Mumbai Diary: Saturday Dossier

Finding a new home

For Amin Sheikh, the feeling of not having a home is one that he had grappled with for the larger part of his life. It all changed when a trip to Barcelona, courtesy his boss, art director Eustace Fernandez (credited for co-curating the Amul girl), opened his vision.

The new cafe-bookstore will open doors to patrons tomorrow

The experiences he gathered slowly found shape, first in the form of a book and then in his F&B establishment, The Bombay to Barcelona Library Cafe. If you know him, you'll know that this café became his home, while also providing shelter to underprivileged kids he employed there. In March this year, Sheikh's café had to shut shop because the landlord of the property had unpaid loans. Now, seven months later, the space is back on its feet, at a new address, not too far from where the bistro stood previously.

Sheikh told this diarist, "I will not say that these last few months have been easy, but I am happy to be here now. The new café is double in size, and while the menu is much the same, we're looking at adding new dishes in the coming months. This wouldn't have been possible without our well-wishers."

Verses for kids

After writing the delightful Postcards from Bombay for young readers in May, award-winning author Jerry Pinto is out with his first book of poetry for children titled Tickle Me, Don't Tickle Me: And Other Poems for Magnificent, Turbo-Loaded, Triple-Charged Children.

Jerry Pinto

Talking about the genesis of the book, which came at random, the writer, lyrically, told this diarist, "There are other times when they come at random. I read something about Sir Hans Sloane — whose collection formed the nucleus of the British Museum — and his snake, and suddenly there's a wiggling and a jiggling and a line uncoils. Or there's an eight-year-old at a family party being asked, 'What do you want to be when you grow up?' and I think, 'What business is it of yours, Big-Nose Uncle?' and I wonder if the child is thinking the same and then another poem uncoils. Or coconut oil, the oppressiveness thereof, the gleaminess thereof, the drippiness thereof. But dark thoughts too. When there's a midnight knock and Daddy is taken away, what does the child of the house think?"

Diwali ka Dia

We all know that Dia Mirza nurtures a strong love for Mother Earth and she's often seen supporting eco-friendly initiatives. Bollywood's certified eco-warrior shared an image of a bunch of saplings; it wasn't surprising, but heartwarming all the same.

These saplings are part of an initiative by White Print, India's first English lifestyle magazine in Braille, which urges Mumbaikars to breathe new life into their festivities.

"This #Diwali we are planting #SeedsOf Change! The best time to grow trees was 20 years ago the second best time is NOW (sic)," Mirza wrote.

Old comrades, new comrades

There's culture, and then there are cults. The magnetism around Masterchef Australia, ostensibly one of the world's most-loved shows, and its judges — George Calombaris, Matt Preston and Gary Mehigan — became the stuff of cults over the years.

So, when the three judges quit the show in July in the aftermath of allegations of cash misappropriation against Calombaris, it was like the end of an era. Recently, in a bittersweet moment, Calombaris shared a poster of a new show that will be co-judged by his former comrades, along with French chef and restaurateur Manu Feildel. "Another opportunity to put joy and happiness into people's lives," Calombaris wrote.

Living the American dream

It can hardly get bigger than this for an indie band, in the sense that they have no big sponsors backing them with finance and marketing. Pune-based dream-pop act Easy Wanderlings have been selected to play at South by Southwest (SXSW), one of the biggest performance arts festivals in the world, held in Austin, Texas.

The musicians are on top of the moon, but also scratching their heads about how to actually get to the US, since it's a self-funded gig. "I'm still not heading to America until I actually step foot there. It's an eight-member band and everyone will be going. So, we just have to find the right partnerships and figure out how to go about this," front man Sanyanth Baroth told this diarist.

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