Mumbai has always been my most beloved Indian city. I spent a month here in my first Indian adventure, returned again a year later (and was delighted to discover that some of the street sellers remembered me… their memories are next level) and was pumped to end this epic trip back here again for some shopping with my bestie.
Verity was not a fan of Delhi, but few foreigners are (I’m a bit the same myself, although I do like it more than Chennai). I’d hyped Mumbai up to her, but after leaving Rishikesh and all the chill vibes we’d experienced there, I started back peddling to prepare her that maybe she won’t like it, we don’t have to stay too long if you don’t want to, etc… but much to my joy and relief, as we drove from Mumbai airport to our first hotel in the Fort area, she was really feeling the vibes in this colourful, modern city. The population is a lot thinner than it was a decade ago, apparently Covid forced many back to their villages in the north… but the charm of the people, their city pride, friendliness and helpfulness has remained intact, and she looks prettier than ever.
We’d decided to splurge on a fancy hotel for the last couple of nights of the trip, but booked a cheaper hotel in the fort area to base ourselves and knock out some sightseeing and shopping until we were ready to relax at the fancy hotel pool & spa amenities (which, upon writing this, I realise we didn’t so much as look at… no woman can ever get sick of shopping in Mumbai, even us!). Our cheaper option was still rather good (Grand Hotel Mumbai for anyone looking for tips, great location in a heritage building and super quiet at night), and we got a takeaway Indian feast on our way from the airport to knock us into a food coma for the night.
As she tends to do (god bless her), Verity has trusted me in my insistence that we need to visit the biggest slum in Mumbai, where the movie Slumdog Millionaire was filmed… but I can sense that she’s a bit apprehensive about how hectic and dirty it will be and she’s entirely unsure if this will be her cup of tea. I don’t lie to her – there is literally 1.5-1.7 million people(ish) living in a tiny area of government land illegally, they are some of the poorest people in the country living on top of each other in a space of 1.7 square klms… it’s not glamorous. But, it is pretty incredible to see how resourceful and resilient these people are in this environment… at least, it was when I did the tour over a decade ago. Will it still be as impactful in this post-covid world or am I sending us both on another ridiculous mission?
Thankfully, she loved it. We met our tour guide at 9am at a central location in South Mumbai the following morning, and kicked off our 3-hour tour with 3 other tourists. I chose to go again with Reality Tours, as they were one of the first to start these tours back in 2006 and 80% of the profits go to support the people in the village we wander through, and they also run a NGO school to provide support for young people in the slum from 11-21 years of age, which I love.
They teach useful tasks – unlike algebra in the west- these kids are learning how to book train tickets online (anyone who’s ever tried to book on IRCTC’s website can attest, this is no walk in the park), set-up Google Pay and other everyday tasks.
The thing that always shocks people about life in an Indian slum, is it’s not at all what you expect. In the west, our unemployed are supported financially by the government (in India, this is not the case at all) and yet many are still unmotivated to work, happy to collect their check and kick back (not all, by all means!). But here, these guys are WORKING. Hard, long days, for less than $20 a day if it’s dangerous work in poor conditions, most more like $5 p.day, from a very young age until quite elderly when they can no longer do the physical work.
The women especially are put to work early, as their education is not as prioritised as the men (in some more traditional families not all, again… not trying to stereotype it’s just what’s been conveyed to me repeatedly by locals), as many traditional families want their daughter to be married to a good family quickly, and not have her wasting time and money on furthering her education when she could be helping the family. I love to meet with locals who have open minded families who don’t pressure the kids for college education or marriage against their will, and from what I hear this is changing… but for many, traditional ideals are still a reality and in here, it’s important for the daughters to not be a burden on the family.
You hear about ‘sweat shop’ businesses employing kids, it’s the reality here unfortunately, these kids start working at 12 or so, and it’s not just a casual position after school… they’re put straight to work until they get a husband and join his family. It’s the way things are here.
