The city - sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce.
Pic/Ashish Rane
Sun and games
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A group of kids play a game of cricket against the setting sun at Carter Road. Wonder if they are dreaming big just like Sachin Tendulkar, who now lives nearby, did as a child. Pic/Rane Ashish
Banding together and winning a competition
Last week, we had written in this newspaper about how Band-it, one of the largest music competitions for schoolchildren in India, had gone online this year, opening up its scope to kids from across the country. The event, which had begun in 2017 as a platform for bands to showcase their talent, also introduced two new solo categories this year for vocals and instrumentals. The winners have now just been announced, and they are Vansh Ankush Khanna from Kolkata's South City International School (solo instrumental) and Reina Kapur from Mumbai's Dhirubhai Ambani International School (solo vocals). The Ones, also from Mumbai, won the award for the best band and they said, "Being the first virtual band winner was a heartwarming experience during the lockdown. Every member has put in a lot of effort, with multiple practices over video calls." Well done, all of them.
Himmat above all else
Sometimes, it's best to face adversity with your chin up, and maintain a positive attitude despite a tough situation. That's what the folks at NGO Population Foundation of India believe. They have started a two-month long campaign called Himmat Hai Toh Jeet Hai. The aim is to put out a series of videos, social media posts and stories that reinforce a sense of unity. Theatre and film director Feroz Abbas Khan has been roped in as the creative head of the project, and he told this diarist, "The pandemic is here to stay for a while, but life must get back on track. At a time when there is little cheer around, it was important to give people a reason to smile. Himmat Hai Toh Jeet Hai is an effort to reinforce a sense togetherness in people, so that they can emerge stronger out of this situation."
Beyond the 600 acres
When the state announced its decision to reserve 600 acres of land in Aarey as a protected forest area, it was a breather for all stakeholders. Recently, in a video made by Adivasi Hakka Sanvardhan Samiti, Mumbai, residents of various padas of Aarey were seen celebrating the victory. While they thanked the CM, the tribal community members also expressed concerns about what happens to the rest of the 3,000 acres of the unique urban jungle. Member and activist Prakash Bhoir, who's seen in the video, told this diarist, "We are grateful for this announcement, but we also want the entire area to be declared a forest so that the lives of adivasis and the flora and fauna are secure."
Second coming
This diarist was gutted when he missed out on Jacob Collier's maiden gig in Mumbai last year. Collier is a path-breaking British multi-instrumentalist who invited the audience to sing along at the concert at NCPA. But the good news is that he will definitely return to the city for another show, as and when the circumstances permit it. Naveen Desh-pande, founder of events firm Mixtape that is bringing Collier down to the country again, confirmed, "We are looking at the second half of 2021, but that depends on a lot of factors." Let's hope that things pan out as planned and if they do, this diarist is not missing out again.
Change of Habitat
The Habitat was a shining beacon of hope in a city that suffered from a paucity of quality music venues even before the pandemic struck. The space in Khar in fact would host not just bands, but also comedians, film screenings and all things cultural in general. But the current situation has put a spanner in the works, and owner Balraj Ghai told this diarist that they are temporarily shutting the place down for cultural events, keeping it open only for production crews to rent the area out for shoots. "We fear that there will be no other source of income at least till February," Ghai said, adding that the place will return to its original avatar once the situation normalises. We can't wait for that to happen.
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