Mumbai

Mumbai is the glamour of Bollywood cinema, cricket on the maidans on weekends, bhelpuri on the beach at Chowpatty and red double-decker buses. It is also the infamous cages of the red-light district, Asia's largest slums, communalist politics and powerful mafia dons. This tug of war for the city's soul is played out against a Victorian townscape more reminiscent of a prosperous 19th century English industrial city than anything you'd expect to find on the edge of the Arabian Sea.

An island connected by bridges to the mainland, Mumbai is the industrial hub of everything from textiles to petrochemicals, and responsible for half of India's foreign trade. But while it aspires to be another Singapore, it's also a magnet for the rural poor. It's these new migrants who are continually reshaping the city, making sure Mumbai keeps one foot in its hinterland and the other in the global marketplace.

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Destination Facts

Area: 440 sq km (170 sq mi)
Population: 18 million
State: Maharashtra
Language: Hindi, Marathi
Time Zone: GMT/UTC plus 5.5 hours
Telephone Area Code: 022

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When to go

Most travellers tend to stick around long enough only to reconfirm their plane tickets or organise transport to Goa, scared off by the city's reputation for squalor and the relatively high cost of accommodation. But Mumbai is a safe and charismatic city that fully rewards exploration. The best time to explore is between the months of September and April, when it is relatively dry and cool.

If you want to come to Mumbai for a big event, make it Ganesh Chaturthi, an 11-day Hindu festival in August/September, which reaches a climax when large images of the elephant-headed god are immersed in the sea, notably off Chowpatty Beach.

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History

The seven islands that now form Mumbai were first home to the Koli fisherfolk whose shanties still occupy parts of the city shoreline today. The islands were ruled by a succession of Hindu dynasties, invaded by Muslims in the 14th century and then ceded to Portugal by the Sultan of Gujarat in 1534. The Portuguese did little to develop them before the major island of the group was included in Catherine of Braganza's dowry when she married England's Charles II in 1661. The British Government took possession of all seven islands in 1665 but leased them three years later to the East India Company for a meagre annual rent of 10 pounds sterling.

Bombay soon developed as a trading port thanks to its fine harbour and the number of merchants who were attracted from other parts of India by the British promise of religious freedom and land grants. Migrants included sizeable communities of Parsis and Gujaratis, and south Indian Hindus fleeing Portuguese persecution in Goa. Their arrival, and that of later immigrant groups, laid the basis for Bombay's celebrated multicultural society. Within 20 years, the presidency of the East India Company was transferred to Bombay from Surat, and the town soon became the trading headquarters for the whole west coast of India.

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Bombay's fort was built in the 1720s, and soon after land reclamation projects began the century-long process of joining the seven islands into a single land mass. Although Bombay grew steadily during the 18th century, it remained isolated from its hinterland until the British defeated the Marathis and annexed substantial portions of Western India in 1818. Growth was spurred by the arrival of steam ships and the construction of the first railway in Asia from Bombay to Thana in 1853. Cotton mills were built in the city the following year, and the American Civil War - which temporarily dried up Britain's supply of cotton - sparked Bombay's cotton boom. The fort walls were dismantled in 1864 and the city embarked on a major building spree as it sought to construct a civic townscape commensurate with its new found wealth. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 and the massive expansion of Bombay's docks cemented the city's future as India's primary port.

Bombay played a formative role in the struggle for Independence, hosting the first Indian National Congress in 1885 and the launch of the 'Quit India' campaign in 1942. After Independence the city became capital of the Bombay Presidency but this was divided on linguistic grounds into Maharashtra and Gujarat in 1960. Since then, the huge number of rural (especially Maharashtran) migrants attracted by Bombay's commercial success has strained the city's infrastructure and altered its demographics. It gave rise to a pro-Marathi right-wing regionalist movement, spearheaded by the Shiv Sena municipal government which shook the city's multicultural foundations by discriminating against non-Maharashtrans and Muslims. This increased communalist tensions, which erupted in murderous post-Ayodhya riots in 1992 and was followed by 13 bomb blasts that ripped through the city on a single day in March 1993. Shiv Sainaks were implicated in the former while the city's mafia got blamed for the latter - though the dividing line between the political establishment and organised crime has been hard to pinpoint.

