South Mumbai to get its own Times Square: 10 key highlights

The BJP government is planning to create a cultural hub in South Mumbai’s Kala Ghoda area on the lines of Times Square in New York.

" The vision behind Kala Ghoda is to provide popular entertainment as well as access to heritage and culture for the benefit of international tourists, domestic tourists and the people of Mumbai. This should result in a few themes and additional jobs being created," the ministry of tourism said in a release.

1. Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Tourism and Culture Shripad Naik on Friday said that the Ministry of Tourism would help Maharashtra’s Department of Tourism to create a cultural hub, most of it open air, in Mumbai, which will be similar to New York’s Times Square.

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2 The Ministry of Tourism will sanction Rs 5 crore for phase-I of the project with similar amounts for every subsequent phase.

3. The Maharashtra government would also be spending money to create the basic infrastructure to incentivise private sector parties to invest in the project.

4.Kala Ghoda near Colaba is being considered as the most ideal location for the hub but a final decision on the exact location has not been taken yet.

5. The Hub will include a 15-foot high Indian flag similar to the US flag in Times Square. According to ANI it will be made of hard transparent materials and lit from within, so that vistors can take photographs.

6.The entire pedestrian area will be paved with stone slabs and not cobbled stones. There will be drinking water fountains with reverse osmosis-treated water so that no plastic water bodies are taken there. Wide steps rising upwards will be created for visitors to sit on. At Times Square such benches are made of high quality, hard transparent, coloured plastic lit from below, as well as some such sitting areas in steps made of steel

7. High resolution web cams/CCTVs will be operated

8.Film and cartoon characters walk around the Kala Ghoda cultural hub for photo opportunities with visitors. There will also be street performers

9.Large electronic billboards will also be present so that corporates can advertise their products. The move will also give an income opportunity to the owners of the building that host such electronic advertisements.

Kala Ghoda already has the following facilities and activities that make it suitable for becoming the Indian equivalent of Times Square. It has :
(i) art galleries;
(ii) music shops;
(iii) places to eat at;
(iv) artists sketching visitors
(v) access to the Fashion Street shopping area