In shadow of sealing drive, Champa Gali wonders about its fate

Within this short span of time, the names that carry the Champa Gali address have made news: Blue Tokai, Morello’s, Pho King, Jugmug Thela, People Tree, Jugaad and RenuRekha. But now, owners and employees said, it’s time to close. “We have started looking for alternatives; something will hopefully work out,” said Rekha (57), a visiting professor of applied commercial art at DU. She is also one half of the sister-duo that runs the handicraft store, RenuRekha.

According to owners and staff, cafes and shops here have food licences, GST numbers and official bills for electricity and water for commercial use. But, they said, the market is on agricultural land, bringing it under the Supreme Court’s order three months ago to demolish unauthorised shops.

“The owner of this land rented his cowsheds… The original layout has been kept intact. Even the walls and iron grills of the cowsheds have been restored in the interiors of shops,” said the owner of a popular establishment on condition of anonymity.

“Since the land has not been converted for use by commercial establishments, no business can run here. Most of them are start-ups, making them even more vulnerable,” said another owner.
Dark House Cafe has already shut, and some others are on their way out. “The first two-three days of the sealing drive in December were dreadful. We had started establishing ourselves after five years, but our businesses are under threat,” said the owner.

A senior South Corporation official said they do not plan to carry out another sealing drive in the area in the next few days. But faced with an uncertain future, owners said moving out seems like the only option.

But what’s of real concern, said artists, is that the space for independent art and music in the capital will shrink as a result.

In Champa Gali, this includes People Tree, the studio and retail shop for paintings, handcrafted home decor and stationery made by independent artists and NGOs; and Jugaad, which sells stationery, photo frames and bags made by disadvantaged women in Faridabad. The cafes, meanwhile, host young musicians and theatre artists for performances.

“If such spaces are shut, where do artists go?” said P Gopinath, co-founder of Cholamandal Artists’ Village in Chennai.