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In 1996 the Shiv Sena officially renamed the city Mumbai. The change of name led to linguistic confusion, and signalled the intention of the Maharashtra state government to assert the city's Marathi identity, despite the strength and success of its multicultural foundations. The Shiv Sena and their leader, Bal Thackeray (noted for his stated admiration of Adolf Hitler), ruled the state of Maharashtra behind the scenes until October 1999, when the administration which had protected them lost to the Congress Party in assembly elections. Attempts by the state's new political leaders to prosecute Thackeray in July 2000 for his alleged involvement in the 1992 anti-Muslim riots led to his supporters effectively shutting Mumbai down for several days through violent protests - the charges against this still influential person were then soon withdrawn.

Mumbai leapt into the new millennium determined to become the most populous city in the world by 2020, when it might hold as many as 28.5 million people. This upcoming stature is, however, of little comfort to the 50% of the city's inhabitants who presently still live without water or electricity. Nothing demonstrates Mumbai's deteriorating environment better than a recent report which claims just breathing the air in Mumbai is equivalent to smoking 20 cigarettes a day, hence the popularity of recently opened 'oxygen bars'. It is hoped that the satellite city of New Bombay, which is taking shape on the mainland, will relieve some of the pressures on the urban environment.

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Events

The Elephanta Festival is a classical dance and music event on Elephanta Island usually held in February. Ganesh Chaturthi, an 11-day Hindu festival in August or September, reaches a climax when large images of the elephant-headed god are immersed in the sea, notably off Chowpatty Beach. Its current form as a mass procession began only in 1893, when nationalists sought to harness the appeal of a Hindu festival. Celebrated in Mumbai during October or November with particular gusto, Diwali's most significant days are marked by a barrage of firecrackers that turn Marine Drive into a war zone; traditional Diwali lamps are floated in the waters of Banganga Tank.

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Activities

Mumbai is hot and sticky year-round but if you fancy a swim and are not staying at a luxury hotel, your choice is limited. Maidan cricket is a Mumbai institution, and you'll be welcome to join any informal games in progress. International cricket matches are played at Wankhede and Brabourne stadiums, just off Marine Drive. Mumbai's horse racing season runs from November to April. Races are held on Sunday at Mahalaxmi Race Course, optimistically named after the Hindu goddess of wealth. The big races are major social occasions.

Mumbai locals enjoy the cool sea breeze behind the Mahalaxmi temple. Photograph by David Collins.

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Attractions

Colaba

Visitors to the India Gate in Mumbai grab a couple of Kulfi - Indian ice-cream usually made from milk, flavoured with Pistachio, almond or mango. Photograph by Greg Elms.

Every visitor to Mumbai comes to look at the exaggerated colonial marker known as the Gateway of India, a yellow basalt arch of triumph officially 'opened' in 1924. It was redundant just 24 years later when the last British regiment ceremoniously departed India from here, and it has become even more of an anachronism as passenger liner services to Mumbai have dried up. It stands on the wonderfully named Apollo Bunder, like a disused back door, and apart from its obligatory roll in the Mumbai snapshot, it's utilised by a colourful crowd of touts, balloon sellers, postcard vendors and snake charmers who give it the hubbub of a bazaar.

