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Mumbai, city, capital of Maharashtra state, southwestern India. It is the country�s financial and commercial center and its principal port on the Arabian Sea. What is life like in Mumbai? What is life like in Mumbai? Overview of Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. See all videos for this article Located on Maharashtra�s coast, Mumbai is India�s most-populous city, and it is one of the largest and most densely populated urban areas in the world. It was built on a site of ancient settlement, and it took its name from the local goddess Mumba�a form of Parvati, the consort of Shiva, one of the principal deities of Hinduism�whose temple once stood in what is now the southeastern section of the city. It became known as Bombay during the British colonial period, the name possibly an Anglicized corruption of Mumbai or perhaps of Bom Baim (�Good Harbor�), supposedly a Portuguese name for the locale. The name Mumbai was restored officially in 1995, although Bombay remained in common usage.