A toast to the land

Clay models in traditional Koli attire

What's a land without its diversity? And, what's a city without its landmarks? Our search for subjective answers led us to the common terrain of shared histories. Nestled in the intersection of such belongingness is Dr Bhau Daji Lad (BDL) City Museum's three-day-long itinerary to celebrate its 150th year since it was thrown open to the public on May 2, 1872, and the formation day of Maharashtra on May 1, 1960.

Ulka Mayur and Tasneem Zakaria Mehta

Art historian and museum director, Tasneem Zakaria Mehta, reveals that this is the first set of activities that will be hosted throughout the year. A big highlight is the walkthrough where attendees will view unique objects from craft clusters across the state. "We will fall back upon the collection that dates back to the late 19th to mid 20th century. There's silver work from Pune, horn work from Ratnagiri, brass work from Nashik, ganjifa cards from Sawantwadi, and more. We will also digitally show textiles like the khun fabric from Satara and Paithani from Yeola. These are not on display, but have been photographed by the Google Camera in detail," she elaborates. The café's pop-up summer-themed menu will include Chaitra specialties like ambe dal, kothimbirwadi and aam panha, as well as besan ladu, rava ladu, bhajani chakli, bhakarwadi and amba wadi.

(Left) An illustration by MV Dhurandhar; (right) a piece of art from Sir JJ School of Art. Pics/BDL Museum

Folklorist Ulka Mayur's performance on Maharashtrian folk tales will include a narration of four stories from Deccan Nursery Tales by CA Kincaid. Illustrated by Rao Bahadur MV Dhurandhar; it is a rare gem in the museum's library collection. Taking us through the fictional land of At Pat Nagar, Mayur explains, "The book contains Vrat Kathaiyein focused on the days of the week. Since the session is for kids, I will try to tell stories they can relate to. For instance, I have replaced the term Brahmins with scholarly men. In one story, snakes without tails are being discriminated against by other snakes with tails. I will tell this story by touching on the need for inclusivity."

A Radha Krishna ivory carving; (right) An illustration from Deccan Nursery Tales by MV Dhurandhar

Another pick is a session on restoring museum objects where participants will learn about the upkeep of rare objects like ivory statues, bronze or copper artefacts and singular art pieces from the historic Sir JJ School of Art.

From April 30 to May 2, several time slots
At Dr BDL Mumbai City Museum, Byculla East.
Log on to bdlmuseum.org for more details on event timings

A Maha celebration

Laugh riot
Mote Zhaale Chhote is a comedy play by children for children that aims to tickle our funny bones. Written by Pradeep Jungam and directed by Shailesh Arora, this piece will observe May 1 on a humorous note.

Log on to @neerajaaptikar on Instagram

Local flavours
An all-vegan ready-to-use kit speaks the language of Maharashtra and its farmers. Brought to us by Bicycle Kitchen, a vegan initiative by Harsh Chocolates, Maharashtra Kit contains thecha butter, tilgul butter and four seed butter, all of which can be enjoyed on a slice of their zunka bhakar loaf or jowar wheat loaf.

Log on to @bicyclekitchenbyhc on Instagram to pre-order this special kit