Maharashtra is a state on the northern part of India's western coast. Its main centre is Mumbai (also known as Bombay), the commercial capital of India. Maharashtra is mainly agricultural with a well developed industrial sector.

Location. Maharashtra is the third largest state of India, in area as well as in population. In shape it is four sided with the western side on the Arabian Sea. The smallest side is the eastern side which borders Madhya Pradesh.
Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat are to the north, and Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Goa are to the south.

Climate. The monsoon dominates the state's climate. The southwest monsoon breaks on the coast in the first week of June and finishes in September. Four-fifths of the annual rainfall is received during this period.
The Western Ghats influence rainfall distribution. The coastal Konkan strip is wet. But the interior upland area behind them is much drier.
Mumbai receives 270 centimetres a year on average, 95 per cent of which is from June to September. Nagpur on the other hand receives 113 centimetres a year, 87 per cent of which falls during the monsoon.
On the coastal strip of Maharashtra, daily maximum temperatures are fairly uniform throughout the year at an average of 32 °C. The daily minimum temperature is 16 °C in January and 26 °C in June.
In Aurangabad, the average daily maximum temperature in May is 40 °C, and 29 °C in January. The minimum is 14 °C in January and 25 °C in May.

Film industry. The centre of India's film industry is Mumbai. The city produces more than 300 films each year. The first International Film Festival of India was held in early 1952 at Mumbai had great impact on Indian Cinema. The city being the hub of all the popular Indian filmstars attracts a lot of visitors.

Tourism. There is a large number of sites in Maharashtra which attract visitors. Mumbai has many places of interest and there are also other attractions in the state.

Some of the important tourist centers are Ajanta, Ellora, Elephanta, Kanheri and Karle; the hill stations: Mahabaleshwar, Matheran and Panchgamni; religious places; Pandharpur, Nasik, Shirdi, Audhangamnath, Nanded and Ganapatipule.