Mumbai Diary: Tuesday Dossier

Shersquos got her ducks in a rowA little girl begins her morning on a playful note at Carter Road on MondayMumbai loves to wash it offWhile great emphasis is being laid on social distancing and wearing a mask in public people also seem to be getting serious about sanitisation at home A new survey by a leading multinational manufacturer of home appliances revealed that 87 per cent of the 500 respondents said that they wash their clothes more often now and Mumbaikars are most worried about their clothes being germcarriers followed by Chennai and Kolkata In addition 79 per cent of respondents vouched for the fact that hot water helps in sanitising clothes and 96 per cent would want a washing machine that has an advanced option for sanitisingDrumming up a tributeLike several musicians across generations percussionist Karsh Kale grew up idolising drummer Phil Collins the former frontman of English rock band Genesis As a hattip to Collins ahead of his 70th birthday Kale is set to drum up a tribute to him in his own style which is part of a virtual concert series next week ldquoGrowing up he was one of the first drummers that I started emulating when I was learning to play drums He and Genesis constantly put great music out The older I got the more respect Irsquove had for the man as an artiste songwriter producer and of course as one of the greatest drummers in the worldrdquo shared Kale adding it will be a special experience creating an original take on CollinsGreat beginnings and a memorable ZendFood is inextricably linked not only to the place it comes from but also the people who make it happen So yes a bun maska and a bun maska from Yazdani mean two different things which is why the news of the passing of Zend Meherwan Zend who helmed the iconic Irani bakery in Fort has created a void in the cityrsquos foodscape The 86yearold passed away on Sunday Even though he was ailing from Parkinsonrsquos disease he ensured he dropped by the bakery regularlyZend was a former boxer who hung up his gloves soon after he was married His son Zyros told this diarist ldquoHe used to take my mother to boxing matches to impress her But my mom used to feel sorry for his opponents getting a bashing from my father He gave up boxing then He then participated in the Mumbai marathon in the senior citizen category at least twice I think He simply wanted to run because the marathon route was past the bakeryrdquoZyros also shared that his father was always up for a challenge he went trekking and hiking and often cycled to the bakery from our Colaba residence ldquoAt times he even went beyond One reason for that was that he wanted to be on par with his delivery boys who often thought if sir can cycle everywhere even we can go cycling to deliver breadrdquo he addedThe image of him standing by the counter is crystal clear in the minds of loyal visitors as well as fellow Irani restaurateurs Parvez Patel of Ideal Corner recalls Zend as the strongest man hersquos ever known Having first met him in 1985 he remembers him as being ldquocourteous to a pointrdquo Gustad Dinshaw owner of Cafeacute Dela Paix regards Zendrsquos passing as a big loss to the Irani community and all those who patronise Irani restaurants ldquoHe was a treat to be around Yoursquod always find him talking about how the aroma of his bakery items would flood the streetrdquoDesign with prideWendell Rodricks and Jerome MarrelThe 12th edition of KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival is being flagged off with a global poster design contest The winning poster says festival director Sridhar Rangayan will set the visual theme for the festivalrsquos collaterals ldquoThe late designer Wendell Rodricks was an active supporter of our festival He would judge the contest and sponsor the cash award Following his passing last year his partner Jeacuterocircme Marrel decided to continue the contest in his memory He will be judging the winning entry this yearrdquo Rangayan said Participants are invited to submit their designs based on this yearrsquos theme mdash Unlock With Pride