15 January,2025 06:35 AM IST | Mumbai | Team mid-day
Pic/Ashish Raje
A girl is focused on her cellphone, unaware of the billboard backdrop featuring actor Ranveer Singh in Mumbai Central.
Australian folk-rock band The Paper Kites couldn't have timed their debut India tour announcement any better. In time for the festival of kites in India, the makers of chartbusters like Bloom, Paint and Featherstone announced their two-part India tour that includes a pitstop in Mumbai on March 22. Hosted by art platform SkillBox, the 2009-established band's folk-rooted tunes will resonate with Mumbaikars, believes Roydon Bangera, chief business officer, SkillBox. "While the usual loud, bass-heavy electronic music festivals and big-ticket gigs continue to do well in the city, Mumbaikars are now looking beyond the adrenaline rush and warming up to slower, softer music and quieter experiences. The response to English songwriter Ben Howard's show in Mumbai last year and the upcoming Cigarettes After Sex gig on January 25, speak for themselves," Bangera told this diarist. Those interested can log on to skillboxes.com to keep an eye on updates regarding the venue.
City-based award-winning cheesemakers Eleftheria Cheese gave the humble tilgul a Norwegian makeover to mark Makar Sankranti in the city on Tuesday. Explaining the idea behind the brunost cheese tilguls, founder Mausam Narang shared, "Brunost is a versatile sweet cheese. The best way to describe it would be a Norwegian pedha. It called for a festive experiment. Interestingly, the cheese paired really well with the roasted sesame seeds. We're already planning our next brunost experiment."
Navi-Mumbaikars might remember Raghav Narsalay for his 100 Rs Ambulance initiative that brought a sliver of hope amidst the COVID 19 pandemic. Nearly four years later, Narsalay's new book 100rsambulance (available on Amazon e-store), now looks back upon life lessons from the endeavour. "I hope that the lessons help my readers who have been ruminating on ideas and plans to take the plunge. Making a difference is often zero per cent experience and 100 per cent enthusiasm," Narsalay told us. While the ambulance continues to serve citizens in the neighbourhood, Narsalay is now planning to build a new mental wellness centre in Navi Mumbai with the same R100 per session template.
The trend of book clubs is getting out of hand, in a good way. The suburb of Vasai has acquired a new book club in Vasai Vachan Katta, hosted by the community of Jagruk Nagrik Sangh (JNS) at the Hutatma Smarak Udyan in Vasai West. "We were inspired by the reading groups opening up all around the city. We held our first session on January 5, and have hosted a session every Sunday morning," shared Sugandha Joshi, secretary, JNS. Unlike other reading groups where participants bring their own books, the readers can also choose from the titles lent by the Jai Hind Vachanalay reading library. "One of our little readers has started a book, and promised that he will visit every Sunday till he finishes it. We are glad we could rekindle this love for reading in the neighbourhood," she shared.
Amidst exam pressure in the air at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT-B) in Powai, students were met with a pleasant surprise. Raju Sah a caricature artist visited the campus for a session with the students. "It is always interesting to see how people react to their caricatures. Even though most of them know what to expect, it still surprises them," Sah told this diarist. Hailing from Bihar, Sah's journey has been in deep pursuit of his passion. "I have not received any formal training in art. I moved to Mumbai in search of a livelihood, and now work full-time as an artist. Whenever I create an artwork, my goal is to spark a moment of laughter in people's busy lives," he revealed.
