Mumbai Diary: Monday Dossier

Fashion forward
Mini Mathur, in her latest column on a fashion website, spoke out against fashion policing and the follies of stereotyping different 'looks'. A look, she writes, is what you create for a character in a soap or a film and not real life. Back when she joined MTV, Mathur recalls leaving her khadi wardrobe back in Delhi as it wasn't cool for a hip VJ to be seen in a cotton sari. She calls out people who question her experiments with the sari, fashion policing for judging a book by its cover, and airport looks.

Mini Mathur

'Who really wants to walk through T3/T2... in impossibly high designer stilettos?' she asked. 'Fashion needn't be vacuous. It has to be personal, fun and ideally shouldn't be judged by the brand you wear. Fashion belongs to everyone. I don't want to be judged. Because I for one, don't feel naked without a Birkin.' We admire the actress and TV host for speaking her mind and shouting down the ever-present fashion police.

The ambassador who knew Hindi
Many ambassadors develop a bond with the country they serve in, but the Russian ambassador to India, Alexander M Kadakin, who passed away on January 26, could be mistaken for an Indian. The witty diplomat, who had seen the relationship between Russia and India from close quarters through decades of political changes, was often called an Indophile.

A few years ago, a professor of Russian was in the city for a language conference, which was followed by a visit to the Russian consulate, where Kadakin was present. As a group picture was being taken, she requested the photographer in Hindi to take one with her cellphone, too. When he didn't oblige, the ambassador translated her exact words into Russian to someone at the consulate and the job was done!

Remembering the Elephant Man
The year has barely begun, and we already have a growing list of personalities that 2017 has taken away. English actor Sir John Hurt, who passed away at the age of 77 recently, starred in acclaimed films including Elephant Man, Alien and Harry Potter.

Shabana Azmi and Sir John Hurt

He also has an India connect, which Shabana Azmi reminded us of. The veteran actress worked with Hurt in La Bengali Nuit, a 1988 film based on the Mircea Eliade 1933 Romanian novel, Bengal Nights. "We got along really well. He was such a fine actor. What a loss!" Azmi said.

Different shades of style
Looks like the city's upcoming fashion week is taking its pledge to be all-inclusive seriously. After signing up transgender and gender neutral models to walk the ramp for the first time, the event has signed up Kranti, an NGO founded by Robin Chaurasiya that empowers girls from Mumbai's red light areas to be agents of social change.

Robin Chaurasiya

Kranti will collaborate with Mandeep Negi of Shades of India, a leading textile label, for a unique presentation on February 2, which will showcase Negi's Spring/Summer 2017 collection through a performance by the Kranti girls. The girls will celebrate who they are, speak from their heart and share their personal stories through an interactive performance with the audience.

Kulavoor adds to Kala Ghoda artscape
This week, if you enter the Rhythm House lane, you'll spot a team of four artists led by Sameer Kulavoor perched on scaffolding and arduously painting a mural on the walls of ARTISANS' building. To be completed by Thursday, the giant mural will cover most of the gallery exterior, aiming to be a new landmark (and a selfie spot) on the tourist map of the heritage precinct.

Sameer Kulavoor

The visual artist and designer has picked yellow, black and white hues for the artwork that celebrates the power of handmade. In his inimitable style, Kulavoor plans to paint an ocean of hands holding and crafting an array of objects to showcase the power that we hold within our hands.

The mural sketch by Kulavoor on Instagram