Bandra - Beauty Queen of Bombay


Bandra - Beauty Queen of Bombay

Bandra is the beauty queen of Bombay. For us, its beauty enters our home daily via a spectacular sunset on the Arabian Sea that we watch from our apartment.

Bandra is an adaption of Bandar, a Persian word for Port. In 1543, the Portuguese took possession of the island of Bombay by force and gave Jesuit priests the sole ownership of Bandra. Bandra has the unique distinction of having the most... Roman Catholic churches anywhere in the world. Bandra remained an island until 1845, when Mahim causeway got linked with it.

If Bandra were a star, it would be Tom Cruise. If Bandra were a kitchen appliance, it would be a cappuccino machine, if Bandra were a pet, it would be an anaconda. And if Bandra were a brand, it would be Apple.

Bandra is the reason to hope that we might save the ecological disaster that this city is fast becoming. The thick tropical greens I see from our apartment bring a smile to my face.

In Bandra, we drink more coffee than any suburb in the world. We drink it sugar-free, black, filter, latte, or cappuccino. From Coorg, Jamaica, Matunga, and Cafe Coffee Day.

Bandra means people who care enough for their health to pay a toll to enter the Joggers Park for a walk in this enclave on the Arabian Sea.

Bandra means a visitor can shop for almost everything, and get almost any service within a radius of a mile of my apartment.

Bandra is home to Bollywood movers and shakers of past and present. I will only list a few' and hold your breath; Karrena & Karisha kapoor, Saif Ali Khan, Amir Khan, Shah rukh Kha, Salman Khan, Katrina kaif Rishi Raj Kapoor & Neetu Singh, late veteran and legend Sanjeevkumar, legendary music director and Maestro Naushad, Dilipkumar, Sunil Dutt, Mala Sinha, Balaraj Sahani, Rekha, Subhash Ghai, Ravina Tandon, Mandira Bedi and many more. 

Let me admit here. We are not living in Mumbai. We live in Bandra. But for our home here, we would have taken Saurashtra Mail and gone home to Jamnagar after my retirement.

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