Nightlife and entertainment

Entertainment in Mumbai tends to revolve around bars, nightclubs and restaurants; performance spaces are few and far between. The best theatre, Indian classical music and dance takes place at the National Centre for the Performing Arts at Nariman Point (see below). For information about entertainment events, pick up a copy of the local edition of Time Out, a listings magazine.

National Centre for the Performing Arts
NCPA Marg
Nariman Point
Tel: +91 22 5654 8141/49
Website

Overlooking the sea at the southern tip of Nariman Point, this is Mumbai's performing arts hub, with several theatres, a restaurant, library and gallery. You can catch a classical music concert at the main Tata Theatre; Indian dance at the Godrej Theatre and English-language plays at the Experimental Theatre. The Piramal Gallery hosts regular photography exhibitions, and all-day dining is offered at the quiet Sidewok restaurant.

Prithvi Theatre
Janki Kutir Society
Juhu Church Rd
Tel: +91 22 2614 9546, 2618 3568
Website

The Prithvi, in an uptown suburb near Juhu Beach, is named after Prithviraj Kapoor, India's first big film star. Founded by his daughter-in-law, Jennifer Kendal, an English actress (sister of Felicity Kendal), the theatre is a popular spot for new plays.


Cinema

Since Mumbai is the home of Bollywood, it's obligatory to catch a screening. Films are rarely subtitled, but don't let that deter you: plots are simple and the frequent musical interludes irresistible. The air-conditioning and ice creams offer pleasant respite from the humidity.

For the best atmospherics, visit one of the few art-deco picture palaces remaining downtown (and sit in the balcony): the Regal, on Colaba Causeway; the New Empire, near Victoria Terminus; or Eros, opposite Churchgate rail station. Western movies are also screened. Tickets for blockbusters may need to be booked in advance.


Bars and clubs

Befitting its status as India's most sociable city—and the centre of Bollywood—Mumbai's nightlife has boomed in recent years. Dance bars with live bump-and-grind routines set to Bollywood music used to have a big following, but censorious politicians successfully forced their closure in mid-2005, despite strong resistance. Now, nightclubs and lounge bars (often off hotel lobbies) are especially popular, but they can be noisy and over-crowded. If you enjoy conversation with your drink, try our recommendations.

Go stargazing

The Dome
Hotel Intercontinental
Marine Drive
Tel: +91 22 5639 9999

Sink into a white sofa at this stylish rooftop bar, be rendered breathless by the view over Back Bay and try not to stare too obviously at the Bollywood startlets holding court. Just how the Dome will cope with the Mumbai monsoon remains a mystery: expect it to close temporarily in heavy rain. Nevertheless, it gets our vote as Mumbai's best spot for a drink.
Geoffrey's
Hotel Marine Plaza
Marine Drive
Tel: +91 22 2285 1212

The “English pub” theme at Geoffrey's may be a little overdone, but this is a comfortable and friendly spot. Staff pour a decent pint for the many business workers from Nariman Point who drop by on their way home.

Busaba
4 Mandlik Rd
Colaba
Tel: +91 22 2204 3779/69

We found this bar quiet and cosy on our visit during the week. The drinks are far cheaper than at fashionable Indigo next door, and the Middle Eastern music is rather seductive. The bar serves good food, too: try the Vietnamese pancake stuffed with chicken and prawns. There is a restaurant upstairs.

Not Just Jazz by the Bay
Soona Mahal
143 Marine Drive
Tel: +91 22 2285 1876, 2282 0957

Live bands, karaoke and dancing make this popular venue one of Mumbai's livelier night spots. It also produces quite a reasonable pizza in a pleasant waterfront setting, handy for the hotels nearby. There is an admission fee of 150-200 rupees.
Olive Bar and Kitchen
Off the northern end of Carter Rd
Bandra-Khar West
Tel: +91 22 2605 8228, 2625 8229
Website

Be prepared to shout out your drinks order to bar staff at this noisy but very fashionable spot in one of Mumbai's hippest suburbs. As the name indicates, both the menu and décor are Mediterranean.
Zenzi
Waterfield Rd
Bandra West
Tel: +91 22 5643 0670

A good way to sample Mumbai's trendy Bandra suburb is to visit Zenzi, a lively lounge bar and restaurant. Come early (before 10.30pm) to avoid the crowds of teenage revellers.

As far as clubs go, we like Enigma, a sleek haunt in the J W Marriott hotel in Juhu. For a low-key evening, try Vie Lounge Bar (also in Juhu), which has a fabulous view of the sea. In Bandra, Club 9 and Seijo and the Soul Dish are both buzzing (but go before 10pm; after that you'll have trouble getting in).

Moreover


Mocha
Nagin Mahal
Churchgate, Veer Nariman Rd
Tel: +91 22 5633 6070

Mumbai's Mocha coffee shops, the creation of a local entrepreneur (who also runs Salt Water Grill) are more than just cafés. People come to meet and linger well into the evening, sipping coffee, chai, cold drinks and puffing on aromatic water pipes. At this branch, just up the street from Marine Drive, expect fez-clad waiters, comfortable couchettes and beanbags and an inviting courtyard.

facts and figures

Land area: 437.71 sq km

Population: 12m (Mumbai municipality); 17.7m (Greater Mumbai)

Languages: Hindi (the local variant is called Bambaiya Hindi), Marathi, Gujarati and many other Indian languages. English is widely spoken.

