My alarm bell buzzed at 4.30am, quite an ungodly hour for someone like me. But the enthusiasm to see the sunrise at the newly opened Malabar Hill Walkway, prompted me to get out of bed. With half a yawn and a full heart, I got ready and headed across the city, to witness a sunrise amidst nature, in the company of birds and trees – a rare sight for us living in Mumbai.
Of late, Mumbai has been feeling greyer than usual – the concrete jungle closing in, the layer of pollution hiding the blue sky, and just a few patches of green left scattered in the city. Whenever I crave nature, I either go towards Aarey forest, Sanjay Gandhi National Park or the Marine Drive.
And lately, I have been craving a lot more of nature – maybe it is the rising heat or rising pollution in the city. Just being in nature, even for an hour, makes me feel rejuvenated.
So, after a quick train and taxi ride, I reached Malabar Hill around 6.30am, but the slot I had booked was for 7am. For entry, one can either book online or buy tickets at the ticket counter at the entrance. The tickets are cheaply priced at Rs.25 per person for an hour. But since I was travelling across from one end of the city, I had booked online in advance to make sure that I didn’t miss the morning experience.
The Malabar Hill Forest Trail is right next to Kamala Nehru Park, a park frequented by joggers, yoga lovers, and people who want a slice of quiet. Since I had time before my slot, I wandered into the park and found an elevated portion overlooking the sea, the skyline, and the trees – it was a perfect spot. The sun was still behind the skyline, bright pinkish hues were covering a part of the sky, and the birds were chirping around in perfect harmony. For a brief, beautiful moment, the chaos of Mumbai faded into the background.
As the sun slowly rose above the skyline, I watched it with patient eyes; my mind was in a meditative state. There’s something about these small pauses, these intentional acts of stillness, that feel quietly healing, quietly soothing.
The sun slowly rose up, and I was ready to finally enter the walkway – something that I had been waiting for for a long time.
The trail is a nice little wooden stretch, elevated, and the path winding gently like a lazy river through the trees. It is surrounded by greenery on all sides, and one can hear all kinds of bird sounds – the cuckoo was the most prominent one. It is known as a biodiversity hotspot, with kites, parakeets, bulbuls, mynas, and a host of other varieties of birds. This little patch of micro-forest is also said to host reptiles like cobras, and I silently hoped they were sleeping in that morning.
The trail is also dotted with a variety of plant species, but since my knowledge is limited in this, I could identify only a few.
On one side, you also get a panoramic view of the Arabian Sea. I stood there for some time, and it was an interesting way to look at the sea through the mesh of forest leaves.
If you walk from one end to the other, you realise that it is not a long stretch; your mind automatically wishes it was longer. The total length of this Malabar Hill Walkway is approximately 700 metres. It is inspired by Singapore’s Tree Top Walk and is constructed with a wooden deck, supported by steel structures, by causing minimal disturbance to the existing flora and fauna.
Commissioned by the BMC, supported by the JSW Foundation, and brought to life by architect Rahul Kadri of IMK Architects, this project is more than just a walkway. It’s a quiet attempt to reconnect us with a past we’d almost forgotten. The trails that once existed here had slowly faded from memory, and this revival brings them gently back into the present.
The Malabar Hill Walkway is designed with intention of letting humans walk alongside nature. That’s why the path rises above the ground, leaving the forest floor undisturbed, letting the ecosystem breathe and thrive, just as it was meant to.
Visiting in the early hours felt like stepping into a secret tucked away from the city’s chaos. The soft morning light, the gentle sway of leaves, and the cheerful chatter of birds created a symphony so soothing that I almost forgot that I was in Mumbai. Places like this are rare gifts in urban life, where even a brief pause in nature can reset a weary mind and bring a deep, quiet calm. We definitely need more such sanctuaries in Mumbai.
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