India's only surviving opera house reopened to suitably dramatic fanfare with a 2016 performance by Mumbai-born British soprano Patricia Rozario, after a meticulous six-year restoration project that saw the regal address returned to full British-rule glory. Architect Abha Narain Lambah combed through old photographs of gilded ceilings, stained-glass windows and a baroque Indo-European foyer to restore the three-level auditorium.
Commissioned by King George V and originally completed in 1916, it's now owned by the Gujarati Royal Family of Gondal. Portraits of famous playwrights and musicians are painted on the dome-shaped ceiling and gold-painted wallpaper dominates the exquisite detailing at this Chowpatty-area landmark. It has seen a cornucopia of India's creative talent grace its stage through the decades, including Marathi artist Bal Gandharva, actor Prithviraj Kapoor and singer Lata Mangeshkar. After catching a second wind as a cinema hall from the 1930s onwards, the ROH fell out of favour as single-screen cinema conceded to multiplexes, and it was shuttered in the 1990s.
Facilities include a cafe and jazz bar and the venue hosts musical performances and plays. Brief tours are ₹600 (just turn up when an event is not on) but if you want to dig a bit deeper, visit with Khaki Tours or local historian Simin Patel (www.bombaywalla.org).
