Mumbai is a cluster of seven islands and was first home to the Koli fishing people – there is still a small fishing community along the shoreline today. Mumbai, the local name for Bombay, was derived from Mumba or Maha-Amba – the name of a Hindu Goddess ‘Mumbadevi’ and ’Aai’ – Mother in the local Marathi language.
The islands were ruled by a succession of Hindu dynasties, invaded by Muslims in the 14th Century and then ceded to Portugal in 1534. It was the Portuguese that called it ‘ Bom Bain’, ‘Good Bay’ and set up a trading post but did little to develop the main island.
The British took control of all seven islands in 1665 but leased them 3 years later to the East India Company for a peppercorn rent of £10 per annum! The company found the deep-water harbour on the eastern side of the islands to be ideal for their first port on the sub-continent. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 enabled Mumbai to grow to be one of the most important seaports on the Arabian Sea.
Today Mumbai is the commercial and entertainment capital of India and is one of the top ten financial centres in the world and is home to India’s Hindi film and television industry known as Bollywood. One of the current female stars was born and bred in Liverpool. I recognised her from the posters that are everywhere and from her appearance on Breakfast TV at home last year – sorry but I can’t remember her name but she is extremely pretty!!
The principal part of the city is concentrated in the southern most, claw shaped peninsular renowned for its Taj Mahal Palace Hotel and the Gateway to India - a yellow basalt arch of triumph completed in 1924 but redundant only 24 years later when the last British regiment ceremoniously departed India upon Independence.
J N Tata, one of the city’s great Parsi benefactors, built the majestic Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in 1903 supposedly after he had been refused entry to one of the city’s European hotels since he was considered to be a native.
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