The word ‘Apollo’ is derived from ‘Polle’ of the native Konkani language, and corrupted
by the English from the Portuguese ‘Pollem’ to Apollo. The land was reclaimed in
1900 in order to build a welcoming arch to receive King George V and Queen Mary.
S V Rajadhakshya, the then chief civil engineer, built Apollo Bunder in 1908.Parsi
industrialist Jamshedji Tata commissioned the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel. Built in the
Indo-Saracenic architectural style, this luxury hotel opened in December 1903. Sitaram
Khanderao Vaidya, Ashok Kumar and DN Mirza were the architects, WA Chambers
was the engineer, and Khansaheb Sorabji Ruttonji Contractor was the builder. The cost
of construction totalled £250,000.
