28 June,2026 08:47 AM IST | Mumbai | Team SMD
Pic/Ashish Raje
A man is framed between a statue of entwined arms as he fishes at Bandra Bandstand
Sourav Ganguly and Greg Chappell. File Pic/AFP
If Sourav Ganguly didn't feature among the 14 former international captains to urge Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in February to ensure cricket legend Imran Khan is treated well in jail, it's because Ganguly didn't respond to Greg Chappell's request to join the cause. Ganguly was asked about this by journalist Gautam Bhattacharya in a recent podcast to mark the 30th anniversary of Ganguly's Test debut hundred at Lord's in 1996. "I don't answer him⦠I don't answer people who are not honest," Ganguly said with a wry smile. We are not getting into this integrity angle which Ganguly has come up with, but Chappell has probably earned admirable points by contacting Ganguly for a cause despite him not being in good books with the former India captain. Getting someone else to touch base with Ganguly could have been an option for Chappell, but he chose no shortcuts.
Wanted Yesterday will perform at Malhar and the Sea in July
Earlier this month, the luxury residential music and arts festival, Malhar and the Sea, due to take place in Goa in July, organised their curtain-raiser event at The Quorum, One World Centre, Lower Parel. Showcasing jazz pop band Wanted Yesterday, the performance was lit up with Beatles music, bringing a retro rock and pop vibe to the lounge. There was hardly anyone dancing apart from us though. And we weren't the only ones who noticed. After their performance, the main vocalist, Subhash Kamath, tells this diarist, "People in rich, intimate lounges are sometimes so dead. I am so glad you were jumping because I can then mirror your energy. A performer is nothing without that energy coming off their audience." The band members echoed the same sentiment and then invited us to watch them perform live at The Bluebop Café where they play regularly. Personally, the performance was amazing and we were surprised more people
did not get up and start jiving to them within the first 15 minutes.
Poor signage led to confusion at the Navi Mumbai airport. PIC/ARPIKA BHOSALE
We live next to the Navi Mumbai airport, but when our mother  - who's 70+ years old - was flying in to the city, we still ended up getting lost while trying to figure out how to pick her up. We decided to do a recce a day earlier so we'd know where to pick her up. As we drove in, we were confused about which pickup point is for private vehicles versus cabs. Be warned that if you miss the pickup point and exit the premises, there seems to be no place where you can take a quick U-turn and go back for another attempt. As a result, we ended up driving out to Ulwe and back again twice. Thankfully, we discovered this during our recce, so the actual pickup on the next day went smoothly, except the '300 parking charges for half an hour. We hope the authorities make signage more clear at the airport. Otherwise, visitors are in for an unplanned city darshan!
Sukriti Grover
In 1968, Andy Warhol said, "In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes." Well, the future is here. And though we still get married like we did in 1968, a big part of the wedding is the content you create and how viral it goes. There's an entire job around it now - Sukriti Grover is a wedding content creator and founder of Wedding Relay, a wedding content studio. "The question I get asked most at weddings is, âWill this go viral?'" Grover told this diarist, "But it depends, for some people a thousand views is virality, but for others, it's a million." Grover, who has been doing this 2024, caught this diarist's fascination, who just could not believe this job exists. "We collaborate with the couple on what kind of Reels they want to make. We take their âSaved' folder and bring it to life," Grover said. She brings an entire crew who film, edit, and produce Reels for the happy couple. Well, no better day than your wedding to feel like a celebrity, and thanks to Grover, that dream might come true.
Sanah Rehman
There's no better way to learn about art than to experience it or read about it. And while the many galleries across the city are a great place to start your art journey, deeper understanding can only come by reading about art, artists, and what they hoped to convey through their creations. Sure, studying art can be intimidating because of gatekeeping and the sheer cost of paywalls and subscriptions. But those who'd like to learn more about it can finally do so for free, and in the comfort of their homes, thanks to Open Call India. The art community hub, founded by Sanah Rehman, has shared a digital repository of art writing for free, with 600+ files on national and international artists and their work. "Whether you're an artist, curator, researcher, student or someone who's curious about the arts, this free digital art library will give you information by some of the most influential voices in art and cultural discourse all collated in one Google drive folder," says Rehman, who also thanked community members who contributed art literature to the archive. You can access the library through @opencallindia on Instagram.
