Mumbai Diary: Saturday Dossier

The city - sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce

Clearing the lines

As the city celebrated Holi, it was business as usual for a BMC worker at Banganga Tank

A step towards sustainability

Participants at a previous cloth swap. Pic courtesy/Local Threads

Taking a step towards instilling sustainable practices in Mumbaikars, Borivli-based community Local Threads is organising a clothes and accessories swap this Sunday. “Our society has become deeply influenced by a culture of excessive consumption. As communities have transitioned from open, communal living to gated apartments, the practice of sharing has diminished. The swap meet-ups encourage the habit of reusing. This time, we’ve included accessories as well,” Joshua Fernandes (inset), co-founder, shared with this diarist. Interested folks can head over to @local.threads.community to register.

Musical echoes

Avanti Nagral (extreme right) in a moment from the rehearsal. Pic courtesy/Team Avanti Nagral

Bringing a confluence of Indian music and culture to the city, singer Avanti Nagral is conducting Carnival of Culture, a multi-sensory festival tomorrow. “Last year, I took on a project to sing 50 Songs in 50 languages with artistes from around the world. And now we’re bringing it to life with this event. It’ll be a concert meets modern-day mela, featuring an incredible artist line-up, immersive experiences, and a spotlight on Indian craftsmanship and fashion with support from the Ministry of Textiles,” she shared.

Koli colour splash in Colaba

Moments from the Holi celebration at Colaba Koliwada. Pics courtesy/Daniel Sequeira

On Thursday night, the streets of Colaba Koliwada decked up for Shimgya chi songa, or the Koli version of the festival of colours. Long-time Colaba resident, Daniel Sequeira shared, “Someone told me the Koli word for Holi is Shimga and Songa stands for disguise. The sense of community among the Kolis in Colaba is very strong.”

Starting at midnight, the celebrations often go on till early morning. “There was a recreation of the Jagannath Puri Rath Yatra, colourful tribal attire, a procession carrying the Goddess Ekvira and even reenactment of Jesus being taken to be crucified,” Sequeira told this diarist.

Global nod for Bandra eatery

A serving of  What the duck? Pic courtesy/Hunger Inc Hospitality

Making the city proud of its culinary repertoire, Bandra -based eatery, Papa’s Bombay has made it to the TIME’s list of the World’s Greatest Places of 2025. “The recognition belongs to the whole team who make every evening special at the restaurant. For us, cooking is about telling stories, evoking emotions, and making people feel something. We have reimagined Indian cuisine through a creative lens, breaking the rules of both Indian food and fine dining,” Hussain Shahzad, executive chef shared with this diarist.

“Our menu challenges conventions, offering an adventurous take on comforting flavours like What the duck! which is our Ambur biryani meets paella, made with dry-aged duck or the cold, clarified rasam with Himalayan trout in a watermelon broth,” Shahzad added. 

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