India (Frommer's, 4th Edition) - Keith Bain [99]
TOP ATTRACTIONS
Banganga Tank Here the paradox of traditional life coexisting with unbridled modernization is all too vivid. Near the edge of the Arabian Sea at the southern tip of Malabar Hill, several small, crumbling, stone-turreted temples and flower-garlanded shrines surround a rectangular pool of holy water in an area of looming modern-day skyscrapers and encroaching urbanization. Ritual bathers who come here believe the mossy waters have healing powers and originated from a natural spring created by an arrow shot by Rama (the hero of the Ramayana), who rested here while on a mission to rescue his beloved Sita from the demon king’s abode in Lanka. The source of the spring is said to be an underground offshoot of the Ganga, and the waters are considered just as sacred as those of the great river itself. In the shadow of one of present-day Mumbai’s most prosperous neighborhoods, Banganga continues to function as an out-of-time devotional hub, its tolling bells and mantra-chanting pujaris drawing devotees to worship the divine. If you’re here in December, scour local newspapers for news of the open-air concerts held at the Banganga Festival.
Walkeshwar Rd., Malabar Hill.
Dharavi More than half of Mumbai’s population are slum-dwellers, most of them—and they include hotel workers, engineers, waiters, taxi drivers, most of the city’s police force, teachers, tour guides, you name it—existing with their entire (sometimes extended) families in tiny tenements smaller than a typical hotel bedroom. Although it’s not an attraction in the traditional sense of the word, interest in Dharavi, Asia’s largest shantytown, has grown exponentially in the wake of the Shantaram phenomenon and Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire, in which life in Mumbai’s poorest neighborhoods is given more than a cursory or condescending glance. Hemmed in by Sion in the east and Mahim in the west, this particular “slum” is spread over 175 hectares (482 acres) and is home to around one million people; 72% of these people are forced to use communal bathing facilities—or worse still, face the stress of performing personal toilet functions in the open, often along the train tracks. Visit here on any given day, and you’ll find it brimming with life and held together by an overwhelming industriousness; around $650 million is generated from goods exported from here each year—among the major industries here, are leather, recycling, and heavy machinery. A visit to Dharavi (on an escorted guided tour, of course) will not only prove tremendously enlightening, but will also touch you deeply, pulling into perspective just about every experience you have anywhere in this city and for that matter, in India.
For details of tour companies that visit Dharavi, see “Into the Belly of the Beast: Getting Beneath Mumbai’s Skin.”
Elephanta Island Caves For a taste of Mumbai’s early history and an opportunity to view the city’s skyline from the water (not to mention escape from the tumult of the streets), grab a ferry and head out to Elephanta Island, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987. The hour-long trip also provides a good introduction to Hinduism; the guides on board describe the religious significance of what you’re about to see, though the origins of the Shiva temple caves—thought to date from the revivalist Hindu movement between A.D. 450 and 750—remain obscure.
Entry is via the main northern entrance to a massive hall supported by large pillars, where the enormous Trimurti statue is housed. At 61⁄3m (21 ft.), the remarkable sculpture depicts Shiva in his three-headed aspect: as Creator (Vamadeva, facing right), Protector (Maheshmurti, the crowned face at the center), and Destroyer (Bhairadeva, facing left, with serpents