Mumbai Diary: Saturday Dossier

Of, for and by theatre
For the live medium of theatre, the audience is sacrosanct. Which is why it is not uncommon to spot theatre artistes in the queue to watch an actor or director's latest play. At the ongoing Theatre Olympics in the city, the production Shri 420 saw Shyam Benegal, Shabana Azmi, Rohini Hattangadi, Rajendra Gupta and Raghubir Yadav in the audience. An Indian adaptation of the iconic 17th-century French comedy, Tartuffe, the play has been directed by Saba Zaidi Abdi and Atul Tiwari, and is a hilarious take on the Indian obsession with godmen. Given that our faith in godmen comes crashing every other day, we are sure the play is going to be a long-running one.

For the love of film
Filmmaker Christopher Nolan and British visual artist Tacita Dean are in the city, and even before they get talking about reframing the future of film tomorrow, their days seem to be packed.

While today, these film lovers will be busy with a round-table discussion and screenings of Nolan's movies, yesterday was all about Dean's public lecture on why the medium of film is important for artists, held in the beautiful Dr Bhau Daji Lad Museum.

She later engaged in a conversation with art critic and cultural theorist Ranjit Hoskote, as a packed house listened. We think this augurs well for the movement for film preservation in India.

Stranger things
The popularity of web series seems to have opened up a new chapter in the lives of authors. Take Novoneel Chakraborty for instance. He was basking in the success of The Stranger Trilogy (PenguinRandomHouse India). And now comes the news that there is further reason for him wear a big smile.

Goldie Behl

A production house has just acquired the rights for the trilogy to base a web series on, to be directed by Goldie Behl. This made us think, aren't web series a better visual medium than movies for book adaptations? A film is limited by its time frame.

Novoneel Chakraborty

But a series can go on for as many episodes as it takes to tell the story. So, is that the future of book adaptations for the screen? Let's wait and watch.

Roja jaaneman
Actor Madhu seems pleased with the attire she tries on at a luxury fashion pop-up at Mahalaxmi racecourse on Friday.

Here's a Dilliwaali who is in love with Mumbai
The Delhi vs Mumbai debate seems to never grow old. And when you have someone famous and well-followed (especially on Twitter) start the debate again, we go and fetch tea to watch the drama unfold. The person in question is publisher Chiki Sarkar.

"Mumbai has better bookshops, better restos, better museums, better architecture ( modern not medieval) than delhi, I think," tweeted the Delhiite. While we aren't privy to the information that led to Sarkar's tweet, the comments that followed were thoroughly amusing.

Followers argued whether Kitab Khana wins over Delhi's Bahrisons, while some lightened the mood with thoughts such as this one: "Delhi has maida, aloo and paneer... and it doesn't need anything more!" Going by the number of comments and retweets, we are sure of one thing - this is one war that will never end.

Such a long journey
At the ongoing Newcastle Film Festival in the UK, fans of Indian cinema have much to look forward to with the line-up including films as diverse as Onir's Kuch Bheege Alfaaz, a rom-com about the smartphone generation, to Anant Mahadevan's Doctor Rakhmabai, the story of India's first practising female doctor.

A still from The Hundred-Foot Journey

But admirers of Om Puri's work are in for a real treat, as the festival features a retrospective of the late actor, showcasing three of his films - My Son the Fanatic, The Hundred-Foot Journey and East is East. The retrospective also included a talk, where Puri's former wife Nandita Puri engaged in a conversation with leading English actor and screenwriter Caroline Goodall yesterday. A fitting tribute.

Catch up on all the latest entertainment news and gossip here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates