(350-500 words, 650 words maximum) What was the environment in which you were raised? Describe your family, home, neighborhood, or community, and explain how it has shaped you as a person. Mumbai is busy, Mumbai is chaotic, Mumbai is loud. Also called the ‘Maximum City’, Mumbai throbs with a harsh, edgy energy. There is absolutely no sense of personal space, yet it gives you the space to be yourself. 21.5 million people, call the greater Mumbai metropolitan area, their home. With over 25,000 people per square kilometer it is one of the most densely populated spaces in the world. Asia’s largest slum, Dharavi, packs over 300,000 people per square kilometer. Mumbai is also one of the wealthiest cities in India, accounting for 25% of industrial output and over 70% of maritime trade. The city is a financial, moneymaking, and showbiz capital of India. ‘Bollywood’ the heart of the Indian film industry is firmly anchored in Mumbai. Most of India’s major television networks and publishing houses are located here as well. This concentration of cultural and financial institutions attracts migrants from all over the country and creates a high level of diversity. It is a city of dreams for some, but a tough life on unforgiving streets for many others. No wonder BBC calls Mumbai the most cosmopolitan city on the subcontinent. In the …show more content…
I remember waking up in the morning, getting into fresh clothes after my bath and gathering for the daily invocation to the gods, during my vacations as a child. Hands folded, head bowed, I stood behind my grandfather who led the prayers, as he recited the ‘Gayatri Mantra’ and the ‘Vishnu Sahasranaman and offered milk along with flowers to the deities. Once back in Mumbai, I occasionally visited temples with friends and enjoyed the ‘prasadam’ (sweetmeat offerings) offered by the local temple priest after the prayers. However, neither prayers at home nor temple visits, were a part of my life with my