Mumbai Diary: Sunday Dossier

Are you kidding me?
Actor-Author Soha Ali Khan reacts incredulously to something host Siddharth Kannan says at an event in Vile Parle on Saturday. Pic/Sneha Kharabe

Excited by the scene
While our city's gallerists seem to be making the best of Art Basel, Hong Kong, actress-model, and now poet, Lisa Ray has things to share with us, too. Ray tells us that she just loves the showings by Indian art galleries this year at the premier art fair. and that the scene in the subcontinent is exciting. In Hong Kong, where home with husband Jason Dehni is, Ray has relished a number of booths at the art fair. Having picked up two works from Vishwa Shroff's urban architecture series, she tells us that she was mesmerised by Ali Kazam's storm series, which is on her wish list. Dhruvi Acharya, Sohrab Hura, Gauri Gill and Varunika Saraf (whose works she describes as "beautiful, delicate sketches full of pathos") have caught her eye as well. As she confesses that there is no more space left on her walls, she draws our attention to Korean artist Do-Ho Suh ya Lehmann Maupin, best known for his fabric sculptures. "I'm crazy about his work," says Ray, and we are glad she is.

Boys are back
Mihir Desai and Amit Singh of The Bar Stock Exchange are back with another interesting concept. Inspired from the bar square concept in Miami, the restaurant will be spread over 15,000 sq ft with food trucks serving varied cuisine. They'll be launching a 'bar bank' where you can open a savings account at current account prices. "You can store or pre-buy your favourite drink at a chosen price. You can consume this whenever you want - as long as your balance doesn't run out," says Desai.

Ray revisited
Fans of filmmaker and writer Satyajit Ray will have something new to add to their collection, when HarperCollins India releases two interesting titles on the legend over the summer. The first, Nayak, is based on an original screenplay by the writer that got made into an award-winning film in 1966 with Uttam Kumar and Sharmila Tagore in the lead. It's a portraiture of the life of a cinema superstar, and his fans, told in 24 hours of a train journey. Writer Bhaskar Chattopadhyay, who has previously translated the works of legendary writers like Rabindranath Tagore, Premchand and Premendra Mitra, will novelise the script. The second book, Alien, which releases next month, will bring together a collection of Ray's many writings on the subject, including the script he wrote in the 1960s, based on a short story of his, for a science fiction film of the same name.

Fashion karna gunah nahin hai
It's impossible to not adore and admire Gauriben (centre, in the pic below) in equal measure. The 54-year-old sparkplug, who learned the intricate bharatkaam (needlework) from her mother at the age of 10, is an integral member of SEWA (Self Employed Women's Association), an NGO spearheaded by Reema Nanavaty. She works out of her home at Bakutra, an arid village in Gujarat, and belongs to an army of craftswomen that Anita Dongre's label - Grassroot - collaborates with ever since its launch in 2015. "I love her confident spirit," smiles Dongre, "I had invited her along with a dozen-odd craftswomen for the launch show of Grassroot at Lakmé Fashion Week in 2015. They were my front-row guests, but Gauriben said they'd like to walk the ramp instead. It was the longest ramp - from the heart of India's villages to the ramp at LFW."

In an already crowded sustainable fashion marketplace, the label's unique constitution is what makes it stand on firm land. "If I am told by SEWA that a certain cluster of embroiderers are looking for work, I'll shamelessly change my designs at the last minute so that I can use their particular skills," shares the designer. The label's design purpose is to employ people and keep the crafts alive. "My clothes must sell in order to support the hands behind the craft. So, I design clothes that are classic and timeless, something that is preserved and not thrown away like fast fashion. This is sustainability for me. And I found a simple way to work around it."

May 9 is the decided date to introduce the designer's ambitious flagship store at West Broadway in New York. The expansive three-floor space will host two brands - Anita Dongre, a bridal line, and Grassroot. The 53-year-old designer is considering flying down Gauriben and a handful of artisans for the big launch. "I want them to feel great joy and pride in what they create with their hands," adds Dongre about the fitting idea to showcase Indian design at its democratic best.

GR Sunderam

Sunderam way to play cricket
Is sportsmanship a thing of the past? With what is happening in world cricket - intense sledging and ball tampering - this could well be true. So, here's something of the past which was relayed to this diarist by Mobin Shaikh, an 'A' division club cricketer-turned-coach. Mobin recalled a premier division Kanga League game at Cross Maidan where his club Rajasthan SC were slated to battle hosts Karnatak SA in the 1980s.

"We won the toss and decided to bat. GR Sunderam (former India bowler) our team mentor, noticed that Karnatak were enduring more than just a team's normal pre-match pangs. When he asked one of the senior players, he revealed they were actually in a fix because three of their players were yet to land up. Sunderam sir told them not to worry and in the same breath asked three members from our team to field for Karnatak until their players arrived. We were surprised but that's the kind of sportsmanship that prevailed in those days," recalled Mobin. Those were the days!

Also Read: Mumbai Diary: Saturday Dossier

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