Malabar Hill is amongst the most affluent residential areas in Mumbai.[2] It is home to several business tycoons and film personalities. Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan, had built and lived in a bungalow, called South Court, in Malabar Hill.
Malabar Hill is the location of the Walkeshwar Temple, founded by the Silhara kings. The original temple was destroyed by the Portuguese, but rebuilt again in 1715 by Rama Kamath, and by 1860, 10 to 20 other temples were built in the region.[4]
Mountstuart Elphinstone built the first bungalow in Malabar Hill while he was Governor of Bombay, between 1819 and 1827. Following his example, the place soon became an affluent locality, as it remains today.[4]
An unhindered view of Back Bay, with the Girgaon Chowpatty beach in the foreground, and the Nariman Point skyline in the background is one of the reasons for the high real estate prices. In January 2012, Maheshwari House was (partly) sold to industrialist Sajjan Jindal of Jindal Steel for 400 crores.[citation needed] The most expensive private residence lies just outside Malabar Hill on Altamount Road off Pedder Road, namely Antilia, the 27-storey, billion-dollar tower in Mumbai, owned by India's second richest and the world's tenth-richest person Mukesh Ambani, the chairman of Reliance Industries.[citation needed]
Unique among wealthy areas in Mumbai, it has long welcomed residents of Muslim heritage. More than 250 locals from the politically influential and economically affluent Dawoodi Bohra community live in the palatial Saifee Mahal complex near the top of the hill contributing to the ethnic milieu and cultural vibrancy of the area.
Also of note in the Malabar Hill district, there is a cremation ground that sits near the sea which is home to the samadhi shrines of several famous Indian saints. Notably among them is the samadhi shrine of the guru of Shri Nisargadatta Maharaj, who was Shri Siddharameshwar Maharaj, as well as the samadhi shrine of his devoted disciple Shri Ranjit Maharaj.[7][irrelevant citation]
Notable people born in Malabar Hill include singer-songwriter Jaimin Rajani and Douglas Jardine, the English cricketer who captained England during the Bodyline tour of Australia in 1932-33.[8]
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