Shelves upon shelves of old dusty bottles of every shape, size and colour; innumerable tiny glass forms heaped in sacks and crates outside the shops; coloured glass glistening in the sun, forming swirling rainbows all around - yes, that's Botal Gali. Mystical, magical; whispering untold stories to those who would listen.
My first visit to Botal Gali years ago was not what I had expected. It wasn't even intentional. It was one of my usual visits to Paper Market when I decided to explore the entwined lanes and ended up gasping at the sight of countless bottles and jars from places unknown. It was then that I discovered what was soon going to be one of my favourite haunts for many years to come.
The exploration unearthed a plethora of interesting shops, all laden with everything from apothecary bottles and jars to old empty medicine bottles, and from canisters to empty liquor bottles. The intriguing shapes and sizes stood out from the regular lot, the perfect prop for these. The old brick buildings which housed the shops on the ground floor and mostly residences on the upper floors just added to the old world charm. The more I visited Botal Gali, the more stories I weaved around it and the goods it carried, in my imagination. A multitude of dusty apothecary jars on the top shelves made me wonder what potions they once held, what journey they experienced till they ended up in these shops, what secrets they hold.
With time my visits became less frequent but the fascination with the magical gali remains. Now, as part of Reimagining Karachi, I urge all those who haven't been there yet, to take some time out of the busy hectic schedules and explore the dense area of Paper Market and Botal Gali and experience the world that most of us are unaware exists in this town.
The exploration unearthed a plethora of interesting shops, all laden with everything from apothecary bottles and jars to old empty medicine bottles, and from canisters to empty liquor bottles. The intriguing shapes and sizes stood out from the regular lot, the perfect prop for these. The old brick buildings which housed the shops on the ground floor and mostly residences on the upper floors just added to the old world charm. The more I visited Botal Gali, the more stories I weaved around it and the goods it carried, in my imagination. A multitude of dusty apothecary jars on the top shelves made me wonder what potions they once held, what journey they experienced till they ended up in these shops, what secrets they hold.
With time my visits became less frequent but the fascination with the magical gali remains. Now, as part of Reimagining Karachi, I urge all those who haven't been there yet, to take some time out of the busy hectic schedules and explore the dense area of Paper Market and Botal Gali and experience the world that most of us are unaware exists in this town.
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| A gem slightly off Botal Gali |
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