The लव Mumbai installation from Kala Ghoda Festival, an initiative of St+Art India and Asian Paints, was finally made a permanent fixture at the Bandra Reclamation Promenade and the reason it is so special to every Mumbaikar, truly, is just one.
The undying spirit of Mumbai has finally taken form, for the whole world to see.
To those that live there, the city of Mumbai is not just their home town, but a lifestyle.
It’s like having a stormy, exciting but utterly fulfilling romance with an entire city. And this romance has for long taken countless forms. And no one can deny that it’s made its way into the the very fibre of Indian pop culture.
Mumbaikars live as one and finally they have something that gives their celebration of this feeling of community, physical manifestation. Why wouldn’t they go absolutely ga-ga over it?
In fact, not only does it stand proud as a representation of all the love they feel for the city, the लव Mumbai installation has the people of Mumbai joining a worldwide community of people proudly expressing their love for their cities.
Case in point, Amsterdam’s ‘I Amsterdam’ installation. A classic embodiment of the coolness of one of Europe’s coolest cities.
And I don’t believe I even have to mention New York City’s eternal I NY symbol.
We’ve seen it on everything ‘New York’ since the beginning of civilised time, and regardless of how little we know about NYC, we all feel the love.