The city - sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce
Pic/Ashish Raje
Aaja meri gaadi mein baith jaa
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A 1928 Ford owner takes his prized possession for a spin at Masjid Bunder.
Champagne and Ginny in 1985
Virginia Wade during the 1977 edition of Wimbledon. Pic/Getty Images
As we try and understand more of tennis champion Naomi Osaka’s mental plight and her aversion to press conferences, we stumbled upon a delightful piece written by David McMahon for Sportsworld magazine in 1986. McMahon recalled a press conference at Wimbledon 1985 after British tennis player Virginia Wade, the 1977 ladies champion, lost her third-round match at Centre Court to young American Pam Shriver. Wade, then 39, finished saying her bit to the media and as she was about to leave, the British journalists asked her to stay on. In came some champagne with glasses in honour of Wade, who had played her last match at Wimbledon. Wade or Our Ginny as her fans liked to call her, accepted the champagne and also served it to some pressmen. We wish you well, Naomi and if you are reading this, you’ll realise that those probing writers have a heart too.
For the greater good
Karan Singh Prince is out to do good. Founder of the NGO Power of Youth, the philanthropist is helping frontline workers in the pandemic. By offering relief in whatever way possible, his aim is to make a difference on the ground in these trying times. Speaking to this diarist, he says, “Frontline workers like doctors and cops have been working day in and out to ensure that we remain safe. We always wanted to do something to give back to them. Hence, we provided immunity and energy boosters to the Mumbai Police, which are required to keep them physically fit. The police were overwhelmed by our gesture and were thankful to us.”
A journal of a cancer survivor
Pic/Rane Ashish
Back in 2018, when Mumbai-based entrepreneur Shormistha Mukherjee was diagnosed with breast cancer, she did the unusual. Mukhejee, who goes by the handle @agentgreenglass on Instagram, decided to journal her battle with the disease, from diagnosis to chemo to post-surgery recovery, online. Three years on, Mukherjee, now cancer-free, is set to release her book, Cancer, You Picked The Wrong Girl (HarperCollins India), that she describes as a “brutally honest telling” of that journey. “I feel like I packed in a couple of life times in the 10 months that I was diagnosed and treated for breast cancer. From having to learn cancer jargon that I became so familiar with, to breaking the news to everyone, to freaking out and finally accepting that I needed chemotherapy, every day was a new day. The thing that kept me sane was my brain just flipped a self-preservation switch, and I kept feeling like I was watching myself from the outside, and being able to look at the funny side to so many things. That made it easy. I made it through, and I hope that if anyone ever needs the courage, this book gives them the hope.”
A novel food incubator
The Covid-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on the nation’s hospitality industry, affecting both large chains and small businesses. Since the pandemic, nearly 40 per cent of restaurants shuttering due to the outbreak last year. With the goal of assisting small businesses, the city’s award-winning restaurateurs Dhaval Udeshi and Pawan Shahri of Lower Parel’s London Taxi have developed a cutting-edge Incubator Programme for home delivery, inviting aspiring food entrepreneurs to realise their life-long dream of starting their own business. This programme will enable five entrepreneurs to launch their ideated brands from its 650 sq ft kitchen space, while utilising the restaurant’s existing resources, experienced head chefs, R&D and vendor management teams. They will also receive 100 per cent funding. “We’ve been getting a lot of calls lately from entrepreneurs who always wanted to start their own ventures, but had hiccups like shortage of funds, infrastructure, marketing and brand-building issues,” say Shahri and Udeshi. “The idea behind the programme is to mentor young entrepreneurs, bring in good concepts and create jobs.”
A safe period
Who knew a year ago, that the police would arrive at home to pick up pads for prison inmates. Happy 1st birthday @padssquad. I hope the women and girls in prison are more comfortable with these,” wrote Chhitra Subramaniam, co-founder of Pad Squad, on Instagram. The film producer says it was heartening to have the police spend their duty hours collecting sanitary napkins for prison inmates. “I had given pads earlier to one of the prisons in Mumbai, which has many women inmates, and they contacted me for another batch. As soon as the lockdown is over, I will go there to fulfill further requests,” she said.
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