ABSTRACT
In this chapter I consider one of Mumbai’s most popular cults, that of Shirdi Sai Baba (1838–1918). The original Muslim shrine in Shirdi, some 300 kilometres from Mumbai, has become thoroughly Hinduized or Brahmanized in appearance and rituals, and the management trust consists only of Hindus. At the other end of the spectrum, we have the equally famous Muslim shrine (dargāh) of Pir Haji Ali Shah Bukhari on the Worli foreshore in Mumbai. In contrast to the cult of Sai Baba, the Muslim trust that looks after it has ensured that the Islamic character of the Haji Ali dargāh remains undiluted. Yet many visitors and worshippers are not Muslims. Why do they come to the shrine? In the final section of this chapter I consider the persistence of these syncretic religious practices in the context of the results of the Maharashtrian State Assembly elections of 2014 and municipal elections in 2009–15. What role has Hindu nationalism played in these, given the long history of communal (or religious) politics in western India? Will the popular cults of Shirdi Sai Baba and Pir Haji Ali Shah Bukhari survive the increasing role of religious identity as a factor in the politics of Mumbai and Maharashtra?
