A peep into coastal village surrounded by sea and Urban city - Worli Koliwada

Worli is today a plush and most sort after locality of Mumbai city overlooking the Arabian sea but move back to 1661 and it was one of the seven islands of Bombay which were ceded by Portuguese to British as part of the dowry given in the marriage of Catherine of Braganza to King Charles II. It was linked up with other islands of Bombay in 19th century. Sitting at the northern tip of Worli lies a urban village or a gaothan with rich historical and cultural significance. It is the village of Koli or fishing community who were the original inhabitants of Bombay - The Worli Koliwada.

The name Worli or "Varli" has three derivations, one it comes from the Marathi word "Vad" meaning Banyan tree which were found in abundant in the forest on the hills on Worli island and the "alli" means alley or village. Thus the two local words combined together forms "Vad-alli" or Varli which became Worli. The second derivation is "var" or a boon received of some sort from a local god or goddess while the third is "Varli" or upper, This could be location of the island of Varli in relation to that of Bombay.

Worli Koliwada is a small fishermen village juxtaposed against the coastal bridge called Bandra Worli sea link on one side and dotted with urban high rises on the other side which boast of abodes of well known industrialists, cricketers and elite families of Mumbai.

The koliwada is a maze of narrow alleys dotted with old picturesque small and colourful houses and bylanes which showcases the lives and lifestyles of native Kolis and more recent settlers. As one enters the village from the city side, two main paths takes you to the heart of the village and ultimately to the tip of the land which meets the Arabian Sea. There are maze of narrow side alleys and cross lanes, They give you a sneak peak into the lives and lifestyles of the local communities, their culture and marketplaces.

Some of these small gullies or alleys have really old architecture.

One tiny shop on the village road.

The bazaar street cross lane has an open ground which was once where the weekly bazaars used to be held, today it is a playground for kids and parking space for motorbikes in the evenings.

Worli village is dotted with numerous temples of various deities protecting the village, notable among them are Chededev temple which greets you at the entrance of the village road and is an important landmark, then there is Hanuman temple 2nd oldest temple in the village built in 1876. The sanctum made in Malad stone seems to be the original structure with a head of a Lion at the top of the entrance. The Hanuman idol is a very beautiful and milky white.

The prayer hall still showcases the list of donors who had contributed Rs 100 and Rs 51 for construction of the temple which was a princely sum in those days.

The verandah of the temple doubles up as playground for the village kids during the holidays and weekends.

The oldest temple is one dedicated to Lord Shiva. Two deepstambhs stand outside the temple along side a Tulsi Vrindavan which is beautifully coloured in bright colors. The temple has retained its original structure still with sloping roofs and Mangalore tiles.

The steps of the temple has a small plaque with year and name of donor who contributed in building it, similarly the Tulsi vrindavan also has a plaque with faded inscriptions.

The temple doubles up as yoga school for ladies in the afternoon maximising the space utilisation in that part of Mumbai where prices of real estate are at atrocious level.

Golfadevi is temple dedicated to the village goddess, The idols is said to be around for 700 years, earlier it was just a makeshift shed where the deity was worshipped. This peculiar goddess is known as "speaking" goddess. Its the unparalleled faith of villagers in the temple goddess which brings them here when they are about to venture into something new. Its an interesting temple story which drew me here for first time two years back and I have written a separate blog on it. (Golfadevi blog)

Paapmochan temple is situated in heart of the village while a temple dedicated to Vetal dev is located at the tip of the peninsula close to the sea. This is another interesting temple where ladies are not allowed to enter the sanctum but can worship from outside. Few peculiar shaped stones smeared in vermilion is worshipped as the deity.

All these temples guard the village in all four directions while Paapmochan temple is situated in heart of the village.

The Worli Koliwada also has a sizeable populations of East Indian Christians hence there are grottos and crosses that dot the narrow alleys of the village, one of them dates back to 1875. At the tip of the peninsula and next to Vetal dev temple lies a small picturesque church which has a statue of Christ standing in the boat.

The colourful tiled grotto stands outside the Worli fort.

The narrow cross lanes here have some old traditional Koli houses in bright colours replete with verandahs and sloping roofs with mangalore tiles. Many Hindu houses are dotted with Tulsi plants on vrindavan of different size and shapes. One of the vrindavan that I came across was in shape of a boat.

In heart of the village is the refurbished local fish markets with a pavilion and covered shed. A daily fresh catch of fishes of different varieties can be seen and purchased here throughout the day. Traditional Koli women in their traditionally worn sarees, flaunting their gold ornaments and selling their fish catch with a smile.

But the most important heritage and landmark of the village is set at the tip of the peninsula close to the old jetty above which passes the iconic Sea link bridge, The historic landmark is the 17th century Worli fort built by British. It was watchtower built at edge of Mahim Bay to keep a lookout on enemy ships and pirates.

The steps that lead into the fort from the arched gateway.

To understand the importance of the fort, it pays to look at an old map of the bay.

sourced from internet

Interestingly in 1675 British built a small fort here to control the access to the bay while the Portuguese who controlled the Bandra area just across the bay did the same by building a fort in Bandra. Imagine, just like two superpowers seeing eye to eye in many places of the world today, It was the same situation in 17th century when two powers, British and Portuguese keeping a close watch on each other in Bombay at this Mahim bay. Both the forts were forgotten when Britishers left India.The worli fort is today well maintained after it was restored in 2008-09.

A small shrine at the base of the fort.

The fort interiors are divided into two levels, the central courtyard which today houses a local gym and small garden developed by the locals while along the ramparts is a broad corridor at higher level which gives a wholesome 360 degrees view with a mesmerising view of Mahim bay and the sea-link bridge snaking its way across the bay towards Bandra.

The open ground around the fort is used to dry clothes and also to dry fishes while the lane around the fort is parking ground for the boats. One can find the fishermen mending their nets when they are not at sea. An evening at the Worli fort with its spectacular sunset is not to be missed event under the imposing sealink bridge during late winters and summers.

Worli village has three jetties, one of which is newly built in the same spot where once the drainage water used to be pumped into the sea, other jetty is below the sea-link bridge while there is one more on the west side.

The centuries old fishermen folk villages like Worli Koliwada still exist in Mumbai along side its urban city landscape, And along with its historic fort, the village is seeing more and more people visiting it nowadays to get a peep into its rich history and heritage.