Mumbai Mania

To get a feel of the financial capital of the country, a visit to Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) at Dalal Street is a must.

The iconic building of BSE is the oldest stock exchange in Asia, established in 1875, and is also the biggest in the world with 4700 listed companies.

Before being named BSE, it was called, 'Native Share & Stock Brokers Association', when a group of brokers started doing business under a banyan tree in front of the town hall which is now in the Horniman Circle Park.

BSE has made Mumbai the financial capital of the country. The raging bull outside BSE will definitely catch your attention.

The 5-feet high, 8-feet long and weighing over a tonne, the bull was installed in mid-January this year, signifying the positive sentiments in the market.


It was sculpted by Bhagwan Rampure from Solapur, a small city in Maharashtra. It somewhat resembles the Charging Bull of Wall Street in New York.

Soon after it was installed at BSE, the brokers protested asking for it to be knocked down, because they held the bull responsible for the market crash. A rather bizarre behavior, but people who invest huge sums of money in the markets are superstitious, and they would blame any change to be the cause of the market meltdown.

If you go to BSE during trading hours, 9.55 am to 3.30 pm, you are sure to see some action. Hordes of brokers/investors stand outside BSE following the markets on the electronic screen and the ticker, giving regular market updates. If its a hub for financial activities, then it has to be a high security zone. There are 85 security personnel guarding the 28 floors of BSE. Every person entering the building has to get a photo clicked at the gate, then the guard will make a photo id on the spot, which will allow entry into the premises. I guess security was beefed up after the 1993 bomb blasts that rocked whole of Mumbai, including BSE.

They receive lot of hoax bombing calls, many times from disgruntled investors who have lost lot of money in the market.