When Bengaluru rallied for its beloved spaces

When rain and hail damaged over 4,000 books at The Bookworm on Church Street, Bengaluru’s reading community stepped in to support the much-loved independent bookstore. They sorted through soggy piles, laid damp volumes out in the sun, and cleaned the space. Some bought soiled copies, some explored raising funds.

Similar moments of solidarity have played out in the past.

Premier Bookshop, which stood at the corner of Church Street and Museum Road since 1971, was as cherished as its owner, T S Shanbhag. He was known to be warm, humorous, and gifted with an uncanny sense of a reader’s taste. Before the shop shut in 2009 to make way for a pub, members of the literary community even reached out to see if they could help financially.

But writer Vivek Shanbhag, a long-time patron, recalls, “He (the owner) was already planning to retire, and the end of the lease came around the same time.”

As a fitting send-off, regulars made one last visit, picking up books at a 60% discount. Writers like Pratibha Nandakumar, Vivek Shanbhag, Ramachandra Guha, and Prof G Venkatasubbaiah came together for a photograph. Guha has also penned an essay in its memory, ‘Turning Crimson at Premier’s’.

Similarly, Nagasri Book House, a cosy neighbourhood store in Jayanagar Shopping Complex, closed in 2024 after serving readers for 48 years. The partners stepped back due to age-related concerns. The news went viral a week before the closure after a customer shared it on WhatsApp. And Bengalureans turned up in large numbers to give it a fitting farewell.

“We were issuing 200-300 bills a day till the very end and sold 95% of our stock,” recalls co-owner Venkatesh. The response wasn’t surprising. “During the pandemic, we were shut for 90 days but still had rent and overheads to pay. At the time, two-three customers even offered financial help, but we managed on our own,” he says.

Not just bookstores, Bengalureans have also rallied around their favourite eateries and performance spaces. A throwback.

‘Save Airlines’ petition

In 2014, “administrative issues” forced Airlines Hotel, Bengaluru’s first drive-in restaurant on Lavelle Road, to shut for four months. The 1968 establishment is popular for its coffee, idlis, dosas, and chana bhaturas, and its banyan-shaded setting.

Proprietor Diwakar Rao recalls: “I don’t use Facebook, but my wife and friends told me people had started a ‘Save Airlines’ petition.” The campaign reportedly drew 4,000 signatures. Offline too, regulars dropped by daily to check if the restaurant had reopened. “One man said he gets a headache if he doesn’t visit. Another said he just likes standing inside, even without ordering. About 200 patrons have been coming here daily for 20-30 years,” he reminisces.

When the issue was resolved on July 25 at 5 pm, Rao says they were back in service within 15 minutes, and the place quickly filled up. He says while public opinion cannot sway authorities, it offered “moral support and confidence at a time of pressure, and created a positive perception that the place must continue.”

From customers to partners

Started in 1977, Dolphins Bar and Kitchen was among the first outside the CBD to serve beer on tap, and was known for its affordable coastal Karnataka fare. The Cox Town outlet was facing imminent closure in 2023, but got a second life due to its customers, Neil Quadras and Amit Dev.

Quadras recalls, “I had ordered food over the Independence Day weekend. The delivery person came and said, ‘This is the last order.’” Shocked, Quadras called his college friend Dev, who works in the F&B industry, to see if they could save their favourite hangout.

Owner Ananda Shetty gave them 10 days to sort out licences. It was a “crazy” sprint, but within 15 days, they secured the necessary assurances. Shetty was pleased and came on board as a partner. “When old haunts like Guzzlers shut, people said, ‘If only we had known earlier, we could have done something.’ So I wanted to try,” says Quadras, who runs a video production studio. He put buying a house on hold and invested in this instead.

The duo retained the old Cantonment vibe, but brought down a few walls to make the space brighter. “It had begun to feel dingy,” Quadras says.

Seeing Dolphins’ success, other bars with 30-40 years of history, including The Denny’s Pub in J P Nagar and Teja Bar and Restaurant on New BEL Road, approached the duo for revival, which they successfully took up.

Singing non-stop

Long before ‘sing-alongs’ became a staple of the city’s social calendar, Lahe Lahe, an arts and community space in Indiranagar, had been hosting them every Wednesday since 2016. After it shut abruptly in 2024, regulars stepped in to keep its ‘Music Jam’ event going.

Founder Mansee Shah recalls, “Soumyadeep Dasgupta rented the clubhouse in his apartment complex and hosted the jam themselves. Around 40-50 people turned up to show support, including those who hadn’t attended it ever. The ticket proceeds were returned to Lahe Lahe. It was quite an emotional moment.”

Today, Lahe Lahe operates in a decentralised format as the Lahe Lahe Caravan, hosting events across venues. The ‘Music Jam’ has moved across five spaces and is currently held at Dhurii around Indiranagar. It has 25-30 regulars, and participants like Plabon Roy handle aspects like promotion and facilitation.

Mansee says the community is giving back because of the value it has brought to their lives. “Many found close friends. At least four couples met here and went on to get married. Some have even formed or joined bands,” she says, adding, “To a trained musician, their singing might sound like noise, but for participants, it’s pure joy."

Rs 20 lakh in a week

Medai, a small performance venue in Koramangala known for hosting the Margazhi classical arts festival, ran into trouble this January. The landlord revised the rent sharply, allegedly in violation of their agreement, says its director of cultural events, Preeti Banerjee.

As the team scrambled, artistes who had performed at Medai began sharing leads for alternative spaces. Preeti soon found one within the Good Shepherd Auditorium campus on Museum Road. But midway through the interior work, funds ran out. “I posted a crowdfunding link on Instagram and wrote that if we don’t raise funds in time, Medai might shut,” she recalls.

Word spread across dance, music and theatre circles, and donations, even business investments, started pouring in. The team raised close to Rs 20 lakh in a week and soon staged their first show, ‘The Kite Runner’, at the new venue. Medai will turn three this July.