The city - sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce.
Pic/Shadab Khan
Doggies' day out
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Three canines diligently accompany their parents for an evening walk in Bandra on Wednesday. The third one’s the most photogenic, no? Pic/Shadab Khan
This longlist looks lit
The longlist includes (clockwise from top right) Samit Basu, Annie Zaidi, Manjul Bajaj and Deepa Anappara. Pic/Liz Seabrook
Irrespective of whether you, as a reader, attach any value to it, literary prizes are harbingers of excitement. And we could really use some in 2020. The longlist for this year’s edition of the JCB Prize for Literature was announced by literary director Mita Kapur and jury members Tejaswini Niranjana, Aruni Kashyap, Ramu Ramanathan and Deepika Sorabjee. The selection of 10 novels is dominated by women and touches upon socio-political divides. The list includes works by city-based Annie Zaidi, Deepa Anappara, Manjul Bajaj, Jahnavi Barua, Samit Basu, Dharini Bhaskar, Megha Majumdar and Tanuj Solanki, apart from two translations: Moustache by S Hareesh, translated from Malayalam by Jayasree Kalathil and A Ballad of Remittent Fever: A Novel by Ashoke Mukhopadhyay, translated from Bengali by Arunava Sinha.
Mita Kapur
About the essence of the list, Kapur shared, “Reading the submissions gave a kaleidoscopic vision of India, a glimpse of its layered complexity… With their individual styles, strong voices and compelling storytelling, each author shows us a different side of the country — privilege and poverty, intimacy and violence, the city and the countryside, the past and the future.” The winner will be announced on November 7, and will receive prize money of 25 lakhs, making it India’s richest literary award.
Competition on pointe
It was a matter of pride for ballet lovers in the city when Mumbai got its first ballet competition in 2018. Open to ballerinas from all over the country, The Great Indian Ballet Competition (GIBC) was held in association with the International Council of Dance, Paris. Since the possibility of a physical event now looks bleak, the competition has shifted online. It’s an impressive feat for ballet given the dance form’s tryst with theatres and concert halls.
“We didn’t want to put a stop to the event,” said Apeksha Bhattacharyya, founder of the Indian Academy of Russian Ballet, that’s helming GIBC. So, they took the online route and registrations begin on September 15. This year, international participants will be competing, too. “We’ve provided a manual on recording the video entries and have not made it compulsory to wear a tutu since it’s a task to get one made during these difficult times,” she added. The competition concludes on December 5 and all age groups are welcome. If this is right up your alley, email team.gibc@gmail.com.
Click to learn
Talking about making the most of life during a crisis, recent data by LinkedIn, the largest professional network in the world, has revealed that online courses are all the rage in India. The period from July 2019 to June 2020 witnessed a whopping three-fold (245 per cent) increase in the number of hours spent on online learning.
The lockdown effect is clearly evident as Indian members on the platform spent over 420k hours learning in July 2020, as compared to 97k in July last year. The network also shared the top 10 courses that are in demand here. It includes a mix of technical and soft skills. Topping the list is the programming language Python, followed by one related to time management during WFH, and strategic thinking. But what’s truly encouraging is that these popular courses have been made available for free until September 30. Self-improvement goals sorted, we think.
Hop on to a world textile trail
The inaugural Selvedge World Fair, organised by the leading textile publication, kicks off today. The three-day event, originally to be held in London, brings together 100 artisans from over 60 countries to offer live chats, workshops, presentations, podcasts and more. Participating in the fair is Mumbai gallery ARTISANS’ along with Leshemi Origins, a group of 50 women weavers from a remote, mountainous village in Nagaland called Leshemi, that the gallery has been working with since 2017.
“We will be conducting a workshop streamed from Kohima to teach people decorative seam stitches. Additionally, we will also have a page and store that will be set up offering 10 products from Nagaland,” gallerist Radhi Parekh told us. The women from Leshemi specialise in the weaving of nettle that Parekh calls the “fibre of the future”, adding, “Legend has it that nettle originated in Leshemi. The weavers forage for it in the forest once a year.”
SoBo calling
(From left) Sahil Timbadia, Anup Gandhi and Nevil Timbadia
Although the city’s F&B industry has been hit hard, some players are finding ways to move with the times. We hear that Sahil Timbadia, Anup Gandhi and Nevil Timbadia, the trio who run the quaint Jamjar Diner in Versova and Asian deli venture Bowl Baby Bowl, are headed south with a ghost kitchen at Breach Candy.
“We’re delighted to bring our food to a new location and employ some of our staff again after the hardships of the last six months,” Sahil shared about the kitchen that goes live on September 4. So, is the deli format here to stay? He seems to think so. “However, I don’t think it’s the future of the industry per se; it’s a different avatar of it for the present.” We hope so too.
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