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Culture

in Mumbai

Mumbai is a fascinating city of furious energy

and millions of people, where astounding

colonial-era architecture jostles with temples,

slums and fashionable enclaves.

Sights

Local life Activities

MAHALAXMI DHOBI

GHAT

This 140-year-old dhobi ghat

(place where clothes are washed)

is Mumbai’s biggest human-

powered washing machine: every

day hundreds of people beat the

dirt out of thousands of kilograms

of Mumbai clothes and linen in

1,026 open-air troughs. It’s a

fascinating sight. The best view is

from the bridge across the train

tracks near Mahalaxmi station.

GIRGAUM

CHOWPATTY

This city beach is a favourite

evening spot for courting couples,

families, political rallies and

anyone out to enjoy what passes

for fresh air. Evening bhelpuri

(crisp fried thin rounds of dough

with lentils, puffed rice and

onions) at the throng of stalls at

the beach’s southern end is an

essential Mumbai experience.

Forget about taking a dip, as the

water is toxic. Settle for a hot-pink

sunset with the hazy city skyline

strung out as a backdrop.

MAHALAXMI TEMPLE

It’s only fitting that in money-mad

Mumbai, one of the busiest and

most colourful temples is

dedicated to Mahalaxmi, the

goddess of wealth. A constant

stream of locals descends on the

temple to offer rupees. Shuffling

slowly into the temple’s interior

• thick with fervent praying –
  is quite an experience. The
  entranceway is flanked with stalls
  selling religious offerings, and it’s
  often packed with men and
  women, who queue separately
  (off V Desai Chowk).

ELEPHANTA ISLAND

Northeast of the Gateway of India

in Mumbai Harbour, the rock-cut

temples on Gharapuri (Elephanta

Island) are a Unesco World

Heritage site. Created between

450 and 750 AD, the labyrinth of

cave temples represents some of

India’s most impressive temple

carving. Ferries (from £1.80, one

hour) head here half-hourly from

9am to 3.30pm (caves 9am–5pm

Tue–Sun; £6).

CHHATRAPATI SHIVAJI

TERMINUS

Imposing, exuberant and

overflowing with people, this

monumental train station is the

city’s most extravagant Victorian-

Gothic building and an aphorism

for colonial-era India. It’s a

meringue of Victorian, Hindu

and Islamic styles whipped into a

magnificent Dalíesque structure of

buttresses, domes, turrets, spires

and stained glass. Sadly,

the interior has a neglected air.

DR BHAU DAJI LAD

MUMBAI CITY MUSEUM

This gorgeous museum, built in

Renaissance Revival style in 1872 as

Mumbai’s Victoria & Albert

Museum, contains 3,500-plus

objects centring on the city’s history

• photography, maps, textiles,
  Bidriware metalwork.
  Contemporary music, dance and
  drama feature in the Plaza area,
  where there’s a café (bdlmuseum.
  org; Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Rd;
  10am–6pm Thu–Tue; £1.20).

DHARAVI SLUM TOUR

An astonishing 60 per cent of the

local population lives in slums; one

of the city’s largest is Dharavi.

Encompassing a square mile of

land, it’s home to a million people.

Life in the slums is fascinating to

witness, yet slum tourism is a

polarising subject. If you want to

visit, go with a responsible agency

such as Reality Tours & Travel

(realitytoursandtravel.com;

8am–9pm; tours from £10).

BOMBAY HERITAGE

WALKS

Mumbai is filled with Victorian

Gothic architectural fantasies:

relics of British colonial days that

will feel surprisingly familiar to UK

visitors, including the High Court

and Taj Mahal Palace hotel. BHW

runs terrific tours of heritage

neighbourhoods. The company

was started by two architects

and employs colleagues and art

historians (bombayheritagewalks.

com; two-hour tour from £45).

A glimpse of daily Mumbai life on

the beach of Girgaum Chowpatty

See some of India’s finest temple

carvings on Elephanta Island

The High Court is a graceful

Neo-Gothic creation from 1848

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MINI GUIDE

ART NIGHT THURSDAY

India’s contemporary art scene has

exploded in recent years and

Mumbai, along with Delhi, is the

centre of the action. A slew of

galleries is showing incredible

work in some beautiful spaces;

Project 88 in Colaba is a good

starting point (project88.in). The

second Thursday of each month is

‘Art Night Thursday’: galleries stay

open late and the vibe is social.

Gallery crawls sometimes happen;

check the Mumbai Art Map.

Mumbai’s Unesco-listed

Chhatrapati Shivaji

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