Breathing new life into city’s fountains

Mumbai: The city is all set to see the revival of the ‘pyau’ or the water fountains, built to slake the thirst of commuters. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), along with some architectural experts, has embarked on a mission to give a new lease of life to these fountains, which dot the city’s landscape and are a repository of its rich cultural heritage.

While the Seth Gangalal V. Mulji Nandlal Pyau at Horniman Circle, Fort, has already been restored, four other ‘pyaus’ – Madhavdas Laxmidas Kothari Pyau near Metro Cinema, Fort; Devidas Parbhoodas Kothari Pyau near GPO, Fort; Sir Cowasjee Jehangir Pyau at Kalachowki and the Anand Vittal Koli Pyau at Gokhale Road, Dadar –  are soon set to be restored to their original glory.

A majority of the pyaus are grade II and III heritage structures built between 1860 and 1930. Providing drinking water to the thirsty has always ranked high amongst charitable deeds by most cultures. So it is not surprising that most of these structures were built and funded by Parsi and Gujarati merchants in memory of family members who had passed away, said civic officials.

The restoration of the pyaus at Horniman Circle and Metro Cinema have been allotted to Urban Design Research Institute (UDRI), while the ones at GPO, Kalachowki and Dadar will be carried out by the Vastu Vidhaan Projects.

“The work of Horniman Circle Pyau has already been completed and it was inaugurated in January. The restoration of  the pyau at Metro Cinema will be completed in a few months. However, we will only repair its structure and not activate the water system there,” said Pankaj Joshi from UDRI.

Rahul Chemburkar of Vastu Vidhaan Projects, which had earlier restored the Keshavji Naik Pyau at Masjid Bunder, said, “Apart from the charity cause, these pyaus are a good example of the architecture of those days. There is a need to conserve them so as to protect the city’s history. The work to activate their water system remains a major challenge,” he said. Mr Chemburkar has also started ‘Mumbai Pyau Project,’ under which he has prepared a data of 30 pyaus in the city.