Mumbai Diary: Saturday Dossier

04 November,2023 01:03 AM IST |  Mumbai  |  Team mid-day

The city - sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce

Pic/Sameer Markande


In a league of her own

A woman swings a bat while playing baseball at Shivaji Park in Dadar.

Through the American lens

A photograph clicked by Boehman near Lokhandwala in Andheri West

American photographer Craig Boehman known for his huge body of works in Mumbai since he first arrived here with his Bengali partner Alokananda Dasgupta in 2013, will host an eight-hour-long workshop that stresses on capturing the city in all its rawness in the bylanes of Andheri West. "Mumbai is interesting to me in many ways. I first fell in love Chor Bazaar and the Sassoon Docks. I also started travelling frequently to the pottery colony in Dharavi [Kumbharwada] and to Worli village. There's always something going on for someone like me to capture," he said, and hence to promote his love for street photography, especially in Mumbai, he saw Andheri as one of the best places to begin. "It's a location with a lot of foot traffic during the day. My aim is to help the participants boost confidence in photographing strangers on the streets. There's a lot to [street photography] and it requires practice. It is why the emphasis is on approaching as many people as they can within an eight-hour span," he said.

Craig Boehman

Get your saris for a cause

Sari distribution at Naushacha Pada in Aarey; (right) Cassandra Nazareth with (centre) Rita Newnes and Blasia Pinto

Conducting the annual Diwali sari collection drive by The Nazareth Foundation, founder Cassandra Nazareth, 62, spoke with us moments before distributing sari donations to women from Prajapur Pada's Warli community. "We began our work in 2016 in Aarey Colony extending welfare and entrepreneurial support, but the women said "Casshi bai, we need saris" and the drive was born. This year we received over 1,200 saris." After COVID-19, the foundation began working with villages from Mumbai's 227 Warli hamlets including Madh Island and Sanjay Gandhi National Park. The small team hosts walks where people can engage with the community, learn Warli art, eat a meal prepared by them and purchase their products.

Punekars jazz it up in SoBo

The jazz sextet performs at a previous gig in Delhi

The Pune Jazz Project has been on a (rock and) roll lately. After the recent release of their debut song People that I love on Wednesday, the band brought its tunes to SoBo's Royal Opera House last night. "It's one of India's most iconic venues. It's been [our] dream to play here," the ensemble of six told us. This will be their fourth show in the city. "We are a jazz project in pursuit of bringing the golden age of the genre back, the OG merry-making era of music," they added. The show was already sold out, with only space to stand. The band played 1940s-style jazz, swing and funk songs. "We have had nearly 50 shows in the past 10 months, all of which were sold out," they beamed as they signed off.

Diana Chan's Diwali shop-hop

Diana Chan

Malaysia-born chef and winner of Masterchef Australia 2017, Diana Chan will be dropping by the city tomorrow before she heads to Pune for a workshop hosted by Conosh. Aside from visiting the Gateway of India and Marine Drive, Chan said, "I will see if I can find myself a Diwali outfit in the local markets. I also enjoy buying spices from the bazaar to take back home." But first on her list is a visit to chef Manish Mehrotra's Indian Accent, she shared. "He was in Melbourne recently, and I've heard only good things about his food," Chan told this diarist.

Cycle for the planet

Participants cycle at an earlier edition of the Cyclothon

After a three-year hiatus, Techfest IIT Bombay is back with its flagship event, the Cyclothon. The sixth edition, which will be conducted tomorrow, will include a 15-kilometre track inside the campus of the institute, covering a scenic route. This year's motto is Pedal for the Planet: Join the Sustainable Revolution. "The idea is to create awareness about the health and fitness amongst people and about the state of the environment and sustainable ways of life," Shriya Kajrolkar, a representative from IIT Bombay, told us. Nearly 2,500 cyclists from across Mumbai are expected to participate, which will be flagged off by Dr Viswanathan Iyer, who was recently appointed as the Bicycle Mayor of Mumbai by BYCS, an Amsterdam-based NGO.

"Exciting news! Mid-day is now on WhatsApp Channels Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
mumbai mumbai news offbeat news maharashtra
Related Stories