From Chawl to Skyline: Inside Worli’s Bold Housing Experiment Where Mumbai’s Old Soul Meets Gen-Z Dreams

Source: Hindustan Times

The redevelopment of Mumbai’s century-old BDD Chawls in Worli marks a defining moment in the city’s urban transformation. Driven by the vision and administrative precision of IAS Sanjeev Jaiswal, Vice President and CEO of MHADA, the project has turned what was once a century-old housing cluster into a symbol of modern, inclusive urban renewal. His leadership has ensured that redevelopment isn’t just about rebuilding structures, but about restoring dignity, creating opportunity, and reimagining community living for thousands of Mumbaikars. It’s here, in the heart of Worli, that Gen-Z professionals and long-time residents now share the same skyline, a rare harmony of heritage and progress.

Fiza Shaikh, 25, an assistant professor at M. H. Saboo Siddik College of Engineering, represents the new generation of urban professionals redefining Mumbai’s housing map. After relocating from Pune a month ago, she set out to find a home close to her workplace in Byculla and eventually discovered the redeveloped BDD Chawls in Worli, a kilometre away from the city’s prestigious Worli Seaface, through a Facebook listing. Today, she shares a modern 2-BHK apartment with three flatmates at a combined rent of ₹72,000, an arrangement that makes premium city living both practical and affordable.

“The Worli Metro station gives us easy access to the airport as well as south Mumbai, while all the convenience stores and cafes are close by,” said Shaikh.

One floor below, 72-year-old Mehmoodabi Ansari, who spent five decades in the same chawl before its demolition, has chosen a different path. She now rents out her apartment in the same tower for ₹72,000 a month, using the income to live independently in Jogeshwari.
Two women, two generations, one address, symbolic of how Mumbai’s old-world community spirit is being rewritten in glass and concrete.
 

From 160 Sq. Ft to 40 Storeys

The original chawls, built by the Bombay Development Department (BDD) in the 1920s, once represented the heartbeat of industrial Mumbai. The 207 three-floor buildings spread across 93 acres in Naigaon, Sewri, Lower Parel and Worli. Each floor had 20 rooms of 160 sq. ft., linked by a common gallery and six shared toilets, three for men and three for women.

In March 2016, the state government appointed the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) to lead the redevelopment. By 2018, the project was floated at a cost of ₹16,000 crore, encompassing 121 chawls in Worli, 42 in Naigaon, 32 in N.M. Joshi Marg and 12 in Sewri. The displaced residents were temporarily shifted to transit camps near Century Bazaar.

On August 14, when two of the 33 new 40-storey buildings were ready, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar handed over keys to 556 families, marking the beginning of a new housing chapter for Mumbai.

A New World Rises

Two months on, the D- and E-Wings of the redeveloped towers hum with activity. Handymen move through sleek corridors, echoing a new kind of chawl life. The gentrified complex now houses both legacy owners and new tenants. In some homes, decades-old furniture and home temples preserve the past, while in others, Ikea furnishings and rented appliances signal modern minimalism. Food-delivery bags, repurposed as garbage bins, tell their own story of convenience.

Ansari’s 40-year-old grand-nephew, Abdul Quddus, reflects on the change: “These new flats are not like the chawls we lived in. The front doors of all the homes are shut. If something happens to nani, who can she call for help?”

While the family welcomes their upscale address, they quietly miss the open-door culture that once defined chawl life.
 

Young Workforce, New Energy

For the city’s young professionals, the redeveloped chawls offer both convenience and community.

“A modern house for this kind of rent at this location is a dream,” said Akashi Agarwal, 21, who moved from Bengaluru to pursue a master’s in Luxury Brand Management at Istituto Marangoni, Worli. She shares her 2-BHK flat with a classmate, splitting the ₹70,000 rent and leasing appliances for ₹8,000 for six months.

Broker Nilesh Tatya Humraskar, 41, has already found homes for 24 such tenants in the past month. “Since then at least 30 families have approached me for flats to rent,” he said.

Most of these tenants are young professionals from banking, finance, academia, medicine, and law, drawn by connectivity, lifestyle, and affordability in a prime location.

Long-time resident Mahesh Gaikar, who has run a driving school in Worli for 48 years, sees the economics differently: “Instead of bickering over who gets how much, it is simpler to rent out the flat and split the income.”

The Cultural Shift

For many original residents, the transformation is emotional as much as physical. Ayesha Shetty, 26, assistant manager at HDFC Bank, said: “It’s different, as it should be. My family is happy to emerge from the past chaotic phase.”

Having grown up in the old chawl, she still spots familiar faces but senses a new rhythm, one shaped by young tenants and a cosmopolitan mix.

“My father is eager to befriend the young tenants driven by curiosity,” she added.

Veteran resident Bajrang Kale, who has lived in the chawls since the 1990s, acknowledges the shift: “While there was unity among members of a chawl, who celebrated festivals together, now a new culture has dawned upon us, with people from various backgrounds and communities moving in here.”

Still, he remains hopeful: “Once everyone shifts, we can set up tables and have food catered during functions,” he said, expressing hope that “a temple, mosque and church will be set up in the open spaces around the buildings, as discussed with the architects and officials from MHADA.”

The Vision Ahead

As BMC Corporator Datta Narvankar confirms, “The two towers are just the first phase of redevelopment. Five more phases will follow. We will bring back the old chawl residents in the new buildings. We will also build places of worship for people following disparate religions.”

Kiran Mane, General Secretary of the Akhil BDD Chawl Bhadekaru Hakk Sarankshan Samiti, adds: “There is a major change in the culture and lifestyles of the new residents. The original chawl residents lived a certain lifestyle but the younger generations are better educated, and have their own ways.”

Part of this shift is visible outside, in the number of cars, two-wheelers, and quick-commerce delivery executives dashing through the premises.
 

Leadership and Legacy

At the centre of this ambitious change is a governance model anchored in transparency and citizen trust. Under IAS Sanjeev Jaiswal’s stewardship, MHADA’s redevelopment initiatives have focused on precision planning, rehabilitation with dignity, and digitised systems to ensure accountability at every stage.

His vision, to modernise without marginalising, has helped turn the BDD project into a template for future urban renewal across Mumbai. By aligning policy execution with human impact, the authority has not only rebuilt homes but restored hope for thousands who once called these chawls home.