The crash happened at around 9:30 p.m. local time (1600 GMT) in Mumbai's Kurla area, a suburb in the city's east.
Indian media reported that the driver lost control and crashed into autorickshaws, motorcycles and people before ramming into a gate.
The incident led to scenes of chaos as people did not understand what was happening. "It was like a terror attack. A mob chased the bus and caught hold of the driver and manhandled him until the police arrived," Kapil Singh, an eyewitness told The Times of India.
The driver has been detained by police officials.
The bus was run by Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport Undertaking (BEST), which said that the driver had "lost control of the bus" according to initial reports.
The Quick Response Team (QRT) and the Rapid Action Force (RAF) were deployed to disperse the massive crowd that had gathered at the scene.
Road accidents are common in India, due to negligent driving and bad conditions on some roads.
Thenumber of fatalities due to such accidents is quite high in India. From 2014 to 2023, more than 1.5 million lives had been lost to road accidents.