Mumbai Diary: Monday Dossier

Pic/Satej Shinde

Bathing in the light

A man lies down on a mat in broad daylight and scrolls through his phone at Juhu beach.

Learning to tell tales the right way

A child performs at a previous edition

The Bandra neighbourhood saw a new generation of storytellers take the stage on Sunday. Aged 10 years and below, the children from the latest chapter of Storyfic! joined hands with the Mumbai Storytellers Society for their annual showcase at the Mcubed Library in D'Monte Park. Narrating folk tales, myths and pourquoi stories from across the world, the 12 narrators stole the show. "They picked the stories based on their interest, and I helped them craft it. Some of them have been learning since the age of two," shared Storyfic! founder Meher Gehi.

Meher Gehi

Revisiting history

The dates engraved on the signage; (right) Desiree Gonsalves

Desiree Gonsalves' recent trip to Ranwar in Bandra took her down memory lane with the D'Mello family who once owned the bungalow where the bakery Subko Mary Lodge now stands. "Mary D'Mello's son, Ralph, who lives in the USA, revealed that a signage explains how Mary's father built the lodge in 1925. In 1941, her husband added a loft. They would go fishing in the sea that was closer then. It was nice to hear stories about their past in a space that is so crowded these days!" said Gonsalves.

A call to save the pink guests

Pawan Sharma with a rescued black kite; (right) RAWW members apply a green wrap on the medicated wound of the flamingos to keep the ointment intact

As Mumbaikars flocked together over the weekend to sight the migrating flamingos found in January across the city, volunteers and members of Resqink Association for Wildlife Welfare (RAWW) were out saving the birds' lives. As of last Saturday, they rescued four flamingos entangled in nylon manja post Makar Sankranti. "We tended to 59 rescued distressed birds. While commonly found species like crows and pigeons are the most affected by the celebration, we also rescued parakeets and kites, among other birds," said Pawan Sharma, founder and president, RAWW. He added, "Of the four rescued flamingos, one could not survive, one is critical, one may not be able to return to wildlife and the last one; we are hopeful it will make full recovery."

Colours of music

Performers during a previous edition

Students of St Xavier's College have announced the dates for their annual two-day concert, Janfest to be held on January 25 and 26. The festival will feature some of the most prominent faces in Hindustani classical music. Prachiti Navlakhe, executive member, press and publicity department of The Indian Music Group (IMG), shared, "This is also the 50th anniversary of IMC. To celebrate it, we have invited the college's alumni, who were once a part of IMC and are now leading names in the music industry. They will perform in the Xavier's Collective on the first day [January 25]." On January 26, students will host legendary musicians, including Ustad Amjad Ali Khan and Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia.

Ustad Amjad Ali Khan. File pic

Upping the photo standards

Meghna Girohtra

There is more to clicking images than to just point and shoot. For Mumbai Igers founder, Meghna Girohtra, photography is a passion that requires a tactile understanding of timing and space. Having curated the online community of photographers from across the city and the suburbs for over 10 years, Girohtra is now planning an exhibition of photographs to showcase the talents in the community. The ongoing curation will pick 10 photographs around the theme of faceless portraits for the exhibition in February. "I could not host an exhibition on the 10th anniversary last year, but we plan to host a proper exhibition this time. The idea is to have people step out and witness and learn from what their peers are doing," she said.