Mumbai

Mumbai, today India’s financial and entertainment capital, began as a scattered group of fishing villages on seven islands inhabited mainly by Koli communities. In ancient and early medieval times, these islands—off the Konkan coast—were linked to trade routes of the Mauryas, Satavahanas and later regional powers, but remained relatively small compared to mainland ports.

From the 16th century, control shifted rapidly. The Portuguese seized the islands and called them “Bom Bahia” (Good Bay). In 1661, as part of the dowry of Catherine of Braganza, they were transferred to the British Crown and then leased to the English East India Company. Recognising the deep natural harbour’s potential, the British began developing Bombay as a fortified port and commercial town, attracting traders, artisans and migrants from Gujarat, Konkan and beyond.

Through the 18th–19th centuries, land reclamation joined the islands into a single landmass. The opening of the Suez Canal (1869), expansion of cotton mills, and railway links turned Bombay into a booming industrial and shipping city. It became a centre of the freedom movement, labour politics and publishing.

After Independence, Bombay (renamed Mumbai in 1995) emerged as the capital of Maharashtra, the heart of Bollywood, finance, and a magnet for migrants—an immense, complex metropolis built on layers of maritime, colonial and migrant history.