When potters Rohit Kulkarni and Bhairavi Naik of Curators of Clay devised signature glazes inspired by monsoons, they saw two nuances. For Kulkarni growing up in Pune, whose childhood was filled with trips to Malavli and Bhaja near Lonavala, the monsoon is a dappled color of different shades of green in one go. Like Sahyadris in the off-season. For Naik who grew up in Mumbai, it was a shade of blue, inspired by the sea of tarps that covered the houses in the slums and also Antilia. So now they have two glazes—monsoon green and Sahyadri blue, inspired by Lonavala and stone steps.
“That is the magic of these hills. They may have a lasting impression on you. Before highways turned Lonavala and Khandala into the expansive suburbs of Mumbai, they were literally hill stops with climbing spots, picturesque spots and vada pav pitstops,” said Kulkarni, whose mother Nayan and her friend, Mary D’souza, run a school—Aditi Learning Center, said in Kamshet, near Lonavala—for girls who drop out, to encourage them to complete their education.
D’souza’s daughter, Hritodaya Maria, a potter trained at the Golden Bridge Pottery is setting up a pottery workshop where workshops will be conducted upon request.
During the lockdown, Alibaug, with its flashy yachts and promising RoRo, has emerged as a preferred luxury destination for weekends and extended stays, the good Lonavala stepped back. In the process, it has slowly morphed into a niche destination with much to offer in terms of food, arts and crafts, design and architecture, wellness and adventure—all Driven by local entrepreneurs and businesses that thrive in the hills.
Former journalist Anjali Sethi, who moved to Lonavala 15 years ago, thinks growth has been sporadic over the years and the lockdown has only fueled it. Her husband, Amol, is a professional hotelier and with his friends Allan Almeida and Dr Tejas Kulkarni, he founded Offroad Junkie which organizes and promotes offroads for all 4×4 carriers. in India. The three would leave their busy schedules any day to go out.
For Sethis, an interesting place during the lockdown is Franki’s Pizzeria, a family-style pizzeria founded by a father and son duo in Khandala that specializes in authentic wood-fired pizza. They use no preservatives or additives. The dishes are made with fresh ingredients and locally sourced produce.
creative tunes
While developing into a resort town, Lonavala has built itself into a meeting place for creative minds. Musician duo Nirali Kartik and Kartik Shah, the founders of MaatiBaani, moved there during the lockdown and now call it their second home. They even shot a music video here during their stay. “Lonavala is a paradise for creative space enthusiasts, especially music. There’s something about the atmosphere here that puts your mind at ease. We are building a studio space, an amphitheater that can hold 60 people and a space where artists can stay and create their music. This project was designed by Mumbai-based architecture firm Muse Lab,” said Kartik.
super. Local
For Mumbai resident Manasvi Bhatia, having a vacation home on the hill, surrounded by nature, trees and space will help them lead a healthier and more carefree life. “Covid in the hills is not as bad as in the city. Even though I’ve had a vacation home for almost 30 years, this is my first time staying here for a year straight. I didn’t go to Mumbai even once until mid-April 2021,” recalls Bhatia.
During her first months there, she began exploring the area, connecting residents, and starting a platform called Lonavala Local. “I thought it would be great if there was a community in the hills where we could connect with like-minded creatives who are doing some amazing work From gardeners to home cooks, bakers, historians and musicians, the community is only starting to get bigger and better. The platform is a great space to connect, collaborate, co-create and reach out to audiences looking to leverage services, products or experiences,” explains Bhatia, who initially met the difficulty of gathering the people of Lonavala together and creating them. believe in their potential.
“On the other hand, it is heartwarming to see them willing to step out of their comfort zones and open their hearts and homes to people from different walks of life to experience what they have to offer. Lonavala Local bridges that gap,” she added. Carefully designed and curated by Bhatia, from jamming sessions to crafting paper workshops, strolling around an artist and historian’s home, visiting a potter’s home studio, to walks in unpopular locations, to board game nights to food street walks, architecture guides, decoys, pop-ups, and flea markets with entrepreneurs local homegrown industry—it’s a great experience to see the community come together.
Architect Viraj Kapadia, a travel and fitness enthusiast, has connected Bhatia with most of the hill dwellers, including NGOs that have done some amazing work. He also shows her hidden gems in the pedestrian hills. Bhatia said: “It was fun to see the hills with a different set of eyes. “Also, since the hills are primarily tourism-driven, it would be fun for tourists and holidaymakers to support and encourage talented local businesses and entrepreneurs.”
Through Lonavala Local, you can meet an Indian artist couple who moved here from Kenya, built an art school and then settled here, decorating their home with lots of artwork. Art has been collected by aspiring young artists for many years. Their art is also on display. A local who studied pottery from Germany, moved to Pune to set up her studio and returned to the hills, converting part of her house into a studio to display and sell her wares. You can even ask for guidance at the Lonavala National Association for the Blind center, which empowers the elderly blind by educating them in various craft skills and letting them showcase products own crafts such as baskets, bags, soaps, hand towels for sale.
Development for the future
Farther in Kamshet, Astrid Rao, co-founder of Native Place, an eco-designed garden and guesthouse, and Nirvana Adventures, India’s leading paragliding school, told us about farming courses aquaculture that she does there. This is one of the few places where you can enjoy home-style meals cooked with organic ingredients from the garden and enjoy fresh seasonal produce such as jams, pickles, vinegars, home-grown spices, herbs, tea, etc.
In 2016, Rao attended the Permaculture Design Course with Narsanna Koppula, India’s permaculture pioneer. It gave her a solid foundation as well as access to a community of like-minded people. She implemented seed-saving techniques, soil amendments, composting, rainwater harvesting, and soil conservation, and set out to turn every tiny space available into tall beds and boxes to grow. food crops. With this, the original dream of sustainability took on a new focus—enriching the soil and cultivating crops to supply guest houses.
“I have been with trees for as long as I can remember, and my prized possession is the multitude of native plants that live in the Native Site Garden. The many medicinal plants and flowering shrubs placed here attract more than 40 species of birds to visit and call our garden home,” she said.
Local Lonavala recommends…
1. Poha served with mint chili sauce, prepared by Sai Khillare
2. Maushi’s Vada pav near the Bushi . Dam
3. Manshakti—a favorite Maharashtrian dish, cooked by the women of the neighborhood.
4. An organic juice and sandwich bistro is located on the grounds of the Kaivalydham institute. They also have a wellness center stocked with organic and Ayurvedic products.
From HT Brunch, January 21, 2023
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