The majestic Taj Mahal Hotel overlooks Apollo Bunder and has great views of the gateway from its top floor Apollo Bar. This Mumbai institution was built in 1903 by JN Tata, one of the city's great Parsi benefactors, supposedly after he was refused entry to one of the city's European hotels on account of being 'a native'. The streets behind the Taj Mahal Hotel are the travellers' centre of Mumbai. The main drag of Colaba Causeway is a melee of street vendors, shops, stalls and cafes that leads south to Sassoon Dock - an area of intense and pungent activity at dawn as fishing boats arrive to unload their catch - and north to the fascinating Indo-Saracenic Prince of Wales Museum. The excellent new National Gallery of Modern Art in the nearby Cowasji Jehangir Public Hall showcases Indian modern art and is the city's most dramatic exhibition space.

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Fort

The extravagant Victorian gothic buildings in the Fort area reinforce the European roots of the city, and send shivers of recognition down the spines of visitors from the industrial cities of northern England. This lively area occupies the site of the old British built fort and is the established commercial centre of Mumbai. It's jampacked with commuters, street stalls and the grand facades of 19th century British institutions and trading houses.

Victoria Terminus, the city's most exuberant Gothic building, looks more like a lavishly decorated cathedral or palace than anything as mundane as a transportation depot. Carvings of peacocks, gargoyles, monkeys, elephants and British lions are mixed up among the buttresses, domes, turrets, spires and stained-glass windows. Topping it all is a 4m (13ft) high image of 'Progress' - though the rest of the building looks more like a celebration of Pandemonium. Don't wait until you have to catch a train to see it.

Other gems include Bombay University, the High Court, the BMC building and stately Horniman Circle, laid out around the sole surviving section of Bombay's original Cotton Green. St Thomas' Cathedral near Horniman Circle was begun as early as 1672 but remained unfinished until 1718. Its whitewashed interior contains poignant colonial memorials, including one to Henry Robertson Bower, Lieutenant of the Royal Indian Marine, 'who lost his life returning from the South Pole with Scott' - spare the man a thought when it's a sweltering 38°C (100°F) outside.

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Marine Drive

Built on land reclaimed from Back Bay in 1920, Marine Drive runs along the shoreline of the Arabian Sea from Nariman Point past Chowpatty Beach to the foot of Malabar Hill. It's one of Mumbai's most popular promenades and a favourite sunset-watching spot. You certainly won't be loitering on the sea wall long before you're engaged in conversation, even if it's with someone offering to show you how well their monkey can breakdance. The promenade is lined with decaying Art Deco apartments just begging for a paint manufacturer to prove what their product can do to brighten up an area. Tourist brochures are fond of dubbing it the Queen's Necklace, because of the dramatic curve of its streetlights at night. It's less spectacular during the day, though there are plans afoot to beautify the area.

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Chowpatty Beach

Mumbai's famous beach is no place for a sunbathe or a dip. In fact, there's not much going on at Chowpatty at all during the day, but in the evening it develops a magical atmosphere as locals come to stroll among the balloon sellers, nut vendors and beach entertainers. Eating bhelpuri at the collection of garishly lit stalls on the edge of the beach at night is an essential part of the Mumbai experience, as is getting a vigorous massage from a malish-wallah. Chowpatty is a great place to witness the annual Ganesh Chaturthi Festival in August/September when large images of the elephant-headed god are immersed in the murky sea.

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Malabar Hill

On the northern promontory of Back Bay is the expensive residential area of Malabar Hill, favoured for its cool breezes and fine views over Back Bay. The colonial bungalows that peppered the hillside in the 18th century have now been replaced by the jerry-built apartment blocks of Mumbai's nouveau riche. The formal Hanging Gardens (or Pherozeshah Mehta Gardens) on top of the hill are an interesting spot to study the courting rituals of coy Indian couples nestled among the bestial topiary, and there are superb views of the city from neighbouring Kamala Nehru Park. Beside the Hanging Gardens, but carefully shielded from view, are the Parsi Towers of Silence. Parsis hold fire, earth and water as sacred so do not cremate or bury their dead. Instead the bodies are laid out within the towers to be picked clean by vultures (or crows). Elaborate precautions are taken to keep out ghoulish sightseers.

