Mumbai Diary: Wednesday Dossier

Pic/Ashish Raje

Scaling new heights

A pet iguana created quite a buzz in Ballard Pier on Tuesday when it made an appearance with its owner, with passersby, like this man, stopping to engage with it. Pic/Ashish Raje

Paw-sitive brush strokes

Artworks titled Dawn to Dusk

In the midst of the pandemic and the negativity it has given rise to, even the smallest positive step feels like a ray of sunshine. That's what city-based NGO The Welfare of Stray Dogs (WSD) witnessed recently when a 12-year-old extended support to them in a unique way.

Swag painted by 12-year-old student

Aarya Yamsanwar, a student of Bombay Scottish School in Mahim, sold paintings she made - a mix of portraiture and landscapes - and was able to raise Rs 40,000. The amount was donated to WSD, which has impacted the lives of over 1.7 lakh strays since 1994.

Aarya Yamsanwar

For WSD CEO Abodh Aras, there couldn't be a better time for this to happen. He told this diarist, "It is heartening that many school kids have spent their lockdown days helping organisations like ours to raise funds by using their talent constructively, like Aarya did by selling her paintings. We are grateful to her for this effort when it has been difficult to raise funds in these challenging times."

Oz-some win

We had reported in these pages last month that Bridge of Dreams - an album conceived by Australian composer Sandy Evans along with Indian musicians including vocalist Shubha Mudgal and tabla player Aneesh Pradhan - had been nominated in the Jazz and Improvised Music category in the Art Music Awards held annually Down Under.

News now comes in that the project has emerged as the winner. Speaking about how the album transcends boundaries, Pradhan said, "The free and frank exchange of musical ideas and the musicianship demonstrated by all the participants strengthen our belief that such projects go a long way in creating empathy and sensitivity among societies, particularly in times when these aspects are needed more than ever before." We couldn't have said it better.

A virtual Bandra fair, really?

Every year in September, the steps of Bandra's Mount Mary Basilica come alive, thanks to a grand fair around the birthday of Mother Mary that was observed yesterday. The route is buzzing with stalls selling trinkets and treats that catch the eye of devotees to this city landmark. However, this year, like with every religious celebration, the physical gathering and fair won't be possible.

To keep up the spirit of the festival, neighbourhood paper Bandra Buzz has kicked off a week-long online celebration. It started off with a violin showcase by Joshua Sequeira, followed by performances by singer Nathanael Mookhtiar and R&B artiste Keshia B. Recounting her memories of the Bandra feast, co-founder Jo-anne D'Souza shared, "I will especially miss the gathering after the mass for snacks, the ladies selling sannas and the giant wheel.

To keep the community engaged, locals from Bandra will come together virtually over the week. There'll be a lot of singing and merry-making." To tune in, log on to @BandraBuzz on Facebook.

For India's craftspeople

Just as small and medium businesses had begun recovering from the effects of demonetisation and then GST, the pandemic hit them. Struggling to stay afloat, one such initiative, Illumine, a handicrafts pop-up run by Mumbai-based Abha and Aakash Diwan has now taken the online fundraiser route. Abha shared that getting their initiative back on track would mean employing over 50 families of artisans working near Jaipur.

"We aim to strike a balance between making these handcrafted products accessible to Mumbaikars and giving the makers a fair price deal. We wanted to revamp, when the lockdown was announced, and there's been no production since then. Most of the workers returned to their homes. But we don't think their work should die only because of this situation," she added. Head to @IllumineBrightenYourHomes on Facebook to lend these artisans a helping hand.

In ma's steps

Kathak dancer Jayanti Mala Mishra

The latest to join the ever-growing tribe of online classes is Kathak exponent Jayanti Mala Mishra, daughter of the late Sitara Devi. She told this diarist that though the pandemic was a spoiler to her plans of celebrating her guru and mother's birth centenary year, she's found a silver lining by going online.

Sitara Devi

"Students from overseas have been able to join us online; that is definitely a stream of classes I had not tapped into earlier. I find that online works best for one-on-one sessions or small groups so I can check the taal and movements," she added.

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