24 September,2020 06:09 AM IST | Mumbai | Team mid-day
Even as rains lash the city, children in Chunabhatti have a blast. Pic/Pradeep Dhivar
The collection by Kunal Rawal was shot at The Asiatic Society of Mumbai
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White on white has probably never looked cooler. The famous steps of The Asiatic Society of Mumbai turned into a ramp when fashion designer Kunal Rawal decided to shoot his collection there for the Fashion Design Council of India's (FDCI) first ever digital edition of the India Couture Week 2020. As the video of Rawal's menswear collection, Hide and Seek, which premiered on Tuesday, started doing the rounds on social media, the society was quick to point out that iconic buildings like theirs are always in fashion.
Kunal Rawal
Rawal told this diarist that the location's "raw beauty and neutral colour palette helped bring out every aspect of the collection, from outfit details to colour variations". The designer, who hails from the city, shared, "Bombay and its people have always been a source of inspiration for me. Since I have grown up in the city, nostalgia feeds my creativity. During the lockdown, we have all been cooped up in our homes. Ever since things opened up, we find ourselves being drawn to open spaces. In all its glory, the Asiatic Society was perfect for this collection."
AR Rahman
It's been a tough year for artistes, and on October 4, over 450 of them, including AR Rahman, Salim-Sulaiman, Amit Trivedi, Indian Ocean and Adva-ita, will come together as part of the fundraising gala iBelieve #ArtMatters.
Sanjoy K Roy
"#ArtMatters grew out of a need to focus attention on the plight of this sector which spans the ragis in the gurudwaras and the bauls of Bengal to those who weave Benarasi sarees and more. The concert will provide a platform for the arts to enrich our lives, and raise resources to support the artistes," said Sanjoy K Roy, MD at Teamwork Arts, the organisers.
Karna from Tholu Bommalaata by Sindhe Chithambara Rao, 21st c; Rajamala, Java, 1850-1950. Pic/Sarmaya Arts Foundation; Museum Rietberg
Indonesia and India might be miles apart, but they have a common link. "A lot of the stories of the Javanese shadow puppet tradition, Wayang Kulit, are based on Indian epics like the Mahabharata," said Paul Abraham, founder, Sarmaya.
This Friday, you'll be able to view more such parallels between puppetry traditions of the two countries, as Sarmaya, along with Museum Rietberg in Zurich will give you a glimpse of an exhibit on Javanese shadow theatre at the latter. "We'll also see Sarmaya's film on Tholu Bommalaata, a shadow puppet tradition in India, and discuss both." Write to connect@sarmaya.in to register.
Of the 99 things that went wrong this year, romance wasn't one. A survey by dating app, OkCupid tried to decode romance in the new normal which gathered responses from 15,000 users across Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Bengaluru.
It turns out that 2020 has reignited romance through courtship and slow dating. Eighty-six per cent millennials confessed that they'd choose developing an emotional connection through long conversations over physical intimacy. Around 91 per cent said they'd continue to date virtually over in-person meets. Thirty-eight per cent women and 25 per cent men expressed they'd like to take things slower and have more virtual inter-actions in a post-pandemic world. And, 30 per cent said they're happy to wear pyjamas to dates. We like.
We had reported in these pages in August that just like a state flower and animal, the mangrove species Sonneratia alba had been picked as Maharashtra's state mangrove tree. News now comes in that the state government has officially declared the same.
The species, also known as the mangrove apple for its edible fruit, is found across the state coastline, Virendra Tiwari, additional principal chief conservator of forests (mangrove cell) and executive director of Mangrove Foundation, told this diarist. "Most people are only aware of the Avicennia marina species. It's a good move, and will create awareness among students and the local population on the need to conserve mangroves," he added.
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