Mumbai Diary: Thursday Dossier

Mandira Bedi and Jim Sarbh, chef-entrepreneur Pooja Dhingra and interior designer Ravi Vazirani

Jahan chaar yaar

Actors Mandira Bedi and Jim Sarbh, chef-entrepreneur Pooja Dhingra and interior designer Ravi Vazirani seem to be getting along like a house on fire during an event held at a Lower Parel pub on Wednesday. Pic/Bipin Kokate

Taking the lid off this online trend

There is no end to challenges on the Internet, and the latest to surface is the "bottle challenge". It involves people placing a bottle with a half-screwed cap on a table, and then performing a back kick to flip the lid off with their feet. A lot of global celebrities have posted videos of them completing the challenge.

They include actor Jason Statham and musician John Mayer. There are also stars closer home who have managed the feat, including, not surprisingly, Akshay Kumar, given his penchant for martial arts. But it's not just celebrities. Other Mumbaikars, too, have posted similar videos, including Sambit Chatterjee, the drummer of indie band Aswekeepsearching. Find out if you can successfully attempt this challenge as well, since this isn't one of those things that come with a disclaimer, "Don't try this at home."

A helping hand

Over the last couple of days, the devastation caused by the rains has hardly given us cause to celebrate the advent of the monsoon. But it is always nice to see Mumbaikars lending a helping hand to those affected.

After a wall collapsed in Malad's Pimpripada area, killing over 18 people, St Jude's Church in the area has organised relief efforts in coordination with neighbouring parishes and people from all over Mumbai. Cash donations, cheques as well as relief in the form of household items and dry packaged foods are being accepted by the parish priest Fr Warner D'Souza (inset).

The section of the wall that collapsed

The disaster has left more than hundred people in the hospital and the parish stresses on monetary assistance to those who most need it. Here's hoping that more public institutions follow suit.

'The most valuable pic on the Internet'

Google CEO Sundar Pichai has said earlier that he is a huge fan of cricket, and that his favourite players are Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar. It must then have been quite a moment for him when he sat next to Tendulkar in the VIP section at Edgbaston in Birmingham to watch the India vs England match recently.

The cricketer posted a picture of the two on social media, and netizens had a field day in the comments section, with one calling it "the most valuable photo on the Internet". But we loved Tendulkar's own caption, which was, "Kya yeh Sundar Pic-hai?"

Gone too soon

Yesterday was a sad day for those in the city who are fans of good, old-school rock music. Mihir Bijur, the owner of Door No 1 - a bar in Bandra Reclamation popular for playing retro classics - passed away after sudden cardiac arrest.

Bijur had played an important role in trying to revive the live music scene in Mumbai, hosting bands on a regular basis with innovative concepts like the "Human Jukebox", where a live act would take requests from patrons. Thank you for the music, Mihir.

Kala Ghoda gets a new arts space

Kala Ghoda is all set to get a spanking new space dedicated to contemporary art, and the creative pursuits in general. It's called Method, and it aims to break the traditional definition of "fine art".

The venue will also host small-scale events, fashion installations and visual art experiences that build on contemporary urban lifestyle and culture. Sahil Arora, a designer who has created websites for Bollywood celebrities Aamir Khan, Vikramaditya Motwane and Rajkumar Hirani, is the person helming it. He told this diarist, "Art is always evolving, so it stands to reason that the institutions that house contemporary art should evolve as well."

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