The city - sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce
Ruminating over the rumaal
Anuj Sharma likes to keep it simple, unfinished, unstitched. He works out of his Ahmedabad studio to create Button Masala, a label that's inspired by the simple joinery concept that allows multiple uses for the same product. His weapons of construction - buttons and rubber bands - that he uses to design mostly free-flowing, one-size-fits-all, clothing items.
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After mastering the Button Masala concept, and conducting workshops on the philosophy behind dressmaking at fashion institutes, engineering colleges and even the Adidas headquarters in Germany, Sharma has a new ace up his sleeve. As part of The Wow Project, he has created garments - off-shoulder blouses, halters, ponchos and dresses - using handkerchiefs. Written by Amit Suri, the book that's slated to release in April is a social experiment in creative space with 26 artists. "The experiment proves that the total is always greater than the sum of its parts. Each art and story speaks of a human virtue that makes life a celebration," says Sharma.
Anuj Sharma
There's no stitching or machines involved, only a pack of cotton handkerchiefs picked up from a local market, and some rubber bands and buttons. "It's as much about the Button Masala philosophy as about quietly questioning the role of a designer, and the unnecessary frills associated with the job," he says.
Art for all
One of the most awaited events in the city for the art community, the Mumbai Gallery Weekend (MGW), is going to amp up its fun, we hear. The weekend verges on a week this year, by opening on January 31 and going on till February 4. MGW follows a format in which one gallery helms the event, and, this year, it's the turn for Tarq, one the city's youngest galleries.
Hena Kapadia
Its founder Hena Kapadia says that she has been planning the event for about five months now, and has been working closely with fellow gallerists, Tara Lal, Mortimer Chatterjee and Shireen Gandhy. The impetus for MGW, says Kapadia, is to be as inclusive as possible this year. That explains the participation of 31 venues, with plenty of late night talks, walkthroughs and events.
Concrete experiments
This exhibition might just ensure that you never look at cement the same way again. The creative minds at Dalmia Bharat Group has come up with a one-of-kind initiative titled Craft Beton, that specialises in creating designer lifestyle products out of green cement. These products have been created by both Indian and international designers.
Speaking of the initiative, Sandeep Kumar, executive director, who has masterminded this project, says, "Over the past four months, we have had our designers working on a collection of about 50 products. I think the purpose of the exhibition is to allow people to see up close what can be achieved with a material as mundane as cement."
The designers that have worked on the project include Somesh Singh and Iti Tyagi, both NIFT graduates, who have displayed their works abroad as well. International names include Mexican artists Miroslaw Baca, Alan Saga and Cynthia Mijares Rodriguez. While cement is not conven-tionally seen as "designer material", Kumar adds, "Cement is a very versatile material that can be re-imagined in many ways."
Raising a toast to Kapil's humility
At the Cricket Club of India on Thursday, two of Kapil Dev's pace partners - Karsan Ghavri and Raju Kulkarni - paid rich tributes to the great all-rounder during a Legends Club meeting which celebrated Kapil's 59th birthday.Raju dwelt on his former captain's good nature and stressed that all his ambitions were restricted to the cricket field. Off the pitch, he was a cool dude.
Raju Kulkarni
Here's an example. Raju was playing league cricket in England during the summer of 1986. He was summoned to the India nets after the Leeds Test and when he finished bowling to the tourists, he started packing to return to Huddersfield. Kapil insisted he drops him home which was not only many miles away but also out of the way since Kapil was heading to London after India won the series with only the Edgbaston Test to play.
So. Raju sits in a car along with Kapil and his wife Romi. Just before they reach Raju's place, Romi asks the young fast bowler how is he managing with food. She then asks him if he has some bread at home. They get off the car, enter the house and in a matter of minutes, Kapil Dev is making toast for Romi and Raju. In between pop ups, Kulkarni's flat mate arrives and is stunned when he reaches the kitchen. "Is that Kapil Dev in our kitchen?" he asks Raju. A confirmation is forthcoming and Raju's flat mate immediately heads to the nearby pub to tell all his mates that the India captain is in his kitchen. He carried on with that proud moment for quite a while that summer, says Kulkarni.
A poet's 10-year struggle
WITHIN five years of its formation, The (Great) Indian Poetry Collective has managed to make great strides in nurturing the world of verse. The newest member of this powerful, poetry brigade is Subhashini Kaligotla, whose collection titled Bird of the Indian Subcontinent releases in Hyderabad this week. "The book has been 10 years in the making," said Kaligotla of the collection.
Pic/Annalisa Butticci
We hear that the book, which centres around themes of loss of desire and longing, will also be launched in the US in April with a reading at Yale University, hosted by the Depar-tment of Art History, where Kaligotla will begin teaching in Fall 2018 as assistant professor of South Asian art.
Rhythm is a dancer
Singer Rekha Bhardwaj loses herself in the music at an event in Bandra Kurla Complex on Friday. Pic/Pradeep Dhivar
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