When he first arrived in Shanghai in 1999, Bivash Mukherjee never imagined the city would become his home for the next 20 years.

The Indian-born journalist initially arrived here to assist the launch of Shanghai Daily, the first English-language daily in the city. In ensuing years, he became a bridge between Chinese and Indian cultures.

The Mumbai native came with international experience under his belt, after working in newsrooms in Moscow and Bangkok. He said he had read a lot about China before coming to the country.

鈥淲hen I received the invitation from Shanghai Daily, I decided to come and have a look myself,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 figured I would work here maybe for a year or two, and once the paper was firmly launched, I would leave. At least that was the plan.鈥�

In his first months in the city, he took long nighttime walks through the city, discovering its soul and creating an emotional bond with Shanghai. At the same time, he formed deep relationships with Chinese colleagues at the newspaper.

鈥淧eople (expats) who worked with me back then have gone,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut I just stayed鈥� for the nice colleagues here. My father used to tell me that I should be in a place where I am wanted. I also managed to travel a lot in China.鈥�

Mukherjee鈥檚 long tenure in the city has given him a front row seat on recent history. He witnessed the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and the Shanghai 2010 World Expo. He was also in the city during the SARS outbreak and worked on news coverage of the Sichuan earthquake.

He married an Indian woman, who joined him in Shanghai. Their two children were born in the city. He named his daughter Chinmoyee 鈥� 鈥淐hin鈥� for China and 鈥渕oyee鈥� a word for affection and love.

鈥淲hen she was delivered in the Shanghai No. 1 Maternity and Infant Hospital in 2002, half of the Shanghai Daily office was there,鈥� said Mukherjee. 鈥淭hey came to help me communicate with doctors and to support and congratulate me. That鈥檚 the kind of warmth that tied me to the city.鈥�

Switching to sports

As night desk editor, Mukherjee started out working on city and business news before switching to sports around the time of the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.

鈥淪ports is exciting in this sports-mad country,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 used to follow only football, cricket and tennis. But the variety of disciplines in China, like badminton and table tennis, also fascinated me.鈥�

Work on a daily newspaper kept him up-to-date with a changing China and Shanghai.

鈥淐hina is constantly trying to change, build and create,鈥� he said. 鈥淥nce this country decides to do something, there is no stopping it. It has a young and informative generation. With the Belt and Road policy, we see China building more connections with the rest of the world. Development is always a positive story.鈥�

Mukherjee鈥檚 inquisitive nature led him to look for connections between the traditions and culture of China and India, the world鈥檚 two most populous nations. He was keen to foster a closer understanding between his birthplace and his adopted home, and in the process, he evolved into an unofficial goodwill ambassador.

One of his most significant contributions to that process was a self-made documentary entitled 鈥淕urudev 鈥� A Journey to the East.鈥� The film, which traced Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore鈥檚 visits to China in the 1920s, is now a regular feature at Sino-Indian conferences in both countries.

The film started with a small discovery during a stroll through the back alleys of Shanghai.

鈥淚 walked into a neighborhood near Yan鈥檃n Road and found a plaque with Tagore鈥檚 name on it,鈥� said Mukherjee. 鈥淚t was the only name in English and I was curious. I took a Chinese colleague back to the spot the next day to find out about the board. It turned out the great poet used to live there.鈥�

Research ensued.

鈥淚 looked for books and materials from the library and archive offices, and sought information from experts and Chinese poets like Zhao Lihong,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 also went back to India to dig out as much as I could.鈥�

Mukherjee then wrote an article for Shanghai Daily about his discovery.

鈥淏ut the article could be no longer than 2,000 words, and I had so much more to tell,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat was when I decided to pour all the information I had uncovered into a documentary.鈥�

The film caught the attention of the Indian Consulate in Shanghai, as well as other Chinese who were interested in that period of history. It was screened at the Shanghai Writer鈥檚 Association, the Indian Embassy in Beijing and universities in Hong Kong, Singapore and the US.

鈥淚 was on night shift, so I worked on the documentary during the daytime and holidays,鈥� he said. 鈥淓verything was at my own expense, including hiring a video editor. Some of my colleagues offered help in translation as well as searching for music and recordings.鈥�

Mukherjee is modest about the achievement.

鈥淚t is not a brilliant documentary because even the camera I used was a small tourist camera,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut it was a work of passion and the need to tell a story. After all the screenings, I received even more material from those who saw my film. I will expand the film if time and energy allow.鈥�

Following the documentary, a bust statue of Tagore was installed by the Indian Consulate at the intersection of Nanchang and Maoming roads. The statue was made in India and transported to Shanghai. Presiding over the unveiling was then Indian President Pratibha Patil.

Every year, the Indian community in Shanghai organizes musical activities around the statue to celebrate Tagore鈥檚 birthday.

Another of Mukherjee鈥檚 discoveries was a Sikh temple on Dongbaoxing Road in the Hongkou District. It鈥檚 used as a residential building now.

Mukherjee talked with residents of the building and collected information about the structure, which was designed by an American architect.

鈥淭he residents there were very warm-hearted, showing me around the place and telling me old stories,鈥� he said.

When Mukherjee鈥檚 article on the temple was published on Shanghai Daily, it immediately caught the attention of the Sikh community worldwide, who praised the paper鈥檚 efforts to highlight a slice of history that few Sikhs remember. Other media followed up on the story. The structure is now a protected state relic.

鈥淪ome Indians from the Sikh community and even those living abroad contacted me after reading the story,鈥� he said. 鈥淓very time people who come to Shanghai want to see the temple, I show them around it.鈥�

Connections with China

Mukherjee also became a 鈥渢our guide鈥� for Indian filmmakers visiting Shanghai. Among them was Raam Reddy, who won an award at the Shanghai International Film Festival in 2016 for the Indian regional film 鈥淭hithi.鈥�

鈥淚 showed him around the city at the end of the festival,鈥� Mukherjee said. 鈥淗e was charmed by Shanghai鈥檚 beauty and prosperity. I did the same with a few other Bollywood directors as well.鈥�

Mukherjee recently contributed to the book 鈥淪tray Birds on the Huangpu: A History of Indians in Shanghai.鈥� The book, relating to stories of Indian people living in Shanghai, was launched at the 2018 Shanghai Book Fair.

鈥淭he book is like documentary research,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t shows that Indian connections with China date back centuries.鈥�

Mukherjee also played a part in promoting the Chaiti Arts Festival, an event initiated by a few of his friends to focus on classical Indian music and dance.

鈥淚ndia goes beyond Bollywood,鈥� Mukherjee said. 鈥淚t is a country of rich culture and history, just like China.鈥�

Not many people were aware of the Chaiti Arts Festival when it began in 2013.

鈥淭his year, all the tickets were sold out and 80 percent of the audience was Chinese,鈥� he said with obvious pride.

Mukherjee鈥檚 wife and children love living in Shanghai, but they are returning to India this year because the daughter has reached high school age and the fees for international schools are beyond the family鈥檚 means.

鈥淚f I too have to leave the country someday, I will definitely miss the people here,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hey are the real reason I have stayed so long.鈥�

Mukherjee was honored with the city鈥檚 Magnolia Silver Award in 2014. Four years on, he said he is still overwhelmed by the recognition.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a great feeling to be honored by a city,鈥� he said.

鈥淎ll these years, I have been sharing my stories and experiences in Shanghai and China with people from my homeland. The stories usually differ from what they hear and read in other outlets.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 what I keep telling them 鈥� you have to communicate with the people yourself to really begin to know a country.鈥