Walk through the by-lanes and explore these places in Mahim

If you thought a murder taking place in Mahim is the neighbourhoodrsquos only claim to fame this trail will prove you wrong One of the original seven islands of Mumbai Mahim has been ruled by several kings throughout history It rose to prominence as the capital of Raja Bhimdev in the 13th century and was called Mahikavati then Rulers changed and till Indiarsquos independence Mahim remained under the British ruleMahim Fort and Reti Bunder Beach ParkPicAshish RajeBuilt over 800 years ago Mahim Fort overlooks Worli to the south and Bandra to the north But who actually built it That story is unclear Regardless the fort served as a stronghold for the British And Reti Bunder Beach which extends from the gates of the fort was where boats would dock when they entered Mahim creek For decades the fort lied in ruins and was encroached upon by slums the beach too was lost under heaps of garbage Eventually in 2023 the BMC restored the fort and rehabilitated slum dwellers Reti Bunder Beach too has been cleaned up complete with a park that has an open gymnasiumMahim Koliwada Seafood PlazaMumbai may not have beach shacks like Goa but at the seafood plaza you can sit by the water for a seafood meal The Koli community of Mahim Koliwada cooks the catch of the day Yoursquoll find all types of local fish think crabs surmai rawas bombil king prawns tisrya clams and more Everything served here has the rich flavours of Koli masala and is cooked right before youWHEN Opens at 730 pm closed on Mondays Tuesdays and ThursdaysMahim Police StationSitting in a heritage bungalow built in 1923 Mahim Police Station seems an odd addition to a neighbourhood trail But the four pillars of this bungalow have sculptures dating back to 10th and 12th century AD One is of Dikalp a Hindu deity another depicts a naval battle while the third one seems to be part of a temple design and finally a sculpture of HanumanThe Revolver ClubItrsquos hard to find a record store these days thatrsquos why The Revolver Club is Mahimrsquos priced possession Inside you will find something thatrsquos more priced The store has shelves full of vinyl records along with a player if you want to listen to some tunes before purchase At times the store hosts listening nights You might know of them from the various listening sessions they host at coffee shops and bars across the cityWhere G3 Fairlands Lady Jamshedji Rd Mahim WestBristol BakeryPicAshish RajeMumbaikars popularly belong to two bread camps Wibs or Bimbo Bristol bakery is the home of the Bimbo bread Now over 50yearsold the bakery has added several products including a range of biscuits and wafers The bakery also has a kiosk for Jimmy Boy so you can grab sandwiches puffs and pastries to eatWhere Pitamber Lane MahimJoshi Budhakaka Mahim HalwawalaPicAshish RajeSweetmaker Giridhar Mavji experimented to create the Mahim Halwa the flat palmsized halwa that instantly melts in the mouth He wanted to create a sweet with Indian flavours and his Bhavnagari roots and ended up creating this halwa and gave it the neighbourhoodrsquos name Now owned by the seventh generation of the family the shop still stands in Mahim In fact Mahim Halwa is often mentioned in many Koli folk songs tooWhere 6 Kapad Bazaar Near Bombay Scottish MahimCafe Irani ChaiiPicAshish RajeYoursquove heard of Irani cafes from the preindependence era but Cafe Irani Chaii opened doors in 2015 Filmmaker Dr Mansoor Showghi Yezdi wanted to continue the legacy of Irani cafes and opened the space to look exactly like such a cafe would in the early 1900s Expect to find Sulemani chai Irani chai bun maska mutton and chicken cutlets and of course keema pav Where Rosary Building MiaMohd Chhotani Rd Geeta Nagar Mahim WestShri Sitladevi TemplePicAshish RajeThe origins of Sitladevi Temple are shrouded in mystery But itrsquos speculated that the idol of the Goddess was brought here by Raja Bhimdev when he moved his capital from Thane to Mahim Go to see the blend of Hindu and Muslim architectural styles You will prominently see this in the templersquos main entrance which has an Islamicstyle arch Inside there are carvings that depict scenes from Hindu mythology while the dome has Islamicstyle calligraphy inscribed on itWhere Lady Jamshedji Rd Mahim WestSt Michaelrsquos ChurchPicAshish RajeThe churchrsquos Novenas every Wednesday are so popular that over the years a Wednesday market has mushroomed along LJ Road Itrsquos the first church in Mahim to be built by the Portuguese but it has been renovated several times Visit not just for devotion but to marvel at a rare handpainted version of Our Lady of Perpetual Succor which was was gifted by the Vatican It is an exact replica of the original iconic painting which is displayed in RomeWhere Lady Jamshedji Rd Mahim WestPottersrsquo PlaceArtist Shalan Dere runs her studio Pottersrsquo Place in Mahim The garden studio is under a Mango tree and has ceramic figurines Ganesh idols wall hangings and murals decorative tiles among other creations Dere also runs pottery workshops and can teach you how to create designs on the wheelWhere Sumati building Lieutenant Dilip Gupte Marg Mahim West MahimVictoria Book CentrePicAshish RajeSitting on LJ Road the book centre operates as a circulating library as well Itrsquos a trove of old magazines and has a mammothsized collection of book titles in English The subscription fees is nominal or you can buy secondhand books as well Where Shop No 110 Ground Floor JN Wadia Trust Building Lady Jamshedji RdOther nuggets of historyThe lady of LJ RoadBack when you had to take a boat to go from Mahim to Bandra there were chances of losing your life at sea especially in the monsoons Lady Jamshetjee Jeejeebhoy funded a road that extended along Mahim Causeway till Dadarrsquos Portugese church One lakh was given to built the road and later an additional 40000 were added by Lady Jeejeebhoy The road was built for a total sum of one lakh 57 thousand Eventually the road extending towards Dadar was renamed as NC Kelkar RoadOrigins of lsquosupari denarsquoMahimrsquos connection to the underworld comes in the form of a common slang Legend says that Raja Bimb or Bimbaraja had a ldquoproblemrdquo he would invite his warriors for a feast and tell them about it He would then place a supari in front of them If you picked up the supari you were essentially taking responsibility to eliminate the problem This story is believed to be the origin of the phrase lsquosupari denarsquo that came to be used for contract killings