Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (Victoria Terminus)

Surely one of the world’s most ornate and ostentatious train stations, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus is so grand it’s protected as a Unesco World Heritage Site. Formerly called Victoria Terminus, and still popularly dubbed VT, the station stands as a mock-Gothic celebration of colonial might and the glory of the railway age.

With its turrets, domes, gargoyles, spires, lion-topped gateways, stained-glass windows, glazed tiles, carved arches and decorative brickwork, the station is reminiscent of London’s St Pancras and Charing Cross stations, and looks similarly over-the-top in its workaday role as a train terminus.

There’s a jungle theme to the facade, with its monkeys and peacocks, plus more serious-looking statues to the Arts and Sciences. The statue of Queen Victoria that once graced the central dome has been removed.

Asia’s busiest railway station, and hub for Mumbai’s radiating network of suburban rail lines and long-distance connections, the terminus had a starring role in the hit movie 'Slumdog Millionaire'.

Practical Info

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus is just east of Chowpatty Beach on the northern edge of the Colaba peninsula.