The BEST window to Mumbai

This double decker bus route is Mumbairsquos ldquoonly longdistance bus routerdquo says Manoj Warade BEST PRO It plies from Worli depot to Colaba bus station ldquoThe other double deckers are meant to transport commuters between railway stationsrdquo he adds As the bus winds its way through South Mumbai yoursquoll spot a number of buildings yoursquoll recognise mdash the Doordarshan Kendra and the Nehru Science Centre But whatrsquos most exciting is that this double decker dares to go through roads even cars shy away from mdash Kalbadevi Malwanacha Kinara at Worli If the name of the restaurant is anything to go by yoursquod walk in here to feast on some Malwan seafood While your bus zips by donrsquot miss the fisherman atop the restaurant Raudat Tahera at Bhendi Bazaaru00a0 This Bohri mausoleum known as the Raudat Tahera is under wraps quite literally The shrine was built in honour of the highly revered late Syedna Taher Saifuddin who led the Dawoodi Bohra community through turbulent times It is currently undergoing renovation which explains the sheet This project is one among the redevelopment projects that Bhendi Bazaar will see over the next five years ldquoThe structure is a monolith marble cube with a dome The entire Quran is inscribed within its wall in goldrdquo reveals Lubaina Bandukwala who is an active member of the Bohri community Entry to the shrine is by special permission only Hathi building at Kalbadevi This residential building also known as Bhang Wadi after the opium distributors that flocked the area has a large statue of a blue elephant in the middle of the building faccedilade Donrsquot miss the elephantrsquos ornately decorated cloth piece with the words lsquowisdom over richesrsquo carved on it and the turbaned mahoutu00a0 Pics Moeena Halim Swadeshi market at Kalbadevi Built in the Venetian Renaissance style this market complex houses several shops The bust atop the entrance gate is of a merchant prince ldquoThat could be Mulji Jetha a cloth traderrdquo feels Kaiwan Mehta author of Alice in Bhuleshwar The Martyrsrsquo statue at Hutatma Chowk Flora Fountain was christened Hutatma Chowk in 1960 It was renamed in memory of the members of Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti who lost their lives when police fired upon their peaceful demonstration The statue depicts a martyr with a flame Apart from the statue this square at Fort houses a fountain and a large map of Maharashtra made in grass PicSameer Markande Dwarkadeshi Temple at Kalbadevi Like most other Vaishnav temples this beautiful pink red and yellow structure houses several statues of turbaned sages ldquoBuilt in a haveli stylerdquo Mehta says ldquothis temple is often referred to as the monkey temple because it also has several statues of monkeysrdquou00a0 The statue at the BMC building The statue of Sir Phirozeshah Mehta stands tall in front of the BMC Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation headquarters at Fort Mehta an activist and lawyer was a prominent member of the municipal corporation As a member of the Indian National Congress his demand during the British Raj was for selfrule u00a0PicSameer Markande BEST conductor at Colaba Allow this adorable BEST guy to hark the end of your journey This isnrsquot the official mascot but we think it should be Yoursquoll find this guy at the BEST bus terminus at Colaba WAIT THERErsquoS MORE Here are some more bus routes that show you snippets of Mumbai we tend to ignore 62 Mumbai Central to Kurla Station 63 from JM Mehta Road to Chunabhatti Khada Parsi Any of these which you can catch from Byculla station will give you a glimpse of the statue of the Khada Parsi The oftneglected statue of Shet Cursetjee Manockjee was built 150 years ago Khatau Mills While most Mumbai mills have turned into malls Khatau Mills or some semblance of it still remains Seth Khatau Makanji built the factory which covered textiles chemicals and footwear in 1874 3 11 ltd from Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus to Navy Nagar Sit wideeyed on this bus ride and yoursquore better off counting new structures than the heritage ones Apart from the obvious BMC building Azad Maidan and Hutatma Chowk donrsquot miss the gates of the Sassoon Docks The Sassoon Docks built in 1875 are one of the oldest in the city The structure houses a huge fish market and is one of the few docks in the city that is open to the public If yoursquore travelling from Churchgate station yoursquoll spot the docks from bus numbers 103 123 or 106 PicsSameer Markande 79 from Mahim to Gorai Depot Gilbert Hill This monolith now surrounded by ugly slums is a 60 million yearold natural structure A Hindu temple sits atop the hill which you can spot from the road as you cross the trafficridden Juhu circle signal Golden Pagoda The golden pagoda vipassana centre can be spotted from miles away The Gorai landmark a meditation centre built to honour Buddha in traditional Burmese style was inaugurated in 2009 file photou00a0