The staggering part is, the various industries inside the slum culminate to US $1 billion dollars in revenue per year. Everything from the coke cans collected in the street which are cleaned then recycled into various products, to the plastic bottles that are melted down to pellets and shipped abroad to build mobile phones, to the textiles and handicrafts made in here that are likely sold in all of our countries.
The work here is first class… we marvel at leather handbags and suitcases, designs so flawless they could be sold in a European fashion brand store – and these days, there’s even a store inside the slum where you can shop for some souvenirs of high quality leather goods made inside the slum. These people are not just sitting back on their laurels, complaining about the cards they’ve been dealt. They work, with a deep sense of community in everything they do.
Ten years on from my first visit, the thing that deeply affected my level of gratitude for my life, still makes me feel the same flutter in my heart – these poor dirty faces are smiling the broadest smiles. We walk past hundreds of beaming faces, children excitedly wave to say hello and just want to speak English to us, there is no begging. In fact, we were not asked for money once, just like my first visit.
Every preconceived idea I had, about what kind of people you’d come across in the poorest slum on earth, was challenged and thrown out, and Verity was close to tears (the good kind) as we were led through the narrow alleys and were explained how each industry works to break down the trash to make literal treasure. She was blown away by the energy in the slum, as was I… and I was amazed to see that the population in the slum hadn’t changed at all, but they’d managed to build themselves infrastructure for 2 and 3 level floors in some of the more secure buildings. What resilient, clever people they are. Amazing.
After the tour, we did some shopping in the famous Colaba Causeway strip. Since Mumbai is our final destination of the trip and we had no more baggage restrictions, we had been saving ourselves to do some damage to our wallets and our waistlines in Mumbai. “Don’t buy it here babe, save it for Mumbai..” has been my advice for the past 4 weeks (sometimes she listens, sometimes she doesn’t, it’s her choice haha), so now she’s got the green light, we’re on. We’re also doing a ‘no holes barred’ eating marathon, ensuring we hit all our favourite foods before we leave India (no sign of baati chokha here, unfortunately).
If there’s two things Mumbai people (known as Mumbaikars, or Bombayites) are known for in my eyes, it’s their love of Bollywood and cricket. I didn’t get into the Bollywood this time, but just like every other visit, as soon as I say I’m from Australia, the cricket references come. Names I haven’t heard in years, like David Boon the player with the epic moustache from the 80s, Ricky Ponting always gets a mention, they just love it, and us Aussies are always welcomed thanks to it.
The street sellers haven’t changed… I walked past one shop on our first day and glanced at one particular bag, barely for more than 20 seconds but for the next 3 days, in everything from sweat pants and messy hair to dolled up face & a pretty dress, this same seller recognised me each time amid the bustling, endless swarms of shoppers and points suggestively to the same handbag with a suggestive tip of his head and a sly smile. I just laugh… how the bloody hell do they remember us so well, when there’s so damn many people here?!
I’ve hyped another experience which I know V is going to love; high tea at the luxurious Taj Mahal Hotel. We snake a prime spot with views of the Gateway to India monument, and for about $40 a head we have a 3 hour feast of Indian delicacies, Mexican and European food, and a massive array of desserts, pastries cakes… I feel sick just writing this, safe to say we gave it a good nudge.
Afterwards, we needed to walk it off.. so like many we wandered the halls of the hotel marvelling at the photos of celebrity guests, high end shops and pricey restaurants. Verity wanted to have a closer look at a very pricey jewellery shop, and I fell in love with a stunning 22 carat gold diamond ring that I just had to have. What the hell, we’ve barely spent any money on this trip, haven’t drank a drop of alcohol and did it rough in some places… we deserve to treat ourselves!
More shopping and eating consumes the next few days, and we check into our gorgeous suite at the Intercontinental Hotel on Marine Drive for some luxury. This hotel was amazing, and the buffet breakfast is something our food loving dreams are made from!
belletakesontheworld 