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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Seventy-six mayors ruled BMC since 1931

After four years, Mumbai to salute its first citizen Kishori Pednekar Vishwanath Mahadeshwar Snehal Ambekar Sunil Prabhu Mumbai: As the date for appointing Mumbai’s First Citizen looms closer, various political parties have adopted tough posturing to foist their own person for the coveted post of Mayor – the ‘face’ of the country’s commercial capital. Ruling Mahayuti allies Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiv Sena have vowed that the city...

Seventy-six mayors ruled BMC since 1931

After four years, Mumbai to salute its first citizen Kishori Pednekar Vishwanath Mahadeshwar Snehal Ambekar Sunil Prabhu Mumbai: As the date for appointing Mumbai’s First Citizen looms closer, various political parties have adopted tough posturing to foist their own person for the coveted post of Mayor – the ‘face’ of the country’s commercial capital. Ruling Mahayuti allies Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiv Sena have vowed that the city will get a ‘Hindu Marathi’ person to head India’s richest civic body, while the Opposition Shiv Sena (UBT)-Maharashtra Navnirman Sena also harbour fond hopes of a miracle that could ensure their own person for the post. The Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) optimism stems from expectations of possible political permutations-combinations that could develop with a realignment of forces as the Supreme Court is hearing the cases involving the Shiv Sena-Nationalist Congress Party this week. Catapulted as the largest single party, the BJP hopes to install a first ever party-man as Mayor, but that may not create history. Way back in 1982-1983, a BJP leader Dr. Prabhakar Pai had served in the top post in Mumbai (then Bombay). Incidentally, Dr. Pai hailed from Udupi district of Karnataka, and his appointment came barely a couple of years after the BJP was formed (1980), capping a distinguished career as a city father, said experts. Originally a Congressman, Dr. Pai later shifted to the Bharatiya Janata Party, then back to Congress briefly, founded the Janata Seva Sangh before immersing himself in social activities. Second Administrator The 2026 Mayoral elections have evoked huge interest not only among Mumbaikars but across the country as it comes after nearly four years since the BMC was governed by an Administrator. This was only the second time in the BMC history that an Administrator was named after April 1984-May 1985. On both occasions, there were election-related issues, the first time the elections got delayed for certain reasons and the second time the polling was put off owing to Ward delimitations and OBC quotas as the matter was pending in the courts. From 1931 till 2022, Mumbai has been lorded over by 76 Mayors, men and women, hailing from various regions, backgrounds, castes and communities. They included Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Parsis, Sikhs, even a Jew, etc., truly reflecting the cosmopolitan personality of the coastal city and India’s financial powerhouse. In 1931-1932, the Mayor was a Parsi, J. B. Boman Behram, and others from his community followed like Khurshed Framji Nariman (after whom Nariman Point is named), E. A. Bandukwala, Minoo Masani, B. N. Karanjia and other bigwigs. There were Muslims like Hoosenally Rahimtoola, Sultan M. Chinoy, the legendary Yusuf Meherally, Dr. A. U. Memon and others. The Christian community got a fair share of Mayors with Joseph A. D’Souza – who was Member of Constituent Assembly representing Bombay Province for writing-approving the Constitution of India, M. U. Mascarenhas, P. A. Dias, Simon C. Fernandes, J. Leon D’Souza, et al. A Jew Elijah Moses (1937-1938) and a Sikh M. H. Bedi (1983-1984), served as Mayors, but post-1985, for the past 40 years, nobody from any minority community occupied the august post. During the silver jubilee year of the post, Sulochana M. Modi became the first woman Mayor of Mumbai (1956), and later with tweaks in the rules, many women ruled in this post – Nirmala Samant-Prabhavalkar (1994-1995), Vishakha Raut (997-1998), Dr. Shubha Raul (March 2007-Nov. 2009), Shraddha Jadhav (Dec. 2009-March 2012), Snehal Ambedkar (Sep. 2014-March 2017). The last incumbent (before the Administrator) was a government nurse, Kishori Pednekar (Nov. 2019-March 2022) - who earned the sobriquet of ‘Florence Nightingale’ of Mumbai - as she flitted around in her full white uniform at the height of the Covid-19 Pandemic, earning the admiration of the citizens. Mumbai Mayor – high-profile post The Mumbai Mayor’s post is considered a crucial step in the political ladder and many went on to become MLAs, MPs, state-central ministers, a Lok Sabha Speaker, Chief Ministers and union ministers. The formidable S. K. Patil was Mayor (1949-1952) and later served in the union cabinets of PMs Jawaharlal Nehru, Lah Bahadur Shastri and Indira Gandhi; Dahyabhai V. Patel (1954-1955) was the son of India’s first Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel; Manohar Joshi (1976-1977) became the CM of Maharashtra, later union minister and Speaker of Lok Sabha; Chhagan Bhujbal (1985-1986 – 1990-1991) became a Deputy CM.

Thrust on skilling crucial for M&E sector’s global leap

Mumbai: A thrust on skilling of the youth from the tier 2 & Tier 3 cities along with reskilling and upskilling of the existing workforce in the media and entertainment industry would help the sector take a leap and India becoming the most preferred global destination, reports released at the World Audio-Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) here on Saturday have said.


EY India’s report ‘A Studio Called India’, BCG’s report ‘From Content to Commerce’ and Event FAQs Media’s report ‘India’s live events economy – A strategic growth imperative’ were the key reports released by the Union Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting Dr. L. Murugan at the summit.


The reports highlighted the potential that Indian M&E sector holds in terms of global impact. With over 1.4 billion people, including a rapidly growing middle class, the demand for varied and high-quality content is ever increasing. This demographic advantage ensures a steady and expanding market for media and entertainment products. It is interesting to note that digital media overtook television for the first time, becoming the largest segment in India at over INR 800 billion, contributing 32 per cent of M&E sector revenues in 2024.


This digital revolution has transformed the landscape of content consumption. Two lakh hours of content was produced in the country last year, excluding news bulletins and UGC, reflecting the vast and diverse consumer market the country offers to content creators, said the report that highlighted India as the provider of content and media services for the world.


The minister also released the minister’s statistical handbook on media and entertainment sector 2024-25 and a regulatory handbook on Indian Media and Entertainment sector prepared by the legal firm Khaitan & Co.


The EY India report warned that for the potential of the sector to be realized India will need to create high quality resources for future job demands and bridge skill gaps in emerging domains such as immersive media (AR, VR and XR), AAA gaming, high-end animation and VFX.


The report also says that, to fully harness this potential, it is essential to address emerging risks such as job displacement from automation, talent out-migration and the lack of standardized certifications. “Strengthening the talent pipeline through targeted policy support, updated curricula, and deeper industry-academia collaboration will be key. Greater diversity in leadership and creative roles will be essential to unlock the full potential of India's creative economy. By building an inclusive, future-ready skilling ecosystem, India can cement its position as a global leader in creative and digital media talent,” the report warns.


For media tech companies, India's skilled workforce and competitive production costs make it an ideal location to set up operations. The availability of talented professionals in fields such as animation, visual effects, post-production as well as Al and technology ensures high-quality output at cost-effective rates, the report adds.


The reports also hailed initiatives such as the proposed National AVGC-XR Mission, the upcoming Indian Institute of Creative Technology in Mumbai, and progressive state-level policies stating that they are expected to significantly boost employment and entrepreneurship in the M&E sector in the country.

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