Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai, formerly known as Victoria Terminus, is a historic railway station connecting the city through the Mumbai suburban railway as well as connecting India through long distance trains. As the headquarters of the Central Railway, India, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus is also one of the busiest railway stations in India.

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus is an excellent example of Victorian Gothic Revival architecture, built in 1888. The surreally magnificent architecture breathes of a fusion of Venetian Gothic style and traditional Indian style of architecture. As a living example of the 19th Century railway architectural marvel, the terminus was nominated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2004.

Designed by the British architect F.W. Stevens the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus or Victorian Terminus became a symbol of Bombay as the 'Gothic City'. The station took a decade to complete beginning in 1878. Its outstanding stone dome, turrets, pointed arches and the eccentric ground outlay are unique to traditional Indian palace architecture.

Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus stands as a turning point in the history of Indian railways it was the place that saw the chugging of the first steam engine that was flagged off from Mumbai to Thane in the year 1853, however it took 34 years before the station took its present architectural grandeur.