Mumbai Diary: Sunday Dossier

Jackie Shroff and Deepa Malik

Bhidu, yaar, dost

Jackie Shroff is caught a playful mood with paralympic athlete Deepa Malik at a book launch in Bandra on Saturday. Pic/Shadab Khan

Mama, please preach!

When radio professional Poonam Khinchi's post on Manju, an autowali who wears hot pink nail polish, went viral last week on social media, we reached out to her to set up an interview. Fired from a hotel job because of her sexuality, Manju has been riding an auto for the last five years and loves wearing lipstick because her boyfriend likes it.

Pic/Poonam Khinchi's Instagram page

However, at the last minute, Manju called it off, saying her mom said no. And, while we were sorely disappointed at not being able to meet her and record her journey, how cute is that? It seems no matter who you are, mommy knows best.

Coming out to granny

Grandmas are forever endearing, but an Indian promo released this week for Netflix's new show Queer Eye, where we see them listening to/and discussing coming out stories of members from the LGBTQi, had our hearts melting. Writer and creator of Guysexual, Aniruddha Mahale who was part of the promo, told this diarist, "I got a chance to shoot with two of the loveliest grandmothers and I can't begin to explain how heartwarming it has been.

Anirudh Mahale with sister, writer Amrita

Their wholehearted support wasn't inspiring because of their age or their unfamiliarity with the concept of homosexuality, it was inspiring because it was so honest-to-earth genuine." Mahale, who also spoke about coming out in the promo, added, "I've always believed that we give our family and friends far less credit than they deserve when it comes to showing their love and support. So you can imagine how cathartic it can feel when complete strangers shower with you the same kind of love when you come out to them."

One seed at a time

When cyclone Fani hit Odisha earlier this year, it wreaked havoc. Over five million trees were destroyed in its wake. Vishal Kamat, director of Kamat Hotels, who has been operating luxury resorts in the state for the last 10 years, has decided to help restore its green cover by planting eight lakh seedballs.

"We will be focusing on local varieties that are resistant to calamities. Also, these are fruit-bearing and grass-bearing in nature, so animals who are starving will be taken care of," he said. Seedballs, made from mud, compost, and seeds, can be thrown in areas otherwise inaccessible by foot.

Jamming in LA

We were pleasantly surprised to see our Mumbai export to LA, singer/songwriter Natania Lalwani, in a session with singer Prateek Kuhad in Los Angeles. Lalwani put up an Instagram story where the two were working on a song. Lalwani is known for her English pop vocal stylings, and recently won hearts for her songs for the Amazon show, Four More Shots, and the Spotify India jingle.

She also is fresh on the heels of releasing her new single, Muscle Memory. Kuhad is a crowd favourite with his ability to sing in Hindi and English both, and for his heart wrenching lyrics. It will be fun to see what the two cook up. Watch this space for more.

Heavy food for thought during an India-Pak encounter

Do current international cricketers get to see what their opponents consume during an innings break of a match? Not quite, but in another era they could. Like in the World Cup today in Manchester, India and Pakistan clashed in the 1985 World Championship of Cricket. During the final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, dinner was served in a common eating room and this provided both teams a place to mingle despite the on-field tension.

Pakistan's cricket icon Imran Khan loved his food. Pic/Getty Images

Pakistan had been restricted to 176 and Imran Khan, who was expected to prevent the in-form Indians from cruising to a title triumph, happened to be having his supper with India captain Sunil Gavaskar in the room. Gavaskar, in his book One Day Wonders revealed what Imran consumed: "Some salad, then the big steak (and Australian steaks are big) then some fruit salad with ice cream, popped in a few grapes, peeled off a banana and ate it with great relish, and as he got up he picked up another banana (Australian bananas are big too). I couldn't help exclaiming, 'Immy, what's going on?'"

Gavaskar wrote. Imran misunderstood Gavaskar's question and thought he was referring to something that happened on the field. Imran's intake didn't affect his movements on the field. However, India went on to win the final by eight wickets.

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