Mumbai Diary: Thursday Dossier

The catrsquos out of the frameA woman displays how not to wear a mask as she walks past a mural of a tiger exiting a frame on a wall in Worli on WednesdayEmbrace the calmBandrarsquos Pali Hillrsquos recent new art installation has been creating quite a buzz Titled Let Silence Speak the 35foot sculpture has been painstakingly crafted using 20000 brass nuts ldquoWhen we were approached to design a piece we realised that the neighbourhood was leafy and quite scenic We wanted to therefore encourage passersby to become one with their surroundings and use this opportunity to listen to their subconscious mindWe decided to use nuts to mimic the many different thoughts that race through our minds at any given time Our remit was to use a relatively simple shape that would not be distracting to motorists while also conveying a unique messagerdquo Abhishek Kumar Singh inset who curated the piece shared The imagery of a girl clad in a school uniform is a calltoaction for educating female children The piece was sculpted by Praful Singh Check it outTurn on tune in pay upWhile everyone was affected by the pandemic last year people in the informal sector were especially badly hit as was evidenced during the migrantsrsquo crisis The Indian wing of the United Nations Development Programme has now stepped in to lend them a helping hand They are organising a digital concert on March 13 titled Open Up India with the profits being directed to affected informalsector workersNikhil Chinappa is the host for the show which features Lucky Ali below Raghav Meattle Zephyrtone and Vasu Raina Meattle inset told this diarist ldquoI came on board when I heard that Lucky Ali is part of the lineup because I have been a big fan of his for a long time But I hope that this is one of the last few digital gigs I perform in since India is truly opening up againrdquoLittle stepsA prepandemic music gig at The Steps near St Stephenrsquos Church in BandraEver since The Steps opened up in Bandra it offered people in the neighbourhood access to a public space with a shared sense of community where regular events are held But there was a lull during the pandemic though now events have been started there again The latest is an upcoming art exhibition organised by children for children ldquoWe will display art only by people less than 12 years of age The exhibits will be up on the walls from 4 pm to 6 pm on March 13rdquo informed organiser Anca Florescu Abraham adding that 10yearold Anvi Kalothia is a cocurator for the show Interested kids can drop in two pieces of artwork at Mcubed Library in Bandra by March 10Connecting through artRepresentation picParag a Delhibased initiative that promotes the habit of reading among children constituted Big Little Book Award BLBA in 2015 With the event having turned five in December 2020 the team is organising a celebratory art exhibition online The show will feature the works of five illustrators who have won BLBA and unpublished entries are also being invited from artists in two age groups mdash six to 14 years and 18 to 30 years ldquoThe exhibition is about connecting through art displaying the visual craft of telling stories and bringing together different stakeholdersrdquo shared Swaha Sahoo head Parag Email one illustration to hellobiglittlebookawardin by March 15 if you feel that you have what it takesTales about TataPic courtesyratantata on InstagramTata Group founder Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata was born on March 3 1839 and Ratan Tata the current chairman emeritus reached Jamshedpur the city named after the founder yesterday to mark the occasion He also shared a photo on Instagram of the time when he and JRD Tata whom he called his mentor were at the same place in front of Jamsetjirsquos statue The caption said that he remembers JRD fondly on this day We guess that the moral of the story is to find a mentor and keep him close like Ratan Tata did