Mumbai Diary: Sunday Dossier

Pic/Ashish Raje

Flight or fight
A pretty flock of seagulls surround a man feeding them. As we take pictures of this Instagram-worthy moment, we would like to caution against feeding as birds flocking so close to the promenade often leads to bird hits and accidents.

Like Nick, Nastase was nasty too!

Romanian tennis player Ilie Nastase in action against American Cliff Richey at Wimbledon in 1970. Pic/Getty Images

Australian Nick Kyrgios has probably no close rivals when it comes to being the bad boy of contemporary tennis. A recent report said 95 per cent of the headlines he makes are about his offensive behaviour. Only five per cent screamers concern his game. Arguing with officials seems to come naturally to him; insulting spectators too. Romanian Illie Nastase was also a temperamental tennis player who figured in major pro tennis tournaments from the late 1960s to the 1980s.

Nick Kyrgios

Kyrgios's antics are reminiscent of what Nastase was up to. But we stumbled upon something that Năstase did which could be unprecedented. The 1983 edition of Sportsweek Annual reported that Nastase was fined $1,000 for untying a chair umpire's shoelaces as he walked passed him during the 1982 French Open. This could well have been during his second round defeat to Guy Forget at Paris. Now, that is so naughty and hopefully the Australian brat doesn't read this.

Bedi to tell it all

Actor Kabir Bedi is all set to release his tell-all autobiography in April this year. Published by Westland Publications, Stories I Must Tell: The Emotional Journey Of An Actor, will see Bedi take readers through the journey of his life - from growing up in a middle-class home in Delhi, to the highs and lows of his professional and personal life, including marriage and divorce, and his days in film, television and theatre, in India, Europe and Hollywood. "I've poured my heart into this book about my turbulent professional and emotional life and I have told it with raw honesty," shared Bedi. Karthika VK, publisher, Westland Publications has described his memoir as "unusually candid with unexpected tragic turns". "I think it will surprise even those who know Kabir well," she told this diarist.

Laugh and live a little

Last year has been nothing short of a nightmare, but the COVID-19 pandemic has definitely made us stronger and more content with the little things in life. Members of the St Andrews Road Residents Association want to remember the year 2020 in the form of limericks. The group plans to organise a laughter limerick contest for the residents, with each verse beginning with ‘COVID-19 has taught me...' John Soares, one of the organisers of the event, says, "Residents have not been able to freely meet for a long time. And we think laughter is the best way to forget the Coronavirus crisis. The idea is to cheer up the security staff and the housekeeping staff through these contests."

Play a game, save the world

Inspired by games like Pokemon Go, Tamagotchi, and Farmville, Wildchain, a non-profit organisation, is aiming to use gamification to build awareness by educating users about various endangered species they discover in the game. The mission is to preserve all wildlife on earth - online actions with offline impact. Kiki, a marketing manager from Wildchain says, "Our players will get a free magic egg for them to hatch. After hatching, the players have to grow their sanctuary and take care of it, by cleaning and protecting their sanctuary. Users will be able to digitally adopt a range of wild animals, with the funds they pay going towards nature conservation and wildlife protection projects. A 100 per cent of our profit will go towards wildlife conservation initiative to support wildlife rangers, protect wildlife habitats, plant trees, and create employment for villagers. So the players can make a real-world impact while playing Wildchain." This game will be available to Android and iOS users. However, the beta version of this game that is launching on World Environment Day, June 5 this year, will be available on Google Play first.

Billboard with a difference

In a refreshing change from glitzy hoardings featuring models and actors, Mumbaikars will get to see their furry, four-legged friends gracing them instead. This is part of a new initiative titled All Species Alike, which was formed to address the problem of speciesism, which is the misguided belief that some living beings are more important than others.

"There was no greater evidence of this than during the Coronavirus pandemic, when animals were abandoned and exploited in unprecedented numbers and there was the need for common citizens to come together to be the voice for the voiceless," says restaurateur Marzy Parakh, who is helming it, along with animal activist and professor Poonam Samtani.