Around the World to Simbai (Now with more pics!) «12...Next Go

ciane

(This is an entry for the Around the World contest in the Gift Giving forum. Part of requirement is a thorough look into the history. So...)

Back in the beginning of time, stone age dwellers resided in an area that Ptolemy later referred to as Heptnesia. Over time, the islands were mostly inhabited by local fisher folk called Koli. They believed the Hindu goddess Mumbadevi or Mumba Aai was their protectress.

A Buddhist emperor ruled in the third century BCE. Many dynasties rose and fell after that. The Buddhist one was replaced with Hindu and even Muslim ones in the mid to late 1300s.

In the early 1500s, Portuguese fishermen took over the area. They liked the deep water port. They called the area Bom Baia, which meant good bay.



The area was later part of Portuguese Princess Catherine's dowry when she was betrothed to English Charles II in the mid 1600s. Thus began the reign of the East India Company. They began massive land reclamation that turned the seven islands into a long peninsula.



Bombay did not get independence until the mid 1900s. It retained its anglicized Portuguese name for another 50 years. When the area was reorganized based on language, its name was changed to Mumbai to reflect the early Hindu goddess name.



Mumbai is the fifth most populated city in the world. It is both the financial and the film capital of India. It is a city of extremes, with ultra modern facing traditional.



While one man builds himself a billion dollar home, over half of the city's population lives in a slum that vies for the title of Asia's largest.



There many eke a living doing laundry in stalls that are passed down generation after generation, laying clothes to dry on roof tops if not on clothes lines.



Sadly, almost three-fourths of the population is illiterate and lives in poverty.



Tour more of Mumbai and the surrounding area here.

ciane

Though every state in India has its own language, English and Hindi are commonly spoken as well. Two thirds of Mumbai's population is Hindu, while half of the rest are Muslim and the other half divided fairly evenly between Buddhist, Jain, and Christian. Despite the differences, the people are mostly peaceful, gentle, and content. Somehow, living next to Bollywood, the world's largest film industry, allows everyone to dream big and lines of division to blur.


One fascinating thing about this place is the color.


The women wear such gorgeous bright colors in their traditional saris.

You'll find women wearing them on the beach.


They may even go for a dip in their saris.


Saris are for the young girls too.

ciane

My sim lot inspiration was the Bandra Ohm by James Law that was referred to as cybertecture rather than architecture. It is designed to look like the Ohm symbol - very fluid and organic - with space in the center and rounded edges. It has an illusion of weightlessness with all the glass and it is partially eco-friendly with green spaces and environmental concerns, which was incorporated into the Simbai build with green spaces, solar panels, and wind turbines.


The individual swimming pools take luxury to a new level.


The apartments blend the warm natural wood floor with the ultra modern floor-to-ceiling glass and white-on-white decor with splashes of colors.

While the bridge in Bridgeport doesn't look much like the Bandra-Worli Sea Link, Mumbai's Bandra is located next to the bridge and it the location picked for the Bandra Ohm.


All the skyscrapers in Bridgeport were converted to four-story apartment buildings and the Crescent Bay Apartment building was torn down to make a home for the new Ohmmm Apartments.


While the original plan called for a very white-on-white modern look with pops of color through artwork, the pollution in Mumbai quickly faded the white to a warmer beige and the residents chose to accentuate the blues and greens of the bay in their homes.


The narrow angled columns reflect the curved columns found in the original design. And, the curved greenhouse roof sections allude to the curve of the Ohm design as well. A true ohm symbol stands on two legs that curve to form an arch. The patios help to form that illusion.


Why did I chose an ultra-modern skyscraper rather than a traditional building? Any traditional building seemed to only represent one of the many cultures or religions rather than a union or synergy. I wanted to represent the hope of the masses of Mumbai to raise above and create something greater, as well as the ability to retain individual parts.

