Mumbai Diary: Friday Dossier

Pic/Shadab Khan

From my generation to yours

A grown-up and a child exchange wishes on the occasion of Navroze at the Kapawala Agiary in Tardeo.

Mahua on our mind

A Mahua plant in full bloom participants forage with locals

As Mumbaikars get ready to engage in colour-filled festivities over the weekend, Gaurang Motta, co-founder, Monks Bouffe will guide a few to witness how nature celebrates it - bigger, and brighter. A forest walk in Karjat organised by Motta will visit spots where mahua, a plant species native to India, blossoms. "The plants blossom annually, and visually, it's quite similar to cherry blossoms," he shared.

Beyond the visual spectacle, Motta informed this diarist that the plants also play a vital role in holding the ecosystem together. "The roots of a Mahua plant spread across a large area, holding the soil and other plants together," he added. Coinciding with Holi, the walk will also introduce participants to tribal festivities, a natural colour-making workshop and foraging for fresh produce in the wild, followed by a traditional tribal meal. Those interested, can log on to mounksbouffe.com.

For our furry friends

As much as the city seems divided by opinions, ideologies and ideas, you can count on it to unite for a good cause. Following the killing of Jai, a Lokhandwala housing society's resident dog, Paws Hunger, an animal rights group, is at the forefront of converging all efforts to bring the perpetrators to justice. Through his efforts on social media, Sarthak Moudgil (inset), its founder has brought in more than 3,000 concerned citizens into a WhatsApp community titled Justice for Jai, originally formed by the caretaker of the deceased dog. "The aim is to get people talking about changing the laws around animal cruelty in the country. Today, one can walk away scot free by paying a measly Rs 50 fine. Things must change and I am hopeful that we can be a part of it," he told this diarist.

Riyaaz in the house

The way to Carnegie Hall, as the anecdotal maestro said, is to practice. Following this advice, city music school, The Vocal Nest, has started an open-for-all riyaaz club for fellow musicians. "The idea came to me when I realised that people who were pursuing music and managing professional lives, were struggling to find the discipline to practise regularly," said founder Satvika Modi (below). While the club has regular online sessions every Thursday, they also meet once a month at a venue in Malabar Hill. "The goal is to hold each other responsible and nurture an environment where practice is fun," she concluded.

MythPat's fanboy moment

Mithilesh Patankar at the studio

You miss all the chances you don't take, they say. Mumbai-based YouTuber Mithilesh Patankar AKA MythPat, who recently dubbed a video for American YouTube star Jimmy Donaldson AKA Mr Beast (below) would agree. "It all started two years ago when I retweeted one of his posts asking if I could dub for him," he recalled. Of dreams coming true, Patankar added, "I was never expecting a call from Donaldson's team. They recently started reaching out to creators to dub videos in foreign languages and that's how my time to shine came. The stakes were high, given his fanbase of more than 240 million subscribers, but at the end of the day it was a fun eight hours in the studio."

Beyond the punchline

Sweta Mantrii with Daniel Sloss

Comedian Sweta Mantrii will remember Scottish entertainer Daniel Sloss' latest tour of India for more than just the laughs. Mantrii recently shared the frame and a few words with Sloss, one of her biggest artistic inspirations, in Pune yesterday. "As much as I admire his writing and delivery, it's the treatment of subjects like disability and inclusiveness in his sets that stand out for me. Sloss often speaks of his sister, a person with disability (PwD), candidly, much to the surprise of many. Being a PwD working in the same industry, it fills me with joy. I sometimes wish I had written those jokes," Mantri laughed, adding that the meet came after a year-long wait, and that Sloss was pleasantly surprised by her appreciation.