Mumbai: A Million Islands

by Sidharth Bhatia

Since the East India Company merged seven islands into Bombay (now Mumbai), change has been constant-but now it is used as a weapon for displacement, disguised as development. Slums are erased overnight to make way for luxury towers priced in tens of crores. The working class is pushed to the margins-literally-and into distant housing projects with no infrastructure, transport or sanitation. Entire communities are uprooted while a new Mumbai is built for the privileged few, behind closed gates, inside glass walls.

Sidharth Bhatia's A Million Islands is a piercing look at a city in the throes of relentless transformation. What is vanishing is not just space, but memory, history and the very fabric of a living city. Mumbai's famed spirit of survival is being tested like never before. Where the original seven islands had symbolized a synergy, today they're multiplying as fractures-social, spatial and economic-splitting the city into a million islands, each more isolated than the other.

Genres: India

308 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 1, 2025

Reviews

[a_geminireader · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I picked up " Mumbai: A Million Islands" , I honestly thought it would be like every other nonfiction book about a big city. But a few pages in, I realised this one felt different , softer, warmer, almost like sitting with someone who has lived a thousand little stories and is finally ready to share them.

What touched me most was how gently the author unpacks Mumbai. Not as a loud, overwhelming city, but as tiny islands of people, memories, smells, sounds , all stitched together over time. You feel the weight of old stories, the quiet courage of everyday people, the dreams that built this place brick by brick. It reminded me of how every city is really just its people trying, hoping, starting again.

And what I loved is that nothing feels exaggerated. There’s no forced glamour, no unnecessary drama , just honesty. A kind of tender honesty that makes you pause and breathe and see Mumbai as a living, breathing feeling: unpredictable, chaotic, diverse, but somehow comforting in its own messy way.

If you love cities that feel alive, or stories that make you slow down and notice the little things, this book won’t just inform you , it will stay with you, quietly, like a memory you didn’t know you had.

[Debabrata Mishra · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are cities that grow, cities that breathe, and then there is Mumbai, a metropolis that mutates. In "Mumbai: A Million Islands", Sidharth Bhatia turns the spotlight on a city caught in an unending churn, where glass-clad towers rise overnight and entire communities disappear without leaving a line in the official narrative. What he offers is less a history lesson and more a front-page investigation into the human cost of redevelopment.

From the moment the East India Company stitched seven disparate islands into what would become Bombay, change has been Mumbai’s most faithful companion. But as he argues, change has now acquired sharper edges. It has become a tool, sometimes even a weapon, wielded in the name of development.

Slums vanish overnight, mill lands become exclusive enclaves, the working class is pushed outwards, physically, socially, emotionally. What was once a city of shared spaces is now an archipelago of privilege, each new “island” a gated promise of aspiration built on the displacement of those who made Mumbai possible in the first place.

One of the book’s strongest achievements is its refusal to reduce people to statistics. The author's Mumbai is populated with kaali-peeli drivers, fish sellers, mill workers, domestic helpers, and generations of migrant families who built this city brick by brick, shift by shift.

What makes his writing deeply compelling is his tone, affectionate yet unsparing. He neither romanticises the city nor demonises its progress. Instead, he foregrounds a truth we often overlook, development is not the villain, but development without dignity, memory, or social equity is.

🔹 Memory as Resistance :
He treats memory as an act of rebellion. In a city where buildings collapse and rise within months, remembering is almost political.

🔹 Migration as the City’s Spine :
Mumbai has always been shaped by those who arrived with hope. Their stories, often erased by glossier narratives, re-enter the frame through archives, interviews, and lived experiences.

🔹 Urban Inequality as an Unfinished Story :
The book lays bare the city’s widening socio-spatial fractures, spaces that once connected communities now segregate them.

✍️ Strengths :

✔ Sharp reportage blended with intimate storytelling
✔ Balanced, nuanced critique, neither nostalgic nor pessimistic
✔ Deep archival engagement and attention to forgotten histories
✔ Evocative, cinematic descriptions that make the city feel alive
✔ Humanitarian lens, puts people before policy

✒️ Areas for Improvement :

▪️ The narrative occasionally leans heavily into nostalgia, which may feel repetitive to readers seeking more policy-driven analysis.
▪️ Certain chapters could benefit from tighter structure; the thematic overlaps sometimes blur boundaries between sections.
▪️ Readers unfamiliar with Mumbai’s geography may find it dense without visual aids or maps.

In conclusion, this book leaves you with the unsettling clarity that a city’s greatest danger is not its poverty, its congestion, or its chaotic ambition, it is its ability to forget the people who shaped it. He forces us to confront the uncomfortable truth that progress, when severed from compassion, becomes another form of erasure. His writing insists that cities are living organisms held together not by highways, metros, and skyscrapers, but by the fragile threads of memory, community, and everyday human dignity. As Mumbai accelerates toward a future of gated islands and curated skylines, this book stands as a warning and a plea, that in our hunger to build the city of tomorrow, we do not bury the heart of the city that still beats beneath our feet. It is a reminder that true development is not measured in height or speed, but in how fiercely a city protects those who carry its stories.

