Gorai (
">�oɾaːi is a village at Dharavi Bhet, in
Mumbai
Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. It is located on the North-western part of the island of
Salsette. Gorai is accessed more usually by a ferry crossing the
Manori Creek and Gorai creek or otherwise by the overland route through
Bhayander. Gorai is bordered by the villages of
Manori and
Uttan, Pali, Chowk, Dongri, Tarodi, Rai, Morva and Murdhe.
Marathi
Marathi may refer to:
*Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India
**Marathi people (Uttar Pradesh), the Marathi people in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh
*Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Mar ...
is the most spoken language in this region. East Indian community, Panchkalshi or Somvanshi Kshatriya Pathare (SKP) and Koli's are the native people of this area.
Until the 1980s, Gorai was known for its clean beaches and palm trees. However, with the increase in pollution around Mumbai, the
Arabian Sea
The Arabian Sea () is a region of sea in the northern Indian Ocean, bounded on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, Gulf of Aden and Guardafui Channel, on the northwest by Gulf of Oman and Iran, on the north by Pakistan, on the east by India, and ...
is unfit for swimming although Gorai is less polluted than the other beaches in Mumbai. Gorai still enjoys its calm, laid back charm quite in contrast to the fast-paced life of the city just on the other side of the creek.
Bullock cart
A bullock cart or ox cart (sometimes called a Carriage#Bullock carriage, bullock carriage when carrying people in particular) is a two-wheeled or four-wheeled vehicle pulled by oxen. It is a means of transportation used since ancient times in m ...
s are still in use here and the area suffers from a
water shortage
Water scarcity (closely related to water stress or water crisis) is the lack of fresh water resources to meet the standard water demand. There are two types of water scarcity. One is ''physical.'' The other is ''economic water scarcity''. Physic ...
but with real-estate developers steadily bulldozing their way into this prized suburban tract, the physical and cultural fabric of the villagers of Gorai is now quite endangered.
The Essel World, the first and the biggest amusement park of India, was built in Gorai in 1986. The park has several rides that cater to all age groups, and is known for its colossal infrastructure. The
Global Vipassana Pagoda
The Global Vipassana Pagoda is a Meditation#Buddhism, Meditation dome hall with a capacity to seat around 8,000 Vipassana meditators (the largest such meditation hall in the world) near Gorai and is also the main attraction in Gorai, in the nor ...
, featuring the tallest pillar-less dome in the world, a place for meditation, is built on 13 acres of land near Gorai. It is similar in shape to the
Shwedagon Pagoda
The Shwedagon Pagoda (, ; ), officially named ''Shwedagon Zedi Daw'' (, , ), and also known as the Great Dagon Pagoda and the Golden Pagoda, is a gilded stupa located in Yangon, Myanmar.
The Shwedagon is the most sacred Buddhist pagoda in Myanma ...
in
Yangon
Yangon, formerly romanized as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar. Yangon was the List of capitals of Myanmar, capital of Myanmar until 2005 and served as such until 2006, when the State Peace and Dev ...
, Myanmar.
Dharavi Island

The peninsula protruding off the north-west of Salsette island known as Dharavi Bhet once used to be an island called Dharavi, part of a group of Islands off the Salsette coast separated by the Manori Creek that connected to the
Vasai Creek.
Versova,
Marve and Rai Murdhe were the names of the other islands. These islands remained separate till as late as 1825 when
Col. Jervis's map showed the west coast of Salsette broken into eight large and four small islands. In 1882, one could walk across the tidal inlets during low tides to reach these islands. The island of Dharavi, however, had to be reached by a boat.
However, with the building of the railways over the Ghodbunder Creek, and with successive urbanization and reclamation of the tidal inlets, the Island is now effectively a peninsula attached to Salsette Island. North Dharavi Island which falls in the
Thane district
Thane district (Pronunciation: Help:IPA/Marathi, �ʰaːɳe previously named Taana or Thana) is a districts of Maharashtra, district in the Konkan Division of Maharashtra, India. At the 2011 Census it was the most populated district in the c ...
while the south is included in the
Mumbai Suburban district
Mumbai Suburban district (Marathi language, Marathi: ''Mumbai Upanagar Jilhā'') is the second most populous Districts of Maharashtra, district of Maharashtra in the Konkan Division. With its administrative headquarters in Bandra, the district co ...
.
Portuguese history

Gorai has a large
East Indian population. East Indians are
Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
s who were
converted by the
Portuguese when they arrived here in the 16th century.
Gorai has three churches. The oldest one, Reis Magos or the Three Magi, on the banks of the Vairalla Tank located on the north border of Gorai, was built by the Franciscan missionaries between 1595 & 1602. The newer parish church, also named after the Three Magi, was built in 1810, and is located about three-quarters of a mile to the south of the ruined, original parish church. The third is the Infant Jesus Chapel built near the ruins of the old church. The Church of Holy Magi was built in 1810 in Gorai.
Major issues facing Gorai
Ecological degradation
Coastal waters off Mumbai are rising at 0.3 degrees per decade. The sea level of the Mumbai coast is rising at an average of 1.2 mm a year. In Manori and Gorai together, the average annual fish catch dropped from 18,400 tonnes for the five-year period from 1994-95 to 98-99 to 13,354 tonnes for the period 2004-05 to 2008-09.
Toxic waste dumping
Villagers of Uttan, Palkhadi, Talavli, Anandnagar, Dongri, Tarodi, Pali, Chowk and Morva are protesting against the operators of dumping grounds sitting atop the Dhavgi Hill right in the center of the nine villages. This dumping ground is set up on Collectors land that was transferred to the Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation who in turn has leased it for a period of 30 years to a private garbage disposal company. Though the civic body claims to spray chemicals to keep away the stink, villagers say that the foul smell is getting unbearable and leading to health issues among the residents.
References
{{Mumbai metropolitan area
Neighbourhoods in Mumbai
Villages in Mumbai Suburban district