Around and about Mumbai

A few images from my trip to Mumbai earlier in the year. There is so much change every trip I get back and I would love for time to stand still. One of the biggest changes is the old beautiful buildings are being rebuilt into high-rises. They don’t quite have the old world charm and Mumbai grows into more of a concrete jungle. I want to capture as much of what I can of what might be a forgotten era.

The city that never sleeps…

I stood in one spot to see if I could capture the craziness of every day life. Here a woman is trying to hail a cab.

A random dhobi (ironing guy). Such a life saver and nothing like wearing fresh pressed clothes every day.

The cheerful chai walla outside my parent’s high-rise building.

The beautiful house you see below is from my morning photo walk in an area called Khotachi Wadi, a heritage area in Mumbai. It is filled with quaint little bungalows and chawls (communal living apartments) that take you back to Portuguese Goa. In the course of my walk, the man sitting by the blue door of his house told me to visit the famous Ferreira bungalow in the area. So I did unannounced. The beauty of India is hospitality with strangers popping by unexpectedly at your door. When I stopped by, Mr Ferreira was asleep but his brother invited me in to view the home and have a cup of tea with him and his eighty year old mom. I spent a bit of time minutes soaking in the wonder of this two hundred year old home and taking some photos. The servant that showed me even turned on the cool “disco lights” to give me the full experience of touring that grand home.

Cafe Mondegar used to be a regular haunt in my college days and continues to be popular inspite of the crowds and the average food. The beer and the juke box will make you keep coming back here. The walls are covered with artist Mario Miranda’s work which is also a big part of the charm of this place.

A view of the Imperial Towers, the tallest residential buildings in Mumbai from my parent’s apartment close by. And my eighty-year old dad sitting reading the morning paper with his cup of tea.