Mumbai Diary: Tuesday Dossier

It's the genes
Curly hair clearly runs in the family, you realise, as Kangana Ranaut carries nephew Prithvi Raj at the success party of her last film held at her Bandra home on Monday. Pics/Shadab Khan

Meet the ace men
Fans and admirers of tennis god Roger Federer are still reeling since the past weekend after he won his 100th title at the Dubai Duty Free Championships final. The champion beat Greek player Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-4 in a match that spelt class all over. As social media is still abuzz about the 37-year-old Swiss player's achievement in his 18-year long career, designer Nikhil Mehra of designer duo Shantanu & Nikhil decided to share a moment with his idol, whom he met just last week at the tournament in Dubai. Congratulating the tennis star, Mehra captioned the picture, "Thanks for making us believe that it's all possible... if you believe in it." Though it's no secret that the 43-year-old dad of two is one of the fittest superdads in the industry, what we didn't know is that tennis has been his go-to workout and de-stressing tool. "I have been playing tennis since I was 10 years old, as has Shantanu. We both played tennis in school and even today, I play four times a week because it works as a great stress buster. I was elated to meet Roger Federer at the Dubai Open, thanks to my friend Leander Paes who had invited me to watch it with him," Mehra told this diarist. Activities aside, the meat-loving designer has turned vegetarian, quit smoking and drinking coffee, and avoids consuming wheat. Besides, he has also started practising Iyengar yoga, and meditates for 15 minutes every morning.

Not the weaker sex
"A woman's place is in the kitchen" is not something that literally holds true as far as restaurant kitchens in the city go. So, this Women's Day, chef Amninder Sandhu, who heads the kitchen at Arth, and mixologist Shatbhi Basu will get on stage at an event at Kamala Mills and talk about the challenges their gender faces in the industry. "Learn the skills and you will get the job. Be prepared to work odd hours," chef Sandhu told this diarist, admitting that she has experienced sexism in the F&B industry. "When you are the only woman in a room of 15, the upbringing of the men comes into play. There are times I still struggle to get the respect a man gets. You need to make sure they take you seriously, and don't mock you," she said, adding that she has three women in her kitchen of 30 people.

A taste of Delhi in Mumbai
The surname Qureshi often evokes memories of succulent kebabs charring on a skewer atop a tandoor. Pander as Mumbaikars may, truth is, Delhi's pakwaan is unmatchable when it comes to lazeezdar fare. So, now that the capital's popular Qureshi family-run chain (yes, the same one as Bollywood actor Huma Qureshi's) has made a debut in this city as a small takeaway tucked in Kalina, foodies are sure to go crazy. We are waiting to try out their Afghani chicken and other grilled eats as we try to keep calm.

Dear fans, please take note
It's now become a norm for social media-savvy millennials to upload short clips if they step out for a performance. But, as stand-up comedian Rohan Joshi points out in a recent Instagram post, uploading such snippets from a comedy show is not all that funny. "Partial audio can ruin a joke because if you are rec­ording on your phone's mic from 50 feet away, everything is going to sound muffled. You'll hear a few keywords, without the context that is needed to make the punch line funny. Also, if a comedian is doing material about politics or social issues, muffled audio or video that is cut for a 15-second Insta story may cut out crucial bits that provide context. For example, 'Pakistan is amazingly hilarious' can get cut to 'Pakistan is amazing'," Joshi told this diarist.

Meet Dia, the mako shark
For World Wildlife Day observed on March 3, Dia Mirza partnered with the Wild for Life and Clean Seas campaigns, run by the United Nations Environment Programme. This year's theme is "Life below water: for people and planet", and to drive home the message, the actor - known for her work for the environment - took a quiz to find out her kindred species, which turned out to be the mako shark. Mirza then introduced the animal to her followers on social media and shared interesting facts explaining how human action is causing harm to it. She also urged her followers to take the personalised approach to saving the ocean by finding out their kindred species. Have you found yours?

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