Mumbai Diary: Tuesday Dossier

Pic/Satej Shinde

Look, it's ma' raincoat

A mother covers her little one's head with a plastic sheet underneath her dupatta while negotiating Diva station on a rainy Monday

Try the yoga way of life

Ira Trivedi

If you believe in ‘yoga se hi hoga', we've got some good news. Today on International Yoga Day, yoga instructor Ira Trivedi and Social Swag will launch a digital studio titled Yog Love SocialSwag Academy. From tomorrow, she will hold live virtual classes on it every hour of the day. These classes will be offered at a throwaway price of R2 to democratise yoga. Trivedi said, "A digital studio enables people to access yoga with one click. The studio will ensure that yoga becomes a part of people's daily lives, as it is the most sophisticated form of physical exercise. It works on our respiratory, circulatory, cardiac systems and affects the body in a targeted manner." The academy has plans to launch a teacher-training course soon.

Sweat it out in Batman's den

Actor Ranveer Singh's brand new Gym On Wheels that resembles The Dark Night's garage is ready to hit the road. We reached out to its designer Rupin Suchak about creating this space, "Designing a gym van was challenging, but we could see the compactness of the space lend itself to the theme.

Singh wanted something minimal, and we have tried to achieve that through technology. Keeping the condition of Indian roads in mind, we have had to suspend the mirrors on silicon. Silicon gaps absorb shock, and can prevent the mirrors from shattering in case of jerks."

Diversity matters

Samavesh Chamber of Commerce, a Thane-based non-profit committed to creating an inclusive business ecosystem for the Indian LGBTQiA+ community, is making employers aware of the advantages of diversity hiring across fields. In a series of social media posts, the organisation outlined how a diverse workforce can further corporate goals. Ahead of their Diversity Career Fair in Juhu on June 30, Kanishka Chaudhry, co-founder of the platform, told us, "A homogenous group will think alike and reach an easy consensus without factoring in all scenarios. A diverse team or supplier base, that feels included, will challenge the status quo and add incremental value to a business' top and bottom line growth through varied solutions, perspectives and working styles."

Finding treasure in trash

After relishing freshly made idlis, photographer Ritesh Uttamchandani (inset) set off on a leisurely walk around his Goregaon neighbourhood on Sunday morning. A light drizzle, the call of a bhangarwala and a hearty breakfast fuelled his trail until he spotted an eclectic collage painting sitting atop a building's boundary wall. Who would throw away such a beautifully framed artwork? "I don't even know whose work it is.

I started looking for the watchman at Sai Baba complex, where I found it, to ask about it. A watchman from the adjacent building said it was thrown away, and I could take it," said Uttamchandani, who did exactly that. He later posted about the odd incident online where it caught this diarist's eye. "Was the artist pissed off? I'm really curious about the backstory." So are we.

Remembering the Birdman of India

On Indian ornithologist Salim Ali's 35th death anniversary yesterday, conservationist Tara Gandhi (inset) remembered her teacher as a source of inspiration: "He inspired students with his own example of meticulous work and untiring efforts at promoting an understanding of birds."

Gandhi added that while his knowledge of birds was acquired from his surveys, it was furthered through books, radio talks and lectures - all of which are relevant to this day.