Mumbai Diary: Thursday Dossier

Pic/Sayyed Sameer Abedi

Water under the bridge

Buddhist monks peer at the sea from the viewing deck in Dadar.

Getting sporty with K-pop

BTS members play badminton. PIC COURTESY/YOUTUBE

Korean pop music enthusiasts, get ready to tap into your sporty side. Come February 11, the Mumbai BTS community will host a one-of-a-kind sports day, where each participant will represent a K-pop band at Ghatkopar's Boxplay. Founder Ayushre A Tari (inset) informed this diarist that they are accepting entries for the six K-pop-inspired teams that include Bulletproof Crew, Stray Kids Thunder, Twice Titans, Super 17, Red Ravens and Ehhpen All-Stars. "K-pop gatherings have become common in the city; here, fans get together and dance to either their favourite band's songs or to songs from the genre in general. This year, we wanted to introduce something different," said Tari. Sharing with us about how sports plays a huge role in the South Korean culture, she said, "We thought of bringing the two seemingly different fields together, and offer the city-based fans something completely new." The outdoor games include a relay race, lazy-dizzy, tug-of-war and dodgeball. "There will be 60 participants [10 in each team] and separate passes for those who wish to watch. A second space will simultaneously host a fiesta, where you can expect performances, food, merchandise, fireworks and more," she revealed. Those keen to participate in the games can drop a message on 9967489608.

Ace of hearts for a forever love

A photo of Hema and Murli Deora from their family album

Hema Deora, philanthropist and ace bridge player, is wife to late Murli Deora, former Mayor of Mumbai and cabinet minister with the Congress government. Particularly nostalgic on January 10, his birthday, she told this diarist, "It is a day full of memories tinged with sadness." Deora is set to celebrate the man and his memories through a bridge tourney. The Murli Deora Memorial Bridge Trophy will be played at the Bombay Gymkhana Club on January 20. "Earlier, this tourney used to be held concurrently with the national winter bridge competitions played across Delhi, Rajasthan and Bengaluru. But, my husband was quintessentially a city man. Mumbai, quite literally, ran in his blood. I decided to have the tourney in his city. I expect at least 80 to 90 participants to compete; the response has been overwhelming." Interestingly, Deora, who won the bronze medal in the mixed team event at Asian Games in 2018, was introduced to bridge by Murli. "He'd play bridge at home with friends, come hail, flood or storm. They'd be so absorbed, they didn't even realise what snacks they were eating! At that time, I was not interested in the game. When my sons left for university, I had free time and began playing bridge, taking it up seriously." Of January 20, Hema is sure that her husband will be smiling from above, witnessing the one-day tourney. The warmth proves that bridge sessions aside, he is still her king of hearts.

Green lessons for schools

Bundles of paper collected to upcycle and compile into books

A city-based organisation is turning a new page towards a greener future with an initiative to give all those unused pages from your notebooks a new lease of life. Greenline Mumbai's pilot project towards creating sustainable upcycled notebooks, The Blank Page Project, has collected unused blank papers from Don Bosco High School and Don Bosco International School in Matunga, and Oberoi International School in Jogeshwari in an attempt to turn them into usable books for underprivileged students. "We are currently working with 38 schools across Mumbai, Pune and Lonavala under our Green School campaign. This is the first time that we are attempting to use the waste from schools to upcycle it. If the notebooks turn out well, we hope to expand our operations to a larger scale, and involve more schools," Keren Pereira, programme coordinator, said.

This one's for Rachel

Rachel D'Lima and Alfred D'Souza

The Stop Gaps Cultural Academy will now offer The Rachel D'Lima Choral Singer Scholarship, in memory of a member who passed away last year. The Academy's founder, Alfred D'Souza, told this diarist, "Rachel was an integral part of the Stop Gaps. The scholarship is instituted by Rachel's family to keep her memory alive," he continued, "It will waive fees for promising youngsters who would like to join the choir, receive regular vocal training, learn technique and perform with the ensemble." The scholarship is meant for singers between the ages of 16 and 22. Those who wish to apply can email thestopgaps.admin@gmail.com.