Mumbai Diary: Friday Dossier

Let your spirits soar: A youth demonstrates his acrobatic flair at Shivaji Park. Pic/Atul Kamble

Stage set for puppets

Did you know that leather shadow puppets, which have been used in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh for centuries now, are also present in other Asian countries such as Indonesia or Cambodia? Or that similar puppetry techniques are used in different countries with different narratives? These are some of the insights that puppet theatre educator Anurupa Roy will share at a talk curated by CSMVS this Saturday. "We will explore the history of puppet theatre and different traditions across the country, which vary in terms of the puppets' size and how they are manipulated," shared Joyoti Roy, head-marketing at CSMVS. Attend the talk on YouTube @CSMVSMumbai.

Bicycles and Bohri fare

Munaf Kapadia

When founder of The Bohri Kitchen (TBK), Munaf Kapadia was starting out, chef Ranveer Brar had shared an interesting analogy with him. This went on to become the title of one of the chapters of his book, How I Quit Google To Sell Samosas. "The chapter was titled, ‘When Ranveer compared TBK to a bicycle!' What he had basically said was that one of the pedals of TBK was branding, and the second was operations. It's only when both pedals are in tandem that the cycle moves forward," Kapadia told this diarist. That is a conversation the duo is going to build on today during an Instagram live chat where they discuss chasing dreams. The session promises a host of interesting suggestions for budding entrepreneurs, shared Kapadia. To pick up some tips from the pros, head to @crosswordbookstores or @harpercollinsin on Instagram at 6 pm today.

Ranveer Brar

When plastic wastes build a happy home

The shelter for strays that members of Urvari built using compacted plastic bricks

Keeping with the theme of #NoPlasticJuly, Navi Mumbai-based environmental organisation Urvari, has created an innovative shelter for strays using plastic waste. The organisation, which was founded by 18-year-olds Vasundhara Gupte and Khushi Shah, put out calls on social media to collect plastic waste from across the city, and converted these into eco-bricks. "During the rains, we observed that stray dogs are among the hardest hit. We decided to build shelters using eco-bricks made from plastic bottles stuffed with compacted plastic waste," said Gupte. The shelter is located at Vashi. Gupte insists that although time-consuming, converting plastic waste into bricks isn't difficult. "We want this to become a sustainable system where people make bricks in their daily lives with the waste produced in their homes," she added.

Dripping information

The monsoon brings with it overcast skies, moody musings and a whole new array of seasonal delicacies. That's what filmmaker Shubhra Chatterji will explore in the next edition of her monthly series, History On A Plate. "This will be a celebration of Mughal Hindustan and how it would blossom into a spectacle of dance, song and picnics, when the monsoon rolled in," Chatterji told us. The session will be peppered with anecdotes, stories and poetry. Visit
@historywali on Instagram this Saturday.

Skilled for change

A recent survey conducted in anticipation of World Youth Skills Day on July 15 has found that young Indians have been learning new skills to engage themselves through the past year. Titled Little Things We Do, the survey found that 44 per cent of Indians participated in activities to support the lesser privileged, while 23.15 per cent of Gen Z explored their creative side by making content for social media. While Gen X and Z were more focused on altruism, more millennials preferred to focus their efforts on environmental conservation.