Mumbai Diary: Thursday Dossier

Raindrops keep falling on their heads: Two young women celebrate the showers with an impromptu jig at Five Gardens in Matunga. Pic/Atul Kamble

Green day out

The Cathedral & John Connon School believes eco-consciousness must start early. Children from the pre-primary section (between three and four years) participated in a sapling/tree plantation drive at a garden plot in Chembur. The cheery children planted a considerable number of saplings guided by teachers and parents. The school explained that the Chembur exercise was an extension of what students practise in school, with the institution organising sapling plantation drives within the school at least twice a year. Rekha Talpade, headmistress of the section, told this diarist, "Even these children have the potential to believe in the magic of life." Just as these saplings grow strong with deep roots, so will they, we believe.

Prints for a cause

With the rapid takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban in August, concerns about women's rights, freedom of speech and press freedom in the country are at an all-time high. To support women journalists in the region, the Network of Women in Media is conducting a fundraiser titled Journalists for Afghanistan. Supporters can purchase prints of some of the bravest and most telling imagery captured by 24 visual journalists, which offer rare glimpses of daily life in Afghanistan over the last two decades. The funds will be dedicated to finding safe houses, evacuations and rebuilding small media start-ups. To do your bit, visit @journalists.for.afghanistan on Instagram.

Their best foot forward

Deep Das; Elvis Mascarenhas, the two Mumbai dancers who are selected among the top 16 finalists

Two promising Mumbai dancers have been shortlisted among the final 16 dancers for the first ever Red Bull Dance Your Style, a global street dance event series. The dancers participated in digital qualifiers before being selected from a pool of over 1,500 aspirants from around the country by a panel of international judges comprising hip-hop dancer Diablo, popper Kite, and dancer and choreographer Antoinette Gomis. At the finals, dancers from various street dance styles will compete in one-on-one battles to unpredictable mainstream tracks, with the crowd deciding the winners. Celebrating his nomination to the finals, city-based hip-hop dancer Deep Das told us, "This is a dream stage for dancers like me because, in India, few people understand experimental and movement arts. Such platforms allow us to express ourselves freely." "I have been watching this battle online and it is fun and challenging, as we won't have any idea of what music they're going to play for us. It will keep us on our toes," added house dancer Elvis Mascarenhas, also a Mumbai resident. The finals are scheduled for October 16.

Tech meets art

Machinic Situatedness 4 by Agrawal

Today marks the final day of Exo-stential, AI Musings on the Post Human, India's first solo artificial intelligence (AI) exhibition featuring works by AI artist and human-computer interaction researcher Harshit Agrawal. The exhibition comprises nine pieces that include paintings, text-based and interactive pieces, and videos. "The pieces explore the possibilities of AI in art, especially in creating pieces that would not have been possible with traditional mediums. There's also a panel discussion where we will explore various topics related to the tech and art, including the future role of human artists, and developing an emotive rather than a purely application-based and functional approach to tech," shared Agrawal.

Jamming to twisted musical notes

English singer-songwriter George Ezra and American industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails (NIN) are chalk and cheese when it comes to the sort of music they play. So are indie acts Raghav Meattle (in pic) and Pentagram, which is why the former will now reimagine Ezra's songs while the latter, will give a new twist to NIN's tracks at an online event next month that's aimed at giving a desi spin to Western music. Speaking about his setlist, Meattle shared, "The usual suspects like Barcelona and Blame it on me are there, but there are also many unexpected songs that I'm excited to hear the reactions to." Log on to bit.ly/3uduCBM to buy your tickets.