[Shruti k · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who has grown up watching Mumbai change year after year, this book hit differently. Sidharth Bhatia takes us into a version of the city we all know exists… but many of us choose not to look at too closely. There’s no single storyline — instead, every page feels like a walk through the lanes, railway crossings, demolished mill areas and sea-facing construction sites, where the ground beneath the city is constantly shifting. The Mumbai I know, the Mumbai I love, is slipping into the shadows of cranes and skyscrapers.

The people in this book are not just subjects — they’re our neighbors, our kaali-peeli drivers, our fish sellers, mill workers, and families who built this city long before luxury towers claimed its identity. When the author talks to them, you hear a familiar pain — having to leave the only home they’ve known because someone decided their land was too valuable for them. He shows how development always promises a better tomorrow, but somehow that “better” never includes the people who need it most.

And here’s the thing I kept reminding myself while reading: Mumbai has always evolved. Not every change is bad, and honestly, a lot of it has made our lives easier — the metro, the coastal road, better connectivity, more opportunities. You can’t deny the pros even while you acknowledge the cons. That’s what makes this book so important: it doesn’t say development is wrong; it says development that forgets its people comes at a cost we can’t afford to ignore.

The writing is straightforward yet poetic in its honesty — like someone who loves Mumbai enough to challenge what it has become. This book made me rethink every time I admired the skyline at night. Now I look at those lights and wonder whose darkness made them possible. This is for every Mumbaikar who knows that progress is necessary, but believes that in the rush to build a new city, we shouldn’t lose the soul of the old one.

[Mahi Aggarwal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a thoughtful exploration of a city that never stops reinventing itself. What I truly appreciated about this book is how effortlessly he blends history with personal observation, giving the reader a layered understanding of Mumbai far beyond the usual clichés of glamour and chaos.

The book looks at Mumbai not as one big metropolis, but as a series of small “islands” cultures, communities, neighbourhoods, memories all stitched together over time. Author digs into old archives, forgotten stories, and everyday life to show how the city’s identity has been shaped by migrants, dreamers, artists, traders, and ordinary families who built their lives here across generations.

His writing is sharp, engaging, and full of small details that bring the city alive. The cultural exchanges of the past, or the quiet resilience of people who call Mumbai home, every chapter feels like a window into a different world.

What makes the book stand out is its honesty. It doesn’t romanticise the city, nor does it reduce it to its problems. Instead, it presents Mumbai with warmth, curiosity, and respect acknowledging both its beauty and its complexities.

If you’re someone who loves cities, history, or stories about people finding their place, this book offers a rich, immersive experience. It captures Mumbai not just as a place, but as a feeling ,diverse, unpredictable, and endlessly fascinating.

[Our_readingjourney · Rating 4 out of 5]

MUMBAI - A MILLION ISLANDS BY SIDHARTH BHATIA

Mumbai was originally seven tiny islands which was later merged by East India Company into one big island called Bombay now known as Mumbai which has seen development from sky high skyscrapers in every lane to coastal road and underground metros.
The author has very diligently portrayed the true picture of Mumbai the ever changing city. Living in Mumbai ( in fact very near to the cover picture of the book) we often see one side of the story but while reading the book it made me see the harsh reality of some of its original residents esp the slum dwellers who are forced to vacate their land and made to live in a far off land which makes way for luxury towers.
Amidst the new glittering image of Mumbai it is the plight of these people who are often forgotten about which is the sad truth that shouldn't be forgotten or else Mumbai will become like any other International Metropolitan city at the cost of its people.
The authentic and systematic approach and its narration by the author is what makes this book a compelling read!

[bookswithkinkita · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mumbai, often called the city of dreams, is experiencing relentless transformations. In Mumbai: A Million Islands by Sidharth Bhatia offers a poignant portrait of the city, focusing on its current state of shifting skylines and fractured communities impacted by rapid redevelopment.
The author highlights the voices of those overlooked in mainstream narratives families displaced from their homes and neighborhoods losing their identities. His writing is engaging and grounded in real experiences, reflecting his affection for the city while acknowledging its troubling changes. He neither romanticizes the past nor demonizes development, instead inviting readers to witness the human cost of transformation.
This book will resonate with anyone interested in urban life, social inequity, and the emotional landscape of modern cities, serving as a reminder that cities are built on people and their memories.

[Pavireads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mumbai: A Million Islands is a beautifully written book that captures the soul of the city. Instead of just showing Mumbai as a busy metro, the author explores its many layers—its people, history, neighborhoods, and changing identity.

Sidharth Bhatia writes with warmth and honesty, making the city feel alive. Through stories, memories, and observations, the book shows both the charm and the struggles of Mumbai. It feels like walking through the city with someone who knows it deeply and loves it.

This book is perfect for readers who enjoy city stories, culture, and real-life narratives. It is not just about Mumbai—it is about time, change, and belonging.

A thoughtful and engaging read for anyone who wants to understand Mumbai beyond its skyline.