Although I have lived in Mumbai all my life, I must confess that I had not, until recently, thought of Mumbai as a city worth exploring from an architectural perspective. My vocation as a real estate developer meant that I was always thinking about the ‘new’ – new trends, designs and modern structures – rather than appreciating the historical architecture and context of the city. Ironically, this changed when I was working on my next real estate project. I was looking for design inspiration, having grown weary of the lack of imagination in the modern buildings appearing in Mumbai today that miss the grandeur, soulfulness and artistry of structures built in earlier days. While we ended up designing the new project inspired by the Art Deco style that Mumbai is famous for, my brief study of Mumbai’s heritage architecture ignited a spark of curiosity to learn more about the city that I live and work in.

That spark of curiosity rages as I have discovered and re-discovered so much about the city. Mumbai is a veritable treasure trove of architectural beauty and history. It is a unique amalgamation of colonial, modern and vernacular styles, unlike anywhere else in the world. Through this journey, I also enjoyed reading about the city – and while there are lots of books that deal with Mumbai’s architecture and history, I found very few that showcased it in an artful manner. Timeless Mumbai is an attempt to preserve in memory some impressions of Mumbai’s architectural prowess.

Our illustrator, Matt Rota, is interesting because he doesn’t just capture architectural details – he paints the scene of the city, he illustrates what the city is as a living, breathing organism. I think that is very important because it’s not just about the structures, it’s also about the people.

My idea was to publish a book that would not only be a great addition to anyone’s collection, but also a fun and engaging experience. The accordion folds of this book allow the user to experience the artwork as if exploring the heritage areas and seeing all the structures as you would in a walking tour of the city. This book is accompanied by the online platform (that contains various resources such as AV guides and text about the book) at thetimelessbook.in, making it a true ‘phygital’ experience that allows the reader to deep dive at their own pace. After perusing this book, I hope that people of all ages sitting in any corner of the world will appreciate this new way to connect with Mumbai.

Khilen Shah, Director, Mumbai-based luxury real estate company 25 Residences and the inspiration behind Timeless Mumbai

When I arrived in Mumbai to research this book, it was my first time there, and the resulting artwork comprises a very fresh and unimpeded view of the city.

There’s always something special about first impressions in a foreign land – all of the smallest details are most apparent and impossible to take for granted. There is an innocence to first impressions. Mumbai is a city where everything seems to be happening all at once, and everything that is happening, maybe everything in the entire world, is happening in Mumbai at any given moment. Vehicles of all sorts swirl around people from every corner of the planet. The sounds of engines, horns and voices speaking innumerable languages hang above the jostling, colourful crowds. Plants and animals intertwine with a patchwork of buildings spanning shape, size, colour and time.

To a novice, the energy is dazzling and can be overwhelming. Mumbai is a city of contrasts. It was my aim to capture its energy and all of the contrasts that give the city its personality. I wanted to represent something of the story and heritage of Mumbai’s architecture alongside the essence of the life on its streets.

The hope with a project like this is to identify a certain character within the city and create a mirror through art. A means for those most familiar with the city, those who call Mumbai home, to reflect on it and witness something new and exciting.

Matt Rota, illustrator, whose work on Timeless Mumbai has won a Gold Medal in the Book category at the 68^th Annual Competition of the Society of Illustrators, New York

As publishers, we are always looking for new ways to present interesting subjects, in order to draw in both readers familiar with the material and new audiences. Thanks to Khilen Shah’s vision and Matt Rota’s beautiful artwork, Timeless Mumbai is a remarkable realisation of that aim.

I first heard about the project when Matt’s agent, Maria Cardelli of IllustrationZone, called me as I was struggling through security at Heathrow, about to head off on another research trip for Kulturalis. Maria and I go back a way – she looks after an extraordinary pool of talent, well suited to the wide array of cultural subjects that Kulturalis supports. The purpose of her call was to ask me what I thought the market might be for an artist-illustrated tour of Mumbai, but the project sounded so enticing that my immediate response was, ‘Do you have a publisher?’

My interest was piqued still further when I learned of Khilen Shah’s vision for the book – inspired by an edition of Hokusai’s Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji, he felt that an accordion-fold book was the ideal way to convey the sense that the reader was being led through Mumbai, taking in the sights and, by implication, the sounds and smells of the city through Matt’s bold and vibrant colour palette.

The process of producing Timeless Mumbai was essentially a creative dialogue between the two Matts – illustrator Matt Rota and Kulturalis’s Art Director, Matt Wilson – with Khilen and Maria offering their input at every stage. The presentation of Matt R’s exquisitely rendered impressions of Mumbai grew organically, as the itinerary followed by illustrator and reader took shape. The crucial final stages required our Production Director, Tim Clarke, to liaise with the printers – appropriately, based in India (Hayana) – and ensure that the delicate process of connecting and folding the pages was carried out successfully to produce a perfect concertina book block. Though not the first book to be published by Kulturalis – mainly because of the great care and attention the project demanded – it was our first commission, and a truly inspiring way to begin.

Khilen is thinking big. Timeless Mumbai is to be the first in a series of publications on the cities of India, presenting the architectural treasures of his endlessly rich homeland to readers across the world through the work of the most accomplished and innovative book illustrators practising their craft today.

Neil Titman, Managing Director, Kulturalis Ltd, publisher of Timeless Mumbai

The opinions expressed are those of the contributor, not necessarily of the RSAA.

Timeless Mumbai: A Visual Journey Through Mumbai’s Heritage

As Khilen Shah states in his foreword to this remarkable book, modern architecture misses the soulfulness and artistry of the buildings and structures of earlier days, which is why it is all the more important to preserve what we have – in reality and in art. This book is an attempt to preserve in memory some impressions of Mumbai’s architectural beauty. It also seeks to correct the image of Mumbai in the minds of both outsiders and those who have lived there, encouraging them to think beyond the city’s slums. The book is intended to showcase Mumbai as a city worth seeing and savouring. Artist Matt Rota brings a unique creative style to this endeavour, which perfectly blends the human and cultural element of the city with its architectural beauty.