Seeing Bombay City & Suburbs Made Easy Through this Road, Rail, Sea & Air Route Map Guide.

Pictorial map of Mumbai published shortly after state reorganization.

This is an attractive map of Bombay (now Mumbai), India, published locally by the Tej Brothers around 1950. It shows the capital of the Maharashtra region from Manori Creek to Colaba Point and identifies transportation routes, historic sites, religious buildings and other locations of interest. Illustrations of several regional attractions, including the newly removed New Empire Theater, can be seen around the border.

The image captures Bombay at a period of great change in the decade or so immediately following India’s independence. Modern transit systems and proposed infrastructure improvements can be seen adjacent to centuries old salt pans and colonial architecture. The map folds into a thirteen page traveler’s guide to the city, which includes a map of the city’s suburban railway system and several charming photographs.

The piece is dated by the small inset map on the folding sheet, which shows the split of the Bombay state into separate states of Gujarat and Maharashtra (divided along linguistic lines).