Butt naturally!

An activity like stubbing a cigarette and then walking past is what this diarist does not count as something ominous, particularly when not near wires or inflammable objects. So we were surprised when someone was calling out from outside the Dr Bhau Daji Lad Museum prior to an assignment. Interestingly, this man — stocky, slightly suspicious and way shorter than me — called me “Ei chhotu…tsch tsch.” So we went asked what the matter was. He pointed to the mutilated butt in the drain and hollered, “Is this where you throw cigarettes?” We must admit that like most of the cigarette smoking urban population, we do. But taken aback by this possibly immensely conscientious citizen or lunatic, we apologised. It’s when he began to unbutton his shirt that we felt threatened. He, however, took out a card from somewhere and said that he worked for the BMC and there was a fine for this kind of action. He suggested that we settle it among ourselves or be ready to be taken to the police station. Despite being fascinated by the prospect of following up this cigarette trail, we had a deadline to meet and so we arrived at a negotiation where neither speaks about the other. From then on we ask each time, “Dear sirs, where do I stub this cigarette?”

Dance like Shahenshah

Even if you are not a die-hard Bollywood fan, we feel the dialogue,“Rishtey mein toh hum tumhare baap lagte hain, naam hai Shahenshah” strikes a chord. The epic costume and Big B’s histrionics make the character unforgettable. Recently, this diarist received an email about Orchestra Shahenshah Returns, which was a part of Independence Day celebrations. The mail mentioned that the orchestra would “incorporate all latest trends in the last 25 years in the music world.” The highlights, it claimed, would be “the big and spectacular sets, Bollywood-style lights, turbo sound system, DLP Projector, 8 x 8 feet screen, disco platform, dance performance by famous dancers, marvelous choreography and amazing music direction by Nitin Shankar.” Also, an AV showing a clip of the original song will be screened simultaneously. We missed this one, but we’re sure it would have had crazy flashback moments!