Having grown up in Chembur, there’s plenty to love about the suburb. It’s green, relatively quiet and still has pockets where you can escape the relentless noise of the city. While it has seen its share of food walks, particularly those exploring its Sindhi and South Indian food traditions, a new walk looks at the suburb through a fresh lens.

Beyond its leafy lanes and Art Deco bungalows, Chembur is layered with forgotten villages, memories and stories. This is the Chembur that Prayag Arora-Desai wants you to notice. Early on a Wednesday morning, I joined him to rediscover the suburb. The former journalist and now climate communications professional has spent the last few years “loitering” around the neighbourhood he moved to in 2021. What began as casual walks, and showing friends places he had discovered, has developed into a guided neighbourhood walk, tracing Chembur from its past as a coastal settlement on Trombay Island, to the rapidly-changing suburb it is today.