Mumbai Diary: Thursday Dossier

PIC/Kirti Surve Parade

My buggie, let's do a quickie

Jewel bugs of the Calliphara excellens species participate in a mating ritual at the Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Botanical Udyan and Zoo in Byculla

The city behind the gates

Naresh Fernandes (left) and Sidharth Bhatia in conversation at the Asiatic Society of Mumbai. PIC COURTESY/ASIATIC SOCIETY MUMBAI

Luxury towers rise at dizzying speed, while the people who once animated the city's labour, culture, and rhythm are pushed to its distant edges, often without transport, infrastructure, or stability. This practically summarises what Mumbai is undergoing, and informs the new book by The Wire editor Sidharth Bhatia, Mumbai: A Million Islands (HarperCollins). At the Mumbai launch of the book on Tuesday, Bhatia and Scroll.in editor Naresh Fernandes had an enthralling conversation on the city's shifting moral and material landscape - what is lost, who is allowed to belong, and how Mumbai's future is being shaped behind glass facades and gated perimeters. The Durbar Hall at the Asiatic Society of Mumbai was packed to the gills, so much so that the door could not be opened due to the standing audience members behind it. Combined with the heat from the camera team's halogen lamps, it felt altogether like a local train compartment - an apt metaphor for the city, come to think of it. Clearly, when citizens turn up to talk about Mumbai, we're going to need a bigger room.

It's paw-sible!

Students interact with a therapy dog. PIC COURTESY/GAYATRI AYYER

At least a few aspirants at IIT Bombay's placement interviews this year will have to explain the pet hair on their suits. After mid-day reported in its November 27 edition how the strays of the institute were helping students deal with stress, we've now heard of trained therapy dogs aiding job seekers during the high-stakes placement season. "Some come with performance anxiety, others come to cheer up after interviews. Interacting with a trained dog instantly puts them in a better mood," said Gayatri Ayyer, an Animal Assisted Therapy expert. The dogs will continue to work in shifts of two till December 7. And no, you can't walk into the premier institute just to meet the furry friends. We asked.

Out for a spin at CSMT

DJ Blond:ish performs for a crowd near CSMT. PIC COURESTY/SHEENA GOLANI

Talk about a wild afterparty, Canadian DJ Vivie-ann Bakos aka Blond:ish set up an impromptu mini concert outside Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus last weekend. If you missed the memo, don't stress it; the whole show was put together in under four hours. "At 6 pm, the artiste sent out a message saying she wanted to give Mumbai a surprise. By 6.30 pm, we were scouting for spots. Sorting out police permissions, sound, and set-up took us another hour and a half. By 8.45 pm, we were ready to put on a show," revealed Sheena Golani of the organising team. The DJ, who also runs the global Bye Bye Plastic movement, was in Mumbai to perform at a private event, we learnt. "At first, people were confused. But within minutes, that confusion turned into excitement. A crowd formed instantly, and people started filming, smiling, dancing, and soaking in the moment," Golani added. Whatever helps gets this city over its ‘coffee rave' obsession, we say.

Yuletide music

Enrico Rodrigues (left) in rehearsal. PIC COURESTY/Niloufer Rohira

The season of giving will begin with You Me & Christmas 2.0, a concert by Niloufer Rohira of Streaminlive and Darren Das Productions, that is a blend of pop, retro, carols and the Blues. Hosted by Brian Tellis, the showcase tomorrow at St Andrews Auditorium will have vocalists Caralisa Monteiro, Raul D'Mello, Kanchan Daniel, Chelsea Das, Jessica D'Mello, Gerwin Machado, Danielle D'Silva, Jayden D'Mello and Darren Das onstage. The team will be joined by instrumentalists George Joseph, Wilburn D'Costa, Sylvester Chaves, Enrico Rodrigues, and Russell Fernandes. "Music is one of life's greatest gifts, and the show is our way of paying homage to it," shared Rohira.

We're all ears

SoundOnMySkin, flapboard, 2024-25

Mumbai-based artist Shilpa Gupta is giving dissent a new voice far from home in Kochi this month. Listening Air, opening in Mattancherry on December 13, will present unique immersive installations including SoundOnMySkin, a motion flapboard that displays phrases that ask questions to truth, power, and fear.

Shilpa Gupta. PIC COURESTY/Shilpa Gupta

"I hope to share the conversations and experiences they hold with wider audiences from the art world and beyond," shared Gupta.