Mumbai Diary: Thursday Dossier

Barefoot on the beach: A family makes the most of an evening at Aksa beach in Malad. Pic/Atul Kamble

French connection

It was two years ago that Mumbai-based filmmaker Payal Kapadia started writing the script for a film that's tentatively titled All We Imagine as Light. She eventually completed it while taking part at the Cinefondation residency in Cannes that encourages first and second-time filmmakers. That's also where a French producer came on board for the project, which eventually paved the way for Kapadia to now be shortlisted for Les Prix du Scénario, an award for films that have joint producers from India and France. Kapadia told this diarist, "The film is about two immigrant nurses from the south of India who come to Mumbai." Here's hoping that the city girl eventually bags the prize.

Rapping for a cause

U-Reporters perform rap songs and hip-hop at Cheeta Camp. Pic/Facebook

Some lessons are better disseminated through art, music, dance and theatre, rather than lengthy speeches. And youth volunteers from M East and G North wards who have been trained to spread awareness under the U-Report India initiative by UNICEF, in association with the NGO Apnalaya, are doing just that. In the wake of the stigma that COVID-19 patients have been facing, a group of 20-odd U-Reporters, aged between 15 and 24, took to the streets at Cheeta Camp recently, rapping and hip-hopping to drive home the message that we shouldn't discriminate against COVID-19 survivors or their family members.
Malathy M, director, education and livelihoods, and project in-charge, Apnalaya, shared that the initiative was designed in response to the pandemic to get the youth to engage with their community. "U-Report is a messenger-based platform where the youth from vulnerable communities can be registered. While most of their interaction is online, we envisaged that only the digital component won't be enough. So, the youth have been conducting nukkad nataks, rapping and performing to tackle stigma. This also helps to attract other youth to this programme. Going ahead, they will also be addressing other pertinent issues," she added.

How the British were shipped away

This year marks the 75th anniversary of the Naval Uprising of 1946, which, according to Commander Ninad Phatarphekar (veteran), member secretary of the Maritime Mumbai Museum Society, was the final nail on the coffin for the British. The Maritime History Society along with MU has been hosting an online seminar since yesterday to commemorate the Uprising. About the episode, Phatarphekar recalled: "All along, the British used Indians to police their countrymen. This uprising was sparked off in Bombay Harbour over some relatively minor issue of ill-treatment of sailors in the Royal Indian Navy, but fanned flames of revolt far and wide. That sent a message to the British that they couldn't use Indians in armed forces to control India, triggering their departure." To learn more, tune into the seminar at zcu.io/D7Lb.

Recovery on track

"Surviving COVID-19 isn't the same as recovery." These words from a patient spurred nutritionist Dr Vishakha Shivdasani to investigate the condition known as post-COVID that afflicts individuals who have survived COVID-19, three months after recovery. "My patients reported a variety of symptoms, ranging from sleeplessness to hairfall, low energy and depression. I then created a plan to help them recover more quickly and prevent complications," she told this diarist. Her ebook, COVID and Post-COVID Recovery: DoctorVee's 6-Point Plan, addresses various factors including food, gut health, sleep and exercise. The goal, she said, is to reduce inflammation. One chapter also addresses how to prepare for the vaccine. Check it out on @doctorvee on Instagram.

Patty like a boss

At the beginning of this year, Riyaaz Amlani, CEO and MD, Impresario Handmade Restaurants, had told this diarist that he plans to push for cloud kitchen brands in the wake of the pandemic. The restaurateur has kicked off this plan, by dishing out the first venture, themed on burgers, recently. "Since the lockdown hit, we had started doubling down on our cloud kitchen brands to increase the share of our delivery business. We will be launching six new cloud kitchen brands across five cities and BOSS Burger is the first one," he said. Jaydeep Mukherjee, head, cloud kitchens, added that the thought behind the brand was to create burgers that are made from fresh ingredients and packed with bold flavours and combinations. "While most burger brands use frozen patties, we use freshly-made ones. We bake all our buns in-house and make some of the sauces, too," he added.