A couple of years back, I happened to travel in a cab whose driver was very chatty and unusually boastful of his knowledge of the city. About 20 minutes into the journey, I had enough of his tales and asked him:
“Since you know so much about Mumbai, tell me how does one get to Sewri Fort. I want to visit it.”
“Sewri Fort? What Sewri Fort? There is no Fort at Sewri.”
“Of course, there is a fort there. I read a report about the Fort in the newspaper only last week.”
“Newspaper? Bah !” said the driver in a dismissive tone. “Don’t believe everything that they print. Listen to me, I’ve been there so many times that I know the area really well. I know Sewri Jetty, all the automobile service centres there, the Port Trust Offices, the dargah… everything. I can tell you confidently that I have never come across any Fort there.”
And that was the end of the conversation.
Last month, I visited Sewri Fort. Yes, there is a Fort, but after visiting it I could understand why the cab driver and many others like him are neither aware of its location or existence. Incidentally, it is located right next to the dargah that the driver mentioned. Just see the view outside the Fort in the photograph below. Is there any indication that there is a Fort anywhere in the vicinity?
Continue reading “The Sewri Fort”
My Favourite Things 