Mumbai Diary: Wednesday Dossier

Keeping up with fame
Taimur Ali Khan's nanny tries matching steps with the celebrity kid as he darts out to play in Khar yesterday. Pic/Shadab Khan

Ten-year-old musings
Sometimes, the kitchen stirs up nostalgia not just on the plate but also with chapters from one's culinary journey. So, when chef Thomas Zacharias of The Bombay Canteen recently posted that it was 10 years since he had graduated from the Culinary Institute of America, New York, we decided to reach out to the chef to prod him for more of the rewind stuff.

"My stint, from 2007 to 2009, has played a very important role in shaping me into the chef I am today. Touted to be one of the world's best cooking schools, this is where I honed many of the early skills and understanding of flavours. Upon graduating and working in NYC for a while, I returned to India charged and excited to make an impact in the culinary landscape here [and kickstart this #IndianFoodMovement]," he reminisced. The chef added that a large part of that was also about mentoring young students and aspiring chefs as a way of giving back to the food and drink industry that his life revolves around. "Yet there isn't a day that goes by when I'm not grateful to my parents for giving me the support to go study there," he signed off.

Andheri's new clubbing address
The glitzy world of the Indian Premiere League has never been divorced from its glamorous counterpart - the hospitality sector. Which is why, it is not unusual to see hoteliers become partners or stakeholders in IPL, and vice versa, as is the case with former Kochi Tuskers CEO Priyank Singh. Singh's latest venture is Club PHD, a new club-cum-restaurant in Andheri that will be opening its doors to patrons today.

"We took the property in Andheri as apart from being an entertainment hub, it is one of the most popular F&B locations in the city," he told this diarist, adding that he felt that Mumbai lacked happening party places that also serve good food. "We have a section for clubbing where people can come and enjoy music with tapas and intelligently designed cocktails. We also have a lounge section where in we allow kids, so couples can come with family and later enjoy clubbing," he said.

Truckerwallah art
If you've driven on India's highways, you are likely to have found yourself stuck behind a truck. Well, over the years, we've learnt to utilise the time admiring and posting pictures of the art on the trucks, an art form that's dying today. Whistling Woods International (WWI) and All India Permit Road Trip brought down a truck filled with hand-drawn works. And they literally took it on a roadtrip, turning it into a mobile art gallery.

After passing through Nagpur, Ahmednagar and Pune, the truck was finally parked at WWI, and was flocked by school kids and art enthusiasts. "This is an initiative to save the dying truck art and recognise truck artists," says Farid Bawa, founder and organiser. If that didn't make you nostalgic enough, they even had a collection of truck horn tunes playing at the venue!

Oh, Jaipur
Once upon a time there were literature festivals. And then, they became 'litfests'. The shortening of the term was a metaphor for the metamorphosis of these annual affairs, especially with the big daddy that kicks off in the Pink City next week.

Gone are the days when it was an intimate affair where authors and poets would engage in gupshup over chai (free, and served in kulhads) with presswallahs within the quaint corners of Diggi Palace. Now, no longer an open invite affair to the press, each journalist attending the festival will have to apply for a media accreditation that includes benefits such as access to different venue and sessions, lunch at the diggi palace, and of course a tote bag. Although, the application for the same is free, it doesn't account for travel and stay, which is quite a bummer.

Sounds of youth
If you want to listen to a promising young musician who made his presence felt last year, head to the NCPA on Monday, where Kabir Dabholkar, the young musician of the year 2018, selected annually by an international jury for The Olga & Jules Craen Foundation (OJCF), will perform. The Bengaluru-based classical guitarist says, "Over the years, I have discovered that the instrument offers a vast palette of sonic possibilities, giving immense potential to captivate the listener." He confesses that he was happy and surprised as he didn't feel the classical guitar would get picked over other instruments that are more established as Western classical concert instruments.

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