<h2>Pitch perfect</h2>
<p>Groundsmen sprinkle water on cricket pitches to prepare them for matches at Azad Maidan in Churchgate</p>
<h2>Salute the super-heroine</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/mar/Cleanup-Warrior_e.jpg" alt="The Cleanup, Warrior. Illustration Courtesy/Anirudh Kadav" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>The Cleanup, Warrior. Illustration Courtesy/Anirudh Kadav</em></strong></p>
<p>In time for International Women&rsquo;s Day this Saturday, illustrator Anirudh Kadav (inset) transformed an ordinary scene into something special. &ldquo;Inspired by a real-life moment of a woman cleaning staffer in a mall, I transformed her into a superhero who rides a giant fish, harnessing the power of water to combat an uncontrollable fire ravaging the city. The artwork, The Cleanup, Warrior draws from environmental crises like the devastating wildfires in Los Angeles, emphasising how human actions contribute to destruction, but also hold the power to heal. The core message is that true superpowers don&rsquo;t come from fiction; they come from conscious choices and responsible actions in our everyday lives,&rdquo; he revealed.</p>
<h2>Chaat&rsquo;s the way!</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/mar/Chaat-a_e.jpg" alt="pic courtesy/Sara K" width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>Pic courtesy/Sara K</em></strong></p>
<p>Think restaurant pop-ups, and you&rsquo;d picture a chef de cuisine whipping up a fancy spread. Not at Chembur-based Mexican caf&eacute; Gracias Granny, where local chaat seller Mohan Gupta has been roped in to curate a month-long menu featuring imaginative creations like the sev-acado puri (above). &ldquo;It felt like the perfect way to give back to the community. We are working to ensure that Mohan ji is compensated fairly,&rdquo; Rashmit Arora (inset), co-founder, told us.</p>
<h2>Let&rsquo;s bag the quirk</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/mar/Girl-pores_e.jpg" alt="A reader sits beside a water cooler which served as her bag for the session. pic courtesy/Mumbai bookies" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>A reader sits beside a water cooler which served as her bag for the session. Pic courtesy/Mumbai bookies</em></strong></p>
<p>Have you ever carried books in a water cooler or a mini fridge? Neither have we, quite unlike the readers at city-based reading club Mumbai Bookies, who turned up with some quirky and interesting bags last Sunday for their weekly session. &ldquo;We wanted to encourage people to get creative while continuing with the reading activities of the club. The idea was simple &mdash; bring books in anything but a bag,&rdquo; Gargi Sandu (inset), co-founder, shared with this diarist. From milk cans and toasters, to makeshift bags from T-shirts and teddy bears, the session had Mumbaikars at their creative best. &ldquo;It was really interesting how over 100 people turned up with such innovative ideas. From kids to adults, we were really happy to see people being such a sport, especially because some of them had taken the local train from places like Borivli to attend the session. We plan to do something fun every week to spice up the sessions,&rdquo; Sandu added.</p>
<h2>Here come the rider-researchers</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/mar/Riiders_e.jpg" alt="Riders at the third edition of the exploration. pic courtesy/Royal Enfield Social Mission" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>Riders at the third edition of the exploration. pic courtesy/Royal Enfield Social Mission</em></strong></p>
<p>Bikers have a new calling. Royal Enfield in collaboration with UNESCO is back with the third edition of their motorcycling expedition, The Great Himalayan Exploration. It offers a platform to rider-researchers to explore and document the Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) of the Indian Himalayan region, the event, which started on March 3, will continue for a month and look into the cultural landscape of Sikkim this year. &ldquo;After documenting 12 Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) practices as defined by UNESCO, in the Western Himalayas, the Eastern leg will focus on documenting and safeguarding 10 ICH practices here. The approach is rooted in research, with rider-researchers journeying into remote regions to document local traditions such as Lepcha healing practices by bongthings (traditional healers), Lepcha weaving and Sikkimese mask making. By preserving and sharing these stories, we want to contribute to the living heritage of the Himalayas,'Bidisha Dey, executive director, Eicher Group Foundation, shared with us.'</p>
<h2>Canvases of young artistic talent</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/mar/Canvas-a_e.jpg" alt="(From left to right) Visualising My Dream by Veenita Sadguru Chendvankar; Music in life by Kailash Shivali Shankarpelli. pics courtesy/Omkar Kolvankar" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>(From left to right) Visualising My Dream by Veenita Sadguru Chendvankar; Music in life by Kailash Shivali Shankarpelli. Pics courtesy/Omkar Kolvankar</em></strong></p>
<p>With the objective to nurture the young artists of the country, the Prafulla Dahanukar Art Foundation is hosting Kalanand Grants Awards Ceremony along with an exhibition in the city till March 8 at the Kamalnayan Bajaj Art Gallery in Nariman Point. The Foundation, established by Dilip Dahanukar in honour of his wife and artist, Prafulla Dhanukar, will showcase a collection of 21 artworks by emerging artists from West Bengal, Odisha, Maharashtra and other states.&ldquo;</p>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/mar/Gauri-Dahanukar_e.jpg" alt="" width="1280" height="720" /></p>
<p>The programme is only for young artists who are pursuing a career in fine arts in categories like painting, drawing, sculpture among others,&rdquo; Gauri Dahanukar Mehta (below), one of the trustees of the foundation and daughter of late artist Prafulla Dahanukar, told this diarist. From artworks that feature abstract paintings to stencil sketches and applique work on fabrics, the foundation works on a very strict policy to choose the artists. &ldquo;We had a blind jury who evaluated the submissions. The process was carried with utmost authenticity and impartiality,&rdquo; Mehta added.</p><p>
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Mumbai Diary: Wednesday Dossier

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