<h2>Aiming high</h2>
<p>Abha Ahire, a 10- year-old &nbsp;budding athlete, practises her badminton skills at a parking lot in Sion.</p>
<h2>Using AI, the right way</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/nov/Shakun-Batra_e.jpg" alt="Shakun Batra with the students.  PIC COURTESY/BRAIN BRISTLE" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>Shakun Batra with the students. PIC COURTESY/BRAIN BRISTLE</em></strong></p>
<p>Filmmaker Shakun Batra, along with foundation Brain Bristle, conducted a workshop on cinema and Artificial Intelligence (AI) Art at MPS DN Nagar School, Andheri. This diarist reached out to Devangana Mishra, founder of Brain Bristle, to know more. &ldquo;He [Batra] spoke to the students about how future filmmaking will involve a lot of AI. He taught them how to create avatars, and characters. Students had a great time exploring storytelling, and even created short AI films,&rdquo; Mishra described. &ldquo;We are looking to invite more people for such workshops, as it is great exposure for young minds.&rdquo; While many are sceptical about the over-reliance of AI among children, it&rsquo;s also vital to move with the times.</p>
<h2>Skyfall in Dehradun</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/nov/Kids-dancing_e.jpg" alt="Children dance with balloons to Usha Uthup&rsquo;s rendition of Mera Naam Chin Chin Chu" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>Children dance with balloons to Usha Uthup&rsquo;s rendition of Mera Naam Chin Chin Chu</em></strong></p>
<p>My granddaughter warned me not to embarrass her,&rdquo; chuckled 78-year-old Usha Uthup as she lit up the final evening of the Dehradun Literature Festival. At her charming best &mdash; she had the Doon crowd crooning to jingles &mdash; Uthup was at her groovy best.</p>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/nov/Usha-Uthup_e.jpg" alt="Uthup at DLF" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>Uthup at DLF</em></strong></p>
<p>Starting with Adele&rsquo;s Skyfall, she soon had the crowd on its feet with a playlist that included Dum Maro Dum and Mera Naam Chin Chin Chu, among other hits. Even the presence of their teachers did not stop the Doon International School kids from joining in. This diarist spotted a party in the back of the crowd, balloons in tow. A cool way to woo Gen Z, we&rsquo;d say.&nbsp;</p>
<h2>Vada wow idea</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/nov/Sagvekar-vada-pav_e.jpg" alt="Shreyas Sagvekar hands out vada pavs. PIC COURTESY/ @ROLLINGLOUDINDiA" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>Shreyas Sagvekar hands out vada pavs. PIC COURTESY/@ROLLINGLOUDINDIA</em></strong></p>
<p>Rapper Shreyas Sagvekar knows the way to a Mumbaikar&rsquo;s heart. Leading up to his performance at the Rolling Loud Music Festival in Kharghar on November 23, the Punekar set up a vada pav stall near Radio Club in Colaba on Monday to promote his upcoming EP, Antarrashtriya. &ldquo;We ended up drawing more attention than expected. At one point, we had to request the crowds to disperse,&rdquo; he said. We take our vada pav seriously, Shreyas.&nbsp;</p>
<h2>Love the Blues</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/nov/Rober-Randolph-a_e.jpg" alt="A moment from the all-stars performance last year.  PIC COURTESY/MBF" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>A moment from the all-stars performance last year. PIC COURTESY/MBF</em></strong></p>
<p>February 14 might be three long, chilly months away, but this diarist is planning ahead of time this year. The Mahindra Blues Festival (MBF) is set to return for its 14th edition on February 14 and 15, Jay Shah, cultural outreach head, revealed to this diarist. Coinciding with Valentine&rsquo;s Day, the festival will take place at Mehboob Studios in Bandra West. Watch this space for updates on this year&rsquo;s line-up. It&rsquo;s going to be a power-packed list with some big blues names, Shah assured us.</p>
<h2>No kidding, Shashi Tharoor!</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/nov/Kini-a_e.jpg" alt="(From left) Abhijeet Kini, Shashi Tharoor, and Khyrunnisa A at the book launch. PIC COURTESY/@abhikini on instagram" width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>(From left) Abhijeet Kini, Shashi Tharoor, and Khyrunnisa A at the book launch. PIC COURTESY/@abhikini on Instagram</em></strong></p>
<p>The launch of the second graphic novel of Khyrunnisa A&rsquo;s World of Butterfingers: Halloween Adventure in Thiruvananthapuram had a special guest. The presence of Lok Sabha MP Shashi Tharoor at the session only added to the glamour quotient. &ldquo;This is the second graphic novel, and the ninth edition of the series, Butterfingers. I have illustrated it for Khyrunnisa since it first came out in 2007,&rdquo; shared city-based illustrator Abhijeet Kini. While Tharoor&rsquo;s presence might feel odd for the launch of a children&rsquo;s graphic novel, the Sahitya Akademi-awardee is more than familiar with the series, shared Kini. &ldquo;He actually is familiar with the series. People think he can be very serious, which he is, but he also can be funny,&rdquo; the illustrator recalled. From the school yard fights, to talks, and punishments, there was also a special mention for the &lsquo;bee stings&rsquo; from the annoyed dad and mom that left the MP chuckling. &ldquo;The idea behind turning the series into a graphic novel was to encourage children to read more. He certainly agrees to that,&rdquo; concluded Kini. &nbsp;</p>

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