Mumbai Diary: Tuesday Dossier

Pic/Satej Shinde

Horsing around

A young equestrian manoeuvres a 60-cm jump at the weekend horse show at Mahalaxmi Racecourse

Peace, prayer and community bonding

A participant leads the prayer session at the gathering

Followers of the 14th Dalai Lama gathered at the Ananda Buddha Vihar in Parel on Sunday to celebrate an aspect of his life that the world perhaps needs the most today. The celebrations of the 34th anniversary of the Dalai Lama's Nobel Peace Prize win saw a congregation of nearly 150 followers, including those from the Tibetan community of Mumbai.

The 14th Dalai Lama. Pic courtesy/Wikimedia Commons

They conducted prayer sessions and readings of Tibetan folk writings, while the women of the community organised a music and dance performance to conclude the session. "The resident Tibetan population in Mumbai adds up to nearly 100. This year, we saw participation from native sweater-making communities that are making a pitstop in the city on their way to the southern states. We welcome followers with open arms. It was great to see people from all walks of life joining in this year," Indrajeet Laurence, an organising team member, told this diarist.

An unscripted surprise

Rochelle Potkar

Mumbai-based author and poet Rochelle Potkar woke up to good news last week when her film script titled Catharsis was shortlisted for the 2023 International Literary Prize organised by Hammond House, UK. "The script was originally a short story that I wrote a few years ago. I adapted it for the screen when I transitioned to screenwriting in 2018. Short stories and short film scripts don't see much demand unlike novels or feature-lengths. Moreover, an international competition attracts applicants from the world over and so, I had no expectations. It was a pleasant surprise," she shared.

Three woofs from Goa's doggos

Shivani Mathur (second from left) with her team

Mumbai's Shivani Mathur is creating pawsome waves across Goa with her ongoing All Dogs Matter camp. Founder of the individual initiative Give Goa Dogs, the canine behaviourist has set up an eight-week pop-up campaign in Margao that aims at vaccinating, sterilising and microchipping at least 2,500 community dogs.

A volunteer with a dog at the camp

"We have crossed that mark," she shared. With less than a week left for the campaign to wrap up, Mathur informed us that they have been able to complete at least 90 surgeries per day. "We wish to set an example for welfare centres across India," she added.

Donning new colours of karma

A volunteer paints the ceiling in the classroom

For Norwegian entrepreneur and yoga practitioner Alexander Medin (below), yoga heals more than just the body. Having introduced yoga to prison inmates in Norway 10 years ago, Medin makes an annual trip to India as part of their karma yoga.

"It is a way of service without expecting returns," he shared. During his current visit, the group of 20 recovering addicts will be spending the week painting and refurbishing a classroom at Gamdevi's Seva Sadan Society as their effort to give something back to society.

Walking the talk

Young participants display posters during the walk

While the city lets out a collective long sigh watching the AQI skyrocket, a group of young volunteers led an awareness walk on Sunday at Marine Drive, joined by participants as young as 12-years-old. The initiative by the Change Is Us foundation saw a montage of thought-provoking posters, street plays and a Q&A session with experts. "Change can be brought about only when we get the message out to the streets. We began as a small group but soon, nearly 400 passers-by joined us," Shubh Mehta, co-founder, told this diarist.