Mumbai Diary: Thursday Dossier

An organic start
Actor-poet Arunoday Singh, who is currently busy shuttling between Rishikesh and Mumbai for the shoot of an upcoming web show, has something new to offer. The hunky actor and his Canadian vegan chef wife, Leeanna, are all set to open an organic café in Bandra in November.

The duo, who own Puttu Cafe in Goa's Vagator area, believe in eating right and healthy, something that reflects on their menu. Singh has also made a conscious decision to source locally produced food and organic harvest, and is reducing his daily intake of meat. The duo aim to recreate something similar to their Goan property. They might name it something else, though.

Happiness is in your hands
Day in and day out, we go through our daily rigour to meet the demands of living in a mega metropolis. And while we try and help out others whenever we can, there is sometimes no one for us to go to with our problems. Everyone needs some cheer in their lives, though, and often all it takes for that is to hold someone else's hand.

Now, a whole lot of people can do that together, as a mall in the eastern suburbs is organising what it hopes will be the city's longest ever human chain. The exercise is aimed at reducing stress levels by spreading joy. So, try to make a difference and make a dash for the mall at 4 pm.

Things will heat up in Mumbai
Whenever we hear any salsa rhythm it transports us immediately to a scenic location in South America. But Mumbaikars don't have to travel all the way to that continent to hear the distinctive beats of this genre. For, one of Puerto Rico's most well-known salsa exponents, Michael Stuart will make a pit-stop in the city during his tour of Asia. Stuart has an infectious vibe, and has been nominated multiple times for the Latin Grammy Awards.

And the fact that he has never had any formal training in music goes to show that the man is a natural talent. He will be accompanied by producer, multi-instrumentalist and composer Tony Succar, apart from a group of seven Puerto Rican backing musicians. Together, they will recreate the magic of stars like Michael Jackson and Franco De Vita next month. Don't miss out.

A clean sweep at Versova
Even a two-year-old will be able to tell you that plastic is one of the biggest culprits that cause damage to our seas. And despite the state-wide ban on it, tons and tons of the material wash up on Mumbai's beaches with alarming regularity.

That's why the theme for this World Environment Day on June 5 - for which the state government is joining hands with the UN - is "Beat plastic pollution". Citizens are being invited to head to Versova Jetty Beach to pick up bags, bottles and other sundry plastic products from there in what is expected to be a massive clean-up drive. So, wake up early this Sunday, head there at 6 am, and do your bit to help rid Mumbai of this menace.

Cross-border intelligence
'Tis the season of spy stories, though the next in line after Raazi isn't a film, but a book released yesterday. The Spy Chronicles: RAW, ISI and the Illusion of Peace (HarperCollins) has been co-authored by former RAW chief AS Dulat and his ISI counterpart, Asad Durrani.

We hear that when the project was first mooted, Durrani had laughed it off. But the two men did get together to write the book and their conversations were facilitated by senior journalist and mid-day columnist Aditya Sinha.

The launch in Delhi featured Dr Manmohan Singh, Dr Farooq Abdulla, Yashwant Sinha, Hamid Ansari and others.

Drumming up a fan base

A man selling drums tries to entice actor Ishaan Khatter into buying one, at Bandra on Wednesday. Pic/Sameer Markande

Catch up on all the latest Crime, National, International and Hatke news here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates