03 April,2023 07:03 AM IST | Mumbai | Team mid-day
Pic/Pradeep Dhivar
The twilight casts a shadow on media personnel gathered for the opening of the newly renovated dome of the GPO (General Post Office) near CSMT.
Quietly like an ancient behemoth, the Yazdani Restaurant & Bakery has moved into the age of Instagram. While the Fort landmark is best known for its freshly baked goods, this diarist was surprised to notice the collection of wonderful artworks depicting the Yazdani façade lining its green walls. This diarist was intrigued to spot it on their official Instagram page @yazdanibakery. These artworks capture the many depictions of the now iconic façade that has come to define the bakery for city residents. Partner Zyros Zend, remarked that the piece of art were tokens of love. "The bakery is just as iconic to the city as is the Eiffel Tower to Paris. We have grown as a part and parcel of this city," he told this diarist, describing the bakery as a legacy that continues to evolve with the time. "I have met many generations of people who tell us, âThis is where I met my wife.' I have even had some drop-in with wedding invites," he shared. Commenting on the location between two Parsi agiaries, Zend said, "It is such a rare location and is part of our legacy."
This diarist grew up in a generation before the mania of Marvel became commonplace. Among the ones that truly took India by storm, was the Phantom aka The Ghost Who Walks by Lee Falk. This year, the masked superhero completes 60 years of the India syndication by Indrajal Comics. Writer and creator Alok Sharma said, "I was four years old when I first read Phantom. My mother was a huge fan of the character, and encouraged it." The comic book writer has since gone on to build a collection of Phantom memorabilia that he shared online. "The characters and stories are a reason why I chose comics as a profession."
To commemorate six years since their inception, the art venture of Art and Wonderment released a rare serigraph titled Wonder by Tanya George. With influences from Henri Matisse and Alexander Calder, George replicated the word âWonder' in the three scripts of Devanagari, Malayalam and English. "It can just be an artwork, but if you pay closer attention to it, the letters come to light. The idea is to create a sense of wonder for the viewer," she told us.
Chef Shilarna Vaze shares a connect with the latest MasterChef India winner, Nayanjyoti Saikia. Saikia was paired with Vaze during the MasterChef challenge. "From the start, we hit it off. I never found him shy. He was friendly and confident in his cooking, and open to my ideas as well," Vaze remarked. Praising his prawn head oil, the chef said, "I remember how deftly he made pasta from scratch and shaped perfect tortellinis. The chilli oil he made with prawn head was epic. I told him to bottle it and sell it!"
This year marks the golden jubilee for Project Tiger, launched on April 1, 1973 by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. To mark the occasion, former minister of Environment and Forests, Jairam Ramesh shared a post last weekend of the former Prime Minister at the launch. While governments have changed, the project has slowly rebuilt a healthy eco-system for the species. The country now houses 2,967 tigers (2018-19 survey) - 70 per cent of the global population.
