Indian runner Ram Singh Yadav qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics with his best marathon time of 2:16:59 at the 2012 edition.

[2] Inspired by the London Marathon, Procam International believed that Mumbai would support such a road race.

[3] In 2005, Mumbai Marathon was included as one of the legs of "The Greatest Race on Earth", sponsored by Standard Chartered.

It passes many of the city's iconic locations such as Flora Fountain, Marine Drive, Chowpatty, Haji Ali, Mahim Church, and the Bandra–Worli Sea Link.

The Mumbai Marathon is India's largest charity platform for non-profit organisations to raise funds.

NGOs represent causes such as arts, culture and sports, civic and community development, disability, education, environment and wildlife, health, human rights, social services, vocational training, and women, children and the aged.

Both the number of participants and amount of money raised rose drastically over the years with 30,000 people running in 2007 (₹79.4 million, US$1,490,000).

This special category is meant for highly motivated individuals who feel passionately about a cause and commit to raise a substantial sum of funds.

Over the years, the Dream Team has seen a mix of business magnates, celebrities, socialites, NGO trustees and students.

Levels include: The Corporate Challenge is a category for companies who wish to sponsor employee teams to participate in event and raise funds.

The Philanthropy Partner's roles are to: UWM maintains neutrality and ensures a level playing field among all participating NGOs.

The participants of the torch relay were celebrities including Priya Dutt, Jaspal Bindra, Rahul Bose, John Abraham, Shobha De, Milind Soman, Dhanraj Pillay and Kiran More.