Tanvi Chakravarty

February’s usually when the productivity panic starts to kick in. After all, it’s time for the post-January festive blues to come to an end. Never mind about the New Year resolutions that never made it past the 30-day trial run. Year after year, Mumbai runs on high-speed autopilot through January, what with Lollapalooza, but February is just as action-packed this year, and here’s everything worth checking out. It’s perhaps one of the best months for music: we have the Symphony Orchestra of India’s Spring 2026 season for western classical music lovers; John Mayer performing live; not one but TWO jazz festivals, among other really cool DJ sets, folk recitals, and of course, the Mahindra Blues Fest returning to Mumbai. Tickets are selling out faster than Labubus, but fear not if you don’t get ‘em – there’s plenty of other live music that Mumbai has on offer through the year. It’s also a big time for the artsy-fartsy. We’re kicking off the month with the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival from January 31 to February, followed by the annual All India Arts Exhibition at Jehangir Art Gallery and exciting exhibits coming to NGMA, CSMVS and the Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum.Theatre’s alive and kicking: a slew of shows are scheduled, from the Primetime Theatre Company to Spoken Fest 2026. Stand-up comedy shows through the month, of course, and how could I mention stand-up without talking about the BIG TICKET ITEM! Gianmarco Soresi’s touring India for the first time! Another big event to top it all of

Mumbaikars, I know it's been a week of nursing hangovers post the absolute banger that was Lollapalooza this year. But it's time to shake off the blues and dive straight into February (the year really begins now, doesn't it) to discover all that's happening. Most importantly, the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival's kicking off, and so is the 35-year celebration organised by the PrimeTime Theatre Company. Some fun stuff in the mix, too – take Yung Singh's gig for example. The UK-based DJ's the hot new thing and has become a defining international presence of late. Don't sleep on this show! And Zakir Khan, of course, is back with his Papa Yaar tour – it's sold out in Mumbai but there's still tickets available for Nashik, if you don't mind the long drive. This guide's got you covered for this week.   Editor's note: We auto-delete events from this list that've already happened to make sure you don't feel the fear of having missed out. 

February brings with it the biggest street festival in the country, and perhaps even the best. The week-long FREE (yep) celebration of performing arts, cinema culture, heritage, literature and more makes for an action packed week, no matter where your interests align. Specifically: the stalls set up all week are must-sees for rare finds, homemade handicrafts, and other cute knick-knacks. Streets will completely transform into immersive, walking galleries, so keep your eyes peeled for any art you spot at Rampart Row, Cross Maidan and Horniman Circle Garden; it’s from the city’s best. Whether you want to spend your Sunday running a Women’s 5K at 5am or get your portrait at a discounted price from the city’s oldest Hamilton Studios at 8am, the possibilities are endless. But as exciting as the week is, it can tend to get crowded, fast-paced, and overwhelming. The programme itself is longer than a short novel, sitting at a cool 104 pages. Blink and you might miss interacting with some of the most prominent figureheads of the metropolitan’s culture zeitgeist. Luckily for you, I went through every single page of the programme to curate the best and the coolest of the lot for you. We know you’re busy so instead of spending the week figuring out what to do, where to go and who to see, here’s everything worth checking out at this year’s edition of the iconic festival. Some musts, some underrated events slipping through the cracks and some pure fun.  Your KGAF Week At A Glance  Wednesda

If you've driven or walked past Pali Village in recent weeks, you're likely to have been met with a disheartening sight. Longtime Bandra fixtures Pali Village Café and Pali Bhavan have shut their doors, marking another major loss in Mumbai's up-and-down restaurant landscape. There's some good and bad news here: while Pali Bhavan has, very quietly, reopened at Eros Cinema in Churchgate, there's been no official confirmation about a reopening of Pali Village Café, which now appears to be closed indefinitely. Over the years, Pali Village Café had built a reputation as one of Mumbai’s most dependable Italian restaurants – especially for pasta (I'm craving the aglio e olio as I write this), dessert, and seafood. It was a favourite among locals and had survived the city's notoriously unforgiving dining scene for a whopping 15 years (with a previous relocation under its belt, no less). Alas, it served its final meal on December 31, 2025, leaving a Pali Village-shaped hole in our hearts. It's just one of the many beloved restaurants that have shut shop in recent months – though it is the first of 2026. Last year, Mumbai lost The New Yorker in Chowpatty and B. Merwan, a 111-year-old Irani cafè on Grant Road. What made the flatlining of Pali Village Café particularly brutal, though, was how long it had clung on as a local favourite, with a rare dedication to quality that even some top-notch restaurants – great as they are – just can't match. Some consolation can, of course, be found in