When in Mumbai, these are the 12 things one HAS to do

When Gregory David Roberts first attempts to paint a picture of Mumbai in Shantaram, he evokes the readers' olfactory senses to describe the city. "I could smell it before I saw or heard anything of India. It's the smell of gods, demons, empires, and civilizations in resurrection and decay. It's the blue skin-smell of the sea, no matter where you are in the Island City, and the blood-metal smell of machines.

It smells of the stir and sleep and waste of sixty million animals more than half of them humans and rats," says Roberts' protagonist Lin. In those few lines, Roberts describes so much that makes up Mumbai. And it's not pretty. But beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder and Mumbai can be gorgeous to those who look closely enough. For Mahim-based author Jerry Pinto, the city's beauty is best experienced in the monsoon. "Walking on Marine Drive in the rains. It's almost dangerous because the waves are angry and can even cross the road," he says of his favourite city experience.

Whether it is enjoyed during a walk by the promenades, the beaches, a breezy drive by Worli Sea Link or from up in the air, the sea is indeed Mumbai's saving grace. But as Suketu Mehta notes in Maximum City, "There are many Bombays." And while the New York-based author returned to the city to find his Bombay, we at Simply Mumbai celebrate our 12th anniversary in search of ours through some of the most interesting experiences the city has to offer.

Here are 12 of our favourites.

1) Spot art in the most unlikely places
Street art is not difficult to spot in Mumbai city, especially if you're a regular to Bandra and its several quaint little villages. Colourful, quirky, comical, some political and others blatantly Bollywood works of art adorn the walls surrounding the Portuguesestyle bungalows and old shops and bakeries in the area. Also, keep your eyes peeled for Mumbai's most well known anonymous artist Tyler's snarky graffiti and the giant tribute to Dadasaheb Phalke on Bandra's MTNL building.

In Juhu, you'd be hard-pressed to dodge the art-full trees. Raasta Chaap's group of ladies has been dedicatedly painting dead rain trees to draw attention to the menace, leaving residents with brighter pavements. Thanks to the Snehal Patil-led Bombay Drawing Room, Santacruz station now has a tribute to Vincent Van Gogh as well as Monet. And if you're at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus this month, you're likely to experience a public art festival with artists including Owais Husain showcasing their work.

2) Escape to a green hiding place
Mumbai is a crowded city, and we don't need numbers to prove it. Greenery is hard to find and quiet even more so. Unless you know exactly where to look or you know someone in the know. Author Jerry Pinto suggests early mornings at Sanjay Gandhi National Park. "There are more butterfly species here, I am told, than in the whole of the UK," he says. But the national park in Borivali is a prime picnic spot in a city starved of space.

For a truly secret location, you'd be better off trusting Blue Bulb's Regan Rodricks or Nelson Fernandes, who will arrange for complete isolation in the midst of a forest-all within city limits. Rodrick's favourite hideaway in Nala Sopara is a 25-minute hike which brings you to a waterfall and a lake where you can go kayaking. If you'd rather skip the trek, he'll show you the way to Shirgaon, a Virar wonder which has a lake but no falls. "The secret location was discovered during a flight by a paragliding instructor, who doubles as a guide," reveals Rodricks. Contact bluebulb.in

3) Take in the aerial view of the city
Mumbai looks magical from the skies. A helicopter ride is a great way to enjoy the views-the shimmering seas, the legoland skyscrapers, and the dazzling lights. Aman Aviation claims to be the first to have started the helicopter services about three years ago. They tied up with the IRCTC and operate from the Juhu aerodrome, offering rides of different durations for differing budgets. "A fifteen minute ride will take you over Juhu, Bandra, Worli Sea Link and Dadar. Five minutes more and you can see the Queens Necklace over Marine Drive," reveals Mahesh Purushothaman, Aman Aviation.

A ride over Colaba and the eastern side takes about 30 minutes. If you've got the budget for it, this is the one you should be doing so you don't miss the very tip of the city. "The helicopters are three seaters, but most of our rides are taken by couples," reveals Purushothaman. No doubt, a number of marriage proposals happen up in the air. If you do go in for a 30-minute ride, carry along a picnic basket. Price Rs 9,900 onwards Contact helicoptertoursmumbai.in (for helicopter ride)

4) Walk among history
You'd be forgiven if you said Mumbai pales in comparison to Delhi when it comes to the richness of its history. But to be fair, the city does have a rather intriguing past too. From the original Mumbaikars-the Kolis, to the Portuguese and then the British Raj, each community has left an enduring impact on the city. The stories can be found in the bylanes of Bandra and Byculla as well as the colonial buildings of South Mumbai. "I think that every neighbourhood has its own unique story to share, which fit into and help illustrate the wider story or histories of Mumbai.

The erstwhile Fort area, Colaba, the area north of Crawford Market, Bandra, Byculla, would be only some of my favourite parts of the city to explore," says Alisha Sadikot, who organises heritage walks across the city through The Inheritage Project. If you'd like to know more about the living, thriving city, a great way to do it is to meet Harshvardhan Tanwar at dawn. The founder of No Footprints shows you how the city can be teeming with activity even as early as 5 a.m., taking you to Parel, Sassoon Docks, Crawford and Dadar markets. Contacts theinheritageproject.wordpress. com; facebook.com/nofootprintsmumbai

5) Sail into the open seas
The monsoon is gone and the October heat has set in. This also means that the seas are open to the public once again. Yacht, sailboat, ferry-from luxury experiences to a choppy adventure-pick your preference."Sailing is always a crowd-pleaser," claims Regan Rodricks, Blue Bulb, which organises two hour experiences that cost Rs 4000 for four people. This is an experience that wasn't available to the public until a few years ago.

"I'd say grab the opportunity quickly before the government changes the rules again," he laughs. If you're looking for something a bit more exclusive, try The Happywala Weekend, which promises to host you on a yacht at a secret location or plan your own party with Gateway Charters, which rents out luxury motor yachts, speedboats or sailboats. Contacts gatewaycharters.in/; facebook. com/The-Happywala-Weekend

6) Join the midnight cyclists
Mumbai might not have dedicated cycle tracks, but it certainly does have an extremely active cycling community. A monsoon ride, an Independence Day ride, a long ride to Lonavala, a short ride down Carter Road-you'll find a cycling group for every mood. If you're comfortable on a two-wheel ride, a night ride would be the best way to enjoy the city. While some of these are paid events, most are open to all and encourage a sense of community. Avid cyclist and author Rakesh Bakshi enjoys getting riders together to appreciate the city's heritage structures by night. Sunil Gandhi organises night rides to hit the city's after-hours restaurants, while Bichanix's Zubair Lodi organises fun rides.

"Those who don't have their own, can rent cycles from us at Rs 70 per hour. We usually go for two or three hours to explore the city by night," says Lodi. The group always stops for a bite at the city's favourite food spots Haji Ali Juice Centre, Bachelorss and the likes. For those who don't mind pitching in for a ride, Some Place Else's The Mightnight Trail is also a good option. They allow you to rent a cycle for Rs 975 and usually ride from Bandra to Worli and back. Contacts facebook.com/Bichanix; facebook.com/SomePlaceElseIndia

7) Experience magnificence at the Royal Opera House
For 25 years now, the Royal Opera House has been deprived of its former glory. Thanks to restoration architect Abha Narain Lamba, under the patronage of the royal Gondal family, the country's last remaining opera house is going to open its doors not just to the finest performances from across the globe, but also to dialogue, debate, and discourse. "The Royal Opera House in this new avatar is our gift to the city of Mumbai," says Gondal Maharaja Jyotendra Sinhji Jadeja.

On October 20, the Opera House reopens with the inauguration of the 18th Jio Mami Film Festival. "The very next night, we have an operatic performance paying homage to its heritage," reveals Asad Laljee, in-charge of programming. Thrilled that the "cultural jewel" of Bombay is back, Laljee reveals that he is hoping to get children to visit the space too. "It would be a great way for them to learn about our heritage and its restoration," he says. After the private events in October, the opera house will take a bit of a breather and open to the public in November. Contact Royal Opera House, Charni Road

8) Be part of the country'sbest wine club
When you've got the country's only Master of Wine in the city, why would you go to anyone else to find you the best vino in the world? Launched late last month, Sonal Holland's Soho Wine Club is a membership-based club for the city's wine lovers. Appalled at how few wines are accessible in the markets in Mumbai, Holland uses her expertise to curate the best wines from across the globe."Soho is devoted to wine lovers who want to be part of a community. People always ask me what to drink, where to buy it; this was always a dream for me," says Holland. As part of the club, members receive regular reading materials on wine. "But to really know wine, you must taste as much as you can," she adds. And so Holland plans to organise as many events in the city as possible. Contact sohowineclub.in/

9) Sniff out a secret music session
Secret Roof/ Secret Sessions is a closed Facebook group; its 865 members are the only ones invited for the sessions musicians Aditya Jasiwal, Ankit Mansukhani, Abhishek Kukrety, Davind Handa and Chirayu Vedekar host on private rooftops across the city. "Our sessions began as a way to give each other a platform, but we are now working hard at not attracting too much attention," admits Jaiswal.

