Culture of Mumbai

A resident ofMumbaiis called aMumbaikar. People prefer to stay close to a railway station for easy access to themetropolis. Many city-dwellers lead a fast-paced life with very little time for other activities owing to a significant amount of time spent on daily commuting.
Marathiis the official language spoken in Mumbai.
The metropolis has a roadside fast food consisting of MaharashtrianPav Bhaji,Vada pavs,Dabeli,Panipuri,Bhelpuri, etc. South Indian andChinese foodis also popular in the city. Lebanese, Korean, Thai, Italian, Mexican, Mughalai,Punjabi,Mālvani, and Continental cuisine are also popular in Mumbai.
Mumbai has some of the oldest restaurants inIndia.Delhi Darbar, Sindhudurg, Highway Gomantak, Samrat, Vitthal Bhelwala, Mahesh Lunch Home, Kailas Parbat,andAdarshare some of the oldest restaurants in the city. Mumbai is popular for its roadside food stalls, but it also has many swanky and high-end restaurants and pubs like Wasabi, Indigo, The Zodiac Grill, Aer, etc.
Mumbai's culinary diversity draws many people for the experience. It is very common for one to know Mumbai as astreet foodhotspot as it provides variety of flavours. Apart from the sheer variety of food from different cultural influences, Mumbai hasKhau GalliandChowpattydedicated to fast food and meals alike.
Mumbai, being the financial capital, has a large migrant population. Members of the migrating families are working with no other family support, hence ordering food from close by restaurants or calling for pre-packaged meals (dabba as called locally) is an accepted thing. Owing to these recent trends, there have been some online food ordering services that have cropped up.
Tea is the most popular beverage followed by coffee. There are tea stalls in almost all roads and corners. Other drinks include fruit juices and coconut water.Irani cafésare a part of Mumbai's cosmopolitan heritage.
Eggs Kejriwalwas developed in the 1960s in South Mumbai; according toTejal Rao, it was not well-known outside of that area before the 2010s.Pav bhaji,vada pavs,dabeli,panipuri, andbhelpuriare other examples of Mumbai dishes.
TheMarathikolisongs, which was the original music of the city, are still heard in many coastal areas in its original form and even in repackedpop/partyremixforms. The large number of migrants have also brought their own tastes in cuisine, music, films, and literature, both Indian and international.Bollywoodmusic is the most popular type heard in the city played by the city's shops, taxis, and establishments.Indi-pop, Marathi and Hindi music,Indian classical music,rock, andinternational pop musichave fans in the city.Western Classical Musictoo has a following in Mumbai.The Bombay Chamber Orchestra(BCO) was founded in 1962. It is the only Indian symphony orchestra that functions and performs on a regular basis with a concert standard of performance. TheSymphony Orchestra of Indiaoriginated in 2006 and is based in Mumbai. It often performs at theNational Centre for the Performing Arts. Mumbai has also produced renowned classical musicians, likeZubin Mehta, who considers Mumbai his hometown.
English music has a following and the city's local English rock base has grown considerably having their own bands. International music fromBeyoncé Knowles,Bryan Adams,Iron Maiden,Eminem, andEnrique Iglesiasare popular here and sometimes outsell the Bollywood albums. The rock/metal industry is active and is based inMumbaiandPune. Independence Rock, popularly known as I-Rock inMumbaiand Pune Woodstock of Pune are two of the major rock festivals of the Mumbai-Poona rock circuit.
Mumbai residents celebrateIndian celebrations and festivals.Holi,Diwali,Dussera,Ganesh Chaturthi,Eid,MoharramandMaha Shivratriare some of the festivals in the city.
Ganesh Chaturthiis one of the major festivals, celebrated in the city with great fervor. This festival involves the placing of an idol of Lord Ganesha in the house for either 1½, 3,5,7 or 11 days after which it is immersed in the ocean, after a colourful and noisy parade. This festival was started byBal Gangadhar Tilakas a means of unifying all the people and emphasize the need for India's independence from the British. This is primarily celebrated by Maharashtrians, but almost all Mumbaikars participate in one way or another. Here, all the festivals are celebrated with great joy and happiness.
Non-religious festivals include theQueer Azaadi Mumbai, Mumbai's annualpride parade.Nationalistic festivals including theIndependence dayare also celebrated.
In 2004, Mumbai received two heritage conservation awards from theUNESCO. TheMarine Driveis home to some of the finest buildings of the art decostyle, (also calledIndo DecoorBombay Deco,) which flourished in the 1920s and 1930s. During the British era, theIndo-Saracenicarchitecture was the official architecture of the city. Many Indo-Gothic monuments also lineSouth Mumbai—Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus;BMC building,Gateway of Indiaare some of this style.
Mumbai has housing structures known asChawl('chaali' inMarathi). These are the remnants of the once booming cotton mills which provided job opportunities and led to migration of people to Mumbai. Chawls still occupy a large portion of the Mumbai residential area.
Modern buildings and skyscrapers dominate the skyline.
Mumbai is the birthplace of Indian cinema with the oldest film shot in the country in 1896 in the Kala Ghoda area. Many cinemas, including an IMAX dome theatre, catering to mainstreamMarathi,BollywoodandHollywoodfilms dot the city. The city contains some old movie theatres like the Plaza,New Empire Cinema (Mumbai)and New Excelsior. Due to taxation policies of the State Government, it has become more profitable to operateMultiplexesand so many movie theatres are making way for other developments or interior overhauls. An example of this is Sterling Theatre atChhatrapati Shivaji Terminus. In fact, Mumbai hostsInox Leisure Ltd's biggest offering in India- an 11 screen theatreMegaplexatInorbit Mall.This also is Mumbai's biggest multiplex.
The city is also home to film studios. These includeFilm CityinGoregaon, andRaj Kapoor's R.K. Studios in Chembur,Filmistan,Shashadhar Mukherjee's Filmalaya andV Shantaram'sRajkamal Studio.
Mumbai hosts plays and cultural performances. Some of the theatres arePrithvi TheatreatJuhu, Dinanath Natyagruha atVile Parle, Shanmukhananda Hall atMatunga, Prabhodankar Thackeray Theatre at Rang Sharda atBandraand the theatres at the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA),Nariman Point.
There are two public art galleries, TheJehangir Art Galleryand TheNational Gallery of Modern Artand a museum in South Mumbai. TheAsiatic Society of Bombayis the oldest public library in the city, built in 1833.
There are many museums in the city, includingDr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum,Cowasji Jehangir HallandChhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya.
The commercial art galleries are mostly located in the Colaba and Fort area of downtown Mumbai.  They include Chemould Prescott Road, Pundole, Guild, Sakshi, Mirchandani+Steinrucke, Chatterjee & Lal, and Project 88.
Mumbai has hosted several world sports events, including1982 Men's Hockey World Cup,2004 Kabaddi World Cup, and matches for the1987,1996, and2011Cricket World Cups.
TheMumbai Marathonheld annually is one of the largest mass sporting events in Asia.