Mumbai Diary: Friday Dossier

Pic/Bipin Kokate

Pehle aap
Abhishek Bachchan was spotted at the Siddhivinayak temple yesterday with wife Aishwarya and daughter Aaradhya on the couple's 10th anniversary.

Mona Eltahawy

Praises for Aditi
Egyptian-American journalist Mona Eltahawy was in Mumbai for a leadership forum recently, where she was one of the panelists at a discussion on feminism. The celebrated scribe spoke about women's issues like body shaming, pornography, sex and power constructs in society.

Aditi Mittal

Eltahawy was full of praise for comedian Aditi Mittal after she performed at the forum. "I love Aditi's stand-up comedy, she is wonderfully bold..." Eltahawy said. One of India's first women stand-up comedians, Mittal has been vocal about gender issues, and incorporates them in her gigs as well. It was heartwarming to see one more voice of support for the funny woman, who isn't afraid to speak up.

The wedding draws close
Last year, this newspaper had written about Mira Nair's big hit, Monsoon Wedding, being made into a musical. Nine years in the making, the stage adaptation is all set to make its debut in May at the Berkeley Theatre in California. With music by Vishal Bhardwaj and 21 new songs, the mega show is also hoping to make it to Broadway. With the trend of films being made into musicals on the rise in Mumbai too, here's hoping the comic-drama makes it to the city's stages soon.

Grace 'n glamour
Far from the conundrum of whether or not toilets should be constructed on the pavement facing their Bandra homes, veteran actresses Waheeda Rehman and Helen Khan flew to Delhi to be part of a conversation with journalist Rajdeep Sardesai yesterday. Organised at an upscale restaurant, the tete-a-tete revolved around the topic, Cinema: Managing glamour with elegance and style. Who better than these two ladies to talk about grace, we say!

A Nobel gesture
When the seeds sown are those of kindness, how can the harvest be anything but sweet? The Nobel peace laureate, Kailash Satyarthi recently shared a picture of himself with a group of little girls who had a lot to thank him for. These girls are the daughters of the men who were rescued by Satyarthi from slavery years ago. He terms this as a 'moment of inspiration and happiness'. Satyarthi is the founder of Bachpan Bachao Andolan. He also heads the Global March Against Child Labour, which represents about 2,000 social groups and union organisations in 140 countries.

Arjun Chaudhary; Gypsy with Spiced Beetroot Sticks

Kitchen comes to the bar
Ever heard of bar cuisine? No, we're not talking about chakna but a unique dining concept where the kitchen comes to the bar and bartenders turn into bar chefs concocting drinks and whipping up dishes paired with them, through the night. For instance, if your poison for the night is Gypsy, a vodka-based concoction with fresh vegetable stock made from beetroot, chilli, cilantro and cabbage, you will be served Spiced Beetroot Sticks cooked with butter and fresh thyme, with the drink, crafted right in front of you. Piqued? Try it at No Vacancy Bar Kitchen, co-founded by Arjun Chaudhary, which opens in Khar by the month-end.