Each of the apartments has an alter space and a religious image for religion is a main part of most lives here. Ganesh, the elephant god of fortune with trunk raised who removes obstacles, is found in both sculpture and tapestry. Shiva, the many armed god known for destruction and rebirth, can be found in its own niche as well. You'll also find a Buddhist temple with an angel hovering over it. You do have to use your imagination a bit and see the rose and flowers in the tapestry as a lotus flower.


NOTE: One of the things you must understand is that, even though these are luxury apartments, space is still a premium. You will find small water closets and compact kitchens with energy efficient refrigerators. The rooms, however, should still present a very spacious, uncluttered appearance.

Also, paparazzi were standing in the sun too long outside the gates and would burst into flames, so I moved the sprinkler system up to overshoot the garden and help cool the paparazzi. I also added the outdoor fireplaces to help keep them warm in winter. I seemed the right thing to do.

There are more pictures included the upload images, so please take a look there too!

ciane

My Sim inspirations were:

ciane

Chahna wants be rich and famous, like many who live in Mumbai, hoping to be a star in Bollywood. Mumbai is known as a city of dreams, and Chahna is one of its dreamers. Also, as Mumbai is additionally known as the city that never sleeps, both Chahna and her next door neighbor, Kalini, are night owls who love to stay up late and then sleep in.



Kalini is more artistic. She favors art and music to Chahna's performance arts. Her apartment has a second bedroom with crib and bed. She is a dreamer too, and she dreams of a family of her own one day.



Rashmi might live in the city of dreams, but he knows the underside of the city all too well. He works in law enforcement, trying to keep the clashes between opposing castes and religions to a minimum. He, like most of the people here, believes that it is important to do service for others.



Sohan is one of the biggest dreamers, but he is positive thinker. He knows that hard work is all it takes to get ahead. He willingly puts in extra effort to see the rewards that will come.



Together these young stars represent the future and the past of Mumbai or Simbai, in this alternate universe. It is their dreams which will create the future. It is their acts upon which the future of Simbai depends.



Note: The names are all Hindu or Hindi names meaning love, flower, sun rays, and handsome, respectively. The middle names are the names of their fathers. The last names are all Marathi ones. There was a lot of interesting info on names alone. Those ending with kar or walla meant an association, such as from the village of or a worker of.

ciane

In case I forgot something... like links.

link to lot and sims together: http://www.thesims3.com/assetDetail.html?assetId=7197861

link to lot http://www.thesims3.com/assetDetail.html?assetId=7197961

link to sim/sim family (optional)http://www.thesims3.com/assetDetail.html?assetId=7197933

Individual CAS Sims are in my studio too.

link to even more pictures, if you are interested:
http://s45.photobucket.com/user/ciane/library/apartments/Simbai/more

And for those who like to see the layout of builds, here you go:










Thank you for looking (and commenting). ; }

Now have a great day!

itguyinsc

The details show the time and research you have devoted to this masterpiece!

Mmdrgntobldrgn

wow .... outstanding

StephBE

:shock: :shock: :shock: :thumbup:
This is amazing ciane, you've put in so much work and I've learnt a lot. Great job, you should be really proud of yourself!

Shelleybelly

Wow. Loved the build, the pics, and the background story!!!!!

rosemow

Thankyou for taking us to Mumbai/Simbai and allowing us to experience and have an insight to the people and to life lived in the city. It was very interesting to see through your photos and what you have written what life is for many of the people who live there. It was good to learn about the history of the city, and I liked seeing the colourful clothes that are worn. Ciane, thankyou for the special thoughtful way you approached this build and report. You showed a lot of empathy for the people. You gave hope for the future to and for the people, by one of the main themes of your build being that Mumbai is a city of dreams and your choice of the build/ohm symbol that you based it on being a sign of unity of all the different types of people that live in the city, yet they also retain individuality in their own various groups too. Great designing of the exterior structure of the build, to really symbolize and resemble the ohm symbol and the original build. Great use of the greenhouse set pieces. With religion being a major part of life in Mumbai, it was good how you incorporated symbols of this in the furnishing décor of each apartment and in providing an altar space. You took in the pollution of Mumbai and also the position of the original inspiration build being near the bay, and represented both of these well in your beige and blue colour scheme. I felt that you showed much compassion in your build for the Indian people, and at the same time hope for the future that many will attain their dreams, in the city of dreams. Great creating of your Indian Sims and their background details. Each has a background story that could and would be found as the story of many Indians living in Mumbai today. Thankyou for all the research that you put into this build and the report, both in the designing, building and creating of the apartments build and the Sims, but also in the way you presented this report in a very thoughtful way. It was a journey to Mumbai through your build and report that I was pleased to take .

