Citing various sources, Shanti Mhatre in her post on the Old Bombay group on FB gives us some interesting information.
Gymkhanas in India are a British legacy. Derived from the Persion word "Jamatkhana" meaning a place of assembly, "Gymkhana" is an Anglo-Indian expression, its meaning altered to denote a place where skill-based contests were held. Most gymkhanas have a Gymkhana Club associated with them, a term coined during Raj for gentleman's club. More generally, gymkhana refers to a social and sporting club in the Indian subcontinent and in other Asian ex-British colonies: Burma, Sri Lanka, Singapore and Malaysia as well as in East Africa. In the 1890s, the British (Governor of Bombay) gave sea-facing plots on what was then known as the Kennedy Sea Face along Marine Lines to build six Gymkhana to promote sports and games. Parsi, Islam, Hindu, Catholic, Police and Grant Medical College on plots leased by the City Collector over 3.5 acres. The Parsi, Hindu and Islam Gymkhanas formed the Bombay Cricket Association, which was headquartered in the Islam Gymkhana until it shifted to the Cricket Club of India in 1942. During WWII, the government occupied the Islam and Parsi gymkhana forcing the adjacent Hindu Gymkhana to offer membership to non-Hindus as an "emergency measure". The Bombay Gymkhana was established in 1875, originally built as a British-only club, designed by English architect Claude Batley who also designed various well known buildings in Bombay. It is located at the south end of Azad Maidan. The Princess Victoria Mary Ladies Gymkhana was set up in 1909 to provide separate space for women to organize social events. Wodehouse Gymkhana was started in 1909 as Bombay Commercial Gymkhana. Its name was changed in 1935 to commemorate Sir Philips Wodehouse, the Governor of Bombay from 1872-75. Initially, Indians weren’t allowed inside the club even as guests. It was only at the time of India’s freedom struggle that started taking Indian members in. The Japanese Gymkhana was located in the Cooperage along the same line as the Princess Victoria & Mary Ladies Gymkhana and the former Bombay Presidency Gymkhana (today’s Wodehouse Gymkhana) opposite the Cooperage football grounds. The exact location, however, has not been identified. At the turn of the 20th century, British India was home to about 3,000 Japanese expatriates, and Bombay and its presidency had well-established trade ties starting in 1858 with Imperial Japan – until the Second World War brought it all to an end. The Parsi Gymkhana opened in 1888 built primarily for Parsis, for sports as well as social activities. It was founded by Parsi cricketers and was famous for hosting Bombay Quadrangular and Bombay Pentangular cricket tournaments. The Wilson College Gymkhana was inaugurated in 1910 by Sir John Muie-McKenzie. A pavilion was added in 1916 with a grant from Sir Shapurji Bharucha and inaugurated by Lord and Lady Willingdon. The gymkhana provides its students the infrastructure to enjoy campus games and train for Inter-Collegiate tournaments The German Gymkhana was at Marine Lines for Germans who lived in the Backbay area (thanks to the post by Irach Taraporewala) OTHER MUMBAI GYMKHANAS The PJ Hindu Gymkhana was formally founded in the year 1894 by the Governor of Bombay. However, it was started by some young enthusiasts in 1878 as the Hindu Cricket Club when they saw that the Parsi community of Bombay was making progress in the game of cricket Islam Gymkhana was established in 1890. Until 1942, the gymkhana was the headquarters of the Bombay Cricket Association of which it is a founding member. Grant Medical College Gymkhana Catholic Gymkhana was started in 1912 accepting the then Governmor’s offer of a site for a Catholic Gymkhana. Matunga Gymkhana was inaugurated in 1932. It was started in 1927 as the Matunga Kreeda Mandal for physical by four young Matunga residents who wanted better health and sports facilities for the youth. Bandra Gymkhana and Khar Gymkhanas started in 1935 The Willingdon Catholic Gymkhana started off as a small clubhouse for Catholic residents of Santacruz in 1928. primarily to promote fellowship among its members through social activities The Mulund Gymkhana is a Public Trust established in 1983 in the eastern suburbs for sportsmen Apologies if any were left out inadvertently. Roland Toronto.
