Ian Chappell sees green at Bombay Gym Wednesday was an off-day well spent for Ian Chappell. The former Australia cricket captain, also a columnist with this newspaper, is in the city as a studio analyst for the World T20.
<img title="Former Australia cricket captain and mid-day columnist, Ian Chappell plays a game of snooker, watched by opponent Alex Fernandes at the Bombay Gymkhana on Wednesday evening. Pic/Clayton Murzello" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2016/mar/Ian-Chappell.jpg" alt="Former Australia cricket captain and mid-day columnist, Ian Chappell plays a game of snooker, watched by opponent Alex Fernandes at the Bombay Gymkhana on Wednesday evening. Pic/Clayton Murzello" /> Former Australia cricket captain and mid-day columnist, Ian Chappell plays a game of snooker, watched by opponent Alex Fernandes at the Bombay Gymkhana on Wednesday evening. Pic/Clayton Murzello
On a non-Australia match day, Chappell, armed with his cue, headed to Bombay Gymkhana to play snooker with his pal Alex Fernandes. It was not the first time he had visited the venue of the inaugural cricket Test on Indian soil (1933-34), but Chappell seemed fascinated by the balcony view of the ground and the Azad Maidan as he sipped his lime juice.
A little earlier, he was introduced to Mehli Irani, the former Mumbai wicketkeeper, who played the Kanga League for half a century. A couple of years ago, Chappell had played snooker with multiple world champion Pankaj Advani in Bangalore.
A year later, he was thrilled to read about Advani&rsquo;s world championship win in Adelaide, a city in which Chappell spent the first four decades of his life. Fernandes had to tell Chappell about how he hit six sixes in an over at the Gymkhana in the early 1990s just like their friend Ravi Shastri did in 1985 during a Ranji Trophy game.
He was quickly told that his hits would have gone beyond the Gymkhana premises had he been using a modern-day bat. Cricket talk done, it was time for his snooker game with Alex. This diarist couldn&rsquo;t miss the photo opportunity. From the little of what we saw, Chappell played like a pro and Alex didn&rsquo;t appear rusty too.
Handshakes and helloes
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2016/mar/Ila-Arun-Rajit-Kapur.jpg" alt="" /> Pic/Satej Shinde
Ila Arun, Rajit Kapur and Sangita Jindal at the launch of Writers Bloc 4 held earlier this week at Bandra Kurla Complex.
Kitchen confidential Mumbai, make way for a new culinary academy. After launching the first ever bulthaup Culinary Academy in Israel in 2013, the German luxury kitchen manufacturer is set to bring the international property at the Top Products India experiential store in Khar.
<img title="The experiential showroom-cum-culinary academy in Khar" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2016/mar/Bulthaup-Culinary-academy.jpg" alt="The experiential showroom-cum-culinary academy in Khar" /> The experiential showroom-cum-culinary academy in Khar
The academy will roll out six exclusive masterclasses with popular chefs till end of the year. It will start with chef Sanjana Patel&rsquo;s engagement with women from Indian Merchants&rsquo; Chamber (IMC)-Ladies&rsquo; Wing on March 29.
<img title="Niva Von Weisl" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2016/mar/Niva-Von-Weisl.jpg" alt="Niva Von Weisl" /> Niva Von Weisl
Niva Von Weisl, managing director, shares, &ldquo;Here, food enthusiasts will engage with chefs, share trade secrets, the tradition of perfection and celebrating life. At the end of every session, all participants will receive presents, a secret cookbook and access to the next workshop.&rdquo; The team also plans to host home chefs and dinner pop-ups in the chic space. Hear, hear.
Berlin-style gig If Berlin seems like a far cry to party, a shindig at a Khar pub tomorrow might come close. Mumbai-born Gaurav Narula aka DJ Clap Trap, who&rsquo;s been spinning tunes in the German capital, will debut here.
<img title="DJ Clap Trap aka Gaurav Narula" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2016/mar/Gaurav-Narula.jpg" alt="DJ Clap Trap aka Gaurav Narula" /> DJ Clap Trap aka Gaurav Narula
He will play Berlin-style Deep House, Disco, Funk and Techno. &ldquo;Expect straight 4/4 House with deeper sounds, groovier Bass lines and Funky tunes. While dark industrial Techno raves ruled the clubs in &rsquo;80s Berlin, today&rsquo;s sound is more cosmopolitan, influenced from Detroit to Mumbai, Montreal, Moscow and everything in between,&rdquo; he says.
When asked if he mixes Bollywood tracks, he replies, &ldquo;Once in a while, I drop classic Bollywood film music samples. I get a great response.&rdquo; We like.
Advice on display With their chief caught in a storm, one would imagine that UB Group&rsquo;s management would hibernate. But we saw no such restraint from Vasant Bhandari.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2016/mar/Vasant-Bhandari.jpg" alt="" /> Pic/Rane Ashish
A tacky banner hanging under the Bandra traffic chowky flyover today saw a cutout of Bhandari with an unidentified female companion (we are not even sure if they were clicked together or if it&rsquo;s Photoshop karigari) under a boldly printed message: Don&rsquo;t drink and drive. Responsible advice from a liquor brand, although on an illegal hoarding.
We just wish the production values of the ad on display reflected the same panache UB&rsquo;s former chairman exhibited on these shores.
Seated for the Last Supper A passerby points out to the life-sized tableau of the 12 apostles in a re-enactment of the Last Supper at Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Bandra.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2016/mar/Mount-Carmel.jpg" alt="" /> Pic/Sameer Markande
Yesterday, Christians across the world observed Maundy Thursday.

The city &mdash; sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce

Mumbai Diary: Friday Dossier

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