Dive into Mumbai’s Marine Festival to explore the lesser-known tales of sea shores

An octopus sighted at Juhu Beach. Pic Courtesy/Sarang Naik

In the month of love, this festival will make you fall for the marine life of Mumbai, one wave at a time. Taking place for the first time since 2021, Coastwise Marine Festival is back with another edition where they will host walks and workshops throughout February. "This festival was founded in 2018 by the Mangrove Foundation, a non-profit government organisation; Coastal Conservation Foundation and WWF [World Wide Fund for Nature] India," says Shaunak Modi, director, Coastal Conservation Foundation.

He continues, "The idea is to make the invisible spaces on our shores visible and shine a light on lesser-known marine ecosystems present in our cities. The best way to reach more people was to host a multi-media fest, and include everyone working for the marine ecosystem."

A recent walk at Sassoon Dock introduced participants to the fishing community

The festival kicked off last Saturday with Dockyard Chronicles at Sassoon Dock. "This was a fishery-themed walk where participants were shown the procedure, fishing gear, how small-scale and commercial fisheries work, and the spaces the fishing industry uses to build their livelihoods in the coastal cities," Modi explains.

The next workshop will be hosted this weekend, which will introduce photography enthusiasts to urban wildlife photography workshops. This will be helmed by award-winning urban photographer Sarang Naik. "We will host an indoor session at the Mumbai Zoo on Saturday and move on to host an outdoor session on Sunday at Juhu Beach. Non-professional photographers are also welcome; it's possible to capture marine wildlife on your phones." While Naik will not teach the absolute basics of photography, he will focus on how to take better angles while capturing wildlife across the city's coastlines. "Mumbai abounds with marine life. I have been tidepooling for six years, and still continue to discover something new each time," he says, adding that they might be able to spot hermit crabs, pearly sea anemones, snails and octopuses.

Shaunak Modi

Another interesting workshop is the day-long Flight of the Flamingos event where you hop on to a boat to reach a beautiful waterscape in Airoli that hosts mangroves and a variety of avian life. This will be followed by an art workshop with Sefi George. "It's important to take time out to slow down, observe creatures to draw them, and build a connection with nature that no textbooks can offer. When you spend time looking at a creature, you build a relationship and feel the need to protect it. After I began drawing from nature, the world became a lot more interesting and fun; I want more people to feel the same. Art is my way of nudging people's gaze to notice the wonders around them," George explains.

Modi adds that the fest will also host a photography competition that is open to enthusiasts across India who can upload pictures on
coastwise.in/submit. He shares, "We will host an award ceremony towards the end. Anyone with or without expertise can participate. All they need to do is step out and explore the marine life of India."

Log on to coastwise.in/events (for event tickets and other details)