Past-times of the Seventies in Bombay

Oh! How I wish I could turn back time to the 1970s to once again experience the euphoria of watching a Hindi movie in a theatre in Bombay (now Mumbai)...perhaps a Rajesh Khanna blockbuster!

In those days when the television had barely invaded our lives, there were not too many forms of entertainment apart from watching movies, going to the beaches in the evenings and watching the sun set while devouring delicious chaats (pani puri, sev puri, ragda pattice, bhel puri et al mmm how mouth-wateringly yummy!) and kulfis on the sands of the Chowpatty or Juhu beach.

While some preferred to ramble in the National Park in Borivli in order to connect with Mother Nature, others found solace in the neighborhood park. While the young boys were engrossed in playing cricket or lagori, the girls usually listened to music on the radio, indulged in other hobbies such as painting or embroidery or helped with the household chores. The young ones entertained themselves playing Hide and Seek and its several variants.

Indoor games such as carom, snake and ladder and playing cards found popularity among all age groups. On dark, rainy afternoons the young and old alike would huddle up together to play a variety of card games such as Ghulam chor, Satthi dav, 304, Jaboo, Judgement and so on. This would happen typically in July and August when schools would close down for a few days due to incessant rain and when local trains, the life line of Mumbai, would simply stop plying. I’m so glad the television, computer and mobile phones were not part of our lives then.

The concept of a mall was totally unheard of then. College goers, especially those studying in colleges in and around Churchgate, preferred to take long strolls along the Marine Drive or Nariman Point. The weekends saw them window shopping or actually shopping at the Fashion Street, Gandhi Market, Elco Market and Linking Road of Bandra or watching western movies in town or Hindi movies elsewhere. A boat ride in the Gateway of India was another popular past-time for families over the weekends during those days. While some preferred to watch the aquatic wonders at the Taraporevala Aquarium, others, especially the art-loving kind had a whale of a time admiring the artistic marvels at the Jehangir Art Gallery.