The vertical accent provided by the tower at Karfule is distinctly Art Deco. The tower originally served as a clock tower. The clock was replaced by the Caltex sign, and since 1978, the Hindustan Petroleum logo. The Caltex sign remains with the Sequeira family as part of the pump's historical archive of objects.
Karfule is the only Art Deco petrol pump in Mumbai and one of two (Construction House is the other) buildings in Ballard Estate built in the late 1930s. The kiosk-like structure, with its octagonal canopy and star-shaped terrazzo tiles in the interior, was designed by GB Mhatre and Architectural Studio, one of the most prolific Art Deco architects of the era.
Karfule is word-play on 'Car Fuel'. The pump opened in 1938 and is run by the Sequeira family, now in its third generation. The business was started by Gabriel Sequeira, who had immigrated from Goa in the late 1920s. Until his death in 2001, at 98 years of age, Gabriel Sequeira remained actively involved in the Karfule business, visiting the pump regularly.