When this writer visited the establishment, the first thing that we noticed was the busy vibe. Inside, pristine counters, the background hum of a small group of employees at work, and the crisp scent of fabric in the air greets us. One would not guess the many layers of development backing the current atmosphere, unless they spoke to someone who has seen a good chunk of it. That's when we got chatting with the current owner, Amish Kapadia.
A portrait of late founder, Chunilal Mulchand, sourced from the owner's office. Pic Courtesy/Amish Kapadia
Kapadia co-owns the store with his wife, Mona; they are part of the third generation of the family running Chunilal Mulchand & Co. "I have been running the store for 39 years now. We started out in 1925 with our late founder, Shri Chunilal Mulchand; though there is no record of the exact date of inception, when it first opened as a Muir Mill Depot, during the British Raj," he explains. "Initially, [the business] was focused on fabric for clothing -- at the time, suits, shirts, dhotis, kurtas, fabric for dresses, and a few others, were popular."
In fact, the owner reveals that, even before starting out as a mill depot, Chunilal Mulchand's location once used to be a store for Rolls-Royce cars. One section of the wall displays a few vintage photographs, including a frame of a motorcar helmed by a driver, once parked outside the present store. "It is a photo from 1915, a decade before we took over the property," Kapadia remarks.
A signboard shows the centenary celebration, as an employee dresses up the window display
Those familiar with Mumbai's (then Bombay) history will be aware of the contributions of its iconic textile mills to the city's economic growth. Once upon a time, it was the Mecca for cotton trade during colonial rule. Kapadia recalls, "Over decades, many textile mills shuttered; we had to adapt as a business. By the 1960s, we veered away from clothing, to specialise in handloom and home furnishing fabrics instead." Tamil Nadu is the chief location for their supplies.
Chunilal's specialty is its natural fabrics, we learn from the owner. Items sold are made of natural linen, silk, and cotton; for home décor, a few are upholstery, luxury curtains, and bed and bath linen. "Chunilal was referred to as the 'Cotton King' earlier, for our collections," Kapadia shares, while multitasking between attending to customers, instructing employees, and taking the occasional phone call. He adds, "As fashion and demands changed, we moved into polyester and performance fabrics too."
The 1915 photograph of a car outside the shop's property, when it was a Rolls-Royce store
Particularly fascinating is the store's connection with Mumbai's film industry. "This was especially prominent in the 1980s and 1990s, when our textiles featured in major films of the era. We would lend fabrics to production houses for film set props. A few examples are Red Chillies Entertainment and Dharma Productions," Kapadia further elucidates. When we probe for any interesting stories from the silver screen, he fills us in, "I recall an episode from Veer-Zaara (2004); for a shot of barely five minutes, we crafted a 400-metre-long cloth for a curtain to be utilised as part of the scene."
Art teams for films would approach the store with detailed plans and subsequent requests for fabrics, which were eventually made according to different set designs, scenes, and purposes within the shots required. "While we didn't directly interact with filmmakers, we have been visited by notable public figures, including industrialist Anil Ambani and his wife Tina Ambani, as well as film stars such as Rekha, Jaya Bachchan, and Shabana Azmi. Many decades back, actor Vyjayanthimala Bali and activist Kamala Nehru had also paid visits. We treat every personality like we would any other client -- with simplicity," the owner clarifies.
The family business's crest is displayed in the showroom
Kapadia is confident that the 100-year-old store will move with the times, "We introduced cataloguing systems to keep up with the digital age. And whether we sell cotton, linen, or block prints, there's enough to match modern tastes. We'll adapt continuously," he reassures us.
Chunilal Mulchand & Co. is famous for two signature products: garden umbrellas and canvas hammocks, used from resorts to holiday homes and farmhouses. According to Amish Kapadia, Chunilal Mulchand is the sole manufacturer of this type of hammock in India. The same goes for the umbrellas, which come in traditional, Indian-style block-print designs.