Chor Bazaar, Mumbai Explained

18.9603°N 72.8272°W

Chor Bazaar
Settlement Type:Commercial, Shopping
Pushpin Map:Mumbai
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:India
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Type2:District
Subdivision Type3:City
Subdivision Name1:Maharashtra
Subdivision Name2:Mumbai City
Subdivision Name3:Mumbai
Government Type:Municipal Corporation
Governing Body:Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (MCGM)
Unit Pref:Metric
Population Density Km2:auto
Demographics Type1:Languages
Demographics1 Title1:Official
Timezone1:IST
Utc Offset1:+5:30
Postal Code Type:PIN
Area Code:022
Blank1 Name Sec1:Civic agency
Blank1 Info Sec1:BMC
Demographics1 Info1:Marathi

Chor Bazaar is one of the largest flea markets in India, located at Mutton street,[1] near Bhendi Bazaar in Grant Road, South Mumbai.[2] The area is one of the tourist attractions of Mumbai. The word "chor" means 'thief' in Marathi, Gujarati and Hindi. According to popular legend, if you lose anything in Mumbai you can buy it back from the Chor Bazaar.[3]

Origin of name

Chor Bazaar, literally translated as Thieves' Market, was initially called Shor Bazaar, given how noisy things would get in the bustling and busy markets along the arterial Mohammed Ali Road.[4] It is located just about a few kms away from Crawford Market in South Mumbai.

The market got called Chor Bazaar by the British who could not pronounce the word correctly.[5] Eventually, stolen goods and vintage items made their way into the market and the name stayed.

History

Chor Bazaar in Mumbai emerged as one of the oldest markets of second-hand goods in India since the British rule in India. In modern times, it is said to sell mostly second-hand goods rather than stolen goods. The market is now famous for antique and vintage items.[6] [7]

A store called Mini Market offers old Bollywood posters for sale.[8] Others offer authentic Victorian furniture, replacement parts for automobiles, etc. Although bargains are sometimes staggering, haggling is considered mandatory.[9] This is basically an "organized" flea market, where one has to rummage through junk to find what one wants.[10]

A popular story about the origin of the name of the market is that a violin and some other belongings of Queen Victoria went missing while being unloaded from her ship while on a visit to Bombay, and were later found for sale in the "thieves' market".[11]

In popular culture

The market has been mentioned in popular novels, including Rohinton Mistry's Such a Long Journey,[3] where it is described as "not a nice place".[12] The Spool Man (2016) – a short documentary about a Chor Bazaar shop-keeper, directed by Daniel Ifans,[13] produced by We Are Tilt. Official Selection at Ethnografilm Film festival 2019 (Paris, France).[14]

External links

Notes and References

  1. https://www.mumbai.org.uk/shopping/chor-bazaar.html The Chor Bazaar: destination
  2. Book: David Abram. Nick Edwards. The Rough Guide to South India. 9 May 2012. 1 February 2004. Rough Guides. 978-1-84353-103-6. 114–.
  3. Book: Brooks, Victoria. Literary Trips. GreatestEscapes Pub. 2000. Illustrated. 36. 0-9686137-0-5. registration. chor bazaar.. 2009-03-06.
  4. https://www.india.com/travel/mumbai/places-to-visit/cultural-chor-bazaar/ Chor Bazaar: Places to visit
  5. https://www.indiatoday.in/travel/story/chor-bazaar-mumbai-flea-market-268777-2015-10-19 A treasure hunt at Mumbai's Chor Bazaar
  6. News: Daniels. Matt. Mumbai's Chor Bazaar – downloadable map. Guardian Travel Network. 9 May 2012. London. 22 March 2012. 25 March 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140325222737/http://www.theguardian.com/travel/blog/2012/mar/22/mumbai-chor-bazaar-dowload-map. live.
  7. Web site: Cook. Sharell. Photo Tour of Shopping in Chor Bazaar Mumbai. About.com. 9 May 2012. 6 April 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150406081901/http://goindia.about.com/od/shopping/ss/chor-bazaar.htm. live.
  8. News: 36 Hours in Mumbai. Giridharadas. Anand. 22 June 2008. The New York Times. 2009-03-06. 22 January 2009. https://web.archive.org/web/20090122095014/http://events.nytimes.com/2008/06/22/travel/22hours.html. live.
  9. Web site: Chor Bazaar. Fodors.com. 2009-03-06. https://web.archive.org/web/20100301035935/http://www.fodors.com/world/asia/india/mumbai-bombay-and-maharashtra/review-446183.html. 1 March 2010. dead.
  10. Web site: Ismat Tahseen. Is Mumbai's Chor Bazaar set to lose its quaint charm?. The Times of India. 10 December 2021. 10 September 2016. 1 May 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220501161742/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/is-mumbais-chor-bazaar-set-to-lose-its-quaint-charm/articleshow/54250733.cms?from=mdr#_ga=2.216233046.1719996855.1639121723-amp-XbY_Dsy4iIB_Ah9ohZWENc9w3lIC9euxWXCYK7MR03JUBxlTPVPCuHqx7AJ2Bchw. live.
  11. Book: India - Sarina Singh - Google Books. 9781742203478. 2012-07-29. Singh. Sarina. 15 September 2010. 1 May 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220501161727/https://books.google.com/books?id=vK88ktao7pIC&q=chor+bazaar+thieves+market+bombay+mumbai+victoria+violin&pg=PA804. live.
  12. Book: Mistry, Rohington. Such a long journey. Knopf. 1991. 92. 0-679-40009-5. 27 September 2016. 7 April 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220407215749/https://books.google.com/books?id=0WliAAAAMAAJ&q=chor+bazaar. live.
  13. Web site: Daniel Ifans. IMDb. 2019-02-04. 15 February 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170215160642/http://www.imdb.com/name/nm7582146/. live.
  14. Web site: Ethnografilm Paris Profoundly Entertaining. en-US. 2019-02-04. 7 February 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190207015323/http://www.ethnografilm.com/. live.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Chor Bazaar, Mumbai".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.