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Delhi and Mumbai are India’s two biggest cities. One is India’s capital and seat of political power, and the other is the country’s financial capital and home to Bollywood. I don’t think I am qualified enough to debate whether Delhi is a better place to live or Mumbai, but I’ll try my best. I visit Delhi frequently even though I don’t live there. I am well familiar with Delhi. My only experience with Mumbai was when I did a two or three month internship at Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) in summer of 1999.

I will get straight to the point. I think the areas where Delhi scores over Mumbai are:

• Vastly better transport infrastructure. The roads are good, the Delhi Metro provides very good connectivity. Delhi airport is truly world class and up to international standards.

The advantages Mumbai has to offer are:

• Mumbai is a safer place for females compared to Delhi. From what I have heard, women can roam around freely without any fear even at midnight in Mumbai. In Delhi this is simply not possible.

In a lot of other aspects, I think the two cities fare more or less equally well:

• Weather: Delhi being inland has extreme summers and winters. Although Mumbai does not have extreme temperatures, it is plagued by heavy rains which wreak havoc on traffic. So no city has an edge over the other. If I were to pick one, I’d probably side with Delhi’s extremes rather than being stuck in Mumbai’s rains.
• Nearby Vacation Spots: Delhi is close to mountains of Uttaranchal, Himachal Pradesh. There are many scenic places one can visit like Shimla, Mussoorie, Nainital etc. Mumbai is close to Khandala for example. I imagine there are many other scenic places also nearby Mumbai.
• Night Life: Both cities can boast of vibrant night life, although I suspect Mumbai will have an edge on this one.
• History & Culture: Delhi definitely has a much older and grand history. It was the seat of Mughal empire and there are many historic monuments like Qutub Minar, Red Fort, Jama Masjid etc.
• Food: Can get tasty food in both places
• Things to do: I guess both are equally good
• Job Opportunities: Again there are many jobs in both cities. Neither is a software hub. Mumbai is the country’s financial capital.
• Schools and Universities: Both cities are equally good here also. Delhi University is perhaps the biggest university in Asia. Both cities have an IIT. Mumbai is home to BARC and TIFR.
• What about the people? I imagine Mumbai will score over Delhi as it is considered a much safer place for women.
• Traffic: Delhi is better. The roads are wide, the metro provides good connectivity.
• Shopping: Delhi has abundant malls and stores. One can find any brand easily. I suppose same can be said of Mumbai
• Safety: Mumbai is considered a safer place.
• Cleanliness: I think Delhi is fairly clean overall. I am not sure if same can be said about Mumbai. It is (in)famous for its slums.
• Metropolitan-ness: Both are equally metropolitan. You can easily get by knowing English.

And the winner is…

For me it has to be Delhi as I haven’t lived in Mumbai.