Mumbai Diary: Monday Dossier

Who rules the roostA group of men play cards inside a chicken shop in MankhurdA call to save natureSome of the trees that are endangered due to the roadwidening operation in KolshetA roadwidening operation that is underway at Kolshet in Thane is threatening to displace around 431 indigenous trees including the rare Urvashi plant NGO Muse Foundation has been attempting to draw attention to this cause by raising awareness amongst citizens and authorities ldquoWersquore not against development We want the authorities to look at an alternative plan Indigenous trees when transplanted will not be able to survive The Urvashi plant is rare and is the only one in Mumbai and Thane While authorities said they wonrsquot touch it debris is slowly killing itrdquo rued founder Nishant BangeraSounds foreignCissy Street is a French band that performed in the first editionBack in the day music company Gatecrash would regularly bring artistes down from abroad But that was back in the day Right now thatrsquos not possible given how the world changed about a year and a half ago Yet the show must go on Thatrsquos why Gatecrash has launched Spotlight a new series that makes foreign and Indian artistes available to us via virtual gigs The first edition in collaboration with the French Embassy in India Institut franccedilais and Skillbox featured Gujarati band Duneheart and French funkjazz act Cissy Street Tanish Thakker of Gatecrash informed this diarist that the sets will last for about half an hour adding that the firm hopes to rope in acts from Germany and Switzerland for upcoming sessions ldquoWe used to get foreign acts down all the time and then thought lsquoWhy not do an online edition since live gigs are not possiblerdquo he said about the idea behind SpotlightDanish in focusLast month the news of photojournalist Danish Siddiqui being killed in Afghanistan while covering clashes rattled the country From the telling images of Indiarsquos COVID19 crisis to the tragic migration of Rohingyas from Myanmar Siddiqui leaves behind an inspiring oeuvre that held up a mirror to society As a tribute to the Pulitzer Prizewinning photojournalist the Mumbai Press Club is hosting a weeklong photo exhibition titled Remembering Danish Siddiqui at its Azad Maidan venue Drop by to honour the memory of a photographer and his lens that portrayed the truthFeni gets its own museumWhile growing up Goabased businessman Nandan Kudchadkar would wonder why Goans were always depicted as alcoholics in mainstream cinema ldquoFeni is a prized possession and Goans drink rationally Feni is a legacy left behind by the Portuguese which evolved from a seed that travelled all the way from Brazil I wanted to showcase this legacy for today tomorrow and years to comerdquo shared Kudchadkar who has opened All About Alcohol in Candolim a oneofakind museum dedicated to feni and the history of alcohol The curatorfounder told this diarist that hersquos been collecting items showcased at the museum since he was in his teens ldquoI have been from Napa Valley to Scotland and never come across any alcohol museum At the museum thousands of items from fenimaking utensils and tasting glasses to bottles are displayed If all these items could speak you donrsquot know how much history would be toldrdquo he revealed adding that the museum promotes the idea of responsible drinking For those who cannot visit Goa hersquos also planning a digital walkthrough of the museum Cheers to thatBetween the linesWhen the world shuttered last year Mita Kapur below right CEO of literary consultancy Siyahi started curating a virtual series titled The Universe Writes As part of it readers get to interact with some of the greatest authors from across the world ldquoWe didnrsquot know when wersquoll get to meet a lot of international authors again at festivals I wanted to bring their voice thoughts and writings to the Indian audience So I approached the Prabha Khaitan Foundation which came on boardrdquo shared Kapur Todayrsquos session will feature Nancy Springer top right the author of the Enola Holmes series in conversation with writer Eric Lindstrom ldquoSpringerrsquos Enola Holmes series is a huge hit and last year the first feature film burst onto the scene Since therersquos this whole movement of booktoscreen adaptation unfolding right now especially in India I felt itrsquoll be the correct time to speak to her and also shed light on her writing careerrdquo Kapur informed us If yoursquore keen to listen to them head to theuniversewrites on Instagram