Towards the southern end of the promontory is the temple of Walkeshwar, the Sand Lord. According to the Ramayana, Rama rested here on his way to rescue Sita in Lanka and constructed a lingam of sand at the site. The original temple was built about 1000 years ago, though the current structure is much more recent. Just below the temple is the Banganga Tank, which was built on the spot where water spouted when Rama shot a bana (arrow) into the ground. Bathing pilgrims and scores of curious kids make this neighbourhood an oasis from the world of luxury apartment blocks towering above.

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Haji Ali Mosque

Situated at the end of a long causeway poking into the Arabian Sea, is a whitewashed fairytale mosque containing the tomb of the Muslim saint Haji Ali. The saint is believed to have been a wealthy local businessman who renounced the material world and meditated on a nearby headland following a pilgrimage to Mecca. The mosque and tomb were built by devotees in the early 19th century. Alternative versions say Haji Ali died while on a pilgrimage to Mecca and his casket amazingly floated back to Bombay and landed at this spot. The mosque can only be reached at low tide, when the causeway is lined with beggars suffering every imaginable affliction and deformity. There's nothing sombre about the building's cool courtyard, which is generally full of chattering families and refreshment stalls. The rocks exposed at low tide behind the mosque are a favourite spot to catch sea breezes.

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Crawford Market

The colourful indoor Crawford Market or Phule Market, north of VT, is the last outpost of British Bombay before the tumult of the central bazaars begins. It used to be the city's wholesale produce market before this was strategically moved to New Bombay. Today it's where central Mumbai goes shopping for its fruit, vegetables and meat.

Bas reliefs by Rudyard Kipling's father, Lockwood Kipling, adorn the Norman-Gothic exterior, and an ornate fountain he designed stands buried beneath old fruit boxes at the market's centre. The animal market at the rear sells everything from sausage dogs to cockatoos, most kept in cruelly small cages. The meat market is for the brave only, though it's one of the few places you can expect to be accosted and asked if you want to buy a bloody goat's head. Just south of the market is the J J School of Art, where Rudyard Kipling was born in 1865.

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Kalbadevi

No visit to Mumbai is complete without a foray into the bazaars of Kalbadevi, north of Crawford Market. The narrow lanes of this predominantly Muslim area are hemmed in by laundry-draped chawls, and a seething mass of people bring Mumbai's traffic to a standstill. It's in complete contrast to the relative space, orderliness and modernity of South Mumbai.

Laundry drying on a tenement near Babulnath Temple. Photograph by David Collins.

Evening shoppers stop for a chat, Prabhat Colony. Photograph by Karen Trist.

Entire streets are often devoted to a single product since caste traditions remain stronger than capitalist marketing theories; this can make browsing a strange experience as you suddenly encounter shop after shop selling bathroom fittings or copper pipes. Some people consider the bazaars a spectacle rather than a place to shop, but it's a lot more fun doing both.

The main areas are Zaveri Bazaar (jewellery), Mangaldas Market (cloth), Dhabu St (leather goods) and Chor Bazaar (Mumbai's 'thieves' market'). You can pick up anything at Chor Bazaar from car parts to Victorian porcelain - the traditional joke is that it was probably stolen from you in the first place. Mutton St in Chor Bazaar specialises in antiques, ingenious reproductions and miscellaneous junk. Don't place too much faith in authenticity or the lifespan of objects with mechanical parts.

Apart from the shopping opportunities, this area is also home to the Jama Masjid and the Mumbadevi Temple dedicated to the patron goddess of the island's original Koli inhabitants. It's best to venture into the bazaars without a clear destination in mind and just wander aimlessly until you've had enough.

