Mar 25
The Marathas were never in possession of the Bombay group of islands. These were the territory of the Sultan of Gujarat. He was forced to give Bombay to the Portuguese. Unfortunately, these very proselytizing Portuguese murdered Sultan Bahadur Shah of Gujarat. There was no Indian ruler claiming ownership of these soggy, disease-prone islands of Bombay. Not only the Moguls but also the Marathas never claimed this piece of land as their own. They had no interest in the barren wasteland.
The wasteland of Bombay was given as the dowry by Catherine of Braganza (Portuguese princess) during her marriage to Charles II of England. That is how the British got possession of the islands.
Even for the British Crown, this remained a useless piece of land. It was passed on to the East India Company. The East India Company had no particular interest, nor could they see Bombay’s potential as a great port. Surat port was becoming congested and the Surtis of Gujarat were the first people who moved to Bombay in pursuit of their trade and commerce.
It was not the British East India Company but the Parsees who put their own private money in the development of the port. Major economic actives were initiated by the Parsees, Gujaratis and Bohras from Surat, which set into motion the process of evolution of Bombay and its becoming the financial capital of India. (Historically, meaning when Bombay was soggy, disease ridden place) There was no or negligible contribution worth the name from Marathas in development of Bombay.
Some people who never studied (or at least didn’t pay much attention while studying) history have renamed it ‘Mumbai’ and demand exclusivity to make political gains …
So i call Mumbai Bombay 
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
(20 votes, average: 4.55 out of 5)
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Thats a bit of deep history even I am not aware of, and its quite true that the renaming has been done for political gains ONLY
May I know who had named it “Bombay” initially? And does the word “Bombay” have some meaning?
BOMBAY WAS NAMED BY BRITISH.WHO GOT IT FROM PORTUGAL WHO CALLED IT SOME BOMBIA SOMETHING MEANING GOOD BAY.LATER D NAME WAS CONVERTED IN MUMBAI BY HINDUS(NAMED AFTER THIER GOD)
Politics has done numerous changes that spoiled the history and a common man in general. This is just one of those.
Jai guru dev!
Well Mumbai is eponymous with Maha-Amba, the name of the Koli goddess Mumbadevi and Aai, “mother” in Marathi. The name change as you said, was Shiv-Sena driven and has no bearing on the origins of the name Bombay, which was part of an archipelago of 7 islands – Bombay Island, Parel, Mazagaon, Mahim, Colaba, Worli, and Little Colaba
Dear Bawa,
I don’t see it as big issue as it has been lately politicized. Whats with the name! Would it change the way you feel for the place any how? Like I love the name “Bharat” then “India” but still it doesn’t change my respect and love for the country.
At the end of the day every thing will change nothing is Permanent!
Jai GuruDev!
totally agree!
The only reason i put this little piece up was for the benefit of people who keep correcting me to call it Mumbai when i sometimes end up calling it Bombay
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose; By any other name would smell as sweet.” — Shakespeare (Romeo And Juliet. Particularly, this is Juliet talking about Romeo
)
but then, does the name ‘Bombay’ was given to the city by the Parsees, Gujaratis and Bohras from Surat!!
we should then accept only the name given by those who have initiated and contributed to the economic development of a city! every city..!!
Was called Bombay for almost 400 years
Agreed with the history part. Whether one calls it Mumbai or Bombay is upto individual discretion as well as comfort.
As a Parsee and the contribution that Parsees have made to the city nobody can object a Parsi like you calling Mumbai Bombay!!! I see most of the heritage structures schools colleges stock exchanges financial institutions were once started by Parsis Gujratis Bohris and Catholics… so the new name that saves “MARATHI ASMITA” is irrelevant to the current scenario..
If you allow me to dissect the political issue i will make a sincere attempt. My Grandad who was an roaming RSS sanchalk had once told me this way back when city was renamed..
Marathas never were part of Mumbai, nor were they intersted in capturing Mumbai. Original inhabitants of the seven islands were Kolis, Kunbis, Aagris, Vaanis, Saalis and Maalis.. and they had an intersting way of life and called this village Mumbaai after their worshipped diety MumbaDevi..
The population was very sparse.. Infact places like alibag and panvel were much populous then.. after the commercialisation began as Bawa has mentioned various other communities too flocked in and village became city. British named it Bombay province. (dont know whether Mumbai was mispronounced or they liked Bombil too much).. after the independence, their was fair number of Marathi speaking population in city with Gujratis Parsees Muslims and Bohras and South Indian communities.. Bombay was to be considered seperate from Maharashtra. It was like having a Crown without jewel. So the Maratha lobbied and won it as capital of state (rape the city and feed other districts while keeping them backward)..
Even today most of the legislators are Marathas (not the natives of Mumbai) and would want to keep control on cash rich Mumbai. Other Natives (Parsi Gujratis and Bohris) as I like to call them would never vote for them.. so legislators carved out a votebank by renaming the city and making Marathiness as their party manifesto.. To this date all the original inhabitants I mentioned above are votebanks and ticket to success for the parties that make such a big issue out of NAME
But how is anybody benefitted politically by changing a city’s name ?
Excellent research !!
jgd
thanks for this part of history. bhaiya , i am regular in sadhna and kriya for the past 1 and half year; for the past 1 and half month i m experiencing severe scatica pain and physiotherapist has advised me not to sit in vajr aasan at all .. please advice what to do …
thanks in adfvance for your answer
if you have that pain, dont sit in Vajrasana, sit in sofasan
(sit comfortably)
Ask some Sri Sir yoga teacher for some asanas that could help you … i know that just hanging with your hands for 10 seconds more than comfortable, many times a day will help a great deal
heh… awesome..
Bawa at his logical best. And this comes from a marathi
hey .. could you tell us since when and how the word “Mumbai” originated?
It is believed that the name comes from the name of one of the old Koli goddesses, Mumba Devi, a temple to whom now stands in Bhuleshwar… Of course it has been utterly politicized etc, but you guys know enough about that
Finally a fitting & accurate reply to insane political goons, who just love vandalism…just because of a name.
U again took my heart away…
Awesome extensive research and good piece of G.K.
Learned a new word too ‘proselytizing’
Thanks Bau
Love u
wud hv bn thankful for this info only if u had not used this sentence “There was no contribution worth the name from Marathas in development of Bombay.” being a Maharashtrian it is very difficult to digest that we Maratha’s have not done anything worth…. Thank God we (maharashtrians) have legend like Shivaji Maharaj, incarnation of Shiva who fought for the rights of maratha…still respect him and so proud to be Maratha of Maharastrian family.. today i m trying to be a ‘reason’ very small reason for development of Mumbai (ur Bombay) because i am following Art of Living and trying to bring more and more marathi people to this AOL family… but reading this sentence i am afraid that 50 or 60 years later, some one ll say “There was no contribution worth the name from Marathas in development of AOL.”
