Mumbai Diary: Tuesday Dossier

Pic/Atul Kamble

Gully boys

A batsman stretches to reach his crease in a game of gully cricket at Thakurdwar in Girgaon.

Dhak(e) Dhak(e) fixit for this feline

While most of Dhake Colony in Azad Nagar, Andheri West was enjoying a relaxed Sunday, some Good Samaritans of the landmark housing society along with Mumbai fire brigade marshals and one Arif Khan, owner of New Life Watch Repairs, in Azad Nagar - who this diarist shall dub as Man of the Match - were involved in a cat rescue.

Firefighters oversee the rescue; (right) the tree on which the cat was trapped

Dhake Colony chairman Anand Shirali stated with a laugh that this cat, a familiar sight in the neighbourhood, "had some high aspirations in life, but failed to gauge ground reality." On Sunday, it managed to scale a coconut tree in the colony, to a two-storey height, but then was stuck there unable to come down. The struggling feline was spotted by resident Nikita Sachdev after which operation cat rescue began.

In came the hero, Khan, who volunteered to get on to the parapet with a harness to try and rescue the poor creature. While different colony residents were watching, participating and commenting on the goings on, with watchman Pintu doubling as videographer, Khan effected the rescue, as efficiently and clinically as India's cricket victory against South Africa on Sunday. The colony's man of the match was finally successful after a 50-minute operation. Several colony residents were happy to share cookies all around as their resident feline was brought down safely, putting the wow into the meow.

Return to the canvas

Choudhari with a canvas (right) an artwork of Lord Shiva from the series

While many give up on their artistic dreams under the burden of professional stress, the joint commissioner, GST, Maharashtra, Nidhi Choudhari is set to host an exhibition at the NESCO grounds in Goregaon East as part of the Haat of Art festival from November 9. "My first introduction to art began with sketching and colouring for a Hindi newspaper competition as a child," recalled the former collector of Mumbai suburban region. Having restarted her tryst with the canvas in 2019, she said, "I do things consistently and persistently. I know that I don't have as much time to paint as others, but I have tried to paint every week even if it's for half an hour."

An abstract painting of Lord Ganesha that will be part of the exhibition

The IAS officer held the first exhibition of her works in January this year, and is already in talks with galleries in Delhi and Kolkata for solo shows in the future. The weekend show will feature portraits of Lord Shiva, Ganesha and Goddess Kali painted after her recent visits to Char Dham in June, she said. "Since the exhibition is coming up closer to Diwali, most of the paintings on display are those of Lord Ganesha," Choudhari told this diarist.

Rocking Beatz

A moment from the performance

What's more rock and roll than children belting out big notes at a rock concert? The Beatz Crew from Kanakia International School, Chembur, showcased their hardcore side at Mahindra Independence Rock in Mumbai over the weekend. The performance was a pleasant surprise, especially when the choir was joined by children from the Project Nanhi Kali Foundation, which works towards educating underprivileged girls in India. Speaking about the performance, conductor Felix Hug shared, "For the first time, we performed a Hindi song, Zinda, and Stick it to the man from the Hollywood musical, School of Rock (2003). Zinda was suggested by the kids, it's the type of music they listen to. It came naturally to them. From the first guitar riff, the crowd recognised the song and supported the kids; people in the front row began headbanging, too." With nearly 50 performers including young instrumentalists, the choir certainly chose the right location to make their mark.