15 June,2026 07:59 AM IST | Mumbai | Team mid-day
Pic/Shadab Khan
An Intermediate Egret finds a vantage point on the shallow waters of Bhaucha Dhakka in Mazgaon.
The sound of ghungroos echoed in an unlikely setting last weekend, thanks to city-based Kathak artiste Aditi Bhagwat. Nearly a hundred miles south of Seoul, Bhagwat performed at the Asia Solo Performance festival in Geochang county in South Korea. "Although I've performed in the country eight times now, it's my first time in the picturesque countryside of Geochang. It's a refreshing change of scenery," Bhagwat told us over a call from the sidelines.
While that should be enough to make any Mumbaikar grow green with envy, the performance itself was an exciting medley. "I presented a solo piece spotlighting ghungroos, the rhythmic basis of Kathak, using Southeast Asian tunes to add a local touch. I followed it with a performance centred on Nataraj, the lord of dance," she revealed. With dancers, musicians, and poets in the audience, Bhagwat's ghungroos had the entire audience on its feet by the end of the evening, we learnt.
Monsoon plans for naturalist Dr Nikhil Bhopale have arrived with a background score of croaks in Murud's Phansad Wildlife Sanctuary. Bhopale announced a new edition (June 19 to 21) of the Phansad herp count, a volunteer-led initiative to document herps (reptiles and amphibians) like the Oriental Garden Lizard and Bush Frog. Depending on whether these names gave you the heebie jeebies or left you wide-eyed in wonder, you might want to log on to @greenworkstrust to know more.
It is football season, but the Archdiocese of Bombay scored quite the golazo with their fun, timely, and creative post. Taking a leaf out of Pope Leo XIV's recent observation that sports should be a uniting force, it reimagined the Apostles as the key players in a football team. From St Peter as the goalkeeper to St James and St John taking on the roles in a creative double pivot as attacking midfielders, the quirky illustrations made us smile. Knowing that Pope Leo recently revealed his fondness for Real Madrid in his answer to a young football fan: "The Pope is for all teams. But Prevost [the pontiff's last name] is for Real Madrid", we wonder in what formation these Galácticos would have played?
The otherwise easy-going community of skateboarders in the city is busy as a bee this week. Word is that Go Skateboarding Day, an annual worldwide celebration on June 21 has reached the shores of Mumbai this year. An organising member revealed that multiple neighbourhoods will see skateboarders whirring past, including Carter Road, the streets near Mount Mary Basilica, Byculla, and BKC's City Park, an old favourite for skaters. Free for all in the spirit of the sport, we've heard the day-long celebration will also draw in street artists, musicians and rappers. Watch this space for updates.
