Mumbai Diary: Friday Dossier

Pic/Satej Shinde

Counter Strike

A cat patrols the railway ticket counter at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus in Fort

Finding Anand in acting

In a fun new turn, author and screenwriter Anand Neelakantan has not just written a screenplay, but is also bringing it alive in a TV series by acting in it. Known for mythological fiction titles such as Asura: Tale of the Vanquished, Ajaya: Rise of Kali, Vanara: The Legend of Baali, Sugreeva and Tara, he recently appeared in front of the camera. "It's fascinating. I am usually behind the camera, but being in front of it involves taking instructions from the director. It feels different," Neelakantan shared. The writer will be seen playing Ettappa, the antagonist who helped the British to capture the valiant Veerapandiya Katta Bomman in the series titled Swaraj. "Swaraj is currently airing on Doordarshan. It is an ode to 500 years of Indian freedom. I have written the screenplay and the role presented itself by chance," he shared, adding that writing now seems an easier experience than acting.

Top of the game at 22

On November 20, restaurateur AD Singh's first brave venture into the industry, Olive Bar and Kitchen in Bandra, turns 22. With celebrations on the cards, Singh told this diarist that looking back only makes him happy. "To have completed 22 years, and with many of our restaurants doing better than before, is very rewarding," he shared. But there is more to come in the form of new ventures in Kolkata, Gurugram, Ludhiana and Dubai in the coming year. "My team is planning and forging a boom time," revealed the restaurateur, shrugging off any rumours of work tiring him. "Though I work very hard, it is a pleasure. All these restaurants are my babies, and looking after them is in my DNA," he said. There have been many challenging events in recent years, including the pandemic, but he prefers to look at the bright side. "Surprisingly, diners have come out of the pandemic with an adventurous palate, looking for better and interesting experiences. They are pushing us to create new experiences," Singh
shared.

The write cutlets

Begum Pasand Paan illustrated by Shawn Dsouza for enthucutlet

Recently, a copy of Masala Lab landed on our desk, bookmarked with clues to odd questions on cooking rice and about eggs hatching into chicken. The plot thickened with a quiz that led us to enthucutlet - a new bimonthly online magazine that brings together unusual food stories from India. It's conceptualised by Hunger Inc Hospitality, which runs The Bombay Canteen, O Pedro and Bombay Sweet Shop. "We've come across amazing, diverse stories about food in India over time. We wanted to create a platform where these lesser-told tales find space. There's a wall between what we do at the restaurants and at this magazine. This is not a marketing platform for us," said founder and CEO Sameer Seth.

Go green, the dabbawala way

Dabbawalas on their way. Pic Courtesy/@mumbai_dabbawala

There's a lot to learn from our dear dabbawalas. Not just their never-say-never attitude to deliver our dabbas in time, come rain or shine, but also their organisational skills. Recently, in a study by Waatavaran, an NGO dedicated to hyper-local solutions for climate change, the sustainable approaches and methods of transportation undertaken for dabba deliveries have been put in the spotlight.

Founder and CEO of the NGO, Bhagwan Kesbhat (inset), shared, "In Mumbai, where a major contributor of air pollution is vehicular emissions, our dabbawalas are the champions of sustainable modes of transportation which include cycling, walking, and the trains." Based on this insight, the study, which interacted with more than 200 dabbawalas, looks into the challenges they face and overcome, to highlight better transportation solutions. The study also tries to understand how the city can enable supportive infrastructure for dabbawalas while staying climate resilient. The report was presented yesterday at the Indian Merchants Chambers in Churchgate and will soon be published on their website, waatavaran.in.

He is third time lucky

Ricky Kej at a performance

The Grammys have thrown up quite a few surprises this year from Abba and Mary J Blige's return, to Encanto being cast aside. But Ricky Kej remains a constant. The Indian producer-composer earned his third nomination alongside Stewart Copeland, Herbert Waltl and Eric Schilling for Best Immersive Audio Album for his album, Divine Tides. "It is a huge honour, and quite humbling to receive this third nomination," Kej told this diarist. A two-time Grammy Award-winner, the musician shared that his nomination is proof that you do not need to create western music to catch the attention of the world. "We need to dig deep into our roots and musical heritage, and create music that defines us. It is my Indian classical fusion against mainstream western pop acts like Christina Aguilera and Chainsmokers, which is very cool," he said.