Mumbai lags behind London, Tokyo in global cultural index

Despite having the tag of being a cosmopolitan city, the financial capital of India, Mumbai seems to lag behind sister city, London and Tokyo on the cultural index.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) civic commissioner, Ajoy Mehta on Tuesday remarked on the ranking of Mumbai city on this index compared to other international countries. The lack of space and forms of entertainment are important categories for measurement.

Mehta said, “The city is far behind in cultural index ranking, as compared to London and Tokyo. For example, in Mumbai for a population of one million (10 lakh) there are only 1.31 theatres. Whereas in London there are 28.7 theatres and in Tokyo there are 17 theatres.”

The civic chief made the statement during the inauguration programme of Kalidas Natya Mandir art theatre, held in Mumbai on Tuesday.

He also said that a separate chapter in the development plan (DP) has been made, so as to improve the cultural index of the city. Meanwhile, he also emphasised that more such theatres, and museums are needed which can eventually improve the ranking of Mumbai globally.

Therefore, various projects have been undertaken by the civic corporation. “One out of this is the ambitious textile mill museum project at Kalachowkie. The civic body has appointed JJ School of Arts to prepare a vision document for the museum. The project plans to show the legacy of Mumbai’s textile mill,” Mehta said.

The ambitious textile mill museum at Kalachowkie is being made by JJ School of Arts