Mumbai Diary: Friday Dossier

Pic/Rane Ashish

Hitting caution out of the park

The pandemic and lockdown-like restrictions fail to deter these mask-less boys from playing cricket at Sanjay Gandhi National Park in Borivali East.

There's lots to sea in the city

A hermit crab, found along the city's shoreline. Pic/inhabitedsea.org

We might not always realise it, but Mumbai's coastline is a wondrous place that all sorts of sea creatures inhabit. Writer-director Sejal Mehta and photographer Shaunak Modi followed two groups of such animals - crabs and cnidarians - for the past two years as part of a global project called Inhabited Sea, which was the brainchild of environmental anthropologist Nikhil Anand, and architects Anuradha Mathur and Dilip da Cunha. The multimedia project that Mehta and Modi submitted is called Intertidal Living. It's now live, and offers a fascinating insight into the lives of the city's marine residents. "These are exciting creatures, not just because they are beautiful, but also because they live in spaces that we inhabit. It's quite special to be able to walk on a Mumbai shore and see colourful sea anemones open their tentacles, or zoanthus sparkle blue-green under a city sky," Mehta told this diarist. Log on to inhabitedsea.org to learn more about our city's co-inhabitants.

Wall of a time

We had recently written about Bollywood Art Project's (BAP) tussle with Budweiser on this page, where the brand had painted its promotional material over Bandra's iconic Anarkali-Madhubala murals. The brand had vowed to make amends, and we are pleased to report that they have made good on their word - Chapel Road is now home to three 1970s icons, Asha Parekh, Waheeda Rehman and Helen. Ranjit Dahiya of BAP, who is currently putting the finishing touches on the murals, said, "We are working with a minimal team and are adhering to all safety protocols. All of us are double-masked and using copious amounts of hand sanitiser."

The rite thing to do

The alarming number of deaths during the pandemic has led to crematoriums being overwhelmed with the pressure. But even those who do manage to get a slot have to bear a hefty cost at times to perform the last rites of their loved ones. Saundh, a saree brand from Surat, has now come forward to provide financial support to families across India who have cremated kin who contracted Covid-19. All that a person needs to do is call 9924019434 and seek monetary help after providing a positive report of the deceased person, and either a death certificate or a receipt from the crematorium. "We will transfer the amount they ask for directly to the person's bank account," shared Vishwanath Singh, who manages the helpline number for Saundh.

Cause for paws

The pandemic has been tricky for pet parents, especially when their furry friends fall sick and veterinarians aren't freely accessible at this time. But pet store Heads Up for Tails (HUFT) has a solution. They have launched purportedly India's first 24x7 veterinary service, where people can chat online with experts to discuss their issues. "We collaborated with UK-based Vet Connection, and plan to introduce a video platform soon. But we also say that physically visiting a vet is advisable," shared Arushi Sharma, customer manager at HUFT.

Putting it on the record

Peter Cat Recording Company is a Delhi-based band that's considered somewhat of an enigma within the independent music circuit, and with good reason. Which other outfit can you think of that pulls back two albums from the market - Sinema and Wall of Want - after releasing them because, as vocalist Suryakant Sawhney told this diarist, "we wanted to"? Well, the good news is that about a week ago, the band put those two records back on sale to raise money for charities they want to support during the pandemic. They have garnered a total of '5 lakh already, which is testament to the act's popularity. The albums will be on sale till tomorrow, after which they will disappear from the market again. Sawhney shared, "A lot of people had been asking for the albums and we felt that we could do two things at one time by releasing them now. We had collaborated with NGO Hemkunt Foundation at first, but are now looking at some others, including PARI since we have already crossed our target." Log on to pcrc.in to get your own copies, but hurry!