadri’s pen flew over paper as he explained some design elements, “the walkway is held by columns made of steel. There is a foundation every six metres and then we have a column on that in a V-shape. We also have a handrail of course. There are some viewing galleries, with one towards the end,” which Kadri said, “is designed to provide a spectacular view of the Chowpatty beach.”

Rahul Kadri, architect and urban planner

Crowd control

While the experience with the vistas of flora and fauna below is all about the ethereal, “we want it to be educative too. We plan to have names of some trees on the walkway so that people can learn about what they are seeing.” Crediting the entire hydraulic team and the PMC, Master and Company for an excellent job, Kadri added, “We will also have a ticket counter, which has to be constructed. Tickets are important as there must be crowd control on the walk.” He claimed the gentle gradient of the walkway, wooden structure which is in synergy with the forest vibe is about aesthetics and is inclusive too. “Tickets do not mean exclusion, only for safety. This will be wheelchair-accessible too.” The beauty of the project Kadri explained is, “simplicity. It is designed to be very easy to maintain,” signed off the professional who has plans for another public project but will speak about it only when he is sure that like this one at Siri Road, he can truly ‘walk the talk’.

450M
Length of walkway

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