The epic Mumbai contrast | A brief history of Bombay

We all know Mumbai as the land where dreams are sown and grown, and of the dream merchants who crop them ruthlessly. There are so many faces and facets, but in reality we see Mumbai as we dream it - mystic and superficial, gay and painful, beautiful and ugly. The life of Mumbai oscillates like a pendulum between two hopelessly opposite standards of living. It is glamorous, extravagant, lavish, and luxurious yet at the same time it is dull, deceptive, poor and filthy.

The past of Mumbai is quit enchanting and unique. It was a cluster of seven islands inhabited by different fishing tribes whom we call kolis. These traditional habitants are still there in Mumbai, spread over different koliwadas. The seven islands were Colaba, Smaller Colaba, Worli, Parel, Mazgaon, Mumbadevi and Mahim which were in possession of Aryans from North India for a thousand years.

Marine Drive

The Portuguese were the first Europeans who landed on these Islands and commenced their rule from 1534. They ruled Mumbai for about 125 years before giving it away as dowry to King Charles II for marrying Portuguese Princess Catherine Breganza. This event gave a broad base for the British rule which took firm hold of India in the later years. The name Mumbai is derived from the Mumba Devi, the patron goddess of the Kolis, but the British started calling these islands as Bombay, however in 1995 it was renamed as Mumbai.

The shrewd tradesmen of the past had a good foresight on this island for trade and commerce due to its safe isolation into the Arabian Sea. The tremendous sacrifice made by the people during freedom struggle has made it viable for us to roam free on this land today. Free we are from the rule of foreigners but how free are we from our own selfishness, corruption and suppression?

Mumbai was destined to create for itself a matchless and everlasting identity that people fall in love with. We are in the dark abyss of its love, were one either plays the game or is a victim of the players. Player or Victim, we always had a choice, didn’t we?