City Of Dreams – Mumbai

It’s not just one of the busiest metropolis of India, considered as the financial capital but this city on the shores of the Arabian Sea never sleeps. The city which thrives as bustling in the mornings as after nightfall is also renowned for it’s brotherhood and strong fighting spirit of it’s people who have risen from various natural and man-made calamities over and over again.

Right from the iconic gateway of India through which the last battalion of the British soldiers departed India after the end of the British empire, with a backdrop of the first building in India to get intellectual property rights protection for its architectural design The Taj Mahal Palace hotel to the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, the one of it’s kind across 104 square kms, major national park existing right within a metropolis limit which gets 2 million visitors every year Mumbai is a wonder in itself and considered as India in a nutshell presented in it’s myriad colours.

A city that  is forever beaming with vibrance, vigor and life needs an equally unique mass transportation system and the Victoria Terminus stands as it’s most prominent landmark. Also known as the Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus this Victorian Gothic style edifice is situated in the heart of Mumbai City. Just like the Gateway of India, CST is an important landmark of Mumbai. Declared a ‘World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2004, Victoria Terminus was built in 1888 and till today stand as one of the best examples of Gothic style architecture in India. It is also one of the busiest railway station in Mumbai Whether you intend to take a train or not, this is a must visit site in Mumbai…and then not very far on the sea front stands yet another iconic Mumbai landmark – the Haji Ali Dargah. Haji Ali is said to have miraculous powers and  whoever prays here gets his wish fulfilled. Throughout the year the place is thronged by the worshippers. The shrine is hosted  in the middle of the sea and is attached to the land through a 700 yard pathway that gets submerged in water during the evening high tide.

Mumbai is also home to the fast diminishing but amazing community of Parsis. The community renowned for their brilliant business acumen and unique traditions traces of which can be found in every nook and cranny of the city. And then there are the infamous Parsi cafes. Though a dying breed today  a few that are left , with their magnificently faded, time-capsule dining rooms and specialty dishes, are a gloriously eccentric part of the fabric of Mumbai which is not to be missed.

Mumbai is a haven for shopping, mainly for its fashion street shops and flea markets. Linking Road, Hill Road, Fashion street offer some great choices for the fashion conscious buyer at very low cost. You get designer knock offs, junk jewellery and even branded clothes here at budgeted rates. Chor Bazaar is India’s largest flea market and is almost 150 years old. Set up in the British Era, it is famously said that you can find almost everything here. Crawford Market and Chincholi Bunder Link Road are other markets for good deals. Colaba causeway is ideal place for street shopping with fashionable yet affordable clothes, boutiques, british era curio shops, buildings and of course to top it all up mouth-watering food joints to end a joyful shopping day.

But then Mumbai is best known as the hub of the Indian film and television industry, with over 1000 movies being produced every year. For a glimpse of a live movie shooting or the sets and locations of renowned movies the Maharashtra tourism board and a few private players have day long tour packages known as Mumbai darshan taking you to the studios like Film city spread over spread across 520 acres  giving the traveller an insiders look into the film making world of Mumbai, ending with a meeting with one of the film starts.

So if you ever wanted to be an actor, a cricketer or even a successful businessman, Mumbai is the city which will never consider that as a joke. This is the city which gives everyone a chance to dream big and then helps them to chase it. About 1.7 million people move to Mumbai every year in seeking to fulfill their dream where most people live without a family. Migratory birds, flocking to the city of dreams, hoping to convert the stars in their eyes into something more meaningful and tangible…a car… a house…another car…another house. Bigger…. better… faster… higher.  A city where a seven day working schedule can make these dreams come true, a city where the most meaningful relationship you have is with your dhobi, the only person who gives a damn whether you come or go is your watchman and the woman who cares most is the helpful bai who scrubs washes and leaves in a jiffy in the morning.