Foodie's Big Tent

Its being touted as the mother of all food events nine chefs and nine courses will come together this Wednesday when Food With Benefits a new age NGO started by three enterprising Mumbaikars presents a plated dinner cooked by some of the citys leading chefs in support of St Judes Child Care Centre mdash a home away from home for children who come to Mumbai to undergo medical treatmentAlex Sanchez Rahul Akerkar and Irfan PabaneyDonor cards for Rs 6000 have been selling briskly were informed Whats more the courses will recreate a travel experience by each chef ldquoEach course though brought to you from a different part of the world will transport you to a place that has meaning to chef behind itrdquo says a spokespersonAnd in a wonderful display of camaraderie the participating chefs who often find themselves competing in their day jobs for Mumbais palate and wallet are Alex Sanchez of The Table Conrad DSouza previously of Pali Village Cafeacute Gresham Fernandes of The St Jude Project Irfan Pabaney of The Sassy Spoon and Rahul Akerkar formerly of Indigo amp Indigo Deli amongst others Proving that theres no such thing as too many chefs of courseMumbai Boys At LargeBoth are quintessential Mumbai boys whose relocation to the Capital for work compulsions must be interfering with their passion for the cityAD Singh and Milind DeoraSo no surprises that former Union Minister for IT Milind Deoras joy at finding a reminder of home sweet home resulted in him trilling happily in a recent tweet ldquoWhen in Delhi lunch at SbowInd Khan Market is a mustrdquo referring to AD Singhs SodaBottleOpenerWala mdash a paean to Mumbais Irani ParsisBut this cozy Mumbai club patronage did not pass unnoticed ldquoYou come to Delhi to eat Mumbai foodrdquo went one of the catty responses IndeedMore than a thousand wordsldquoYesterday was Michael Jacksons death anniversary and so it seems like the right time to share this photograph from my archiverdquo says photojournalist Chirodeep Chaudhuri about this striking portrait of the iconic Wacko Jacko when hed come to Mumbai in 1996 for a concertMichael Jackson on arrival at Mumbai airport in 1996 Pic courtesyChirodeep ChaudharildquoIt was shot at the Sahar International Airport I had been camping outside along with a largish contingent of international media since the early morning hours Some of the foreign media guys had come armed with little ladders to hoist themselves above the heads of the local photographersChirodeep ChaudhurildquoAll hell broke loose when MJ emerged waving to the crowds The pushing and shoving began and the bamboo barricade which had forced us to maintain discipline till then broke My left hand was stuck in the crush of photographersFor a second I caught a glimpse of the man I clicked greedily and furiouslyhellip not bothering about focusing Just praying for one sharp frame at one time in desperation I remember raising my camera above the heads and clicking a few frames hoping for luckrdquo He says with a journalists precision building up to that epiphany of daily journalism a perfect picture for the newspapers front pageldquoLater that afternoon I sat nervously in the Sunday Observer office darkroom as my roll was being developed We quickly dried the negative against the heater The door was shut The red light came on The negative went into the enlarger The enlarger light came on And Voila I had got my picture A nearperfect framerdquo And for those unfamiliar with the routines of a daily newspaper thats how an iconic frontpage picture gets madeRock and Roll ReunionSchool reunions always bring on much laughter and nostalgic cheer but none as heartfelt as when two Old Girls from Walsingham one of Mumbais elite schools for upper class young women celebrated it there own way in Goa recentlyNeelam Johar and Shireen ModyBoth women Neelam Johar and Shireen Mody schoolgirls in the Sixties had also been at the vanguard of Mumbais rock and roll and hippy movement Born in to well heel Mumbai clans Neelams father had been actorwriter IS Johar theyd blazed a trail for themselves most likely to the consternation of school and other authorities which had taken them straight to GoaToday Johar resides on 2 acres of lush jungle land in Assagaon amidst ancient trees and lush gardens practicing Acupuncture and pottery and studying Buddhism while Modi a renowned artist resides in Arpora in a beautiful home set on an acre with her daughter Saffron also an artist ldquoThey bought the teeshirts on line from the school siterdquo says Neelams son Jehan Johar Janux a music curator for festivals and a DJ NiceWhats CookingThings are certainly hotting up in the kitchen of this new coastal restaurant fronted by the high profile expat chef whose move from SoBo to Bandra was not without its share of controversyThe man in question with a penchant for publicity has been overheard talking down his new landlords and that too to diners ldquoHes definitely talentedrdquo says a foodie source ldquobut high strung and a bit of a diva It doesnt help that his parting ways with the previous establishment didnt go wellrdquo