Mumbai Diary: Monday Dossier

Pic/Satej Shinde

Together, we coast along

A couple stands in warm embrace on Malad's Marve Beach.

Why Bombay is in the details

Dalvi with the group

As far as we can remember, April's temperatures were never this unforgiving. It was why the first question this diarist raised at the workshop called Naming the parts: How to look at Bombay's architecture, was if European architectural styles like Neo Classical and Neo Gothic were modified to suit the whims of tropical Bombay when these were introduced here. Professor Mustansir Dalvi, who helmed the engaging session in a classroom of Sir JJ School of Architecture over the weekend, replied in the affirmative, because plans had to account for heat, the monsoon and sea breeze.

The School of Art building was designed by G.T. Molecey

The workshop, organised by Mumbai Research Centre, The Asiatic Society of Mumbai, began with the basics of architecture, about columns and arches, pilasters and pyramids. It was a sumptuous taster, the kind of glossary that would delight the heritage enthusiast and the aspiring urban planner alike. A timeline of architectural styles that graced Bombay followed - starting with influences that arrived from Europe to the local Indo-Saracenic template and the progressive Art Deco movement. Next, it was time for a guided walk around the leafy, historic campus, where Dalvi helped the group join the dots with examples of facades, arches and columns.

A column depiciting an art student at work

From Sir Jamsetjee Jeejebhoy's vision to build an arts institution, to how Rudyard Kipling was termed a "little menace" by a colleague of his father, John Lockwood, who was a revered professor on campus, anecdotes were aplenty. The restored Dean's Bungalow was a highlight, a stunning display of wood craftsmanship in the domestic vernacular style, and a stark contrast to the arched glory of the stone building designed by George Wittet, located a few metres away. The diversity of these contrasting styles and the heady assemblage of details wasn't lost on the group. Like Rome, Bombay too wasn't built in a day.

War-time stories

Brecht's statement about songs in dark times found its echo in the latest Readings In The Shed chapter, held on April 23. Max Mueller Bhavan Mumbai will take inspiration from the lived experiences of the people of Ukraine in a narration of stories by Danish Hussain, directed by Nikhil Katara. Himali Kothari, who adapted the experiences of the people in the ongoing war from blogs that came up during the time, told this diarist that the process upset her. "The idea was to say that something happens and the normal life you take for granted goes askew. You deal with a new normal; a chaos brought into your life," said Kothari. From a journalist whose plans for her three-year-old's birthday party was ended by the Russian invasion, to a mother struggling to explain to her daughter why they are sleeping in the bathroom, the stories were personal and affecting. The act spoke of things people glance at only in passing.

Streets have a name

A street vendor sells knives. Pic credit/Aslam Saiyad

City chronicler Aslam Saiyad has an interesting workshop for students of Bandra's Rizvi College of Arts, Science and Commerce. The session that began last week has a three-part purpose - culture, design and geography. On the need for an interactive session on street vendors, Saiyad commented that it encourages youth to support local economies and preserve regional culture. The photographer, who was approached by Minaz Ansari, associate professor, Rizvi College of Architecture, to host the series, added, "We aim to rouse students to the role of accessible housing in culture conservation. Vendors are not allowed in high-rises; they can access only smaller buildings, streets and gaothans." The workshop will continue till this weekend when students submit their assignments.

A lesson in fortitude

The pandemic's second wave left us with a common dread - the dearth of hospital beds. Designer Binish Desai, created a unique idea to fight such a scarcity, dare it reemerges. His firm, EETech, collaborated with Cheil India, to build a hospital bed using used masks and PPE kits. Titled The Novel Bed Project, it collected masks and PPEs from across India. The bed has been donated to a local hospital in Valsad, Gujarat. He said, "I was concerned about the waste that emerged as a result of single-use masks. I made an eco brick at my lab that consists of 52% PPE face mask and 48% paper mill waste." City folk who want to donate can head to thenovelbedproject.com.

Awarded by her own tribe

Transgender screenwriter Gazal Dhaliwal was recently awarded the @likhowithpride Trailblazer Award, an initiative by The Humsafar Trust (HST) to recognise meaningful work by LGBTQiA+ identities. Dhaliwal, known for her work in Mismatched and Qarib Qarib Singlle, said this win was important, "I have looked up to HST since I have known about my identity. Being recognised by the community feels extraordinary. The award is also special because there's less representation of marginalised lives in mainstream media."