28 July,2025 06:56 AM IST | Mumbai | Team mid-day
PIC/ATUL KAMBLE
A watch repairer is engrossed in work at his shop in Fort.
Moments from Vrikshabandhan 2024. PICS COURTESY/YOUTH FOR AAREY
The importance of protecting our forests and other natural resources tends to get sidelined by our endless pursuit for materialistic desires that puts these woodlands at a greater risk of extinction. The relentless efforts of Youth For Aarey, a community of urban dwellers and tribals striving to protect Aarey Forest through initiatives such as Vrikshabandhan ensure a thriving ecosystem. "We tie rakhis made from natural materials like flowers, seeds, and recycled paper to preserve our natural reserves," Aparna Bangia, founding member who started the first Vrikshabandhan in the forest, told this diarist. Check out @youthforaarey for more details.
Staffers outside the Powai venue
When Mirchi and Mime, a fine dining restaurant in Mumbai specialising in modern Indian cuisine, and served by over 27 speech and hearing impaired staff, recently announced the closure of its Powai and Thane outlets on Instagram, loyal customers flocked to share their disappointment. First opened in 2015, the restaurants, offering a creative twist on traditional dishes along with its staff consisting of servers, bartenders and cashiers winning the hearts of its customers with their sheer determination and hard work had people flooding the chain for 10 years.
Raja Shekhar Reddy
Appreciating the efforts of his diligent staff, Raja Shekhar Reddy, co-owner of the restaurant shared, "You don't have to spend extra money or efforts to make this world a better place. Working with deaf and mute is not difficult, it's just different," he added, requesting the corporate world to encourage people with disabilities by creating more opportunities for them, to make them feel loved just like anyone else.
Sarah Todd and chef Yogi. PICS COURTESY/SARAH TODD ON INSTAGRAM
Less than two months after celebrity chef-restaurateur Sarah Todd revealed her love affair with piping hot adrak chai and pakoras on a monsoon day to this mid-day diarist during a stopover in the city, we have a new contender on the cards. At an upcoming five-week-long Indian pop-up in New South Wales, Todd will bring a nostalgic jugalbandi of Indian flavours to the fore with a familiar star on the menu - Peanut Butter and Parle G Lassi - inspired by the humble popular biscuit.
Hosted at Derrel's, an Anglo-Indian restaurant in Camperdown, New South Wales, the pop-up will be joined by chef Yogi and feature other desi classics like Ghost Chilli Chaat and Bhatti da Murgha with a hop glaze. For those who prefer a flavourful buzz, we're told a Sydney-based brewery's imaginative curry leaf-inspired Extra Pale Ale (XPA) beer should do the trick. Cheers to the chef's desi spirit.
A previous acting workshop by Dev Fauzdar. PIC COURTESY/NATYAKIRAN MANCH
With 16 years' experience of running the Natyakiran Manch theatre group in Versova, director Dev Fauzdar (inset) knows a thing or two about shaping an actor. Fauzdar will spill these secrets at a three-month-long acting workshop in Aram Nagar beginning today.
"Four elements make a good actor - body language, emotion, voice modulation, and characterisation, the art of making a character your own. We will borrow heavily from Natyashastra to get budding actors ready for the stage, as well as camera," he told this diarist. While the actors learn the ropes, the city can sit tight for a new production by the students as the culmination of their training in October. Those keen to learn more can log on to @ natyakiranmanch_mumbai on Instagram.
