A village in heart of Mumbai which boast of more than 1500 years of existence - Marol village heritage walk.

Standing on the fringes of Aarey forest, lies Marol village, a mid point between the western and central suburbs of Mumbai. Today it may have lost its sheen but it has been in existence from more than 1500 years and was once an important trading center along with Kondivita (Mahakali caves area) and Prajapur area inside Aarey. This surely would raise many eyebrows !! 

Archaeologist have confirmed that Marol indeed was an important trading center along with Kondivita (Mahakali caves area) and Prajapur (now a slum in Aarey). Trade would happen with various ports of that era namely Mahim, Sopara etc and one theory goes that there would gave existed land routes from pre historic ports to these towns located on mainland. Another theory is that trading may have also happened via Mithi river which is today not more than a sewage, but was once an important river which flowed close to Marol and discharged into Mahim creek. These rivers were trading channels with boats moving from the ports inwards towards Marol and other trading centers. 

These theories have been supported by the location of Mahakali caves close to Marol. They were built between 200 BC & 600 AD and are said to be older than famous Ajanta & Ellora caves. Some excavations of temple remnants and ornamental stone bulls talk about existence of ancient civilisation in SEEPZ area. While remnants of 10th century temple have been found under Vijaynagar Police camp temple which is part of Marol area. Marol was also an economic capital of Shilahara dynasty which ruled between (810 to 1260 CE). These all point towards Marol being an important town even in pre-historic and pre-Portuguese era. 

After the advent of Portuguese on Mumbai soil and port of Bassein (present day Vasai) as their stronghold on northern end of Mumbai, They consolidated other ports of Bandra, Mahim and Versova and established their dominance over trade from islands of Mumbai. Since Mahim already had trade links with Marol hence Portuguese eyed the trading town of  Marol and so in 1579 Fr. Manuel Gomes established Portuguese church known as "St John the Baptist". The church stands in ruins even today inside SEEPZ and can be visited once a year on 2nd Sunday of May when a feast is celebrated. By 1588 as per church records, the entire village of Marol was converted to Catholics. The church of St John was abandoned in 1840 when some epidemic hit the village and the church was transferred to Marol village. The shifted church is known as "St John the Evangelist church".

Present day Marol village has transformed into a concrete jungle and is slowly loosing its heritage just like any other locality of Mumbai. But amidst the high rises we can still see traces of heritage in Marol village in a narrow lane of old bazzar precinct. A leisurely walk on the old bazzar lane and narrow bylanes takes you back in time. 

Large houses with sloping roofs laden with Mangalore tiles, wooden pillars and balconies with wooden balustrades are a common sight. An attic - an important part of Konkan architecture can also be seen in some of the houses. Few even have a backyard and courtyard with its own garden and parking. which is a rarity in space constrained Mumbai. 

Being a predominantly a Christian locality, Christmas is the best time to visit the village when one can find houses with Christmas decorations and traditional beautiful cribs showing the birth of Jesus being put outside the houses. One lady in Sylvia Fernandes compound happily invited us to get a glimpse of her Christmas decorations while another owner gave his consent to click pictures of his house when we stood admiring the old architecture.

Few houses on the village road are pretty old and yet going strong even after completing over a century. This was proudly pointed to us one of the owner lady. Her house dated back to 1917. 

But sadly many of the houses are also in crumbling state or closed as owners have moved out.

The village road boast of multi cultural diversity with a Muslim place of worship at the end of the road, while a road sign shows the location of Jain temple in narrow by lane.  A Hanuman temple squeezed between two houses.

The temple had many smaller shrines but main attraction was Lord Hanuman's beautiful idol facing the village road as if it was keeping a watch on the activities outside. An old deepstambh has a plaque with some inscriptions stands outside the temple on the road.

Few crosses stands outside the houses or buildings which probably have stood for more than 18th century.

A vegetable vendor lady sits comfortably on a raised plinth outside one of the house selling her stuff while the owner lives inside comfortably. where does one see such sights except in some village road. 

Pure Beef shop and bakery are a common sight in the village bazaar road. Not to miss a restaurant situated in old village house.

Walking down the old bazzar road in Marol village surely takes you down the history lane with so much heritage hidden in its nooks and corner. Maybe weekdays would be just like any other busy streets of the city but Sunday mornings walk is surely worth a try.

It is interesting to understand why Marol lost its importance post Portuguese era was because after Bombay moved into the hands of British, ports like Mahim, Bassein lost its importance when deep sea port was established in south Bombay for bigger ships. The trade routes lost its sheen and the islands of Bombay were merged into one big city. The village whose population was one tenth of entire population on islands of Bombay in 1660 has just became another locality today. The Marol village road precinct is the last standing heritage bastion against the onslaught of urbanisation. How long will it stand is anybody's guess.