MeaganJo

WOW :shock: absolutely beautiful work! Love it!

ciane

I forgot to take you to places around Mumbai. Sit back and let the tour begin:

Matahatna Ghandi Museum (Home where he stayed in Mumbai)


Taraporewala Aquarium (Too cute, right?)


Kamala Nehru Park (Yes! There are gorgeous green parks here!)




Train Station (The British era is evident here!)


Gorai Beach (You could picture this almost anywhere, right?)


Guess this place. You can do it!


How about this one?


More in the next post!

ciane

Part of the reason, okay most of reason, I so wanted to visit India was the temples.

Siddhivinayak Temple (I love looking at all the beautiful temples.)


Laxmi Narayan Temple (Color isn't just for saris!)


Ambarnath Temple


Mahanandi Temple sacred pool (You've heard of the sacred waters before, haven't you? Some of the diriest looking water amazingly is free of a lot of nasty bacteria.)


Kanheri Caves (The real test of time)


Buddhist Karla Caves (I love the early cave temples!)


Ajanta Caves (All the cave temples represent to me that it is the heart and soul - the spirit - that is most important.)




Elephanta Caves (I think they are a must see!)


I hope you enjoyed the sightseeing trip! Pick up some refreshments in the next post.

ciane

I forgot to offer you refreshment. Here is a vegetarian curry. You do like spicy food, don't you? Traditional Indian fare includes ghee (like butter) and their version of yoghurt, which is often added to rice. I love the dahl and lentils and the mild spicy and unique flavors. They have a saying that translates somewhat loosely to: Without salt, just throw it in the garbage. So, seasoning is important. Traditionally, one eats with ones fingers off sterling silver dinner ware.



And I know the perfect places to enjoy them:








Or, we could eat in the living room. ; }

ciane

I probably should add some more pictures here or at least a link to more pictures, so here's a link to my photobucket album with more pictures of the build and the sims. I hope you enjoy some of them. You'll see my buddhist temple and Shiva sculpture as well as a paparazzi who spontaneously combusted, resulting in my watering part of the sidewalk now instead of just the grass and garden plants.

http://s45.photobucket.com/user/ciane/library/apartments/Simbai/more

yanti68

What a great project! I see that you have done your research well. The apartment building looks great. Love the interiors pics too.

imoger

I've already commented on the upload, but have to say it again - WOW! It looks amazing!
Gorgeous work with your entry! Good luck in the contest!

ciane

Thank you all and now, I must warn you that I used a lot of store content. I chose what I thought fit best without paying any mind to how much store content I was using.

I admit to only liking the highest comfort and energy items. The sims themselves with choose to go next door to a higher comfort chair, so it is best to just get them the best in the first place.

I also went through several tables and chairs until I found ones they were happy to eat at and quit going to the neighbors.

You don't really need all of these. Just know that you'll be recoloring any substitutes and if the comfort level isn't as high, then your sims may go out of the way to use the neighbors instead.

This is set up as apartments, so you must click on all the doors that someone else could use and assign them to a specific sim or sims. Originally, I thought to leave the penthouse apartments unlocked so the sims could socialize together there. However, that meant they would carry their food up a couple flights of stairs to eat there. (That was before I swapped out lower comfort chairs and store chairs that were not coded correctly as dining chairs though, so it might work if you try again.)

