Mumbai Paused

Princess Street Flyover

2012-01-27T16:13:00.004+05:30

Bridges of Mumbai : Princess Street Flyover.

An old favourite landmark in Hindi movies. But of all the movies it has appeared in, I remember it best from Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, along with the Marine Lines station.

JJ Flyover

2012-01-26T10:24:00.007+05:30

Bridges of Mumbai 2: What we fly over. The JJ Flyover.

This design of the bridge and the place underneath is very similar to another bridge or flyover in Bangalore and serves the same purpose - the city market.

Both these places are also the best place to shoot street photographs in these cities - mainly because the people are friendly here and are too busy minding their own business.

See the full bridges of Mumbai Series.

Here's an old photo of the Bangalore City Market flyover.

Mahim Bay

2012-01-25T13:18:00.004+05:30

Bridges of Mumbai 1: Sea-Link

Once upon a time,
this city had 7 islands.
Today,
we have 15 million.

Tu tera dekh.

Haji Ali

2012-01-24T12:36:00.006+05:30

Lovely. These reusable caps that they have at the Haji Ali Dargah. Also, click here are some caps from outside Bangalore's Cottonpet Dargah.

N Bharucha Marg

2012-01-23T09:29:00.005+05:30

Ms Hawa Hawai 21st century version : Suman Shridhar.

You can't ignore the songs she's made to sing by Bollywood and the advertising industry. She's the fresh sound of old melodies designed to make you to sit up and listen, love it or leave it.

In the world of television advertising, deep pockets are no longer enough to reach out or cut through the clutter. You have the first few seconds of 15 seconds to catch my attention and she did it with the new version of this classic a few years back and in another yuga by advertising standards. And the sad part, the use of remixes is being done to death; it's also become part of the clutter.

But Suman is unlikely to go out of fashion. Like advertising, she comes with deep roots, solid grounding and ideas in music that will rise above fads. Watch out.

Madh Island

2012-01-20T17:11:00.003+05:30

This is the wall painting in a fisherman's home in Madh Village.

This is a lid I found on a stove outside in the same lane as the above house.

And here's the inside of one more home.

Interesting. No?

Hamam Street

2012-01-19T13:08:00.000+05:30

The footballers of Hamam Street.

Mahim Bay

2012-01-18T09:09:00.004+05:30

Mithi's Mouth. City Smell.

It's a blessing that you can't smell photographs yet. But this is where the collective crap of Greater Mumbai carried by our famous river with a sweet name slowly clouds the Arabian Sea while doing a slow dance with the tides.

That is also one reason you find very people coming here to enjoy the beautiful sunsets. This fragrance of ours and the landmines of digested food that the tide is yet to wash.

Mia Md. Chhotani Road (Mahim)

2012-01-17T10:43:00.003+05:30

Work Space Mumbai. Needful Things. Winter Collection.

I finally met the man who sells odd things on the footpath opposite the Parsi Colony gate.

His name is Balu, and this is also his home for a very long time. His mother-tongue is Marathi. He picks up stuff which he thinks are interesting from the kachrawallas and displays them. He manages to fill his stomach with it.

These are the images from the previous seasons.

Festival Collection. September

Spring Collection. March

Monsoon Collection - July

See the full Mumbai Work Space Series here.

VAG - Mumbai Metro Railway

2012-01-16T09:06:00.008+05:30

Someone named Sonia seems to the No. 1 among the workers who are building our Mumbai Metro East-West corridor. Her name adorns almost all stations from Andheri to Ghatkopar.

Follow the safety rules, boys.

Imamwada Lane, Dongri + Andheri

2012-01-15T08:45:00.004+05:30

The Mogul Masijid and the Imamwada street in Dongri is decked up by kite lovers. It's Uttarayan.

Mahim Bay

2012-01-13T12:11:00.007+05:30

City of Drummers.

