The city - sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce
Pic/Atul Kamble
Pod cast for all
People find their own sweet spot among the newly-installed tetrapods on Marine Drive.
Virar’s vagrant winged guests
(From left) Birders at Arnala Beach; Common Gull; Pics Courtes/Priyal Soni
Last weekend, birders flocked to Arnala in Virar to catch a glimpse of birds of the common gull species that had landed on its shores. Native to Eurasia, the birds are a rare sighting in Western India. “The species migrates southwards during winters, but their usual destinations are the Middle East or Africa. The birds spotted in Arnala are most likely vagrants that strayed from their path and flew to us. The first recorded sighting in Maharashtra came just two months ago at the same spot, and they’re already back to meet us,” shared Borivali-based naturalist Rahul Pereira. Priyal Soni, another young naturalist who joined the birding expedition last weekend added, “The birds’ visit to the city’s backyard took us by surprise. We beelined to the shores at once for a once-in-a-lifetime shot.”
A city of imaginary joy
Children jot down their ideas at a previous workshop in the city
Kids always offer simple solutions. It’s why architect and urban planner Bhawna Jaimini will host a workshop in March that will enable educators to look at the city as a space experienced, lived through a young child’s eyes. “The workshop idea emerged from the book I wrote, Happiness City, and it entailed exploring the idea that cities do not often include children as part of their plans. To simplify it, everyone who lives in the city impacts its form and shape. Children are particularly patronised, but can offer creative and insightful solutions that we can learn from,” Jaimini shared with us.
Bhawna Jaimini
Tiger, tiger burning bright
(Clockwise) Sudarshan Shaw; 9Tigers; an artwork from the artist’s new project
From William Blake to Sarojini Naidu, wildlife has always inspired great minds. However, Sudarshan Shaw is seeking to connect the history of Indian art, and its indigenous culture with its diverse and rich wildlife. His latest work, 9Tigers, is a sketch-note that looks at India’s national animal as depicted across different regional art forms. From the wind-like curves of Thangka art to the rudimentary stick form in Maharashtra’s own Warli art, the artist recreated the animal in these unique forms.
The series is part of Shaw’s ongoing art initiative that highlights wildlife through Indian art forms. “It started with my earlier work, Divinity, where I used the turtle as a motif to show the relationship between artists and nature.” The new series, he revealed, focuses on the more dramatic animal — the tiger. “I wanted to showcase how native people from across India have their own perspective of the tiger. It has influenced their culture and imagination, as well as their lives,” the artist shared. The portrayal of the animal varies across each art form. From the Thangka tiger that is free-flowing like the wind, to the Gond portrayal of the animal as camouflaged among the woods, and down to Maharashtra’s rudimentary stick figures for the Warli art form. Shaw explained, “Warli art is a prehistoric tradition, and they painted the animal as they saw it — without any frills.” The Odisha-based artist has spent the last six months travelling across the country seeking inspiration. “I have already researched 37 art forms, and plan to release these prints in parts of four editions in the coming months.”
Now, that’s one wild, wild idea!
MM Keeravani; (right) Wild Wild Women in performance. File pics
Mumbai’s all women hip-hop collective Wild Wild Women (WWW) has found a fan in Oscar and Golden Globe-winning musician MM Keeravani, who got the world grooving to the energetic track Naatu Naatu in 2023. As part of Keeravan’s upcoming Naa Tour, the ladies are set to join him on stage on March 22 in Hyderabad. “One of our previous collaborators who worked with Keeravani in RRR (2023) had introduced him to our music. When we met him in Hyderabad recently, we were surprised by how much he knew about hip-hop and our music. He even suggested a few tweaks to take it up a notch, with vocal modifications,” shared Ashwini Hiremath, rapper and founding member, WWW. The group was in for another surprise soon after, when actor Chiranjeevi, who happened to be at the venue confessed he’s an ardent fan of their music too. “It’s amazing how the music we make in Mumbai resonates with people all across the country, and the world,” Hiremath told us.
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