<h2>Yay or Neigh?</h2>
<p>A visitor at the ongoing Kala Ghoda Arts Festival pores over her phone in the foreground of a striking installation depicting a brightly coloured reimagination of the eponymous horse.</p>
<h2>Book riot in Dombivli&nbsp;</h2>
<p><img title="Readers at the book exchange; (right) an installation of books in the shape of the Devanagari letter &lsquo;M&rsquo;" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/jan/dos-twenty-nine-jan-b_e.jpg" alt="Readers at the book exchange; (right) an installation of books in the shape of the Devanagari letter &lsquo;M&rsquo;" width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>Readers at the book exchange; (right) an installation of books in the shape of the Devanagari letter &lsquo;M&rsquo;</em></strong></p>
<p>Books are often called man&rsquo;s greatest companion, and this adage found a new meaning at Dombivli-based Pai&rsquo;s-Friends Library which hosted a multi-lingual book exchange festival at Savlaram Maharaj Mhatre Sport Complex. &ldquo;We were inspired by open air book exchange festivals in Europe and wanted to do something similar for the city,&rdquo; Pundalik Pai, founding member, told this diarist. The recently concluded festival housed nearly one lakh books and featured an installation of the letter &lsquo;M&rsquo; in Devanagari to commemorate Marathi being conferred the status of a classical language. &nbsp;&ldquo;We ensured that the festival not only focuses on a single language but a range of Indian languages including Urdu poetry, Marathi novels and English bestsellers,&rdquo; Pai shared.&nbsp;</p>
<h2>Canvas call in New Delhi</h2>
<p><img title="Sahil Arora and Jeet Thayil.  File pics" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/jan/dos-twenty-nine-jan-h_e.jpg" alt="Sahil Arora and Jeet Thayil.  File pics" width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>Sahil Arora and Jeet Thayil. &nbsp;File pics</em></strong></p>
<p>City-based art space Method is expanding its canvas northwards with a new venue in Delhi. Set to open on January 31, the Defence Colony space will mark the gallery&rsquo;s first foray outside Mumbai. &ldquo;The new space has a very raw, industrial vibe to it, with a 18-ft high ceiling that gives us more freedom to experiment,&rdquo; co-founder Sahil Arora revealed. Opening with an ensemble exhibition paired with a music gig, Arora looks forward to future programming that is set to bring familiar names like poet-author Jeet Thayil on board.</p>
<h2>Batting for a greener future</h2>
<p><img title="Sahir Doshi in conversation with students at a session" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/jan/dos-twenty-nine-jan-f_e.jpg" alt="Sahir Doshi in conversation with students at a session" width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>Sahir Doshi in conversation with students at a session</em></strong></p>
<p>City-based naturalist Sahir Doshi&rsquo;s visit to Dubai is powered by rhyme, and reason. After shining a light on conservation and sustainability at the Nature Connection Conference at Jebel Ali School in Mudon, Dubai, Doshi is now using rap music to spread the word among students. &ldquo;The children are loving it. They join me in the chorus of my impromptu raps featuring animals and birds, some even chime in with their own rhymes,&rdquo; the naturalist shared over a call from Dubai.&nbsp;<br />Doshi will remember the trip for more reasons than one. At the conference venue, the naturalist found an unusual ally in Sri Lankan international cricketer Wanindu Hasaranga. &ldquo;I had no idea Hasaranga was an avid wildlife photographer. Coincidentally, Sri Lanka happens to be home to leopards, just like Mumbai. It was a pleasant surprise. We had an insightful chat before presenting our photographs to the bright minds in the audience,&rdquo; Doshi revealed.</p>
<p><img title="Doshi with Sri Lankan cricketer Wanindu Hasaranga" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/jan/dos-twenty-nine-jan-g_e.jpg" alt="Doshi with Sri Lankan cricketer Wanindu Hasaranga" width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>Doshi with Sri Lankan cricketer Wanindu Hasaranga</em></strong></p>
<h2>The blues of Bengal</h2>
<p><img title="Salim John Sadiq in performance" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/jan/dos-twenty-nine-jan-e_e.jpg" alt="Salim John Sadiq in performance" width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>Salim John Sadiq in performance</em></strong></p>
<p>Siliguri-based blues band John Blue Ensemble have struck a chord far away from home in Mumbai. The blues trio comprising Kunal Kalikotay, Anish Chanda and Salim John Sadiq bagged the Mahindra Blues Big Blues Band Hunt title after a tough competition at a Lower Parel venue on Monday, judged by stalwarts Ehsaan Noorani and Zubin Balaporia. With the win, the band now looks forward to playing at the two-day festival that begins on February 8. &ldquo;The audience for pure blues music is limited, but we stuck to our guns and took the challenge head on. This win is a reassurance that you need not tweak the genre to make it big,&rdquo; the trio shared. Judges Noorani and Balaporia had it no easier, we learnt. &ldquo;Choosing between the finalists was extremely difficult. We were stoked to see how good these guys were. They are torchbearers of Indian blues. Blues in India is alive and rocking!&rdquo; the duo said. &nbsp;</p>
<p><img title="Zubin Balaporia, Kunal Kalikotay, Anish Chanda, Sadiq and Ehsaan Noorani" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/jan/dos-twenty-nine-jan-d_e.jpg" alt="Zubin Balaporia, Kunal Kalikotay, Anish Chanda, Sadiq and Ehsaan Noorani" width="1280" height="720" /><em><strong>Zubin Balaporia, Kunal Kalikotay, Anish Chanda, Sadiq and Ehsaan Noorani</strong></em></p>
<h2>No going back this February</h2>
<p><img title="A moment from the 2024  edition of Mumbai Pride Parade " src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/jan/dos-twenty-nine-jan-c_e.jpg" alt="A moment from the 2024  edition of Mumbai Pride Parade " width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>A moment from the 2024 edition of Mumbai Pride Parade&nbsp;</em></strong></p>
<p>On the back of more than 14 lead-up events, Mumbai Queer Pride is all set to unveil the Mumbai Pride Parade on February 1. &ldquo;In light of countries like Georgia, Kazakhstan and USA passing regressive bills recently, the theme this year is &lsquo;No Going Back&rsquo;,&rdquo; revealed Ashish Pandya, organising member, adding that the parade will kick off at August Kranti Maidan to the beats of Shikhandi Dhol Tasha Pathak, a Pune-based group comprising transgender percussionists.</p><p>
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