Mumbai Diary: Saturday Dossier

Pic/Kirti Surve Parade

Pretty in pink

A girl dressed in pink carries bouquets of bright pink roses at Dadar flower market.

Reimagine a world through ruins

Parthenon by Jofre Oliveras (right) Joe Cyril

Can the ruins of a city and the world inspire people? Spanish artist Jofre Oliveras and Sajid Wajid Shaikh will build around this very concept in their upcoming showcase, Witness and Evidence: deliberations on ruins that opens at the SoBo art space of Gallery XXL on May 18. While both artists differ in their approach, sensibility and aesthetics, there was a strong similarity in their take on the conversations about ruins, revealed gallerist Joe Cyril. "When it comes to the concept of ruins, Oliveras looks at past and present ruins; while Shaikh observes them as an outcome of the present world. The artworks created out of this conversation was a response to the times they live in," he added. Incidentally, Oliveras' work will interpret the digital materials that take on physical form. "All through the show you will find plenty of contrast and similarities. His works are about digital ruins. These are images that will be ruins in the future. They are presented as oil paintings on stainless steel phone-shaped objects," shared Cyril. The exhibition will also premier Shaikh's marble and concrete sculptures, and the Pie Pie series at the gallery.

Why disturb the flamingos?

A flock of flamingos at DPS lake (right) the lake dries up due to restricted water influx during a low tide

Environmentalists from Navi Mumbai-based green organisations joined hands, quite literally, to ensure a better future for the city's pink migratory guests today. A silent protest at the DPS Lake witnessed members of various green platforms form a human chain to draw attention to the threat that an ongoing real estate project poses to flamingos. "The project has blocked a handful of water channels attached to the lake, causing the influx of water to become erratic. Flamingos are extremely particular about water levels when they choose a landing spot while migrating. When they find that the lakes are parched, it disturbs their orientation and sends them astray," explained BN Kumar (inset), director, NatConnect Foundation.

Several cases of flamingos landing on Palm Beach Road in Navi Mumbai and causing accidents on the motorway have emerged over the last month, raising concerns over the future of these migratory birds. "Without water, there will also be no insects or algae for the birds to sustain on. This is another factor that could cause the migratory birds to appear less frequently in the near future," Kumar explained.

Echoes of Mumbai in Prague

(Left) A still from the short film; (right) Rohan Chavan (in green) shoots a scene

City-based filmmaker Rohan Chavan's new short-film might just be the city's answer to the popular sci-fi drama Black Mirror. Titled ECHO, Chavan's brainchild has already made waves on the independent film scene with a selection in the narrative genre at the Prague International Film Awards. The film, which features in the festival's recommended projects of 2024, was shot with minimal special effects in 2023 and deep-dives into the future of AI. "With 2024 considered to be a pivotal year for Artificial Intelligence, our core idea behind the making of ECHO is to present a story that shows the ways in which AI shall permeate our lives with the power to alter our conscious perception of reality." Chavan revealed to us.

Art for the heart

Participants at a previous workshop

A workshop organised by city-based mental wellness start-up Doctor Drama in Nerul will witness participants shake a leg and sing their lungs out to achieve mental wellness today. "Through expressive art therapy techniques, we [trained therapists] will aim to shift the focus of these activities onto the process rather than the product. It is this process that helps the participant express themselves and de-stress," Muskaan Dawoodani, an expressive art therapist from the organisation, told this diarist.

Fishing for better solutions

Mohit Ramle collects ghost nets (right) a community clean-up drive underway in Versova

Mohit Ramle, president of the Akhil Koli Samaj Sanskruti Sanwardhan Sangha Mumbai, an organisation that works towards preserving Koli culture, has warned us of every seafood lover's worst nightmare. In what Ramle calls a ‘fish famine', the city might soon face an acute shortage of fish owing to illegal fishing and water pollution. "We usually set out to fish in the moonlight, when the fish are lured to the surface naturally. LED fishing, an unethical method where bright LED lights are projected on the sea to emulate moonlight in a pursuit to maximise catch, has disturbed the marine ecosystem," Ramle revealed to this diarist.

Voicing his concerns about the rising water pollution levels, the activist pointed out that ghost nets (nets discarded by fishermen at sea) are another hurdle in the way of the community's fishing activities. "There was a time when we would have surplus catch to take home. Today, even species like the Bombay duck and pomfret are scarce," he sighed. The organisation is in talks with Dr Atul Patne, commissioner of fisheries, to tackle the challenge.