Mumbai (Bombay)

Mumbai derives its name from Mumba Devi a local diety worshipped by the Maratha fisher folk of the region. Mumba Devi is the goddess of sea and according to folklores she blessed the region and took care of the Fisherman community.

When India was under the British rule the name Mumbai got slightly changed , as they were unable to pronounce the name , and was called Bombay for all official purposes. But the locals continued to refer to it as Mumbai or Bambai.. And after nearly 45 years after India gained its Independence , in the nineties , the city was officially called by its original name.

I grew up calling Mumbai as Bombay and I am yet to get used to calling it Mumbai. For me Bombay has remained a dream city, whatever the harsh realities may be, I still have a special feeling for this city.

I visited Mumbai in the late seventies as a student . My first impression of the city was very favourable. It was no doubt far more crowded than Bangalore or any other city I had visited , but it had a certain charm. There were broad tree filled roads and huge shopping malls and the sea and all those fantastic hotels like the Taj Mahal, Oberoi, Sun n sand - I really was impressed. There was so much to do there , sightseeing, shopping, eating out at different restaurants, and you even got to see some Bollywood stars. For me, at that time Bombay seemed like the ultimate city. I thought all those relatives who lived in Bombay were really lucky , even if most of them had to manage in only two rooms . Space was at a premium in Bombay and most people seemed to be living in chawls or dormitory housing estates.

But once we got to tour the less attractive parts of Bombay , I realised that Bombay was a city that has been stretched to its limits ..

Bombay (Mumbai) is India's main port and commercial center , and considered to be the City of Gold, it lures the poverty stricken rural population and the expanding middle class equally. There was a population boom in the '50s and '60s , and the city was unprepared for this , which led to disastrous health problems and loads of pollution that left the city choked to capacity and the situation has worsened steadily, with the authorities doing precious little. There are attempts being made, but mostly half hearted ones by politicians , who loot the city more than they contribute while in power !

Bombay and Calcutta are 2 mega cities that have attracted people from all over India .There is something for everyone here.

As a tourist destination Bombay is a great place , besides being the financial capital, and the biggest metropolitan and celluloid capital of India. The Gateway of India , used to be the arrival point for visitors from the west. Today the Gateway of India is synonymous with Bombay. It is a landmark of Bombay , a must visit spot of the city. But, now since 26/11, 2008 it holds bitter and sad memories for all Indians. It was the entry point for the Pakistani terrorists who played havoc with the city taking siege of the Majestic Taj Mahal Hotel , The Oberoi and the entire surrounding area and killing hundreds of innocent people, many of them foreign tourists who were visiting India. This is an event that can never be forgotten or forgiven by any Indian .. People came together during this time of crisis, flocking to the hospitals to donate blood, and thousands offered strangers bed to sleep in, as the entire city was disrupted and traffic stopped for a couple of days, while the anti terrorist squad was combing the city.

The roads of Bombay were filled with people walking home, they were taken care of, offered water and food by people living in the neighborhood ,even the Slum dwellers , offering help to the stranded people walking home. Rides were offered and nobody asked anyone as to what their faith or religion was ? and there was no backlash on the Muslims. Thankfully people had matured and did not try to take their anger upon other innocents, because this is exactly what the terrorists want the Indian masses to do - create division among people based on Religion !

I remember author Salman Rushdie writing about Bombay , to quote his words " Bombay, a relatively new city in an immense, ancient land is not interested in yesterdays. In Bombay, all Indians met and merged. Bombay was central; all rivers flowed into its human sea. It was an ocean of stories, we were all its narrators, and everybody talked at once. What magic was stirred into that insaan-soup (the soup of humanity), what harmony emerged from that cacophony! This is a city that belongs to nobody but everyone"..

It definitely takes a lot more than a few bombs to break the spirit of Bombay, and, Bombay is no stranger to terror strikes, it has been constantly at the receiving end since many years.
I have visited Bombay recently after the terror attacks and surprisingly , things are back to normal except that , now there is a memorial for all those who were killed on 26/11 , and every single visitor to the city feels duty bound to pay homage to the departed souls , thats the least one can do !

I have had mixed feelings about this city right from my first visit in the seventies to the present day. I have visited Bombay several times, lived there for 2 months , and I love the city with all its short comings. I have never seen a city that is as contrasting or magical as this. It repels and attracts you at the same time.

There were times when I simply wanted to run away from the surrounding mass of humanity, traffic and utter chaos. But now living away from Bombay, I feel like going back there experiencing that life once again.

I have had so many pleasant memories attached to the city. Wandering through the choked footpaths looking for second hand books, and eating Bhelpuri , Chaat and Kulfi on Chowpathy beach, which is the best that you can find anywhere in India, shopping at street side bazaars for shoes and handbags..

Mumbai or Bombay as I have known it through my growing years is a place one must visit in one's life time ..