Mindless Mumbai is a Photo Blog from Mumbai, India by Kunal Bhatia. Art Architecture Food Street Urban Festivals Travel People Portraits Signs Photojournalism Candid

"my photo? sure"



sitting in the porch of his house, with his family in the background. in one of the winding lanes of the versova gaothan / (fishing) village. the family is of the koli community.

of another time and another world

mumbai university library gothic arhitecture in mumbai by kunal bhatia

bombay gothic in the mumbai university's fort campus. see an interior shot of the library here.

hanging in there

clothes pin hanging and drying in mumbai by kunal bhatia

had a sudden urge to photograph something, first thing in the morning. so here we go, the clothes hanger propped up at my window.

shantilal gandhi, CA

signboard of a chartered accountant in mumbai by kunal bhatia

a metal plate with specks of paint and a worn out piece of wood holding it up - apt for khotachi wadi. for more photos from this neighbourhood, hit up 'khotachi wadi' in the search box on the right.

ravages of time

trees and crumbling ruins at vasai fort in mumbai by kunal bhatia

at vasai fort, on the northern outskirts of the city. more photos from vasai fort: on flickr or on facebook.

26 jul 2005

interior of a flooded house post disaster in mumbai by kunal bhatia

five years ago, on the 26th of july 2005, torrential rain, a cloud burst and governance apathy caused unprecedented floods in mumbai. my grandfather's house was under five feet of water for over 10 hours, and this is how one of the rooms looked after 2 days. endless muck, ruined furniture and belongings, an icky smell and a high chance of every object being contaminated. all this however pales in comparison to the hundreds who died or the thousands who lost their homes. have the powers-that-be learnt their lesson? not quite.

windows

windows on an old house deserted worn out bad condition in khotachiwadi in mumbai by kunal bhatia

looking up a narrow lane in khotachi wadi. for more photos of this neighbourhood, hit up 'khotachi wadi' in the search box on the right.

ghostly beings

slow shutter speed cyclist moving fast blurred ghostly night street photo in mumbai by kunal bhatia

slow shutter speed. night lights. golden leaves. and a cyclist. shot a long time ago - in nov 2006, with a nikon point and shoot - when i was just beginning to explore photography.

green and green

potted plant in khotachi wadi in mumbai by kunal bhatia

in the porch of a quaint, old bungalow in khotachi wadi, on a quiet morning. other photos from this set: on flickr or on facebook. or, for more photos from this neighbourhood on this blog, hit up 'khotachi wadi' in the search box on the right.

sunday mornings

mumbai shop shutter down sunday lazy newspaper read by kunal bhatia

on a sunday morning, the usually bustling streets around the bombay stock exchange don a more relaxed look. the half-down shutters let in just the right amount of light needed to read the newspaper while signalling that the shop could be opened up if a potential customer comes by.

it's been a lazy day for me today. not that i don't have much to do, i just haven't been doing what i should have been doing.

to see the other photos from this morning: on flickr or on facebook.

mumbai sleeping #7

people sleeping on train station roof in mumbai by kunal bhatia

'prema milan - united in love', robert stephens blog about his times in mumbai and india is beautifully written. and i've been reading it for most of the evening. slacking, sleeping; potato, potato.

previous photos in this series: mumbai sleeping # 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6

saturation

inhuman crowded social housing redevelopment slum in mumbai by kunal bhatia

saturation: people, houses, tracks and colours - some visible, others evident

boxed up

mumbai housing playground by kunal bhatia

boxed houses, boxed playground, boxed celebrations

one step at a time

Steps of a house in Khotachiwadi. vernacular architecture in mumbai. staircase

mumbai sleeping #6 - flights of fantasy

sleeping on mumbai's streets pavements by kunal bhatia

flights of fantasy - forty winks and the king of good times.
previous photos in this series: 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5

a symbol for the rupee

indian rupee symbol coins stacked up. stock photo by kunal bhatia


we have a symbol for the indian national rupee from today on. selected after a design competition, the symbol has been designed by udaya kumar, a Ph.D student from the industrial design centre at IIT mumbai, with a background in architecture and visual communication. it also so happens that four of the five finalists were from mumbai.

the new symbol would take anywhere from 12-18 months to become present on keyboards and in character maps. meanwhile, this being india and since 'we-are-like-this-only' a controversy about the final selection has already popped up.

the ghajini look

aamir khan in ghajini model in a gym in mumbai by kunal bhatia

requisites for the ghajini look: work outs and bananas? spotted in a lane that leads to the local gym in versova village.

heading into the city

rickshaw signs #4



sign inside an auto-rickshaw:
प्यास लगी है, कुछ तो पिला दो,
या खुदा हमें भी ऐश्वर्या से मिला दो
pyaas lagi hai, kuchh toh pila do,
ya khuda humein bhi aishwarya se mila do


translating this to english would loose its essence. the truly curious can attempt so at google translate.

other posts about rickshaw signs: 1, 2, 3

love and longing

photo young couple and old widow at marine drive in mumbai by kunal bhatia

the juxtaposition of meanings - of time and space - in this photograph is quite interesting. there's the young couple facing the sea, in a world of their own, dwelling in love. and then there's the widowed-lady, perhaps yearning for a love gone by. alone, she sits facing the city and watches the passer-bys.

shot at marine drive. another photo from the same evening here: love and the city.

the protector



entrance to a housing block in versova village. the sea and all its myths and creatures are popular motifs and appear in varied forms throughout the neighbourhood.

mumbai sleeping - 5

People sleeping on the footpath and road in Mumbai by Kunal Bhatia

previous photos in this series: 1, 2, 3 and 4

the red window

red window and yellow wall at khotachi wadi vernacular architecture in mumbai

colours of khotachi wadi. other photos from this neighbourhood: rear view, now what and mumbai 400004
update: there are some more photos of khotachi wadi. to view them, just type in 'khotachi wadi' in the search box on the right.

the rear view



looking back at one of the few remaining houses at khotachiwadi, a 19th century settlement of the east-indian community in south mumbai.

update: to email/ tweet/ share/ like posts on mindless mumbai, use the little buttons at the end of the post. and, for more photos from this neighbourhood, hit up 'khotachi wadi' in the search box on the right.

reflections - july theme at city daily photo. to view other photos from around the world, go here