the world celebrated World Ocean Day on June 8, I was busy manoeuvring the concrete tetrapods off Marine Drive. My marine enthusiast friend Pradip Patade had decided to surprise me with a treat of marine creatures, which exist unknown to even ardent nature enthusiasts.

My latent amazement about all creatures marine has been forcing me to frequently visit beaches across Mumbai. While most people explore the sandy stretches for their attractive shells, crabs and birds, I am attracted to the rocky intertidal zone that are rich in marine invertebrates.

An hour-and-a-half-walk in the rocky intertidal region off Marine Drive exposed wondrous delights, especially a diversity of brightly-coloured sponges. We spotted pale cream, bright red, pastel turquoise and even green sponges,  right here along the coast of our beauty-obsessed megalopolis. In the 18th century,  people in Europe scrubbed their bodies with sponges that belong to Phylum Porifera.