The city - sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce
A still from the parody video
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Shape of You, in Konkani
Just when you thought you had seen and heard every possible cover and version of Ed Sheeran's monster hit, Shape of You, along comes another. This one is in Konkani, and if you follow the language, it's a treat because the lyrics are funny. The Matka Anthem by a Goan singer who goes by the name Amit Naik aka Waking Grunt, shows three friends seeking funds to play matka (a betting game) and win big money. He needs the money so he can leave his job and spend time gambling. In the background, his two friends attempt to dance, show off their empty wallets, puzzle over the matka rules and generally provide enough laughs. So, even if you're unable to figure the lyrics, this video is entertaining enough and had us ROFL.
Pics/Shadab Khan
Will it be pot luck at the box office?
Actors Akshay Kumar and Bhumi Pednekar manoeuvre their way around commodes at a sanitation awareness-cum-film promotion meet at a Juhu multiplex yesterday.
Twin win for desi designers
Indian designers Ujjawal Dubey and Ruchika Sachdeva emerged as the winners of the 2017/18 International Woolmark Prize Indian Subcontinent and the Middle East regional final. Nomadic tribesmen from across India served as Dubey's inspiration. "The texture of their life, the simplicity, the night sky and the myriad constellations that we chance upon under a desert sky inspires me," he told this diarist. As for Sachdeva, the costumes of 18th-century Indian nautch girls served as a muse.
Ujjawal Dubey and Ruchika Sachdeva (both in black) with their winning creations
"I am intrigued by opposites or contrasts co-existing because I think something very original comes out of that. This paradoxical way of working led me to take inspiration from the 18th-century costumes of nautch girls, who were the dancers of Indian royal courts, contrasted by bespoke menswear tailoring," she said. We'll be cheering for these young guns to go all the way, and win the final.
Shalom meets Namaste, all over again
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent Israel trip was all about friendship and falafel but it seems the Indo-Israel bhai-bhai feelings are in continual mode. This evening, Shalom will meet Namaste once again at Mumbai University's stunning Convocation Hall at Fort.
PM Modi with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel. Pic/AFP
An oration series commemorating 25 years of India-Israel relations, as part of the 160th foundation year of the Mumbai University, will be held under the aegis of the Indo Israel Friendship Association. Sanjay Deshmukh; vice chancellor, Mumbai University, David Akov Consul General of Israel in Mumbai and Dr Subramaniam Swamy, Rajya Sabha MP and BJP economist will be speaking at the event.
We are expecting a typical Swamy kind of no-pulling-any-punches address at the event. A spokesperson said that the programme was cementing ties between both nations, post Modi's visit to Israel. During that visit, this paper had coined a term called 'falafel diplomacy'. Now, shalom meets namaste again and we say, 'shalomaste' to that.
The ripple effect
The much-loved Kiran Nagarkar has given us countless stories, characters and reality checks with his powerful story-telling. Yesterday, Mumbaikars had a chance to relive one of his most hard-hitting and rebellious works, Seven Sixes are Forty-Three (it was originally penned in Marathi as Saat Sakkam Trechalis), which was also the Sahitya Akademi Award winner's debut novel.
Kiran Nagarkar. Pic/Bipin Kokate
"I wrote it four decades ago, and it remains topical even today, which is why my publishers (HarperCollins) decided to re-introduce it under their classics imprint," Nagarkar shared with this diarist en route to his book reading session at the Max Mueller Bhavan library. Humble to a fault, he added that he had never imagined that the book would still be read and discussed after all this time.