Mumbai Diary: Monday Dossier

Arjun Rampal with partner Gabrielle Demetriades

He's mine!

New father Arjun Rampal takes his newborn son home with partner Gabrielle Demetriades, from a Khar hospital on Saturday. Pic/Bipin Kokate

German glimpses

German national Michaela Talwar has dabbled across the creative space in Mumbai, apart from helming Harkat Studio. And now on a trip to her homeland, Talwar will also post informational snippets from the country on the German Consulate Mumbai's Instagram handle.

"I will mainly be sharing posts about Berlin, but also talk about other unseen places. And there's a big difference between visiting Germany in the summer and the winters which I plan on documenting in the next four weeks," she told this diarist.

Talwar's first post is about open-air late-night cinemas in Berlin, and we can't wait to get more tips as hopeful tourists.

Art, the public way

When artist Dia Mehhta Bhupal made her solo debut at Pundole's in January, she showcased the life-size sets made from re-purposed paper and glue. After she cuts paper from magazines, she turns it into rolled strips only to make constructions of physical spaces. To encourage more of her artwork, GallerySKE appealed for public participation.

Dia Mehhta Bhupal's Waiting Area has been constructed with paper

"She is running short on material, so send us the magazines you no longer need, and [those that you] have lying around so we can send them to her studio. As they are going to be reused, please make sure that they are not wet or soiled," they wrote.

To help, all you need to do is approach the gallery on IG. So, get hunting for magazines, maybe?

Movie magic at Watson's

Amidst all the noise centred around its demolition, a historic date around India's cinematic timeline of which Esplanade Mansion played a key role, slipped everyone's mind. Barely six months since the world's first ever movie screening took place in Paris, Bombay had its brush with the movies on July 7, 1896. And this moment took shape in one of the most discussed landmarks in the city today - Esplanade Mansion. A Frenchman, Marius Sestier, brought down the much-discussed Cinematographe to project moving images on a screen. It made news in the city's Bombay Gazzette before the screening, and the venue was chosen to be the swish Watson's Hotel (today's Esplanade Mansion) at Kala Ghoda.

Watson's Hotel (today's Esplanade) in 1880. Pic courtesy/Flickr

The screening included four films - Entry Of Cinematographe, Arrival Of A Train, The Sea Bath, A Demolition, Leaving The Factory, and Ladies And Soldiers On Wheels, and cost Re 1 per head. The four films, according to city archives, went on to be screened in other locations, including Grant Road's now shuttered Novelty Cinema. The rest as they say, is history. Tragic and shameful then, that despite the city being the hub of cinematic movement with all the moolah and the stardust, we can resign to staring at the blue barricades that surround its present, decrepit avatar, and hope that this important memory doesn't get the sledgehammer treatment.

Nicole wants to work with Poorna

While we bid adieu to season 2 of Big Little Lies today, the cast and crew of the show, starring Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, Meryl Streep and Zoe Kravitz, have been posting pictures on social media about how much they are going to miss each other. There is one more person who is sharing this nostalgia - Mumbai girl Poorna Jagannathan - who joined the cast this season as Celeste's (Nicole Kidman) lawyer.

And it seems like the two have definitely bonded for Kidman took to social media to say that she can't wait to work with the Delhi Belly actor again. We are sure the chemistry will be crackling since the two complemented each other on screen. And while the fate of season 3 is yet to be decided, Jagannathan has landed a role in Mindy Kaling's next.

The biz guru is coming to the bay

Mumbaikars don't really need a sermon of networking, but would anyone say no, if it was being given by a person who is touted as the Father of Modern Networking?

It turns out, Ivan Misner, the founder of a business networking organisation called BNI, will be in town as part of a meet-up between entrepreneurs. It's safe to say that there'll be a lot to learn from in the commercial capital of the country.

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