Mumbai is the city of culture, art and glamour. The city that never sleeps hides a lot of literary havens for the bibliophiles. With eyes filled with curiosity and a mind filled with hunger for knowledge, you might find these places enchanting and devouring. Here are the top 5 offbeat reading havens in the City of Dreams.
Spend Your Day at These Reading Havens in Mumbai
1. Asiatic Society Library
Opening Hours: 10:30 am to 6:30 pm, Monday to Saturday
Established in 1804, this is one of the oldest libraries in the City of Dreams. The library has a distinctive architectural style influenced by Greek and Roman styles. The place exudes classical vibes with its spiral staircase, wooden flooring and marble statues and portraits.
They have a rare collection of about 30,000 books, scrolls, manuscripts, magazines and newspapers with an expansive reading room. There are membership options available on their site.
2. Trilogy
Opening Hours: 11 am to 8:30 pm, Everyday
Situated in the Raghuvanshi Mills complex in Lower Parel, this bookstore cum library is known for its vast collection of lesser-known Indian writers. They also have an exclusive collection of non-fictional pieces of wildlife and photography.
The best part about being a member of this place is you get to choose the design of your card and customise it any way you like. This library should be on your list of offbeat reading havens in Mumbai.
3. Smoker’s Corner, Fort
Opening Hours: 10 am to 8:30 pm, Everyday
Established around the 1950s, this bookshop got its name from a cigarette shop nearby. It became a hotspot for smokers and flourished in the 80s and 90s. This popular shop was supposedly visited by Naseeruddin Shah and his wife Ratna Pathak-Shah.
The store has a vintage and second-hand collection of a wide range of books and magazines. If you are a collector of such pieces or just want to stock your shelf within a budget, this should be the go-to place for you.
4. Title Waves
Opening Hours: 10 am to 9 pm, Everyday
Title Waves is popular among bookworms in Mumbai and they have put their best effort into making book hunting as convenient as possible for their visitors. This huge and renovated library cum bookstore has a touchscreen kiosk to find out exactly what you are looking for in 8000 sq. ft. of books and resources.
Apart from books, they also keep CDs and DVDs to choose from and organise several events and talk shows throughout the year. Also, if you run out of caffeine, head on to Di Bella, inside the library.
5. Kitab Khana, Fort
Opening Hours: 10:30 am to 7:30 pm, Everyday
Also known as Food for Thought, this bookstore cum cafe, is a literary haven for the bibliophiles and a must-visit for travellers. This 150-year-old athenaeum offers a wide collection of books ranging from classics to contemporary.
Its old library structure, walls filled with books and authentic bookshelves make it a literary paradise for book lovers.
From Mumbai’s first large boutique bookstore (Title Waves) to the oldest library, we have listed the top offbeat reading havens in the capital city. But there is no ending to this list. Explore more when you visit this bustling city of culture and diversity.
