Art & Architecture

The Heritage Project believes in art as a medium to represent the history and spread awareness about key social challenges prevalent in today’s time. 

Worli Koliwada is home to diverse cultures, with the Kolis – the original inhabitants of Mumbai as well as more recent settlers from all over the country – all finding a place for themselves in this densely populated locality. 

The Heritage Project is using art to depict this rich culture and create an immersive Art District for visitors. The Worli Koliwada Art District will include murals by renowned artists, with periodic art workshops organised for the community. The murals will depict the site’s rich culture and will be developed with the community. They will be unified by a guided pathway to enhance visitor experiences. 

We have already commenced work on developing the Art District. A mural by trans-women and cis-women-led art collective, Aravani Art Project has been completed at Cleveland Jetty. The mural depicts the history of the Kolis and their culture. More murals are being conceptualised by The Heritage Project with renowned artists, which will be incorporated in the Art District in due course. 

The Heritage Project is also upgrading community spaces in Worli Koliwada to enhance visitor and community experiences. These include refurbishing the playgrounds to facilitate sports and cultural events, installing heritage-themed streetlights, street furniture, and extensively researched information and directional signage.

Ecology

The Heritage Project is working to restore the sites’ ecology. The objective is to develop community spaces and help promote sustainable livelihoods for the fisherfolk community. 

To enable this, landscaping around Worli Fort and common spaces in Worli Koliwada have been planned. The area around Worli Fort is utilised by the fisherfolk as a dock. They also use this space to sort fresh fish and dry fish. This is then sold in the local markets, and is a main source of livelihood. The space is also used by youth to play sports, like cricket. The planned landscaping keeps in mind the area’s existing use and creates functional spaces for sports and fishery-related activities. 

Additionally, The Heritage Project also plans to create reefs, enabling better sea life. With the growing environmental crisis and increased marine pollution, we believe this intervention will help create systems and promote sustainable livelihoods for the fisherfolk.