The Crasto bungalow in Girgaon's Khotachiwadi has seen its fair share of goings-on. It's housed a printing press, and in a minor blip, even functioned as a gym. Today, it's the proud home for 47-A, a gallery exclusively dedicated to design. Inside, you'll find regular exhibitions that spotlight furniture, ceramics, textiles, and functional design, with each exploring themes like craft, sustainability, and material experimentation.
The nature of the work displayed is such that it invites viewers to spend time observing and reflecting on the care taken in curation – and that's helped along by the bungalow's spacious layout and vast availability of natural light. The village of Khotachiwadi itself is an interesting choice of location – it's a heritage village dating back to the 1800s, and it still contains some 30, fairly well preserved Portuguese colonial-influenced bungalows. This gallery's appropriately named 47-A, keeping in line with the numbering system the other bungalows in the area observe. Over time, it's become an intrinsic part of the village's community, and participates wholeheartedly in keeping its heritage alive.
The gallery came out of a collaboration between Chatterjee & Lal, an art gallery, and Baro Market, an online store that curates art, craft, and designer ware. Together, they created a mishmash of what they each do best – and because of that, 47-A's the only gallery in Mumbai that pays such exquisite attention to detail when it comes to design, material exploration, and craft-based practices.
They're also really good about partnering with a diverse bunch of people – their collaboration with Indian fashion designer James Ferreira relaunched his career, or so he says. They also do their fair share of events celebrating local cuisines, heritage walks, and even special Christmas celebrations.
Time Out Tip: If you manage to get here by 5pm, you’ll be rewarded with a stunning sunset that makes for lovely viewing of Khotachiwadi’s heritage architecture.