I have been living in Mumbai in since 20years but still didnot visit the fair due to academics, coaching and school. Finally when i got uprooted to Kolhapur for my MBBS did i visit the famous fair with my brother. It is so colourful , vibrant with streets selling food, snacks from Goa and Kerala, Holy items, rosaries ,books. People of all faith come to the fair.
The Bandra Fair/ Mount Mary Fair / Bandra Fest, is one of Mumbai’s oldest annual religious and cultural festivals. It is centred around the Basilica of Our Lady of the Mount (Mount Mary Basilica) and takes place every September after the Feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary on 8 September.
1. It began with the Portuguese in the 16th century
The story goes back to around 1570, when Jesuit missionaries working in Portuguese-controlled Bandra established a small mud-and-wood oratory on Mount Bandra. They brought a wooden statue of the Virgin Mary from Portugal and placed it there.
By 1640, the little oratory had been enlarged into a chapel because increasing numbers of devotees were visiting it.
So, the roots of the Bandra Fair are more than 450 years old, although the organised fair as we know it developed later.
2. The famous statue story
One of the most important legends associated with the fair concerns the statue of Mary.
In 1700, pirates from Muscat attacked Bandra and raided the shrine. According to the Basilica’s historical account, they believed that something held by the statue was made of gold and chopped off its right forearm.
A different statue of Our Lady of Navigators, from nearby St Andrew’s Church, was temporarily brought to the Mount for devotees.
Then came the extraordinary legend that helped make the shrine famous.
3. The Koli fisherman’s dream
According to local tradition, a Koli Christian fisherman dreamed that a statue of the Virgin Mary would be found floating in the sea.
The statue was subsequently found in the sea, apparently fulfilling his dream. This was regarded by the local community as a miraculous event.
The story became deeply associated with devotion to Our Lady of the Mount and is traditionally linked with the origins of the Bandra Fair. Historical sources also record an older Jesuit reference to the statue, although the exact details of the discovery are part of local tradition rather than independently established history.
4. The church was rebuilt several times
The shrine experienced considerable upheaval:
- 1570 – Original Mount Mary oratory established.
- 1640 – Enlarged into a chapel.
- 1700 – Shrine attacked and statue damaged.
- 1738–39 – The chapel was destroyed amid the Maratha-Portuguese conflict.
- 1761 – Chapel rebuilt; the original statue was restored.
- 1848–52 – A road connecting the Bandra side to Mount Mary was constructed with financial assistance from Sir Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy and his family.
- 1904 – The present church building was constructed.
- 1954 – The shrine became a Minor Basilica, and the statue of Our Lady of the Mount was ceremonially crowned.
5. How did the fair develop?
The September celebration originally centred on religious services and novena Masses celebrating Mary’s Nativity.
Over time, people travelling to the shrine began combining pilgrimage with a community gathering. Stalls, food, religious articles and entertainment gradually developed around the religious celebrations.
The Basilica itself notes that the Bandra Fair developed around these September Masses.
Historically, pilgrims came by bullock carts and ferries across Mahim Creek, walked up Mount Mary Hill, prayed at the shrine and then descended to enjoy the festivities and stalls.
6. Why is it special to Mumbai?
The Bandra Fair eventually became much more than a Catholic celebration.
People from different Christian communities, Koli communities and other faiths have traditionally visited Mount Mary to pray, give thanks or make a wish. The shrine is therefore an important example of Mumbai’s shared and interfaith culture.
A particularly distinctive tradition is the use of wax offerings. Devotees can offer wax representations of body parts, houses, vehicles, etc., symbolising a prayer or thanksgiving.
Bandra Fair evolved from the centuries-old Portuguese-era devotion to Our Lady of the Mount into a week-long September pilgrimage and cultural festival, with its traditions strongly shaped by the Mount Mary shrine, the legend of the sea-found statue, and the communities of historic Bandra.
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