Mumbai Diary: Tuesday Dossier

Right back at ya!

Actress Shraddha Kapoor waves back while she is spotted outside Apoorva Lakhia's house in Juhu yesterday. Pic/Nimesh Dave

Dr Teresa Albuquerque at her Santacruz home

Farewell, Goa's grand dame of history
"I'd love to do the interview my dear, but you will need to drop by my home in East Avenue, Santacruz …" This diarist vividly recalls the firm yet motherly voice on the other side of the phone. Dr Teresa Albuquerque, octogenarian chronicler of Goan history, breathed her last in Mumbai yesterday. With her passing, Mumbai and Goa lost a voice that had bound both worlds in her writing, offering invaluable insight for the history buff, Goan or otherwise. Her exhaustive research focused on the community (Goan Pioneers in Bombay), the culture of the bakery, as well as countless texts on migration from Goa to Bombay over the centuries. Another book that didn't get due recognition was a richly researched title on the origins and growth of the suburb of Santacruz.

Her residence, this diarist remembers, could well have been in the Goan countryside, with its vintage furniture and curios lugged from her ancestral home. As she regaled us with fascinating chapters about the association between Goans and Bombay's original inhabitants, the East Indians, it felt less of a reporting assignment and more of a storytelling session. So long, Dr Albuquerque.

Raveena Tandon

Raveena has saree trouble
It's a given that actress Raveena Tandon looks good on celluloid in a saree. The problem arises when the Tip Tip Barsa Paani star attempts to politicise the garment. Recently, she shared a picture of herself draped in one, with the caption 'Will I be termed communal, Sanghi, bhakt, hindutva icon? if I say I love wearing the saree and I think it's the most elegant'. In a flash, Twitter's liberal bunch called her out for the irresponsible tweet. One of the most nuanced responses came from Twitter user, The India, who dedicated a 'thread to the bold and open-minded actress, who will stand for women's rights irrespective of their caste or religion'. The user mentioned that a saree, while a female garment from the Indian subcontinent, wasn't limited to Hinduism. There were photos of non-Sanghi, non-Hindu women who also wore sarees but weren't labelled bhakts, including Mother Teresa, Benazir Bhutto, Fatima Bhutto, and Bangladesh's PM Sheikh Hasina. We couldn't help admire the systematic takedown, especially since it was accompanied by stunning pictures.

Vikas Khanna

Taking baby steps into the kitchen
If you're anything like this diarist, your cooking expertise is limited to being able to make a half-decent sunny side up egg. Although food fascinates you, the kitchen fills you with trepidation. Luckily for us culinary noobs, celebrity chef Vikas Khanna's new cookbook, My First Kitchen, promises to hold our hands through the painful process of initiation. From buying the right gadgets and utensils to learning to use them, from how and what to stock in your pantry to throwing your first party, title claims to be the beginner's guide to making magic in the kitchen. We'll give you a full report once we've sampled it ourselves.

Pic/Ayuntamiento Madrid

Don't spread!
Ever sat next to a man on a bus and wondered if he had paid for both seats? Manspreading isn't just a problem in Mumbai. To tackle the annoying practice rampant across public transport, Madrid's authorities have started a campaign under which signs have been posted across buses and trains, discouraging passengers from encroaching on the personal space of others. The simple, yet effective campaign shows a cross sign next to a red, faceless man occupying more than his seat. Can we replicate this on BEST buses and local trains?

Rakhi wants you to take note
Rakhi Sawant never ceases to amuse us. If it's not making videos of herself while vacationing in Dubai, then it is wearing a dress with PM Narendra Modi's pictures on it. What caught our attention recently was an Instagram post that displayed her face on the new Rs 2,000 Indian currency note. A badly Photoshopped image, it definitely warranted a few laughs. Some called her 'real father of the nation'; others called her out for disrespecting Indian currency. Our favourite was someone who quipped that 'PM Modi would have to do another de Rakhisation'. We wonder if this is Sawant's attempt to draw the spotlight away from the arrest warrant issued against her by the Valmiki community for drawing comparison between Valmiki and singer Mika Singh.