Heart and Soul: Living and studying in 1960s Bombay

Photo: 123rf.com

In 1965, I was awarded the Colombo Plan Scholarship to study Medicine in the Grant Medical College, a prestigious medical college in the bustling city of Bombay (now Mumbai).

In the 1960s, Bombay was already crowded, with eight million people. The streets were congested with only three types of cars, all made in India but based on the old models of Morris, Fiat and MG. Public transport was with two city train systems and many public BEST buses. However, we dreaded to travel during the rush hours because of the overcrowding. Surprisingly, the citizens followed the queues quite orderly.

At least 20% of the population lived in slums. Many even lived on the streets, with just plastic, wood or canvas as shelters. They would cook on the streets and ease themselves on the nearest walls. The side gate outside our college was a public toilet.