Rudyard Kipling's bungalow to be preserved

A heritage bungalow in Mumbai that housed writer Rudyard Kipling — known for his short story collection “The Jungle Book”, novel “Kim” and the poem “Mandalay” — would be preserved and converted into a tourist attraction by the Maharashtra government.

The bungalow on Dr Dadabhoy Naoroji Road is located inside the campus of the Sir J J School of Art that is surrounded by several heritage buildings, including the Crawford Market and the Mumbai Police commissionerate. A few metres away from this place is the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, a UNESCO-heritage building. Maharashtra Education Minister Vinod Tawde, who also holds the cultural affairs portfolio, has assured that the government would ensure that the bungalow emerges as a tourist spot. The artefacts inside the bungalow would be properly displayed.

Kipling was born in this bungalow inside the Sir J J School of Art on December 30, 1865, to John Lockwood Kipling and Alice Kipling. His father was an English art teacher, illustrator and museum curator.

The School was founded in March 1857, named after Sir Jamsetjee Jeejebhoy, a businessman and philanthropist, who donated Rs 1,00,000 for its endowment. In 1866, management of the school was taken over by the British government  and  Lockwood Kipling, became its first dean.

The school campus, including the Kipling House, better known as the Dean’s Bungalow, is classified as Grade II heritage structure by the Government of Maharashtra and underwent a restoration in 2002-2006, and again in 2008.

The Maharashtra government over the last decade has been making efforts to convert the bungalow into a museum in memory of Kipling, a nobel laureate.