Mumbai Diary: Sunday Dossier

A musical connect
One of our favourite Indie musicians, Donn Bhatt, is finally releasing his new album this week. Called Connected, it's his take on modern life as we live it. In an earlier conversation, Bhatt had told this diarist that he found it amusing that we now live in an age where we have better relationships with our phones.

"In a way, the title track is a love song for a phone," he says with a smile. Bhatt's musical stylings shine through, and the album is a mix of many genres and we loved that. "This album is a diary of a certain time in my life. It is a further exploration between electronica and acoustic instruments combined with lyrical songwriting. It continues where the last album left off," says Bhatt. We can't even wait!

Wait for me!
Aditya Thackeray and host Rouble Nagi walk through a group of seated children during an event held in a collaboration between the Rouble Nagi Art Foundation and Rotary District 3141. The event was organised for over 700 children on the occasion of World Deaf and Mute Day in Kalina on Saturday. Pic/Suresh Karkera

Flying High
Oxford-based British Airways pilot Mike Edwards whose recently-released book Spitfire Singh (Bloomsbury India) rebuilds the lost story of deceased Air Marshall Harjinder Singh, keeps coming back to India, thanks to his love for planes.

We are told that the Briton, who was roped in as chief adviser to the IAF because of his expertise in restoring old aircraft, has been training young pilots to brave the skies in these vintage airplanes, for years now. "You require a different set of skills to fly these planes," Edwards said in a telephonic chat from UK.

He will be returning to Delhi on October 8 for the Indian Air Force Day parade. "Two vintage planes are expected to fly at the event," he says. "It's important for the parade that Indians fly these planes. I am going to be there as a ‘spare' just in case there's a crisis." Irrespective, the good-old vintage Indian plane needs to take off.

The dream sequence
"A few months ago, I dreamt about a bad a'' female fighter and went about looking for one," says Mumbai-based filmmaker Aman Mahajan.

He then met Bahrain-based Priyanka Jeet Toshi, India's only female MMA fighter, and discussed plans of filming with her. Mahajan and Rashmin Dighe, his partner at Troubadour Media, got a skeletal crew in place and filmed with Toshi guerilla style on the streets of Kuala Lumpur.

So, we ask Mahajan, when can we see the 24-year-old, on screen. "Apart from a brand film for an international company, we're making an edgy docu-style music video starring Jeet. Our next schedule is in Bahrain later this year." Rest assured, we await this one.

A welcome beefcake
Spanish fitness model and athlete, Sergi Constance will be in Mumbai for the first time to attend a three-day fitness festival in October.

Constance, who has a large following in the city, hopes to share his thoughts on fitness with fans.

The 28-year-old will also be joined by Miihier Singh, the country's only physique athlete - men who are usually judged on muscularity at body building competitions. It's raining dudes, and we aren't complaining!

Nissar's stumps are safe and treasured
In the build-up to India's 500th Test being played out against New Zealand at Green Park in Kanpur, Waqar Nissar, the son of Mohammad Nissar (who sent down India's first delivery in Test cricket at Lord's in 1932) was more than just interested in knowing what happened to the three stumps from that Test which he donated to the Indian cricket board 10 years ago.

Those stumps, signed by some members of both teams, were treasured by his late father even after he migrated to Pakistan. After all, he claimed five wickets in the first innings and one can imagine how the English fans and players must have felt to see their famous opening pair of Percy Holmes and Herbert Sutcliffe back in the Lord's pavilion with only 11 runs on the scoreboard.

Waqar magnanimously donated it to the BCCI when he heard they were planning to set up its museum. For some reason, Waqar couldn't remember which BCCI official he presented the stumps to and kept wondering whether it was safe. He expressed his anguish to Indian journalist and author Suvam Pal, who got in touch with this newspaper.

On further enquiries, this diarist got a confirmation from the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai that the stumps were indeed safe and kept in a case. We are glad too. We'll be happier when the museum is up and running.