Mumbai Diary: Tuesday Dossier

Back seat Entry
Ileana D'Cruz, Ajay Devgn, Shilpa Shetty and Geeta Kapoor are distracted by something to their left at a dance reality show at a Goregaon studio. Pic/Nimesh Dave

Green picks, chef style
Trust one of the city's most famous (and travel-happy) chefs to hit the road again. This time, chef Thomas Zacharias has headed to India's northernmost state, in search of newer culinary discoveries. An educational byte always, this time Chef Zac introduces us to Monji Haak or Kohlrabi leaves - a kind of green leafy veggie that is an integral part of Kashmiri cuisine.

And playing true to his profession, he adds a chef tip to his post, suggesting that one can cook it with mustard oil, hing, fennel and dry Kashmiri chillies, "so the real flavour of the greens can shine," he writes. Now, that's what we call a green lesson of a different kind.

Cook for your fave lady
If cooking duty is usually the responsibility of the women in your house, chef Amrita Raichand has challenged men to create their version of her French toast recipe this Women's Day. Known for her healthy takes on different dishes, Raichand's recipe for the toast too has a healthy-yet-sweet twist. The chef and host tweeted to her followers to post pictures using #CookForHer and winners stand a chance to get featured on her page too.

Pride and joy for Mumbai boy
The ninth edition of Kashish Mumbai International Queer Film Festival, the biggest queer festival in South Asia, is slated to be held in May this year, and designer Wendell Rodricks just picked its look out of all the entries of the Kashish international poster contest. The trophy and cash prize will be given to Mumbaikar Ashutosh Vyas (in pic), whose design, Rodrick says, is minimal and forceful.

And it's truly so. The winning work of the graphic designer portrays profiles of women and men, alternatively, in the pride colours, highlighting what Vyas believes in, "Equal opportunities for all." Here's wishing that Vyas' art work has the desired effect besides being displayed on billboards, T-shirts, banners and more.

Design lessons from Sweden
If the word design has to be associated with a country, the name that comes to mind is Sweden. And the Ung Svensk Form design exhibition, which is coming to the city next week after touring Hong Kong and Seoul, will tell you that it isn't just because of Ikea. Organised by the Consulate General of Sweden in Mumbai in collaboration with LN Welingkar Institute of Management Development & Research, the exhibition showcases 19 sustainable and innovative products ranging from recycled goods to unisex fashion dealing with migrant crisis by Swedish designers.

Two students from the management school will also display their sustainable innovation. What intrigues us, though, is that Sweden sends only one per cent of its waste to landfills, while the rest is recycled. Any tips for Deonar?

Daughters for freedom of speech
Sometimes, frames convey a lot more than what one actually attempts to put down on paper. Like this one. Braveheart student Gurmehar Kaur, who was in the eye of a sharp storm last year when she posted about her father, a Kargil martyr. The young woman stirred a hornet's nest that led to a nationwide debate. She faced an avalanche of vitriolic posts and as is the case in our times, an endless trial by social media. Refusing to stay silent, she released a book, Small Acts of Freedom that tells her story. The gutsy girl recently met with Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi and posted this image soon afterwards, with the words: The book is about a daughter, memories of her father, sacrifices of her mother, carrying a legacy, family and love for the nation. Here is me with someone who understands all of that way too well and someone I deeply admire.' All we can say is, you go, girl.

Catch up on all the latest Mumbai news, crime news, current affairs, and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates