Lead us into light
Lanterns and colourful lamps mark the occasion of Diwali at Tapovan building in Lower Parel.
Sip stops for Mumbai’s furry friends
A group of puppies nap around a water bowl placed by the NGO
At Bandra station, when this diarist spotted water bowls placed by the PAL Foundation, we reached out to the NGO. “In the past three years, we’ve distributed over 3,500 bowls across Mumbai and the suburbs,” shared senior police inspector Sudhir Kudalkar, founder of Pure Animal Lover Foundation (PAL). The bowls are donated to rescuers through the foundation’s WhatsApp groups. “We try our best to provide water all year round, and aim to donate water bowls pan-Maharashtra and beyond soon,” concluded Sejal Harsora, rescue and legal coordinator at PAL.
Playing house on Diwali
Ghorpade at the console (right) the crowd at the celebration. Pics Courtesy/Nishant Patil
The Diwali pahaat (Diwali morning) tradition took a twist at Phadke Road in Dombivli East. With a captive audience of Gen-Zers out celebrating, DJ Krunal Ghorpade aka Kratex brought out his staple house music to the suburbs on Thursday. With his latest track, Taambdi chaamdi going viral, the DJ had no difficulty in getting the crowd to groove. “I have been in Dombivli for a club gig before. The last Diwali pahaat I played in was at Ram Maruti Road in Thane West. Unfortunately, then people were not sure of what house music was. This time, the crowd was fantastic, and their reception stunned me,” said Ghorpade.
Words from a city’s heart
Poet and Sahitya Akademi Award-winner, Anju Makhija is set to launch her collection of poems and plays titled Changing, Unchanging: New and Selected Poems (1995-2023) on November 12. “The idea was to put together 25 years’ worth of poems that are representative of my works,” Makhija (inset) shared. With award winning-poems such as Pickling Season, and A Farmer’s Ghost leading the line, the collection includes some of her dramatic verses. “The Last Train will be part of the dramatic verse section. In addition, there are 30 to 35 new poems in the collection,” she revealed. Among the additions will be a series of poems built around conversations with teens from the underprivileged section of society. “It is titled Minor Voices, and offers an expression to the children who lack one. The book covers a whole gamut of thoughts rather than a single topic,” she concluded.
What’s next for Darry’s house?
An earlier view of the café interiors
Darry’s House in Bandra West recently shared, in the form of a typewritten script on social media, that the café is going on a break. “To honour the spirit of Bombay and its creators, we decided to pause operations briefly to improve our kitchen and train additional staff,” said founder, Darren Saldanha (left). As for reopening, he shared, “We will reopen, with new offerings, and also be open at night. Stay tuned for this November.”
Room for dessert
The doodle on Eros theatre (right) Patil’s illustration on Diwali crackers. Pics Courtesy/Instagram
Is it a cake? Is it a building? No! It’s the iconic Eros Cinema in illustrator Omkar Patil’s new real-life doodle series. “I started seeing familiar shapes in Mumbai’s iconic buildings while walking around the city as a student at Sir JJ School of Art recently. South Mumbai’s Art Deco and Gothic architecture has always fascinated me, and the cherry on the cake in the doodle is a nod to the recently completed renovation efforts,” shared Patil, who has also released a Diwali-special doodle highlighting the perils of bursting loud firecrackers in the city.
