Mumbai Diary: Thursday Dossier

Pic/Shadab Khan

Waves of relief

A kid enjoys a dip in the sea to beat the soaring temperatures at Dadar beach.

A new framework

Piramal Art Gallery will have high end upgrades like remote controlled lighting

Change is the only constant and the new Dilip Piramal gallery at the NCPA is proof of that. Relaunched today, the 35-year-old venue will now boast of upgrades like remote controlled lighting, non-reflective walls and movable partitions. The gallery also has plans to expand from photography to include film screenings and audio-visual experiences. Dilip Piramal noted that the relaunch reflects the growth of art and technology in the city. Khushroo Suntook, chairman, NCPA shared, "We opened the art gallery with a three-part exhibition on the ongoing infrastructure projects in Mumbai - all of which we hope will help bring people closer to art centres in the city."

Stars that shine

Arvind Paranjpye, director, Nehru Planetarium, will be bestowed with the ASI Zubin Kembhavi Award by the Astronomical Society of India today. Sharing his reaction on receiving the honour, he said, "This award is important in the sense that it will help me reach out to astronomy institutions and researchers that need monetary help to take their work ahead. It also provides an example to showcase how strongly the public outreach work in astronomy is going on." Paranjpye believes that such initiatives are crucial to recognise and appreciate one's efforts to communicate science to general people.

The quest for a good croissant

Fawcett recommends minimal flavours like pistachios, chocolate and vanilla

Long since the French left India's shores, their delicacies continue to create waves across Indian bakeries and pâtisseries. This diarist is still unable to gulp a baguette dry for breakfast, but our favourite, the croissant, is getting some TLC, thanks to Ellie Flory Fawcett, a British-French actor and voice-over artiste. This Mumbai resident had started a series on Instagram last year to re-discover city haunts that craft delicious croissants. "With my habit of documenting everything, my search for a good croissant simply transcended into a series on social media," the actor shared, after her recent review of a Colaba café's croissant finds went viral. While Fawcett resorts to extensive online research before visiting a place, she loves her followers' suggestions too. But the actor mentioned that although she likes Mumbai's take on this French goodie, she would not recommend a desi spin like chicken tikka croissants. "There are a growing number of excellent Mumbaikar pastry chefs but few fuse Indian cuisine with viennoiserie, and for good reason," she exclaimed.

The Scottish connection

The Church of St Andrew (now changed to St Andrews' Cathedral) was frequented by men posted in Bombay since the time the East India Company ruled over the Indian Subcontinent. (THEN) Pic Courtesy/ @lifeinmumbaiofficial

This diarist is happy when her kaali-peeli takes the "kum-traffic-wala-rasta" to avoid jammed roads that are now part of our urban streetscape. Such detours make for great windowside-viewing if you happen to be in the older neighbourhoods of Fort, Kala Ghoda or Colaba because chances are you might spot an interesting element or façade that will pique the curious mind. It happened in our case recently at the Church of St Andrew, opposite the Lion Gate traffic signal. As we craned our neck outside the cab, we spotted a noticeable font change and a brighter looking paint job on its triangular pediment. The place of worship, Bombay's first Scottish church that previously bore the signage, ‘Church of St Andrew', is now referred to as ‘St Andrews' Cathedral'. The blue background and Old English Text font is more eye-catching. If you're in the area on a weekend evening, drop by the landmark that has a welcoming, vintage air, with its stained glass panels and minimalist interiors in case you wish to seek blessings or soak in its heritage, whatever be your calling.