VIKAS DILAWARI THE RESTORER OF BOMBAY

Flora Fountain, Amarchand Mansion, Army & Navy Building, Lal Chimney complex, Hira Baug, corporation hall of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) headquarters, Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum, Rajabai Clock Tower, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus and immeasurably more-Vikas Dilawari has spent a lifetime repairing and restoring Mumbai's heritage buildings.

- Writer Khorshed Deboo Photographer Shreya Basu

A long-overdue profile of the prolific conservation architect.

At the southern end of Mumbai's Dr. Dadabhai Naoroji Road (DN Road) is a landmark that has made it to many a postcard in the 150-odd years of its existence. Designed by British architect Richard Norman Shaw and sculpted in Portland stone by James Forsythe, Flora Fountain was thrown open to the public in 1869. Ever since, it has been witness to the many transformations that the city has undergone. Sometime in 2016, the four mythological figures seated at Flora Fountain began to appear dreary. Algae, dust and grime were stubbornly lodged into the nooks and crevices of the intricately carved flora and fauna. Lousy refurbishment attempts over the years, coupled with periods of dismal neglect, shook the civic body out of its slumber, leading to the appointment of conservation architect Vikas Dilawari and his team of structural engineers to restore the 32-foot-tall Grade-I heritage structure.