Attempting to offer a range of music options, these secret sessions include electronic as well as live music. If the underground rap scene seems more enticing, you could look up Battle Bars Bombay, who organise themed battles. "At the end of October we have three battles, all related to comic book themes such as Deadmau5 vs Mickey Mouse, Shaktimaan vs Superman, and so on," says Vineet Nair aka Poetik Justis, who is currently also working on building a Freestyle Fraternity. "It'll be an all-freestyle rap-based concept where we go right off the dome. No practiced lyrics or nothing," he adds. Contacts facebook.com/groups/993255020753742/ (Secret Sessions); facebookcombattlebarsbombay

10) Say hello to the Flamingoes at Sewri
Birwatching in the city can be surprisingly satisfying. One might think that pigeons, crows, kites and the occasional sparrow crowd the skies, but keep your eyes open for birds of a different feather and you do find them. The Coppersmith Barbet, a tiny green bodied, red headed, whiskered bird, is Mumbai's official bird. It's shy, but extremely common and is often spotted around large peepal trees. But it's the pink flamingoes that begin their visit to the city every year around October or November and stay till March that bring the most excitement to bird lovers in the city. The Sewri mudflats become home for these birds for months and the Sewri jetty offers an expansive view of the flock. If you'd like to join a birdwatching session to learn a thing or two about the longlegged beauties, a tour with Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) are a great bet. Contact bnhs.org

11)Savour some of the finest meals in the mills
Mumbai before the 1980s' mill strike was a very different sight to see. Cotton mills had dotted central Mumbai then. The 1990s brought a surge of redevelopment, turning several mills into unsightly malls. Luckily, recent times have brought more tasteful, culturally inclined developments in the old industrial plots. So the G5A Foundation for Contemporary Culture finds a home at the Laxmi Mills Compound in Mahalaxmi and the Nine Fish Art Gallery comes to The New Great Eastern Mills compound in Byculla.

The various mills across the city have also become hubs for exciting restaurants and restobars. Kamala Mills is home to Bombay Canteen, which serves some of the most exciting food in the city. Laxmi Mills has Masque, the city's first restaurant to have a rotating set menu that depends solely on the produce available to Chef Prateek Sadhu and his team. Magazine Street Kitchen, in the industrial Devidayal Estate in Reay Road, is another experimental space to keep track of for foodies in the city. Contact 022-2499 1010 (Masque); facebook.com/MagStreetKitchen

12) Find a friendly neighbourhood performance space
The NCPA in Nariman Point has for decades been the city's premier performance space, and continues to be because of its exciting productions (this year there's Mughal-e-Azam and Reth) and fantastically curated performances. "But more recently there's been a trend of smaller performance spaces, which are providing opportunities to a lot more performers. Apart from The Cuckoo Club in Bandra, CLAP in Malad, there are so many pubs that are open to performers," notes Deepa Gahlot, Head - Programming (Theatre & Film). Bandra also has NSPA's QTube Cafe, while South Mumbai's Ballard Estate has Yiamas, an experimental space that "gives you the opportunity to weave stories to complement your memories."

Last month saw an exciting range of theatrical performances from YouTheatre including Bandar ki Baraat, The Storytellers and Alexander vs Chanakya. Besides these performance spaces, you might walk into a neighbourhood pub, brewery or caf and be pleasantly surprised with a comedy act or a play. If you drop in at AntiSOCIAL, in the basement of Khar Social-"a raw, un-programmed and un-regulated space for the social outliers"- you'll always be in for a surprise. Poetry readings, workshops, pow wows, art exhibitions, musical evenings, design showcases, screenings, and literary evenings-there's something for everyone. Contacts facebook.com/yiamasindia/; facebook.com/toocuckoo; facebook.com/clap.center