The city - sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce
Work comes first
Despite the tense atmosphere in the city, it was business as usual for actor Tisca Chopra who was spotted at a Goregaon studio during an ad shoot yesterday. Pic/Satej Shinde
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Racketlon champ
Readers who follow this page religiously will recall that we featured Mumbai's Ashutosh Pednekar of Indian Navy who participated in the first Thailand Open Racketlon Championship. The good news is Pednekar has bagged a double gold for India, winning the men's singles Open Elite along with the men's singles over-40 title. The event was held under the auspices of the Federation International de Racketlon, the world ruling body. For those wondering what racketlon is, it is a combination of individual racket sports: table tennis, badminton, squash and tennis. In a game of up to 21 points in all of these sports, the winner needs to collect the most points in all four disciplines. On a day when the city simmers with tension, this news comes as a blaze of sunshine.
Thrice the effort
While over a dozen Indians, including Milind Soman have completed Ironman — a one-day sporting event involving a 3.86 km swim, 180.25 km of bicycle ride and a 42.20 km run — it's Abhay Kelkar's ongoing attempt at accomplishing the feat that's got us interested. Unlike most other participants, who came from a comfortable background, he is a milk distributor from Satara. A short film, The Ironman from the Mountains, on the 37-year-old's journey was uploaded recently by The Mann Deshi Champions Programme, which identifies athletes from grassroots and supports them. Kelkar, who completed his first half Ironman in October 2017, says he took up the task as he wants to motivate his daughter to become a sportsperson.
The poster
Mumbai's poster art among world's best
Far from the stardust and commercial machinery of mainstream Bollywood, independent cinema in India is slowly but surely gaining ground, and with it, the affiliate creative processes are coming to the fore, too.
Michaela Talwar
Screen Anarchy, a Canadian website featuring news and reviews of international, independent and cult films, did a round-up of the best film posters of 2017. Featuring on the list is the poster of Devashish Makhija's critically acclaimed indie movie, Ajji, about a woman's fight to bring her granddaughter's rapist to book. Created by Michaela Talwar, a German-Indian artist and co-founder of Mumbai-based Harkat Studios, the poster is a reflection of the noir style in which Ajji has been made, with each element hinting at what to expect in the film.
Devashish Makhija
"We are overwhelmed to learn this," says Talwar, "As a woman, it was very cathartic to watch the film." The conceptual poster, adds co-founder Karan Talwar, is the first of 100 that the studio will design for a venture that has taken on the project of producing 100 indie films.
A comedy of horrors
A web series on the making of a B grade horror film where the cast and crew get haunted by real B grade ghosts. We are already sold on the plot before we watch Shaitaan Haveli, a new scary comedy web series starring stand-up artiste Varun Thakur, which goes live today. Created by Thakur, the series follows the mishaps of filmmaker Hariman, who has to make a new B grade horror film to pay off his debts to a gangster.
"I've been a big fan of the '80s horror movies, and now it feels surreal to see an idea I had when I was 15 come to life. Shaitaan Haveli is both a homage to and a parody of those films. It's my most ambitious project and I can't wait for fans to enjoy India's first retro comedy web series," says Thakur.
Will you chicken out before this chicken?
Last week, in our Rewind 2017 series, chef Ranveer Brar had predicted black chicken to make its way to city menus. And soon enough, we have a sighting. Starting January 8, you can eat the black fowl and root vegetable stew at Indigo Deli. Made with a special breed of chicken found in the jungles of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, the species is now bred using free range and organic methods. "As chefs, I feel it is our responsibility to promote native products. For me, 2018 is all about celebrating India's indigenous resources. The breed is known to have higher nutritional value, is rich in protein, and low in fat and cholesterol. It tastes delicious!" says chef Kedar Bobade, corporate chef, deGusitbus Hospitality, who will be cooking up this unique dish.
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