Chor Bazaar is one of the largest

flea market A flea market (or swap meet) is a type of street market that provides space for vendors to sell previously-owned (second-hand) goods. This type of market is often seasonal. However, in recent years there has been the development of 'formal' ...

s in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, located at Mutton street, near

Bhendi Bazaar Bhendi Bazaar is a market (bazaar) in South Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. Bhendi Bazaar occupies an area between Mohammed Ali Road and Khetwadi. The closest Central and Harbour lines station for the Mumbai Suburban Railway is Sandhurst Road, an ...

Grant Road Grant Road (named after Sir Robert Grant, the Governor of Bombay between 1835 and 1839, formally Maulana Shaukatali Road) is a locality in South Mumbai. Grant Road railway station serves this area. Grant Road along with Tardeo and Mumbai Centr ...

South Mumbai South Mumbai, colloquially SoBo from South Bombay in Anglo-Indian English, administratively the Mumbai City District, is the city centre and the southernmost precinct of Greater Bombay. It extends from Colaba to Mahim and Sion neighbour ...

. The area is one of the tourist attractions of Mumbai. The word ''"chor"'' means 'thief' in

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...

and

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

. According to popular legend, if you lose anything in Mumbai you can buy it back from the "Chor Bazaar".

Origin of name

Chor Bazaar, literally translated as ''Thieves Market'', was initially called ''Shor Bazaar'', given how noisy things would get in the bustling and busy markets along the arterial Mohammed Ali Road. It is located just about a few kms away from Crawford Market in

. The market got called Chor Bazaar by the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

who could not pronounce the word correctly. Eventually, stolen goods and vintage items made their way into the market and the name stayed.

History

Chor Bazaar in Mumbai emerged as one of the oldest markets of

second-hand goods Used goods mean any item of personal property offered for sale not as new, including metals in any form except coins that are legal tender, but excluding books, magazines, and postage stamps. Risks Furniture, in particular bedding or upholstere ...

in India since the

British rule in India The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...

. In modern times, it is said to sell mostly second-hand goods rather than stolen goods. The market is now famous for antique and vintage items. A store called Mini Market offers old Bollywood posters for sale. Others offer authentic Victorian furniture, replacement parts for automobiles, etc. Although bargains are sometimes staggering, haggling is considered mandatory. This is basically an "organized" flea market, where one has to rummage through junk to find what one wants. A popular story about the origin of the name of the market is that a violin and some other belongings of

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

went missing while being unloaded from her ship while on a visit to Bombay, and were later found for sale in the "thieves' market".

In popular culture

The market has been mentioned in popular novels, including

Rohinton Mistry Rohinton Mistry (born 1952) is an Indian-born Canadian writer. He has been the recipient of many awards including the Neustadt International Prize for Literature in 2012. Each of his first three novels were shortlisted for the Booker Prize. His ...

's '' Such a Long Journey'', where it is described as "not a nice place". ''The Spool Man'' (2016) – a short documentary about a Chor Bazaar shop-keeper, directed by Daniel Ifans, produced by We Are Tilt. Official Selection at Ethnografilm Film festival 2019 (Paris, France).

Gallery

File:Bazaarchitecture37 (4060990598).jpg,

Mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

at Chor Bazaar File:Bazaarchitecture0 (4060273653).jpg, Colonial era building at Chor Bazaar File:Bazaarchitecture16 (4060315177).jpg, Second hand electronic goods File:Bazaarchitecture32 (4060240167).jpg, Antique items for sale File:Bazaarchitecture8 (4061032054).jpg, Antique items for sale File:Bazaarchitecture36 (4060989102).jpg, Crowd at the market in morning File:Bazaarchitecture49 (4060264933).jpg, Lanes in Chor Bazaar File:Chor Bazaar, Mutton Street, Mumbai (24594093319).jpg, Old photograph showing guitars for sale File:Barbells chor bazaar.jpg, Dumbbells for sale at Chor Bazaar File:Phones chor bazaar.jpg, Old second hand phones and electronic goods for sale

References

External links

Chor Bazaar
at tripsavvy.com
Travel guide
at Mumbai Tourism *https://www.holidify.com/places/mumbai/chor-bazaar-mumbai-sightseeing-1254716.html *https://theculturetrip.com/asia/india/articles/a-history-of-chor-bazaar-mumbais-largest-flea-market-in-1-minute/?amp=1 {{Tourist attractions in Mumbai Neighbourhoods in Mumbai Retail markets in Mumbai Culture of Mumbai Flea markets