Public holidays 2006:

(Islamic holidays are based on sightings of the moon, so some dates are not yet confirmed)
Jan 10 - Idu'z Zuha/Bakrid (Feast of the Sacrifice)
Jan 26 - Republic Day
Jan 31 - Muharram (Islamic New Year)
Feb 26 - Mahavir Jayanthi
Mar 15 - Holi
Apr 6 - Sri Rama Navami (Sri Rama's birthday)
Apr 11 - Milad-Un-Nabi (Birth of the Prophet)
Apr 14 - Good Friday
May 13 - Buddha Purnima
Aug 15 - Independence Day
Sep 2 - Vijaya Dasami/Dussehra
Oct 2 - Mahatma Gandhi's birthday
Oct 21 - Diwali
Oct 22-24 - Eid al-Fitr (end of Ramadan)
Nov 26 - Guru Nanak's birthday
Dec 25 - Christmas Day

Telephone codes:
Country code: +91
City code: (0)22

Currency:

The Indian currency is the rupee, which is divided into 100 paise. Notes are available in denominations of 5 rupees (no longer printed), 10, 20, 50, 100, 500 and 1000 rupees, coins in 1, 2 and 5 rupees and in 25 and 50 paise.

Business hours:

Shopping hours vary, but most shops in the centre are open six days a week (Monday-Saturday 10am-8pm), and are quietest during weekdays. The hawkers along streets like Colaba Causeway are active until somewhat later. Official business hours are 9:30am to 5:30pm. Banks open 10am-2pm Monday to Friday and 10am-12pm every second Saturday. Post offices are open 9:30am-5:30pm Monday to Saturday.

Numbering:

Particularly when money and data are being discussed, some Indian terminology is commonly used, such as lakh (one lakh = 100,000) and crore (one crore = 10m).

Electricity:

230-240 volts AC, 50 Hz. Three-point round-pin sockets are in use.

Economic profile:

Commerce determined Mumbai’s history. As India's largest trading port, it has long served as the country's gateway: open and welcoming to foreigners, and offering the promise of opportunity to fortune-seekers from the country’s hinterland. Rudyard Kipling, who was born in Mumbai, wrote of the city: “she lent me worth, and gave me right to pride”.

Mumbai's economy took off in the 19th century, when the British annexed western India and the British East India Company was losing its monopoly over trade between Britain and India. Merchants flowed in as restrictions on immigration were loosened. Ships were built to export raw cotton, silk, opium and ivory. In 1854, the city's first cotton textile mill opened, and the boom in cotton trade, sparked in part by the American Civil War which cut off American supplies to Europe, earned Mumbai its reputation as the “Manchester of the East”.

By 1865, Mumbai had 31 banks, 20 insurance companies, and 62 joint stock companies. The first stock exchange was established in 1875. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 consolidated the port’s status. Cotton remained an economic bedrock well into the 20th century, which also saw the arrival of an eclectic mix of creative people, leading to the creation of Mumbai’s cosmopolitan culture, and the profusion of the Hindi (so-called “Bollywood”) film industry, the largest in the world.

Today, Mumbai has the buzz of a city on the move. It is the base for India’s leading companies, such as Reliance, Tata and Air India, and its largest banks and financial institutions, such as ICICI Bank, Housing Development and Finance Corporation and Life Insurance Corporation. The Bombay Stock Exchange, which moved from open-outcry to computerised trading in 1995, and the National Stock Exchange, which opened in 1994 (see article) are India's top trading floors. The textile industry has given way to the new economy of financial services, call centres and other business process outsourcing services, information technology and entertainment companies. A construction boom has created a new skyline of shopping malls, hotels and office complexes. As the city’s cheerleaders position Mumbai for Asian-tiger status, three concerns override all others: the groaning infrastructure, lack of space and a chronic housing shortage.

Mumbai is an island and restrictions on both new building and rent levels have combined to send real-estate prices to levels rivalling those of Tokyo and Hong Kong (see article), and discussion of whether to increase the city’s floor-space dominates local media. Housing shortages as immigrants flow in from all over the subcontinent (population is predicted to reach 27m by 2010) have led to the growth of slums: Dharavi, Asia's biggest slum (see article), sits alongside Bandra, the city’s new centre of business. Poverty afflicts millions. A symbiotic relationship has developed between the city’s elite and the slum-dwellers, many of whom are employed in the domestic sector and in the huge informal economy (which is estimated to contribute between 25% and 40% to Mumbai’s output). In 2005, the biggest debate about the city’s future concerned how to develop 600 acres of land left vacant by former textile mills at midtown.

Mumbai's infrastructure is another problem. Roads are inadequate and the rail system clogged. East-west linkages (current corridors have a north-south bias) are sorely needed. Traffic congestion is especially bad between the airport and the downtown business area. Lobby groups such as Bombay First are trying to encourage companies to relocate to suburbs such as Bandra, and calling for development of satellite towns on the mainland. There are signs that both the state and national governments are prepared to address the problem. Some lobby groups argue that a unified city government (at present, governance is spread across several agencies at state level) is what is needed. Governance and infrastructure problems were both starkly underlined by the lack of readiness for and the aftermath of particularly devastating monsoon floods in July 2005 (see article).

Despite its problems, Mumbai remains India’s biggest business centre and has plenty of potential: the influx of air routes to and from Europe and America is itself evidence of its growing importance as both a tourist destination and a site of investment.