
The first month of a New Year comes with the promise of new and exciting events. Whether you bagged those coveted Coldplay tickets or not, there’s plenty to look forward to. Kickstart your 2025 in Mumbai with art festivals, concerts, and more. Here’s our list of 14 things to do this January in Mumbai.
1. Get a reality check at the Paradox Museum
The Paradox Museum has been wowing Mumbai residents with 50 interactive exhibits that challenge the principles of physics and create trippy mind-bending visuals. You’ll float inside the zero-gravity room, snap pictures in spaces where you disappear, appear taller or shorter and attempt to walk without falling through a spinning vortex tunnel that isn’t moving! Get tickets here
📍: Shreeniwas House, 27, H Somani Marg, Azad Maidan, Fort
📅: Until February 2025
🎟️: Tickets from INR 500 per person
2. Swing to Indian jazz at Churchgate
Old Bombay’s glamorous nightlife is brought to life on Fridays by Churchgate Swing 66′, a 7-member band led by Palomi Ghosh and Adil Manuel. They’ll regale you with music and stories from Bombay’s golden jazz era in the sixties. Book a spot here.
📍: G5A warehouse, G-5/A, Laxmi Mills Estate, Shakti Mills Ln, Mahalaxmi West, Worli
📅: January 31; from 7:30pm-8:30pm
🎟️: Tickets from INR 499 per person
3. Have an art attack at the India Art Festival
This contemporary art festival is a feast of creativity featuring paintings and sculptures by over 550 artists spread out across a 150 booths. Besides displays of artworks, attendees can also enjoy performance arts through fusion music shows, live painting demos and daily filming screenings. More info here
📍: Nehru Centre, Dr. Annie Besant Road, Worli
📅: January 23-26; from 11am-8pm
🎟️: Season pass from INR 399 per person
4. Go thrift shopping at the Lil’ Flea Market
Support small businesses while treating yourself to some stellar finds at the Lil’ Flea Market. This year 300 homegrown brands covering fashion, home decor beauty and art come together. Foodies should go hungry – 60 delicious international and local cuisines will set up food stalls here, and a fabulous lineup of indie bands, experimental music and hordes of creative workshops are also highlights of this community event. More info here
📍: Jio World Garden Mumbai
📅: January 24-26; from 11am
🎟️: Season pass from INR 499 per person
5. Do the twist at this Latin Dance workshop
antiSOCIAL is hosting a Latin Twist Social night where you can brush up on ballroom dance forms. Salsa, Bachata, and Kizomba tunes will get you on your feet all night. There’s a pre-party bachata workshop perfect for all skills. Or if you’re ready to sway, hit the dance floor with your right away. More info here
📍: antiSOCIAL, Lower Parel, Mumbai
📅: January 22, from 8pm
🎟️: INR 400 for workshop and social dancing per person and INR 600 per couple, cover charge not included
6. Pick your band of choice at this Queen vs Abba Candlelight tribute concert
I Want It All comes true at this tribute concert lit up by thousands of LED candles. Pianist Rahul Wadwani will entertain you with instrumental versions of Dancing Queen, We Will Rock You and other iconic anthems from these defining pop and rock bands of the eighties. Get tickets here
📍: Four Seasons Hotel
📅: January 26, from 8pm
🎟️: INR 1,499 onwards
7. Get your game on at India’s largest gaming festival
The Indian Gaming Expo is arriving in Mumbai for two days of e-sports competitions, talks and workshops on the latest gaming tech and even offers a platform for career opportunities in the gaming industry. You can check out cool new VR and AR gaming demos, shop for memorabilia, sign up for cosplay contests and more. More info here.
📍: Nesco Goregaon
📅: January 24-25; 10am onwards
🎟️: Tickets from INR 499 per person
8. Celebrate Chinese New Year with an exciting meal
Sesame, the Japanese and Pan-Asian restaurant at the Hyatt Centric is ringing in the year of the snake with a a 7-day celebration. Savour a special menu of Chinese and Pan-Asian delicacies all week long.
📍: Juhu Tara Rd, Shivaji Nagr, Santacruz West
📅: January 27-February 1; from 12pm-11pm
🎟️: INR 500 per person
9. Crack that Da Vinci Code at this immersive art exhibition
The award-winning experience Da Vinci: Genius has landed in Mumbai and offers fascinating insights into the artist and inventor’s brilliant mind. Combining cutting-edge floor-to-ceiling projections that bring paintings and writings to life, AI-based features like chatting with the Mona Lisa make this an engaging way to learn about the 16th-century polymath. Maybe we’ll finally unearth the secret behind that Mona Lisa smile. More info here
📍: NESCO Exhibition Centre
📅: Ongoing
🎟️: INR 899 onwards
10-14. Head out to these stargazing spots and make the most of winter
January comes with the gift of clearer skies, crisp weather and constellations – the perfect combo for some stargazing. We’ve picked 5 different spots around the city you can plan a getaway to and enjoy sighting celestial events. Find the list here.