Beginning last month, Madras Musings has a column dedicated to the so called ‘protected buildings’. It was in 2010 that the High Court of Madras in a landmark judgement, listed around 400 heritage buildings of Madras, which it deemed worthy of protection. Since then, much time has been wasted by the Government in setting up toothless committees that have done little or nothing. In the meanwhile, a subsequent judgement watered down the original one by interpreting that only the facades of heritage buildings need be protected. But even that has since been given the go by in implementation, with many listed structures in the 2010 judgement vanishing. Beginning with this fortnight, my Heritage Watch column will survey what survives and in what condition, with the judgement of 2010 as its basis.

The first of these features the D’Angeli’s Hotel- For further details on the history behind this building, please read this article.

And now the pics

Listed as being of Grade 2 a (significant historic, cultural and architectural merit) by the High Court of Madras, D’Angeli’s hotel was the site where Spencer’s began life as Durrant’s in 1863. The space was acquired by Giocomo D’Angeli and his hotel came up in 1908. The old shows it in all its glory.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My relatively old is from Wikipedia, when it was Bosotto’s and had Lord Ripon‘s statue fronting it.

D’Angeli’s as Bosotto’s – pic from Wiki commons

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My not-so-new is from the 1960s when it was still a hotel and after being Bosotto’s became the Airline’s Hotel, owned by the Indian Express Group.

Airlines/Bosotto/D’Angeli’s Hotel

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It then suffered several changes of hands and eventually wound up as a warren of shops of which Bata was the most famous.

D’Angeli’s/Bosottos – now being demolished from the rear

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was demolished two years ago and the site remains empty as of now. My New was taken while the demolition was in progress.

Read Heritage Watch 2 – the fate of Last House on Snob’s Alley