This Powai Bookstore Has The Biggest Collection Of Regional Books & Translations

Vasundhra Book Shop in Powai has been a secret waiting to unravel itself. We stopped by the hidden bookstore on a pleasant afternoon, and found ourselves in the company of the most diverse regional and Hindi literature.

Vasundhara Book Shop was started off by Jitendra Bhatia and Sudha Arora, two celebrated Hindi authors who out of their passion for the language, and literature set it up back in 2001.

A treasure trove of translations {Hindi and English} of national as well as international writers and poets – it’s a book lovers pilgrimage. Here, find Hindi authors like Premchand, Rajendra Yadav, V. Suteyev, Marathi authors like Binda Karandikar, Pradmya Pawar, Namdev Dhasal and even Gujarati writers like Varsha Adlaja and Dhiruben Patel.

This is perhaps the only book shop in Mumbai to host such a rich and diverse collection of books, novels, poems, plays or even translated works of regional authors.

A lot of their books, come from publishing houses like National Book Trust {NBT}, or Eklavaya Publishing House. However, the most fascinating aspect of the shop lies in the fact they have a colourful collection of children’s books – activity books, illustrated short stories, and even regional folklores {again translated in Hindi and even Marathi}.

A few authors beckoning us were – Tagore, Manto, Gurudyal Singh, Mahip Singh, Harishankar Prasad – apart from your international poets, all translated in Hindi. Jitendra, over a cup of tea, tells us – his idea is to curate books that are unique and not easily available in your regular off-the-mill bookstores.

The most prized corner of the shop? A magazine rack comprising of Hindi magazines from around the country. We unearthed Gav Ke Log {a collection of articles from Varanasi}, Hans {a Hindi cultural magazine}, and even Kathadesh {a Hindi journalism magazine}.

We hoarded up on eight books {ranging from political philosophies, to Premchand} and ended up paying only INR 800. There’s a tiny reading shelf that one can pull out, and sit down to read.

It’s a lovely, tiny bookstore so we suggest you make your way for a cosy reading session here.