Right at the heart of Mumbai, at Lalbaug lies the Bharatmata Cinema Hall. For students studying the School of Media and Cultural Studies, TISS, Mumbai, this iconic cinema hall holds a special place as it was the subject of one of their most creative and successful student documentaries. The area Lalbaug, for a century, was the hub of the Mumbai’s textile industry. The area is dominated by Maharashtrians, who first worked in the Girangaon, the Marathi term for the mill district of south-central Mumbai. Today, the shape of Girangoan or Lalbaug is a bit different, in fact very different. The mills are gone, roads have widened. But one building at still stands tall, or rather still stands is the Bharatmata Cinema Hall. Bharatmata Cinema Hall (Photo: Amlan Das) History amidst modernity. The moment you enter the premise, it feels that you have stepped into a different era all together. The hall still holds the vibes of a bygone era, and era when Lalbaug was still flocke...