Mumbai Diary: Monday Dossier

Pic/Anurag Ahire

On the side of caution

Even superstar Amitabh Bachchan fell to the global pandemic and this passerby in Goregaon could do well to be serious about taking safety measures. Pic/Anurag Ahire

From Jaipur to Japan

In this time of distress, it's heartening to hear of Kintsugi, the ancient Japanese art of mending broken pottery with lacquer and gold dust, which signifies that even if you're broken, you emerge stronger and more beautiful. It's also the title of city-based bilingual writer Anukrti Upadhyay's new book in English. Kintsugi: A Novel (HarperCollins Publishers India), she said, is about young women overcoming trauma and challenging the social order.

"I began writing in Japan. The story is set across Jaipur, where I was raised, Singapore and Japan. It's a story about love, loss, and how each contact may damage you, but can also enhance you," Upadhyay, who also writes in Hindi, elaborated. At a time when we are all cooped up at home, the story can give readers a sense of freedom since it's set across locations.

A different kind of movement

Oona D'mello and Pia Sutaria

Artistes have taken to collaborating with each other during the lockdown to tide over the situation. One example is an exhibition opening on July 31 called Episode II - Series: Movement, which creates a confluence between the fine arts, dance and fashion.

It features artist Oona D'mello, designer Sohni Patel, and dancers Pia Sutaria and Olga Malinovskaya among others. "Visual art is the starting point of creation in this exhibition, leading to responses captured in fashion, design and dance," D'mello told this diarist. Log on to g5a.org for your creative fix.

Umbrellas of hope

If you're looking to buy an umbrella, here's an option to consider. Nethra Umbrellas is the first of its kind as it is assembled by visually-impaired individuals, says KN Radhakrishnan Nair, founder of Vikhroli-based NGO, National Association of Disabled's Enterprises.

"The sale of these umbrellas (R380 to R570) will support 150 of them who've taken up this work during the lockdown to help their families. Those who are unable to commute live in our office. All deliveries are done to your doorstep," Nair adds. Call 9137239065 to support this cause.

The online gym is here to stay

While the future of gyms reopening in the country looks bleak right now, online fitness training could well be a game changer. And a survey by Gympik, a fitness technology platform, suggests that a hybrid model will have to be adopted by gyms.

In a recently launched e-book, the website that has over five lakh monthly visitors, revealed that 80 per cent gym members are willing to pay up to 45 per cent more for a better O2O (online-offline) fitness experience. What also corroborates the inclusion of technology is that 60 per cent of consumers are expected to continue spending on digital fitness, while only 15 per cent would like to restrict themselves strictly to on-premise programmes.

Happy 53, ACK

Uncle Pai with children

Virtual celebrations were in full swing over the weekend as Amar Chitra Katha (ACK) turned 53. Preeti Vyas, its president and CEO, shared about how it rolled out, "We had a lovely evening. The theme was Kal, Aaj Aur Kal where generations of Amar Chitra Katha lovers came together. In our segment ACK & Friends, legendary illustrators, writers and editors, who had worked with our founder, Anant 'Uncle' Pai reminisced over memories and photographs of bringing stories to the world in a pre-digital era."

A storytelling session by ACK

Pushing their motto 'reading is good', three young readers narrated stories from their ACK junior catalogue.

"This broke the stereotype that ACK is only for older generations. The comics stand the test of time and are equally loved by kids today," she told us, adding that their mission remains keeping Mr Pai's legacy and the stories from the past alive, and continuing to entertain readers with new content.

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