Jai Gurudeva!!!
You dont have to worry about that, dinesh is true blue maratha!
and maybe that sentence needs to rewritten as in ancient times, There was no contribution worth the name from Marathas in development of Bombay
Be proud to be Maratha, but be more proud to be a human being …
I just did a bit of research because many people have commented on my use of Bombay … though as everyone knows i use Bombay and Mumbai interchangeably
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
Interesring History Bau,,,,
Even i have been using Bombay…..only because it was changed for Political Means.
Yeh !!!! Even More Proud to be Gujrati nw….hehhehehe
Thanks n Love u too…
I always read and liked ur blogs… and respect u a lot. being a AOL volunteer i ll never forget that i m a Human Being first…but human being also has their own set of emotions na… so human in me got little hurt
after all y shld i hide my emotions…
i love Bombay and Mumbai too…
and ya i also did a bit of research
.. sorry it is not my own, i read it somewhere…but its good info…
The name Mumbai is derived from Mumba or Maha-Amba- the name of the Koli goddess Mumbadevi and Aai, “mother” in Marathi. i.e. Mumba-Aai = Mumbai
Jai Gurudeva!!!
Wow! I didn’t know this… This should be forwarded to MNS and Shiv Sena… Great… Loved it… Will follow your blog now!
You Know Bau….was waiting for this to come since a long time…I always used to notice you using both names and would wonder if i would ever have the courage to ask you why you use Bombay. Well you answered the question here.
Good bit of research Bau. As usual, it was thorough.
Jai Gurudev.
To say that only Parsees and Gujrathis did everything for Bombay/Mumbai, so it belongs to them, while the locals did nothing is shockingly ignorant and disrespectful. There are plenty of local people who are law abiding, contributing and successful citizens.
I know shiv sena and mns are not really giving Maharashtrians a good name in general, but this initiative to change from Bombay to Mumbai is ok. A LOT of cities have had their names changed. eg. Chennai, Pune, I think Calcutta even? ALL the name changes are to go back to the way it was pronounced BEFORE the british.
If we were to apply Bawa’s logic, then India should go back to British rule, because no matter what, they made the modern India. Brought railways, the post office, structured government. Our administration still follows so many of the structures.
All in all, some shockingly communal logic from a “One world family-Art of Living” teacher. And how convenient to have credited only Parsis, Bohras and Gujrathis. No-one else contributed to this melting pot of all cultures, where people come from all over the country to find success? Mumbai is a melting pot of all cultures just like own very own Bay Area, and we should respect all cultures and people.
As for some Marathi names, forget Shivaji Maharaj, because along with Shiv Sena, the great warrior has also become an object of derision unfortunately, but Padmashri Sachin Tendulkar, Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhosale, Shantanurao Kirloskar, P. L. Deshpande anyone?
Hello?!!
I am talking about History please … not present day, historically speaking, however shocking it may sound to you, it was the parsis, gujjus and bohras who developed Bombay… its not what i say, its historical fact
please re read the article and check up your facts before saying nasty stuff about me!
That’s first of all disputable, they were ONE of the settlers, NOT the exclusive ones. AND that gives them the right to name something over the locals? What bullshit. Stop spreading divisions, you are a Art of Living teacher, for God’s sake. You need to introspect on this one.
And btw, there’s nothing in your post that’s so intellectual that people do not get, and have to re-read. Don’t kid yourself.
Anyway, this is my last post on this subject, I have much better things to do. I have had my say on my local satsang where this was posted, and here as well. Now I am done. Don’t really expect you to change, but thank you for opening my eyes to the hypocrisy in AOL. For that, I will always remain grateful to you.
They didn’t name it, the name was there for a long time … all i said was that there is no basis for the political name change that was done and forced down people’s throats, and more importantly down mine, whenever in my posts i would use Mumbai or Bombay interchangeably … The little post that i gleaned from a few emails and websites simply state historical fact that the Marathas and even the British were not interested in the wasteland of Bombay… To rename it Mumbai afterwards claiming that the Marathas were responsible for the city’s growth, progress, etc since time immemorial is just plain wrong. This does not undermine what Chatrapatti Shivaji Maharaj did for India, or the miracle that Lata Mangeshkar’s voice is or the gratitude i have for having a very marathi Dinesh Ghodke in my life! That was the import of the article. There is not even an iota of hypocrisy in this…
My suggestion to you to re read the post was so that you would get this, which you clearly didn’t… even after re reading my post (or did you?)
For the record, Mumbai of today is a beautiful, vibrant place made so because of the people who live here… I dont think anyone comes to Bombay because it is beautiful or the weather is great… They come because of the love and warmth of its people. The article in no way has compromised this, though you make it seem so. Even you will have to agree that the renaming of Bombay to Mumbai was a purely political move, mainly detrimental for the people living here… You will agree to this of course if you are abreast with the stuff thats happening here in India and you have some modicum of sense… The article was simply a protest against this.
And a protest against people telling me again and again to call Bombay Mumbai.
For the record, i will call my city whatever i wish… and when i say Bombay i mean Mumbai and when i say Mumbai i mean Bombay…
If you have a problem with that… deal with it!
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
haha!!! this girl has gone MAD
Dear Bau,
ha ha feeling very funny about this woman’s post.
It’s very clear from the topic itself “why I call Mumbai Bombay” that it is about why YOU call it that way. How conveniently people are able to find double meanings and interpret the message according to their fancies! Hopefully she does her sadhana and finds some peace.;-)
Jgd
Love
@ Nivedita,
You have a very ‘interesting’ argument….interesting because it makes no sense! But is just “wonderfully” worded…
Anyways, you arent going to be here to read this, so whats the point in arguing? I must however mention that you were a little too quick in judging how ‘hypocrite’ AOL is! One blog post shakes your faith (if any)?
Fantastic article Bawa!
Bolain to Hamari Nivedita ne Bola—
“Don’t really expect you to change, but thank you for opening my eyes to the hypocrisy in AOL. For that, I will always remain grateful to you”
First thing first Niveditaji… I belong to you
Bolain to Niveditaji… expectation reduces aaj ke date main KILLS joy
… let make it wonder & surprises 
Opening ur eyes to the Hypocrisy in AOL… Tu aisay hee AOL ka naam le le, le to sahi, ek baar naam le kay to dekh kee Jeevan safal hota hai kee nahin:)
Bawa, infinity good reply man!!! u r a rockstar…at least bhai log line main to aa rahay hain jo na aain unka loss:) ek gaana yaad aaya Samajhnay walay samajh gaye jo na samjhay woh ……. pao pangara Balle Balle!!! Jai gurudeva
Dear Nivedita ji
The city re-naming madness in India started after Bombay was re-named as Mumbai. The Chennai, Kolkata etc lunacy was catalyzed, and even triggered by narrow minded Marathi politicians. Self respecting Tamils still like to call Chennai as Madras and I think people like you should also grow up.
