Exclusive: Gold gateway of India - Zaveri Bazaar

January 22, 2009

Anil Patil, Commodity Online
MUMBAI: Gold is one commodity that more and more investors are putting not only their faith but also their money in. Every city in India can boast of a street named after gold – just as every road that is named after Mahatma Gandhi.

Names may change depending on the local language but the flavor and colour of these streets never change. They are the most coveted and in most cases most congested too. However enthusiasm over the huge volume of trade that takes place in these areas never diminishes.

While in Mumbai, no gold fan can miss Zaveri Bazaar, Mumbai’s most popular address and the headquarters of all the wealth in the city. It’s a place that every Indian woman tourist in Mumbai would like to visit but reaching there she would only be disappointed.

Zaveri Bazaar or the Gold Market in Mumbai does not represent any of the traits of 21st century shinning India. Narrow dingy lanes, dust, open sewages and unprecedented police security at the historic Mumba Devi temple — from which the word Mumbai has been derived — will definitely be an eyesore.

With the recent terror attacks, the security has only got tightened. This makes the regular visitors feel anguished but they settle fast realizing that the men on duty are doing their job.

Policemen are keeping a check on all vehicles that near Mumba Devi temple or anyone who walks suspiciously because two terrorist attacks have taken place at Zaveri Bazaar in 1993 and in 2005 bomb blast in which scores of people died. In spite of all the problems, the dominance of this bazaar in the gold market all over India is unmatched.

Zaveri Bazaar first shot into prominence in 1860 after Britons decided to set up gold market over here. Gold traders from across the country too moved in because of the fact that they felt safe over here compared to rest of the country where there was a mutiny against British rule after 1857. There was law and order in the city because Britons had firm grip over the island city compared to other parts of the country where different Nawabs and Maharajas revolted against the British imperialism.

There are no shopping malls or even a decent air-conditioned restaurant for outsiders, but no one is complaining because this has been the way of life here for generations. Hundreds of people are working non-stop, labourers are plying goods from one place to another and artisans and designers give final touches to the gold product.

There is no parking space and you are sure to get stuck in a traffic jam even if you come at non-peak hours as it is bustling with activity 24 hours.

For women this place is like a dream walk in heaven as there are varieties of jewellery and if there is a marriage for anyone in Mumbai then Zaveri Bazaar has to be there on the shopping list of that household.

“Historically, this place has dominated the gold market in India,” says Suresh Hundia, president of the Bombay Bullion Association. Sitting in his office in Zaveri Bazaar, Hundia says there could be no alternative to this market in India because 65 per cent of gold trading and dealing is controlled from here.

Hundia himself has an office in Shahi gully of the Zaveri Bazaar but before you enter his office you will find a narrow lane leading to his place in which two people cannot enter together. Ask why he operates from this place, Hundia says, “There is no alternative to this place. It is the best place to deal in gold and the business community has been doing this business for generations.”
He himself was born in a family of jewellers and like him there are scores of others who have been running this business from Zaveri Bazaar. Officially there is no figure as to what is the worth of daily trading that takes place in Zaveri Bazaar from where nearly 1,500 plus jewellers operate. Hundia, however, says 65 per cent of gold business in India takes place from Zaveri Bazaar.

The place was first known for the temple. Goddess Mumba is worshipped by salt workers and fisherfolk in Mumbai. She is depicted as a black stone sculpture in the temple and is also known as ‘Maha Amba’.

One of the oldest traders among them was Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri who set up their shop in 1864 at Zaveri Bazaar. Today, their shop Tribhovandas Jewellery is a landmark destination at Charni Road railway station and ten minutes away from Zaveri Bazaar. Before other organised players like Tanishq and D’damas, Tribhovandas was the undisputed leader in the designs.

Says Amit Zaveri, “There is no other place like Zaveri Bazaar as far as shopping for jewelleries are concerned. People keep many samples at their shops in different parts of the city, but the final and finished products always come from Zaveri Bazaar.” The trade secret is the art that has passed through generations and it is rarely outsiders get into this business.

But, from this Diwali the chaotic scenes in the bazaar may change a bit with the BMC deciding not to allow any vehicles on Zaveri Bazaar roads. The 2-km Sheikh Memon Road, where the bazaar is situated, will become a pedestrian-only street as part of a plan to beautify and transform Zaveri Bazaar into a tourist attraction.

CCTVs are being installed, the number of private security guards are being increased and other paraphernalia added to the street to ensure 24-hour vigilance around the diamond and jewellery hub that has been a soft target for terrorist groups.

Decorative street lamps will be installed on the road leading to Zaveri Bazaar as part of a plan to beautify the locality. “We wish to keep the area clean and improve the aesthetics to attract tourists,” says a member of the Bullion Association, which had approached the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) with a proposal for a pedestrian plaza and beautification of the market.

The BMC is more than happy with the proposal. Why not? The entire expenditure will be borne by the association. Among other things, the road will be decorated with 300-odd decorative street lamps like those used in olden times.

The only vehicles allowed will be those of emergency and utility services, including fire brigade, electricity and telephone companies. Loading and unloading of material will be permitted only between 9 pm and 9 am. Sheikh Memon Road will be converted into a no-parking zone. Security guards will be deployed at the entrance and exit of the road.

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