Mumbai Diary: Wednesday Dossier

Go cashless on all BEST routes
It started with Mulund Bus Depot in late August when mobile ticketing was offered to BEST commuters on a pilot project basis. It was then extended to AC buses and pass renewal, and the users started increasing exponentially, every week.

But the month-old demonetisation move by the government tipped the scales and Ridlr, the intra-city public transport app that had launched the pilot project, has now got BEST's go-ahead, and is available on all its routes. The app has also launched an introductory scheme, wherein the first 10,000 travellers will travel free for a week, receiving credit worth upto '100.

Ever seen a tenner being passed from the front-seat passenger to the conductor at the back? Well, that may soon become a rare sight.

Let's talk football

Pic/Suresh Karkera

Former cricketer Sourav Ganguly (centre) with daughter Sana and fellow co-owner of the football team Athletico de Kolkata, Sanjiv Goenka, during a an Indian Super League match in Andheri Sports Complex yesterday.

Crowd-sourced traditions
Recipe books are passé, and Indian chefs are now looking at compiling specific culinary traditions from around the country in massive, hard-bound tomes. Celebrity chef Kunal Kapur is no different.

He recently requested for pickle recipes on Twitter for his upcoming book, where he wants to chronicle authentic pickle-making traditions in India. Of course, the sender of the recipe gives Kapur the consent to lawfully use the recipe as best understood by him; without any compensation.

Making do, in good faith
This diarist's aunt came visiting from Bengaluru, and brought with her a khoi bag of stories. One of them concerned her community, and a pivotal practice.

The aunt, like all Zoroastrians wears a sudreh, a muslin vest that you are bestowed with when you are ushered into the religion as a child, and wrapped in when you lay still, ready to meet your end. The sudreh, available at fast-dwindling shops in Mumbai, is stitched by a member of the same faith.

That's too much to ask in Bengaluru. So, the aunt heads to Bandbox, the local tailor. She shows him a specimen and asks him to follow the pattern to the T. The girebaan or tiny square pocket must rest right above the solar plexus, and the tiris or triangular seam on the side denoting the three pillars of Good Thoughts, Good Word, Good Deeds, cannot be overlooked.

Mr Bandbox gets the job done. And so, the Parsis grapple with the urban challenges of following their faith while mighty reps of the community keep themselves busy gifting each other sub-conjunctival haemorrhage in a public punch-up.

Beats from the Northeast
The underground music movement in the country has grown steadily, a little away from the notice of the mainstream. This powerful, socially conscious musical movement inspired the web series, Hip Hop Homeland, which documents the phenomenon across the country.

A still from the film

In the Northeast, they set out with popular rapper Feyago who introduces them to other artistes of the region. The highlight of the Northeast series is the 13 year-old-rapper from Symphonic Movement, who is possibly the youngest Indian artiste who raps about social issues.

Lungi love
The party district of Khar welcomes yet another bar, SamBar. This one claims to be different, in food, drinks and South Indian hospitality. Expect fish nets, coconut tops and hand-painted Kathakali art. The food, we hear, is like their mascot ‘Sam Anna' - soft on the inside and crisp on the outside - with dishes like Andhra Fish Fingers, Chicken Vepuddu and Goji Bajje.

The bar's interiors

The colourful invites ask us to join in the drinking class revolution with drinks like Anna Colada, Chill Madi (LIIT with kokum), Cappi Madras and Spice-a-talam (vodka, coriander chaat masala and Tabasco). They intend to start Rajnikanth Happy Hours and South Indian movie nights. The bar is owned by Pragnesh Rai, a first-time restaurateur (and fellow Shetty), and will open tomorrow.