Mumbai probably has the largest number of drummers in the world. Festivals, urs, weddings, processions, rallies, etc. they are out in the streets creating maximum decibels over and above the maximum noise the city produces 24/7. We usually import the best street drummers from Nashik and across Marathwada but our local homegrown are trying to match their beats.

However, no locality in the city will allow them to practice within ear-shot. So they have to find the most difficult thing to find in the city, open space.

City of Drummers. But no space for drummers.

Popular desolate drumming locations:

JVLR. Between SEEPZ and L&T
Wadala: Track between Wadala Junction and King's Circle/GTB
Wadala near IMAX
Mankhurd. Near Salt Pans
Eastern Express Highway Between Ramabai and all the way to Bhandup Pumping Station Bus Stop.

Sam reports:
When you go towards Kalyan on the Central line, you come across a place called Diva. There is a group that practices there and also along the tracks near Dombivli.

Please do let me k now if you have boys drumming away anywhere else. I can add to the list...

Dr Shirodkar Road, Parel

2012-01-12T09:44:00.005+05:30

Chai Time Snacks

It's not just the chai. It's everything around it that makes it chai time.

This is my regular chai place. BMC vans come regularly and pull down the few sticks that hold it up and take away the stove but it's usually back in a few days and after a little greasing.

One day, the tea that we were served had the smell of coffee. When we asked the assistant the reason, he told us that he had some extra coffee and he didn't want to waste it, so he added it to the simmering tea.

The funny thing was that Chai-coffee combination actually worked.

For those who work high up in the sky.

The people who usually drink chai here are the labourers who are building this really tall skyscraper, the men who ferry the cylinders at the Gas Agency, execs from the 5-star hotel next door and the occasional college students.

And finally, the Account Book. On Credit. It's called after taste

Lalbag-Parel-Shivdi

2012-01-11T11:03:00.005+05:30

Least Possible Dream and the name of a new Lalbag-Parel Marathi film: One Room Kitchen.

Once upon a time it was about living with a family. Now, the times have changed as you can see from the couples in the poster. The nuclear family and the slow ticking bomb called housing crisis. Nice idea for a movie.

Worth seeing: The chawl days... Atul Loke's photo series: My Chawl - One big family. This could be the good old days or days best forgotten depending on your stage in life.

If you have the time, watch Sai Paranjpe's Katha

Love Lane, Mazgaon

2012-01-10T11:58:00.002+05:30

Jai Bhim Comrade - Anand Patwardhan

Anand Patwardhan's latest story 'Jai Bhim Comrade' captures the most important among the thousands of conflicts in India, the fight for equality by the Dalits of Maharashtra and the attitude and the resulting actions of the rest.

It was screened at the BITS Chawl, situated on Love Lane, Mazgaon, behind Byculla Police Station. The compound behind Byculla Station had a big crowd yesterday evening because there was a big Police Van with the pale skinned Bar Girls who were captured in raids last week waiting to go somewhere and everybody there was trying to see how white-white the Bar Girls are.

BITS Chawl, a relatively large chawl, is a short walk from the Police Station and is home to mostly working-class Marathi-speakers. It's supposed to be associated with the Ambedkar movement and its followers but it's infamous for troubles during the Hindu-Muslim riots. The official name of Love Lane is Sheth Moti Shah Marg.

I had no clue about what the film was about and I was surprised by the powerful sound system that was being tuned in preparation for the screening. To avoid getting deaf in one ear, I found seat in the middle and that was the best decision of the evening. Because the film turned out to be a fabulous musical trip.

Jai Bhim Comrade is the story of a Dalit poet-singer Vilas Ghogre, from a Mulund-East slum with a powerful voice, even more powerful words, and an excellent band with simple struments to whip up passions. Many of the words in his poetry, written in the 80s and early 90s are however about an ideal communist paradise which are unattainable.