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Elephanta Island

Mumbai's major tourist attractions are the rock-cut temples on peaceful Elephanta Island, 10km (6mi) north-east of the Gateway of India. Thought to have been carved between 450 and 750 AD, the temples survived Portuguese vandalism (one cave was reputedly used by a Portuguese battalion as a shooting gallery) and remain equal in size, beauty and power to the caves at Ajanta and Ellora. The main cave contains large sculpted panels relating to Siva, including the astonishing 6m (20ft) high triple-headed Trimurti - in which Siva embodies the roles of creator, preserver and destroyer. Boats run daily from Mumbai's Apollo Bunder every hour until early afternoon, although it's best to make the trip during the week.

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Sanjay Gandhi National Park

This large protected area of forested hills on Mumbai's northern outskirts is best known for the 109 Kanheri Caves which line the side of a rocky ravine in the centre of the park. They were used by Buddhist monks between the 2nd and 9th centuries as viharas (monasteries) and chaityas (temples). The most impressive is cave 3, the Great Chaitya Cave, which has a long colonnade of pillars and a 5m (15ft) high dagoba (pagoda) at the back of the cave. There's also a Lion Safari Park inside the park.

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Matheran

Matheran ('jungle topped') is the nearest hill station to Mumbai and a refreshing break from the heat and noise of the capital. It's an undulating hilltop located about 50km (30mi) east of the city that is cloaked in shady trees and ringed by walking tracks which lead to lookouts that drop sheer to the plains. On a clear day the views are fantastic and it's possible to see (and supposedly even hear) Mumbai from Hart Point. Louisa Point is a great place to watch the sunset, especially during the week when you might have the bluff entirely to yourself.

Hugh Malet, climbing the path known as Shivaji's Ladder, is credited with the 'discovery' of Matheran in 1850. It soon became a popular hill station during the days of the Raj, as the abundant shade and altitude (800m/2624ft) made is slightly cooler than the plains below. Matheran owes its tranquility to a complete ban on motor vehicles (and bicycles), but on weekends, the town is overrun by day-trippers from Mumbai and the pleasant trails are wall to wall with people. Pleasant diversions include little Charlotte Lake and the Parsi and Hindu cemeteries near Rambaug Point.

Getting to Matheran is half the fun; from Neral Junction you take a narrow-gauge toy train up the 21km (15mi) route to the heart of the hill station. It's a two-hour ascent (or 90-minute descent) as the train winds its way around the steep slopes and, at one point, passes through 'one kiss tunnel'.

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Getting There

Mumbai is the main international gateway to India, with far more flights than Delhi, Calcutta or Madras. It also has the busiest network of domestic flights, including flights to Aurangabad near the Ellora and Ajanta caves. The international terminal (Sahar) and the domestic terminal (Santa Cruz) are 30km (20mi) and 25km (15mi) respectively from downtown Mumbai. There are regular shuttle buses between the two terminals. Long-distance buses depart from the state road transport terminal opposite Mumbai's Central railway station. It's fairly chaotic, and there are almost no signs or information available in English. The state bus companies of Maharashtra, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh all have offices here.

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Getting Around

Two railway systems operate out of Mumbai. Central Railways handles services to the east and south, plus a few trains to the north. Western Railways has services to the north from Churchgate and Central stations. Trains travel frequently between Mumbai and Agra (1345km/835mi), Ahmedabad (490km/305mi), Aurangabad (375km/235mi), Bangalore (1210km/750mi), Calcutta (1960km/1215mi), Chennai (1280km/795mi), Delhi (1385km/860mi), Kochi (1840km/1140mi), Pune (190km/120mi) and Varanasi (1510km/935mi).

Mumbai has one of the best public bus systems of any major Indian city. However, it's red double-decker buses are gradually being crippled by the city's unbelievable traffic congestion. There's also an extensive system of suburban electric trains, but avoid rush hours when trains are so crowded that you have to start making your way towards the door at least three stops before you want to get off. Mumbai has a huge fleet of metered black-and-yellow taxis but, unlike most other Indian cities, no auto-rickshaws in the city centre. Taxi meters are out of date, so fares are calculated by using a conversion card.

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Recommended Reading

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