Haji Ali Dargah

The Haji Ali Dargah stands on a small islet off the Worli shore in south Mumbai and holds the tomb of Pir Haji Ali Shah Bukhari, a wealthy merchant from Bukhara in present-day Uzbekistan who gave away his possessions and became a Sufi of the Chishti order. The shrine dates from 1431 and is built in the Indo-Islamic style. It is one of the most recognisable sights in the city.

A story told of the saint explains his journey. Seeing a poor woman weeping over spilt oil, he pressed his finger into the ground and made the oil gush back, but afterwards dreamt that he had wounded the earth and fell ill with remorse. With his mother's blessing he travelled to India with his brother and settled on the Mumbai shore near Worli, sending word home that he would stay. Legends of doomed lovers are also attached to the shrine.