Niveditaji,
You have no right claiming people like Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosale who originate from Mangueshi village in Goa as marathas or maharashtrians. the name mangeshkar refers to a native of mangueshi. Goans are proud to be Goans and are definitely not interested in masking their identity as marathas.
Dear Bawa,
I believe Bombay comes from the Portuguese “Bom Bahia” which means “Good Bay”
Makes sense to me
JGD
Hemant
Here’s the best analysis I have found on the subject.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lULmp2INbM
you should check this out
Russell peters on name change of cities
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lULmp2INbM
don’t sweat the tech kid. innovate don’t player hate. read before you post.
Valid argument…
i don’t’ know why only renaming mumbai is made such a big issue ….when other major cities like madras, Bangalore are renamed too ….. i feel renaming itself is stupid thing to do…..its looses its true identity ……
Lovely Bau..!!! Too Good…!!
But What did Dinesh Da say after reading this post..??
Love Barkha..!!
Jai Gurudeva..!!
Absolutely true bau all this is for mere political gains !
It absolutely makes no difference even if tommorrow all the letters in the post office have address as ‘Bombay’ on them.Its only when one Karan johar uses Bombay in his film a huge hue n cry is created ..just because ths issue can be brought into limelight and can be used as a means to stay in news !!!
Its ridiculous ..
basically this name game is just to polarize the society and create unrest amongst we civilians.Anybody is free to use any name !
But my one question to you Bau is ..why dint the Parsees, Gujaratis and Bohras offend when Bombay was being named as Mumbai ?
it’s not that they “stay in the news”. its the media that focuses on such useless things when there are a lot of other issues to be addressed.
Worth a discussion! A nice post! But its even more admiring to read the comments!
I strongly agree to your point…Now I can also say it proudly…
Politicians ruined our living in Maharashtra…
Both Shivsena-BJP and Congress-NCP unions are taking conditions from bad to worst here in Maharashtra…
And Mumbai/Bombay has always been the target by both the political families…
We need to change these situations here Bawa… What can we do?
really true bau…the article is fantastic andf the arguments to add to it just brings up more light to how we are all in favour of our caste on religion and forget about the land we live in or moreover humanity. Jus renaming it as Mumbai or Bombay makes no difference it should be left to individual will as we live in a democratic country. But the forceful application of Mumbai than Bombay just makes me feel like living in the Nazi age….
Bau, Hi n Jai Gurudev!
PHEW! What a debate – Bombay or Mumbai.
I always have loved calling it Bombay, but switched to Mumbai when I learnt that it were the British who christened it Bombay, when actually it was the Koli prerogative to name the city after their ‘Native Goddess’ Maa Amba. All the above are indeed some revelations. Am a Bengali – Birth Certificate says Bombay, the D Day certificate might read Mumbai
, Have roots spread till Sahebganj (Bihar), Jhansi (U.P.), Kolkata (Dakshineshwar) – take immense immense pride in being a true blue Indian and am crazily in love with my city which by any name will be as endearing, the pains and pathos notwithstanding. I also don’t believe in running down any other city of my country – am too greedy – they are all mine! Here’s something I received via mail – thought of sharing – will sometime later share a poem I’d written in school titled ‘Bombay or Jam-bay’, till then -
Awesome! B_O_M_B_A_Y
Bombay has no bombs and is a harbour not a bay.
Churchgate has neither a church nor a gate. It is a railway station.
There is no darkness in Andheri.
Lalbaug is neither Red nor a Garden.
No King ever stayed at Kings Circle ..
Nor did Queen Victoria stay at Victoria Terminus..
Nor is there any Princess at Princess Street ..
Lower Parel is at the same level as Parel
There are no marines or sailors at Marine Lines.
The Mahalaxmi temple is at Haji Ali not at Mahalaxmi.
There are no pigs traded at Dukar bazaar.
Teen Batti is a junction of 3 roads, not three lamps.
Trams used to terminate at Kings circle not Dadar* Tram Terminus (Dadar T..T..)..
Breach Candy is not a sweetmeat market, but there has a prominent Hospital.
Safed Pool has the dirtiest and blackest water.
You cannot buy coal at Kolsa street.
There are no Iron Smiths at Lohar Chawl.
There are no pot makers at Kumbhar wada.
Lokhandwala complex is not an Iron and Steel market.
Null bazaar does not sell taps..
You will not find ladyfingers at Bhindi Bazaar.
Kalachowki does not have a black Police station.
Hanging Gardens are not suspended. (I think they are at a raised level)
Mirchi Gully does not sell chillies.
Figs do not grow in Anjir Wadi.
Sitafals do not grow in Sitafal Wadi,
Jackfruits do not grow at Fanaswadi.
But it is true that you may get fleeced at Chor Bazaar!
AMCHI MUMBAI
A City where everything is Possible, especially the Impossible.
Bambai meri jaan…….
Regards,
Sonia
It really doenst matter what the hell the city is called. It is not owned by parsis, gujjus, or marathis, it is owned by India… I have read all the comments on the blog and the reason why all this trivial regional pride is there is because of the lack of a synchronized education in all the states and in depth education about our different cultures. Diversity is honored to transcend these barriers and to create a new future where these reigional identities disappear and where there is a sense of belongingness. Bawa, this is great but this post has made people go back and start to identify themselves instead of delivering a sense of upliftment and unity. If your gist in this post is as simple as ” it does not matter what the city is called” then a more politcally correct message would have done just fine instead of targeting a people. Jai Guru Dev.
Jai Gurudev Bau.
Lovely post as usual
. Its nice to have a good mix of Knowledge, jokes, receipies and general posts like this.
Any updates to the OIS section? I click on it everyday and its time i get a surprise.
Love you lots and my ‘Hi’ to Dinesh :p
Bau its great
1)all the facts that we never knew
2) so ur way of giving back
loveeee it everbit
Jai GuruDev !!
Bawa…………You dare to say the truth……….its great….so we love and care for you…………..
and truth hurts…………but so what………….truth is truth…….
we may ignore the history………but we can’t change it….
Jai GuruDev !!
Problem is, many people are trying to change History … For example in school text books in India, Shahid Bhagat Singh who we all learned to revere as a national hero is being taught of as a terrorist!
NCERT, which publishes textbooks for all the state run schools in India have also included the following:
1. An NCERT textbook terms great nationalist freedom-fighters like Veer Savarkar, Lala Hardyal, Khudiram Bose etc as terrorist leaders.
2. According to an NCERT textbook the first war of independence was nothing but mutiny.
3. Hindus consider Cow as Holy mother. According to an NCERT textbook Aryans in Ancient India consumed Beef (Cows’ Flesh).
4. At other places in NCERT textbooks it is stated that Lord Rama and Krishna are fictitious characters. And that Ramayana and Mahabharata are just myths. (No one says that Jesus was fictitious of course
)
So unless people respect Historical fact and not distort it, we will really have an entire generation who will believe and “know” wrong things about the past!
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
Bombay Duck
Jai Gurudev
Wow ….amazing we get such a big response from so many people for just a small clarification from your side …leaving me wondering that if same amount of energy was spent by them in some good seva thought…
Dont really bother if you call Bombay or Mumbai ..Nam me kay Rakkha Hai…
I grew up in this city when name was changed …Though being a proud proud Maharashtrian .I myself many many times call it Bombay instead of Mumbai…There is nothing wrong in that.
Bawa please call it whatever you like what ever comes to your mind……no explanations required.
Jai gurudev!!
ty
hello . .. u call bombay or mumbai … the world dont care .. jst few volunteers runnin around u might.. so no big deal… jst feel like sayin- u jst talk .. ur too proud of wot u r..stp bein so.. u hav made a yes plus thin business.. do sum seva with seva with seva bhav ,, not business bhav
So true Bau!
Yes we need to pass on the right knowledge to the next generation(s).
History need not be distorted for some selfish purpose of some people.
I totally agree!
Thank you for your honest and valuable sharing!
Will share it with students in my area of contact.
jgd!
love
hetal
jgd
u r a true mumbaikar or is it bombaykar….loving the place for what it is…with all its diverse people n diverse views n diverse interpretations et all n I lov u for that. Once u have lived in Bombay..er…Mumbai…er ha..ha.. u have truly lived. People are as warm as its climate, as open as its ocean surrounding it and as jovial, caring n living life. The spirit of Bombay is what throbs in our heart, wherever v r.
Thank you so much speaking out Bawa Sir
Jai Guru Dev
What you have written and what the Senas say are not that differrent. They proclaim Mumbai belongs only to the local, you say locals ‘historically’ had nothing to do with mumbai. Both claims are exclusionary in nature. “Vasudev Kutumakam” went out of the window , eh?
Anyhow, I understand this is your personal opinion. One cant do much but respect that and move on.
ummm … first mine is not a “claim” its historical fact
And how does it establish exclusivity?
second, what has vasudeva kutumbakam got to do with me calling Mumbai Bombay?
i am simply replying to the people who insisted that i call the city Mumbai, when i repeatedly say that i call it Mumbai and Bombay interchangeably … That doesn’t mean that Vasudeva Kutumbakam has as you put in gone out of the window!
Why does knowing Historical fact trouble you so much?
Do move on
Jai Gurudeva!
bawa
Now it hurts, when some shows your real face
Is it VASUDHAIV Kutumbakam not VASUDEV Kutumbakam Please
Vasudha is earth and Vasudhaiv means one earth (world)..
Vasudev would be Lord Krishna.
heheh ty for the correction
cirrection was for AJ .. you are always welcome
AJ dear,
you tossed Lord Krishna’s family out of window.. please ask them to jump back right in
JGD Anon ,
Please don’t correct somebody for the sake of correcting them..!! It is Not wise..
Vasudhaiva is a combination of two words, this stringing together of words which may have a completely different meaning than the words that make it up,in sanskrit is known as ”Samaas” .
Vasudha is Earth/World (right ) ,Eva does not ,mean One! Then it would be VasudhaEkah Kutumbakam?? Eva has many meanings – verily, truly, already , indeed… etc.
Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam – The world is truly/… a family.. the ”one” family is interpreted or understood by what it aims to convey..
Sorry, I dont want to sound like one of those intellectual snobs, but your Wrong interpretation and half-baked knowledge irritated me.. so , there you go..!
Jai Gurudev!
PS: Bawa, I love your youtube videos please post some guru stories… it is so good to see you ..
Rahul Just for your kind info –
Vasudhaiv IS A SWARANT SANDHI and Vasudhaiv IS NOT A SAMAS
As you can see Vasudha ends with an ‘AA’ and Eva stats with ‘E’ Both ‘AA’ and ‘E’ being two vowels (swaras) conjuct and they create this word. This ‘E’ is actually pronounced as ‘A’ but l leave it
This word does not fall into any kind of main Samas (es) like Avyayibhav, Tatpurush, Dwandwa or Bahuveehi or sub typps of these samasas !! If I start explaining that this space will not be enough so I leave that also
Reason why i didnt fall into ‘Vigrahas’ is because ppl wont understand Sansrit grammer …they dont understand even basic spellings… I was therefore explaining just the basic spellings … My point was we should know our ancient language!! Its not that difficult !!!
Rahul I know my sandhi and samas vigrahas .. I know many many eva, cha and wais etc etc etc… also Sanskrit is actually pronounced as Sanskrut ..but never mind..
Before you call some Anon ‘half baked’ and eat humble pie for your own ‘total knowledge’ think again…you may not this anon but bloggers do
Giving you your stuff back because I cant use it – **Sorry, I dont want to sound like one of those intellectual snobs, but your Wrong interpretation and half-baked knowledge irritated me.. so , there you go..!**
ps : If anyone wants to impress bawa its better done independently
Dear anon ,
You know your grammar.I accept all that you have said , I did not go into the grammar deeper for the same reason you did not in your initial post..My response was only to the word Vasudhaiva which you literally translated as ”one world”. VasudhaivaKutumbakam is Samasa , I know that Vasudhaiva is a Swaranth samdhi and it does not hold any meaning when written by itself..
It is a pleasure to see someone who holds the same sentiments as I do..
jai gurudev.
Dear Bawa,
What you have written requires a lot of courage. This renaming is plain politics nothing more. And why only Mumbai, here in Noida (U.P.), in a limit of chamcha-giri, one Fly-Over has been named as Maha-Maya Flyover (Ostensibly because Mahamaya was mother of Gautam Budhha).
And one more thing, Bawa keeps on reminding us our ancient heritage which we have forgotten. Let me for once remind our fellow readers about the contribution that Parsis have made to their nation.
Just names are enough: Pherozeshah Mehta, Dadabhai Naoroji, Bhikaiji Cama, Homi J. Bhabha, Zubin Mehta, Sam Maneckshaw, Ardeshir Tarapore (Param Vir Chakra, Posthm.), Various members of the Tata, Godrej and Wadia industrial families and so many others.
Also a word about JRD Tata.
IISC, Bangalore, Tata Institute of Fundamental research, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, numerous public libraries, etc. are running today because of vision of JRD and selfless contribution of the Tata group. Parsis thought about higher education and its importance, way ahead of any other social group and the more affluent once took on the responsibility for financial support for this activity.
Bawa may very well say it Bombay or Mumbai, because that is not what is important. What is important is love for this land, its people, its heritage, which Bawa and Dinesh have no less than any other person.
Aditya Agrawal
Bau,
Wonderful article. I have found myself using it both ways. Loved the article.
Thanks
Sunil
Bawa u r hypocrite………..True that Marathas never take Mumbai how can you say marathas have not done anything………..Shivaji Maharaj,Sachin Tendulkar, PL Deshpande, Prabodhankar Thakrey, Lata Mangeshkar,Dinesh Ghodke,Rashmin Pulekar ……..are not landed from the mars…………….you call Kolkatta propeperly u dont have problem with chennai By saying this you are disrespecting us….I love You Bawa……but by this statement u have saddened me.
Hey! Its Kolkata not Kolkatta!! LOL:)…kidding…
Bengalis still use Calcutta and Kolkata interchangeably, and thankfully, thus far I’ve never seen anyone raise a hue and cry over it! I feel most people reading this post are hung up on that one line :There was no contribution worth the name from Marathas in development of Bombay. (Hmm…what was that knowledge point again? You hear 1 negative thing and your mind gets stuck there?)
Just thought this post (and its comments) needed more spicing up
Guys, you need to see this in the context in which it is being said. No one denies the contributions of the Marathas, not just to Bombay (damn! i said it again) but to the whole of India. I think what was meant in this line, is that ‘at the time when it was a disease-prone, soggy island, which no one wanted to touch’ Marathas did not claim this land and make it habitable. Now, my knowledge of history here, is far from thorough…but thus far, I haven’t read a single comment that said, it was in fact the Marathas who had developed the land right from the start…
If history was being re-wriiten for political gains, I would be irked too…I’m surprised so many of you aren’t…
yes thats what i meant … i am quite surprized people would even think that i meant anything else
ty for clearing the air suparna … i think after this comment i wont put that post that i so painstakingly wrote for thursday …
or i will if you guys promise to just laugh and move on
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
Marathaji,
You have no right claiming people like Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosale who originate from Mangueshi village in Goa as marathas or maharashtrians. the name mangeshkar refers to a native of mangueshi. Goans are proud to be Goans and are definitely not interested in masking their identity as marathas.
Well done Nivedita……surely it requires guts to speak against bawa
It takes great brains or lack of brains to speak against bawa…If you call that courage of course
I agree that Parsis & boharis have done great work for mumbai i have full respect for them but there are several factors which are responsible for naming the city,financial growth done by few people should not be enough reason for that you can not rule out sentiments of locals.
Apart from its economical strength Mumbai is known for Films & Cricket. You may not be knowing this that D.D Phalke made first film ( & developed necessary technology required for that) in india ( Dadar) he was a maharashtrian after that only indian film industry flourished to such an extent. Sumant Mulgaokar ( Maharashtrian) was backbone of TATA motors for decade ( Head of TATA Sumo project). Girish Oak developed Tata Nano in record time.Mahindra Scorpio was developed by bunch of maharashtrians ( Kandivali)
Cricket:- favourite topics of mumbaikars ……..no one can rule out contribution made by Sachin Tendulkar, Sunil Gavaskar , Dilip Vengsarkar, Chandu Boardy……..
historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically historically…
LOLL!!!!!
AMAZING REPLY!!!
Financial growth ( That too Historical) is so important…..then we should say every morning Long live the Queen….because Britishers started that in india……..No problem,,,Bawa is always right………Love you Bawa Jgd
they are the 2 names of the same place……the other person should understand about which place you are talking that is more important what ever you call it…..
Jai Gurudev Bauuu .
It really doesn’t matter how we call city till the time its in
India….Feeling as one family which MY GURU is spreading even I am seeing
that happening around you due to grace and in all this is secondary.
But at least need to respect the space where we put the articles as it is
…
read all over the world that to by Art of Living Youth wing lead. Articles
that too starting directly with maratha’s were not in possession of
mumbai
and comments coming like -
Even i have been using Bombay…..only because it was changed for Political
Means.
Yeh !!!! Even More Proud to be Gujarati nw….hehhehehe
Any way young generation is not so much aware of the History but need to
‘Deepen our roots and broaden our vision’
Here are the facts and history better check it and correct it for yourself
—————————————————————————————–
The Marathas were never in possession of the Bombay group of islands.
==> Maratha’s – its sheerly means Maharashtrian….and you gone wrong
here.
1. Satvahan, Rashtrakulas (from where the maratha word came) owned the
islands before sultanate came
2. Even after Gujarat sultanate came..the mahim was in control of
Bhandari’s for 8 years
3. and from time before that there were villages existing on these
islands too
4. There are various stone inscriptions in marathi found at Akshi in
Mumbai (former Colaba) district
These were the territory of the Sultan of Gujarat. He was forced to give
Bombay to the Portuguese. Unfortunately, these very proselytizing
Portuguese murdered Sultan Bahadur Shah of Gujarat. There was no Indian
ruler claiming ownership of these soggy, disease-prone islands of Bombay.
==> By the way still on this soggy disease prone islands villages were
they were there
existing – Sion, Wadala, Mazgaon, warali, Prabhdevi etc I don’t know
whether all people staying there were only diseased ?
before sultan also (when u say a village Gaon all castes are included..it
was never called koliwada, Pada etc). And whole India was under Muslim rule
Not only the Moguls but also the Marathas never claimed this piece of land
. They had enough guts to turn the coin 
as their own. They had no interest in the barren wasteland.
==> 1. Everything have the interdependence
2. You are talking about the times of 1600 – Gujarat sultanate was annexed
by Akbar in 1573 and In 1600 commercial treaty between Moghul and
British …later obtained rights to reside and build factories
in Surat and other areas. So many Parsis run to British run settlements to
take new jobs and check the
opportunities (any way for them it was mostly about the opportunities)
3. Check the history of whole country that time…hardly any Hindu king
surviving. complete country under onslaught of Moghuls and working under
Moghuls. how you will see separate title of Maratha’s here ?
4. during the same time Chattrapati shivaji’s father tried to create the
empire and had to run to karnataka as all muslim kings and mughals got
together and defeated him. he had to take the nobleship under vijapur and
went to Banglore.
5. Vijaynagara empire erased no one there Chattrapati shivaji not born who
will claim??? I don’t think Parsis/Gujrathi even dared to claim the island
that time
6. Chattrapati shivaji born in 1630 and had enough on his hands to fight
with 5 different sultanate and needed accessaries for his ill equipped army
and he could get that from Portuguese and British (political move). but he
made a point he fought with them when the kingdom was established. built
Kolaba fort to make a check other more than 100 forts around. see the
history how he fought that time. it was not easy to directly get the mumbai
island when u have Moghul links.
7. After Chattrapati shivaji’s death 1674 – Aurangjeb came down – 5 lack +
soldiers against hardly 1 lack + (later army was raised till 2 lack )
fight went for 27 years longest in indian history. where was the time to
capture MUMBAI that too in hands of british ? even british were afraid and
provided ammunition to mughals and maratha’s too.
8. and any way compare any city to 1600 yes agreed it was barren land
9. also with all this trouble surprisingly people from here did not run
away and went to other shores (during that time) like people from other
countries
The wasteland of Bombay was given as the dowry by Catherine of Braganza
(Portuguese princess) during her marriage to Charles II of England. That is
how the British got possession of the islands. ==> Agreed
Even for the British Crown, this remained a useless piece of land. It was
-
passed on to the East India Company. The East India Company had no
particular interest, nor could they see Bombay’s potential as a great port.
Surat port was becoming congested and the Surtis of Gujarat were the first
people who moved to Bombay in pursuit of their trade and commerce. -
==> Obliviously when the Surat came under threat from maratha’s they moved
here (In surat British showed valor during Chattrapati shivaji’s times) and
Guju’s seeing only business and business came here and parsis also
Sorry I agree here but background is also this one that I mentioned
It was not the British East India Company but the Parsees who put their own
private money in the development of the port. Major economic actives were
initiated by the Parsees, Gujarati and Bohras from Surat, which set into
motion the process of evolution of Bombay and its becoming the financial
capital of India. ==> I respect and agree for their efforts
There was no contribution worth the name from Marathas in development of
..Same for Mumbadevi. Temples were not
Bombay.
==> 1. Surprised – by 1675 population of mumbai increased to 60,000 from
10,000 and you say all were only Gujrathi’s prasi’s ?
as for no contribution from maratha’s they should be on other planet
even not staying there. Even parsis’s not arrived by that time
2. instances are there where people took shelter in Mazgaon, Warali etc
places and were provided support also. May be they could be from some
rakshash communities
3. The Sashti islands (now bandra to borivali Ghatkopar to thane
everything was owned by maratha’s) literally means sixty villages and
people from there also never came to seven islands? All Gujarati and
parsis’s formed the fences around seven islands and said “nobody will come
to this land need to be only developled by us no body else …so that our
next generations can say maratha’s did nothing for development”
4. Do you know what even kokan Raigadh panvel are there and very close and
so many villages in between. Many powerful people from those places
(surprisingly not parsis’s) who could at least travel and do some favour
and support? (May be there is only one way built between gujrath and bombay
thats it
5. Now Bombay also includes till Borivali area and till Mulund.
6. For 1800 onwards check the list of freedom fighters and and what not,
( Mainly the Parsis started pouring in from 1750 , 1720)
7. See the movie Harishchandrachi Factory for Dadasaheb Falake (who
started film industry) during 1800 onwards
9. Also there were Maratha officers working with British from the time
British landed in India and even for Moghuls
10. See how is the conversion history of this place and how it was resisted
by locals if it would not have been resisted every body would have visited
Churches. even there are instances where Chattrapati shivaji provided help
to counter act conversions in diffrent parts from Vasai and konkan. Any way
Parsi’s had nothing to do with all india that time other that their own
development.
11. Interesting the history written by british also mentions Chattrapati
shivaji as robber in earlier times period
and other communities writing praises for their own achievements in
their own history
12. Local people not written a account and they are not eligible also to
get place in history ?
13. Prabhadevi temple originates from 12th Century and local saved the
idols and re established it even built the temple. I don’t know may be this
is not development of the place
mere structure those times it was everything for the people.
14. Culturally – Music, drama, art etc which is also part of development. I
don’t know any body else other than maratha’s in mumbai who had keen
intrest over this
15. The Indore was owned by Holkars ( maratha’s lower caste – Dhangar.
This kind of uplifting the downtrodden can only happen here)..they took
many initiatives but if locals would not have taken the responsibility and
supported it all would have been in drain. Also local must have initiated
some developments and I will not call it just only achievements of Holkar
family and name every development after them. Similarly Baroda, Jaipur etc
(even the historian placed at holkar’s court highlighting only things about
holkar family)
17. Till today the population on seven islands is still seen maratha’s .
Warali, Dadar, Wadala, Prabhadevi, Mazgaon,
also all the Koli areas.
Some people who never studied (or at least didn’t pay much attention while
studying) history have renamed it ‘Mumbai’ and demand exclusivity to make
political gains
==> Political gains I agreed but Study ? I think some people need to go
back to School -
Mirat-i-Ahmedi (traveler record) referred to the city as Manbai in 1507
(that time there were no current political parties (may be writer had
vision that he would be born in 1900 to change the city name and needed the
proof)
Portuguese explorer Duarte Barbosa mentions a reference to the city in a
complex form, as Tana-Maiambu or Benamajambu in 1516.
Also these name changes is going on from ages if this would not have been
done for whole India and its places would have been under different names
Example -
Pune – Muhiabad, Mathura – Islamabad
Nashik – Gulshanabad (For nasik peshwa’s changed the name again I think
that to after 50 + years)
I still respect you a lot and proud of you for being My teacher
Love you
Yogesh
(Forgive me for poor english if u find mistakes
Dear Bau,
you need to reply to this piece of history..
Political milage is one thing and renaming the city to its original name is one thing.
Why use some names that were given by foreigners just because they were unable to utter it right ?
Mumbai is mumbai chennai is chennai and kolkatta is kolkatta.
our views differ
I agree with you Yogesh, very shallow and narrow minded view from otherwise usually brilliant Bawa…I was enjoying this great blog…this leaves a bad taste though…looks like sometime small mind lurks thru even those who appear bask in big mind…sigh
Hahahahahaha, just reading all the posts is just so entertaining.. Bawa,, I just wanted to say that I take my words back. It is true that you should post this to protest against those who try to correct you and do not know about the history of Mumbai itself. Mumbai comes from Maha Amba Aai , Aai meaning mother, Amba is Devi, and Maha meaning great by the way. But guess what,,, it really does not matter. After reading your points carefully I would say that you are not trying to directly attack anyone but spreading the truth!
At the same time,, It saddens me because so many marathis are shocked at this truth. And me being marathi myself, ill tell you why it is shocking. For example, South India has a rich culture, Many kings, emperors, saints, and a flourishing culture existed there. The rest of India excluding Maharashtra is also rich in culture or contribution, Bihar is known for Lord Budhha and Mahavir, Rajasthan is known for its kshatriya pride and its own culture… I havent really found anything that Marathi folk can be so proud of you know, speaking of ancient times. Maharashtra was where the forests were. Some say that Maharashtrians are some sort of mix of north and south. God knows. I dont feel proud of some skinny shivaji riding around on horses with his folk who look like mexicans wearing sombreros. Other than that,, Maharashtra was a clear division between Marathas and Brahmins. There was no such thing as peace or traces of a rich culture! maybe there was! At Antarnaad, Guruji said that Maharashtra has always been the land of saints and talked some more about Maharashtra. I dont know about others but atleast I have never heard of any saints. This is all because of the broken so called “maharashtrian” culture. I feel that as people who live here in Maharshtra should help to rebuild the blurry and distorted history of Mumbai and Maharashtra and that way marathi folk can have a reason to be proud finally. That Bal Thakeray is such a joker man. Bless the poor fellow 
. As it is,, no one likes to be called Marathi, or Gujarati, or Whatever if they have a opportunity to be Human. Everyone wants to be recognized as a human. It is other people who are not in knowledge who label you as Marathi, parsee, etc. There is really no difference. It is so sad to see people so violently spit crap on this blog just because of something like this. There is a great need for knowledge about history and knowledge about the self it seems! But without the knowledge of the self, history is indigestible sometimes such as in this case. I really dont know what else to say. Im just disgusted at the current state of India. All these so called states acting as different countries with different races or something. It is really rediculous. Look at US, where I currently am by the way, If I stay in Florida today, I will be floridian, If i move to Alaska tomorrow and stay there for a year, I can consider myself to be alaskan and take pride in its local culture! .. I dont need to be born there. This is what India SHOULD be. Tomorrow, if a punjabi, moves to south India, he should feel at home in south india, with the local language and culture. This still needs to happen. And this blog has shown the real education level of this country. Jai Guru Dev, Bawa, 
Sant Jyaneshwar?
Sant Tukaram?
Sant Namdeo?
Maharashtra and Maharashtrians have had their fair share of Spirituality and Saints and culture … you have aLOT to be proud of…
make that, WE have a lot to be proud of
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
Hellllloooo bau….
It ws my 1st tym 2 visit ur blog….
dis article is 2 dam awesome….
even if am nt 4m BOMBAY, bt i m born over der n i stil call it bombay….
n 4 me it makes no difference coz even if v change d name, d place n its spirit wont b altered….
so…i completely luvd ur opinion….
i met u 1st in d recent yes+ in pune….
am so glad 2 b here…
listenin 2 u ws such a beautiful xperience….
as u said…karma spks….
so i got 2 b der…..
thnx a lot…..
lots of loove……
sry 4 my 4th line in d comment…
it goes as i ws born in bombay…
thnk u….
plzzz do reply…..
..I found the article very interesting…But wow…the comments are very entertaining…Bau, as u said people always only HEAR what they want n forget the ‘LISTENING’…I think they imply the same logic while reading!!;)
..It actually fascinated me how many times u had to repeat ‘Historically’ n also the heading of your actual article…
Way to go Bawa.
love u lots,
Jai Gurudev..
Dear Bawa: First of all, thanks for a very interesting and thought-provoking post.
It is indeed a pity that more than 60 years after independence, we are more divided than we were under the British.
Unfortunately “national identity” is not something that most people want to talk about and the current state (& level) of politics ensures that it is forced under numerous sub-identities – thus doing incalculable harm to the task of nation-building.
I should stop on this point though because that is not the main reason for leaving this comment.
The main reason is to guide your young readers to specific links re. the damage done by British “Raj” in two centuries of British presence in India.
Here are some of the links that all of you will interesting.
The Myth of a Benevolent “Raj” http://satyameva-jayate.org/2008/08/30/colonial-legacy-myths/
The “truth” about a “benevolent Empire” http://satyameva-jayate.org/2007/11/24/truth-about-a-benevolent-empire/
Economic Exploitation and the Drain of Wealth during British “Raj” http://satyameva-jayate.org/2006/02/04/economic-exploitation-drain-of-wealth/
“Loot – in search of East India Co” (excerpts) http://satyameva-jayate.org/2006/08/30/loot-east-india-company/
If you are really curious and wish to know more, here is a whole category of posts on this topic: http://satyameva-jayate.org/category/british-rule-in-india/
I am currently on vacation but would be happy to respond to queries and comments on these topics on my blog when I return.
I would also request all of you to go through some of the past articles…A good place to start would be the articles under the “Featured” category http://satyameva-jayate.org/category/featured/ (although at present they only cover two years from 2005-2007).
Also have a look at the most commented and the most viewed articles.
Some of these articles are very long; Most of them may be boring but at least some of them will be interesting, I am sure.
Happy Reading!
…and if you like what you read, do subscribe to the Feed http://feeds2.feedburner.com/SatyamevaJayate and do join the Fan
page http://www.facebook.com/SatyamevaJayate.FanPage Oh, and don’t forget http://twitter.com/satyamevajayate twitter!
I do hope to have a chance to meet some of you at some event to speak on these topics in the future.
By the way, one of your young friends Rohith organises regular Skype conference calls on these and related topics so pl do get in touch with him (or me jai.dharma AT gmail) if you would like to join the next call.
Lastly, many of you (and I am sure Bawa and Dinesh) will find this post interesting:
An open letter to BalaSaheb from a Marathi Manoos
http://satyameva-jayate.org/2010/02/02/balasaheb-marathi-manoos/
Jai Hind, Jai Bharat!
Shantanu @ http://Satyameva-Jayate.org/
*** End of a shameless self-promotion
***
Ruffled quite a few feathers there now haven’t you?
I prefer Bombay too!
lol @ repetition of historically(exasperation unlimited)
Regards
Dear Bau,
In the same vein of dev. and who put money etc., what if tomorrow someone gives huge donation to ashram and asks to rename it according to his liking ?
We are building our youth ashram near bombay, if you know anyone who would like to give a big sum of money and they would like to name a building after themselves or their family, i would be very open to it
Jai Gurudeva!
love
bawa
No Bau, i’m referring to the Bangalore Ashram and not some building somewhere… JGD
Even in Bangalore Ashram, if someone wants to donate a big sum of money to build a building, i am sure we can name that building after that person … or have a dedication stone outside that building. Not an issue really
Dear Bau,
i think you are going around the main issue here. I’m not referring to some building. I’m referring to the Bangalore Ashram itself which has its own significance and place in people’s mind.
Just as you cannot rename the bangalore Ashram itself or Vishalakshi mandap itself, one cannot rename Mumbai.
If the Gujrathi’s or Parsee’s want to rename some building in mumbai after themselves, they are free to do that, but cannot touch mumbai. If they cannot deal with it, they are free to go back to their cities, countries ( if they have any ) and name cities and buildings there as they wish.
I’d rather suggest that they appreciate the acceptance, love and life they have received from the city and respect the sentiments of the locals on issues like this.
JGD!
Dear Bau,
.
This all controversy started because i think you did not write the following prequel –
.
once upon a time in around 1600, a set of islands emerged from no where along the coast of marathi speaking region of india. one could see the words BOMBAY engraved upon them alongside the ones of sultan of gujrat. That’s how people came to know that this region is called bombay and it belongs to the sultan of gujrat.
.
The islands emitted a bad smell and when any of the marathi speaking junta from the surrounding region tried to enter them, they would catch some deadly disease and die. The islands were thus oozing with disease all over.
.
Dear Bau,
.
This all controversy started because i think you did not write the following prequel –
.
once upon a time in around 1600, a set of islands emerged from no where along the coast of marathi speaking region of india. one could see the words BOMBAY engraved upon them alongside the ones of sultan of gujrat. That’s how people came to know that this region is called bombay and it belongs to the sultan of gujrat.
.
The islands emitted a bad smell and when any of the marathi speaking junta from the surrounding region tried to enter them, they would catch some deadly disease and die. The islands were thus oozing with disease all over.
.
I nothing but pity the grand superfluousness in terms of the history stated in this blog article. It is written as if the island emerged from nowhere and suddenly sultan of gujrat go possession of it ? If the definition of soggy and disease prone means not having a 5 star hotel, then yes mumbai was all that, because it was long inhabited before your sultan got possession of it, from nowhere.
.
Most of the comments on this article are from the yes ministers – those who like anything that is written here.. Having studied in
one of the brain washing catholic schools , they do not even know H of history, however just because they think they can add 2 + 2 to 4 ( they might have learned that by heart !, who knows ) , they think they can have logical arguments!
.
Whatever that is.. Historically, geographically and physically, mumbai is part of maharashtra and maharashtra belongs to marathis and others are welcome to live there as far as they do not hurt its tradition, culture and history.
.
If you have the guts, go to pakistan and say there “pakistan is india.. Historically.. Deal with it.” and see if you can come back alive. Remember, it was the mulims that made Parsees seek refuge in India!!!
.
Just because marathi’s welcome you with open arms and do not kill you, does not mean you can hurt them as you wish. See if you can Deal with it.
It’s not ur fault.
There are many mistakes in history or we can say that by-mistake history was created.
We are on the issue of name’s.Bombay’s original name was HEPTANESIA(7 ISLANDS).
I Dont know from where someone had merged the bhori’s,parsi’s & gujju’s in it.
Before British rule it was just like a village & nothing.
As per our bambaiya language we have the habit of spoiling the originality of the name.Like, we will never pronounce the proper name for e.g ,if u want to call santosh then u will scream santya……etc.
Jiski Sarkar uska Raj,this is the popular thing among our community.
Bombay to Mumbai was just a political issue & nothing more than that.
But i dont think it keeps any importance in changing the name,waste of money Thats all.
But the origin name Bombay was given by the British govt.
Sion origin name was SIGN(Signature) was the check point of bombay entrance,whoever was entering bombay has to sign in the register with his details.Further sign became Sion,its also the pronoun-cation mistake which still we are following.
Mahim was Mayhem Church thats why the name became Mahim.
Parel,was nothing it was famous for its dense forest,people used to say in marathi that if someone falls(padel) in that dense forest was not able to come out.So padel & parel are common.
Chor Bazar was known as SHOR bazar(noisy market),one of the british person used to sell the stolen stuff in this market.Things were of stolen type thats why we called it chor bazar.
Our international Airport was named shivaji airport but can any one imagine that shivaji has never seen plane or nor he travelled through it,than why his name came on airport.
Bombay to Mumbai to Maharashtra & now Marathi Manus???
Is there any proof which can indicates that marathi manus is from bombay???
NO,b’coz marathi manus is from village which starts from panvel-kolhapur & panvel to sawantwadi.
Its confirm that a marathi manus can stay in maharashtra only,as he is not capable to go out of that.
Not only Bombay but rest of all the places of india everyone has the right to stay there.
Everyone has there native place,we cant say we are from bombay,if all will search there fore-fathers history than they will be able to know that bombay is the place where we work & stay for our limited period.If u r born in bombay than it doesn’t means that u r from bombay.Your actual property is ur village from where your family has came to bombay.
(what i am saying are my views at this point in time, and with all due respect to bawa, those who don’t believe in debate, please refrain from reading this comment)
Historically, whatever, its all fine, no debate..
You yourself agreed that you used Bombay and Mumbai interchangeably, which means clearly that there was no specific reason why you referred to the city whether as Bombay or Mumbai;
now whether the issue is being picked up for political reasons or not, whether it is low priority or not, is it a complete non-issue?
idealistically speaking, the names were changed to phase out the anglicization in them.. a part of the process to regain back or culture, which obviously is a common goal for you too..
whether its being called someway since 400 years or whatever, its renamed since 1995, and almost everyone has been born post independence, 15 years gone,
how much time is necessary to change the way one refers to it in conversations,
it was not a priority issue for you to change usage of the name, but then the post could have been about ‘whats in a name’, ‘why so much fuss’ ,
rather this seemed to me like a knee jerk ‘reaction’, which is perhaps not the way to go, as per my interpretations of “act dont react”
i think in this much i have made my point..
hope for a reply,
jai gurudev!
What you wear is superficial layer…and we all wear western clothes…yet Guruji often insists (at least implicitly by his own example) on an indigenous dress code that dignifies the tradition the person comes from. People’s names and cities also represent a space and tradition, and it is very rude to disregard that.
It is one thing to mispronounce it due to linguistic constraints, but to refuse to correct a distortion is either laziness or bad taste. Even enlightenment don’t seem cure such things. Although I would hate constant correction. I too grew up with the distortion, and I use Bombay sometimes. Fortunately don’t blog about it.
I have gone through all the information on net for Mumbai & was glad to read the whole folder but still I can not get the date , day & year on which the name”BOMBAY was changed to “MUMBAI.