Koshy’s, a resto-cafe on St. Marks Road, has been one of the most enduring landmarks of Bangalore. Founded in 1940, it has managed to preserve its old-world charm in the face of a change that has completely transformed the idea of the city. Bangalore has morphed from the senior-citizen-friendly garden city it once used to be, into the crowded, cosmopolitan, tech capital of India in a relatively short period of time.

 

A favourite haunt of the city’s intelligentsia, Koshy’s sees people from all walks of life - writers, artists, theatre professionals, activists, lawyers, scientists, engineers and many others - all meet to converse and exchange ideas over endless rounds of tea/coffee/drinks. And this regular congregation has created a vibrant, lively center of conversation in the heart of the city.

Koshy’s regulars often talk about the institution’s heyday, and the picture that they paint always has a ubiquitous cloud of smoke in it. The most striking visual change in Koshy’s in recent times has been the smoking ban, leading to a healthier setting, but the regulars will insistently tell you that ‘something is missing’. This story follows from a discussion about what Bangalore and Koshy’s were like in hazier times, the inevitable nostalgia associated with the past, and the kind of conversations that this unique space sparks off.

 

{UrbanLore was born out of a series of conversations about Bangalore - the city, its history, the people, landmarks, culture, nostalgia, urban legends, experiences, interactions; and we hope to reflect these discussions in the graphic stories, and extend these conversations to other cities.}