Capturing a Citys Soul

Raghu Rai is one of India’s most celebrated photographers and his 29th book of photographs on Mumbai is yet another visual treat. Aimed at capturing the essence of Mumbai, it is almost a study of contrasts and very evocatively captures slices of what Mumbai as the city really is.

It starts off with an introduction of Vir Sanghvi on the origin and evolution of Mumbai. It is fairly well written, except that it starts off sounding like a history lesson and ends like an anti-Shiv sena rant, but that is besides the point.

This book is primarily about people, their dreams, aspirations, frustrations, hope, despair, love, faith and joy. It is about the mad rush and the constant transformation going on in Mumbai. It is about the space and lack of it. It is about frames of history frozen in time. It is about the masses of Mumbai who give it its very distinct identity.

Split into two sections of B&W and colour, the book begins with some period photographs from the 1900’s during the British Raj. Interspersed with Raghu Rai’s own works, they paint a stark contrast between the gentile city of Bombay to the throbbing rush of humanity in current day Mumbai. The B&W section also seems to symbolize ‘power’ with portraits of some of the leading denizens of Bombay from different walks of life: the Ambanis, Birlas, various Parsi families and other eminent personalities. It provides a tiny glimpse into their private space while simultaneously contrasting with very powerful images of a completely different strata of society including a haggling Koli fisherwoman to Tina Munim’s wedding day.