Anyway, here is the laundry list for those that might not know to click on the store link by the download image to see what is in a build:

Lollypop Lollygagger Chair
Jade Pagoda
Cocoon Crib
Linear Loveseat
Tiny Youths Alarm Clock
Ultra Lounge Wall Shelf
Flame
Aurora LushStyle Sconce
Overachieving Plate Rack
Cubic Square Door
Forever Living Plant
Mirror-Mirror
Branching Bird Wall Lamp
Glass Birdie
Chun Co. Teppanyaki Grill
Dreams of Carrots
Animal Friends Activity Table
Dionysus Sofa
Beauteous Baroness Bureau
Contempo End Table
In The Park by Awalck
Overachieving Overhead Cabinet (Double-Sided)
Futureshock Loft- Moisture Minimization Station
Rococo Jacket
Enchanting Mirror Wall
Simple Beach Chair
Vined Mirror
Animal Friends Wall Shelf V.4
NordiChop
Study in Shattering
Glitz and Glamour Window
Aunt Angela's Cast Iron Cookery
Chair al Fresco
Vorn Sink
Rock All Night
Vineyard Vittles Shelf
Hydrocombo Sink
Higher Tech High Wall Shelf
Forte Lounger
Leaves of Tears
Animal Friends Wall Shelf V.2
Topsy Turvey Single Bed
Jammin' Jammers
Grecian Chair
Digital Cube Alarm Clock
Peacefully Piled-Up
Put Some Birds On It
Contempo Coffee Table
Logi-cub3d
Relative Clock
The Traveler's Limited Edition Alarm Clock
Little Grasshopper High Chair
Pastoral Practical Kitchen Shelf
Tropical Fruit Bowl
BahHaus Fence
Longevity Wall Hanging
Everybody Vauntz
The Dramatic Palm
Athena's Olive Tree
Messenger Brogues
MAL 2000
JML Technologic 4:3 TV
Theo's Contempo Coffee Table
Straight Lines Activity Table
Mainframe Linear Chair
To Have and to Fold
Double Root End Table
L4 Bookshelf
Stunning Starlet
Center Stage Slumber
Perfect Place Shelf
Theo's Contempo Round Table
Haute Hip Dining Chair
Binary Barstool
Shrub of Tranquility
Cast Iron Skillet Wall Sculpture
Getaway Beach Chair
Grin and Pear It Dining Table
Le Cirque Esprit- Never Forget Elephant Sculpture
Moon Over Water Mirror
Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice Wall Shelf
That's my Dame Table Sculpture
Koonzilla
Chirashizushi
Silky Sarong
The Undone Gentleman
Piece of Paradise Fan Palms
Study in Fragments
Neon Nights High End Stereo
Tropical Leaves of Repose
Dress Myself Dresser
Ergonomic Potty Chair
MultiTab 6000
Uber-Dress Dresser
Ultra Trash Depository XL
II-Stand Bookshelf
O.M.G. Chair
Overachieving Overhead Glass Cabinet
Ultra Lounge Sink
Mid-Century Modern Bathroom- Shine o' Smile Toothbrush Holder

snowdove58

Your building is awesome ciane! You mastered the infinity pools and brought new meaning to the move objects cheat. The slideshow is great.(so glad we have it back.)Great information! Very creative entry!!!!!

blacksheba1973

I've already rec'd them all, but you did a great job hon and your presentation of this is great. So much research and history.

Tojax

ciane, this project is amazing! The amount of detail and care put into your builds and sims is insane

priscapup

What a fabulous job! It is stunning, and I think it fits in Bridgeport rather well! I love it!

BreeMiles

O my gosh I love your thread it is awesome!!! Wonderful work,, Rec'd all...

Lucyena

Beautiful! Such a great job and I love all you did: Your inspiration pictures, the doku, and most your familiy and your fantastic build! The pool is awesome! Amazing challenge and I keep my fingers crossed for you! There are so many wonderful entries and how difficult it will be to make a deceicion. Already rec`d all your works! :thumbup:

roundheaded

Ciane! Amazing work! :shock: