Miami to Mumbai with Art Deco movement

Mumbai boasts the world’s secondlargest collection of Art Deco buildings, following Miami, and it defines much of the city's visual identity, especially along Marine Lines and Marine Drive. Art Deco Alive!, a three-week-long festival, celebrates the movement in the city. At the core of the festival is the exhibition, Ocean Drive to Marine Drive: Mapping a Century of Deco | Miami Beach-Mumbai (19252025), held at the Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum.

- Sayoni Bhaduri

Curated by Atul Kumar, Founder-Trustee, Art Deco Mumbai Trust, and partnered by Miami Design Preservation League and Art Deco Mumbai Trust, it celebrates the unique cultural and visual connection between the two cities. Smiti Kanodia, Founder, Art Deco Alive! Shares why the festival is crucial in celebrating Mumbai's modernist heritage.

Why is it important to celebrate Mumbai's Art Deco heritage?

Mumbai's Art Deco heritage is a transformative moment in the city’s history— when modernity, creativity, and optimism came together to shape a new urban identity. It was a democratic movement that represented design for everyone, not just the elite. By celebrating it, were not just honouring the past, but reaffirming the values it stood for: progress, balance, and beauty rooted in purpose. Preserving and reinterpreting our Deco legacy allows Mumbai to move forward without losing sight of the spirit that made it so unique in the first place.