26 October,2026 09:57 AM IST | Mumbai | Team mid-day
Pic/Ashish Raje
A senior citizen rests on his chair in the corridors of the historic landmark, Keshavji Naik Chawl in Girgaon
A young member rehearses a song. Pics Courtesy/Piano 88 Academy
Don't get startled if you spot a few Oompa Loompas ambling around Tardeo. It might probably be the crew of Piano 88 Academy in rehearsal for the upcoming performance of Charlie and The Chocolate Factory on November 1 at the Aditya Birla Theatre. "With 30 children between the age of seven and 13 years, the cast is performing the complete musical," shared co-founder Shivani Patel. The crew is already preparing with a grand piano, an ukulele, and Dr Seuss' lines. Now, that's one way to the Golden Ticket, we'd say.
Venkataraghavan Srinivasan (in red) as Braccio entertains a few young readers. Pic Courtesy/ Appaswamy Springs Apt, Chennai
The word is out: on October 24, children stepped into the theatrical world of Braccio (HarperCollins) with Chennai-based author Venkataraghavan Srinivasan, recipient of the National Literature Festival (NLF) Fellowship for Children's Book Creators, at Kahani Tree in Prabhadevi. Srinivasan had a blast, and revealed to this diarist, "The event included a comical reading of the book with costumes, props, sound effects and interactive games such as Braccio Ball with the attendees."
Sandeep Patil (black shirt) with the Balmohan Vidyamandir kids and teachers at the Mumbai cricket museum. Pics/Special Arrangement
Devendra Prabhudesai, the curator of Mumbai Cricket Association's Sharad Pawar Cricket Museum, was casually mentioning to Sandeep Patil that students from the former India cricketer's alma mater Balmohan Vidyamandir (Dadar) were visiting the Wankhede Stadium museum. Patil (1973 batch) immediately said that he would like to be there to meet the kids, squeezing in time before he boarded a Friday afternoon flight. Patil, nicknamed âSandy', had visited the museum two weeks ago. The 59 kids from Class IX, accompanied by five teachers, were thrilled to meet Patil and soak in the rich history of Mumbai cricket on display at the museum. The museum team was overwhelmed, and so were the kids!
The Le Cordon Bleu delegation with Pooja Dhingra (far right)
There are a few chefs who go back to school, and then there are others for whom the school comes visiting. Chef Pooja Dhingra had one such moment early last week when the famed Parisian culinary school of Le Cordon Bleu (LCB) came calling at her Fort cafe.
Dhingra during her time in Paris. Pics Courtesy/@poojadhingra
"I have gone back to school many times, and even done a demo there. Some representatives from LCB Paris and the India team came over to our cafe, Pardon Our French. It was for a programme they run - for 40 students who are aspiring chefs. The idea was to speak to the young chefs, and answer any questions they had," Dhingra told this diarist.
