Mumbai Diary: Sunday Dossier

Pic/Satej Shinde

Always watching over you

An interested stray gives Mumbai policemen company as they push their vehicle to get it started outside Borivli railway station. Pic/Satej Shinde

Weight, listen to this!

The physical side of star cricketer Rohit Sharma hasn't gone unnoticed. We are not referring to him creaming boundaries in the Indian Premier League with that skill set, but his appearance.

Pundits reckoned after watching Rohit take the field in Mumbai Indians' first game of IPL-13 that he had put on some weight during the Coronavirus-caused lockdown.

This diarist refuses to jump to any conclusions, he says it's important to note what Sir Garfield Sobers told Rudi Webster, the famous sports psychologist, who contributes occasionally to this newspaper. Portions of an old interview, which Webster did with Sobers appeared in the Trinidad Express recently and here's what the greatest living cricketer felt about fitness: "There is more to cricket than fitness and technical skills. I have come across players who have had more physical talent than some of the great players. But they never made it, because they didn't use their common sense to think clearly and simply about the game. The proper use of the mind is the one thing that separates champions from merely good players."

Got it, Sir. It's all in the mind.

Little champ

A GROUP of city school kids recently created a video in support of the UN GOAL 15: LIFE ON LAND. Researched and conceptualised by 10-year-old Abner Sharma, the project's aim is to enhance global support towards efforts to combat poaching and trafficking of endangered birds and animals. The film was appreciated by PETA and the World Animal Protection. And now, Sharma has won an award at the Imagination Lunchbox International Children's Film Festival (ILICFF) 2020. The film was screened at the festival under the category 2020 Best Film By Kids and even won. Sharma said, "Winning an international award means a lot to me. I am overwhelmed. It is important to ban such illegal activities."

It's showtime for Suheldev

Bestselling author Amish Tripathi's recently-released novel, Suheldev: The King Who Saved India (Westland) is being adapted into a feature film. The author shared the news with his fans on Twitter on Friday. The film, which is being produced by Wakaoo Films, Casa Media and Immortal Studios, will be directed by ad-film maker Senthil Kumar, the chief creative officer at Wunderman Thompson (erstwhile JWT), India. Incidentally, this will be Kumar's first feature film. It's also going to be one of the first Indian films to be produced using Virtual Production technology. "Maharaja Suheldev is one of India's most consequential heroes from the 11th century, who is, sadly, relatively unknown to modern Indians. This tale carries a universal message of unity cutting across class, caste and religious barriers, a message that is particularly relevant for India today. His story tells us that when we Indians are united, we are unbeatable. I am delighted that my book is being converted into a movie to reach out to a wider audience," Amish shared.

This is makeup with a message attached

Atikaa Ahluwalia has combined two things you don't think can go together: makeup and talking about being a survivor of domestic violence. It's a tutorial-cum-PSA and she makes it work. Ahluwalia did some research and found out that beauty-related videos are some of the most watched ones online. She decided to use that to her advantage and has put out two such videos so far on her sister Eina Ahluwalia's eponymous jewellery brand's social media. The first one is a makeup tutorial, where she talks about her own experiences as a survivor of domestic violence and not letting an abuser dim your shine. In the second one, she talks about red lips and red flags. The series seem to have touched a chord with viewers. "I wanted to break the stereotypical image of the survivor of domestic violence as someone's who battered and meek. By having fun in the video and being my witty self."

Tea candles for change

Sanjay Nagar former banker and founder of Kohka Foundation, is helping the sex workers of Ghatkopar get a new lease of life. The non-profit has launched a self-employment workshop, a one-month course that includes learning the craft of producing tea candles. "We began with providing relief material to government hospitals and police departments, but later identified Ghatkopar's transgender community specifically as one of the most affected. Their stories of struggle during the pandemic moved us to create a new chapter of skill development for these women and transgenders, an activity we have been doing in Madhya Pradesh for the past eight years." He says the response shown by the women has been tremendously encouraging. "They are more keen than ever to make a fresh start and provide for their families." This being the first chapter of Kohka Foundation in Mumbai, they have started small scale, by targeting only seven sex workers to be a part of the tea candle workshop. "They have learnt the process of making, boxing and packaging these tea candles, the proceeds of which will be going back to these women themselves. A month into production and the women themselves have changed."

Keep scrolling to read more news

Catch up on all the latest Mumbai news, crime news, current affairs, and a complete guide from food to things to do and events across Mumbai. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates.

Mid-Day is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@middayinfomedialtd) and stay updated with the latest news