He committed suicide following the killing of 10 people from Ramabai Colony, adjoining the Eastern Express Highway in 1997 in police firing following the desecration of a Dr Ambedkar Statue. The film follows the case until the conviction of the Police Officer who ordered the firing. But what holds the film together and the attention of the audience are the songs. The poetry that rolls of the lips of ordinary but extraordinary people - the music of the people.

There are more than a few dozen stories in this documentary. You can pick up the threads of each one of them and follow them. The story of the singers, political movements, the Marathi language of the chawls and villages, the propaganda of the left, right and the dalits, the story of money in Mumbai and Maharashtra politics, the living conditions of the ghettos, the comparison of living in a chawl now and a decade back. The stories of individual politicians provide the comic relief. The story of the main caste groups in India and the many stories that are cultivated to mobilise people. The story of neo-buddhism. There's a very interesting story of the Dalit Panther founder - Bhai Sangari using his speeches. There's the story of the threat of godification of Dr Ambedkar caused by his devotees. And then there is the story of Pune's Kabir Kala Manch and their singers. The Indian Rage Against Against The Machine and the odd thing is that they aren't rebels or fighting for anarchy, they are fighting for democracy.

The film is 3 hours long and if you are interested in the subject, you would probably have to watch it another time to pick up the different threads you would've missed.

But the main story remains that of Vilas Ghogre who kills himself. He prefers to do so as a Dalit. You will have to see the film to know how he leaves that message. While the Ramabai Killings and the Dalit cause seems to be the trigger for his action, there are several layers to the story, his as well as the Dalit story, to make him take such an extreme step. Look out for the wedding shots of Vilas' son, years after his death, to provide some of the reasons. And of the main reason for his act and an important story in this film is the story of Mumbai from the 50s to the present from a Dalit perspective.

Jai Bhim Comrade is also Jai Bhim Comrade Mumbaikar.

Mahim Bay

2012-01-08T20:42:00.006+05:30

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Work Space Mumbai. Fishermen.

Their backs are turned to the city, most of the time, their lives revolve around their villages that still stand out as the original settlements on this Island. Their lives do not work according to the clock that keeps the clickety-clack of our local trains clicking but the rise and fall of the tides and the direction of the ocean currents. We are the Bhumiputras and fight like dogs over pockets of land. They look at us and laugh because their hearts own the sea that surround our little bickering islands.

Colaba

2012-01-06T09:13:00.007+05:30

Work Space Mumbai: Bombay Lifts.

Do the people who operate the old Bombay lifts pass time counting bars?

Haji Ali

2012-01-05T10:47:00.003+05:30

Sallu Bhai!

Work Space Mumbai: Instant Photographers of Haji Ali.

Also see: Instant Photographers of Gateway of India

Haji Ali

2012-01-04T09:02:00.007+05:30

Thanksgiving.

Grandpa Peer! Thank you for favours received at حاجی علی درگاہ, હાજી અલી દરગાહ). हाजी अली दर्गा. Haji Ali Dargah.

Lovely poem on Last Bus To Vasco:
Brian Mendonca: For my son of 14 days

Also at around Haji Ali:
Lapataganj. Missing at Haji Ali

Race day

Sir P M Road

2012-01-03T08:53:00.006+05:30

Remove the purdah for Aastha Banan Atray.

This is how most Mumbai girls get their daily dose of romance on their way to work or college; with the cover and the title covered up. But you can show of this new title from M&B, written by a passionate romantic from the city - the debut novel by the winner of the M&B Passion 2010 winner - Aastha. It also features an Indian cover that you can show the aunties with raised eyebrows.

Aastha's day job is to dig out stories like this one about Mumbai's very own Fight Club and this award winning story about the Hoop Dreams of Nagpada girls. Little did anyone suspect that she was going home and weaving romantic dreams in another window.

You can also read Aastha's stories in the Open Magazine, where she is the Assistant Editor.

You can buy the book from our delivery boys from Bangalore: Flipkart

If you have passionate, romantic stories that you want to publish, you can take part in M&B Passion Contest. Check this out. And you could be the next Aastha.

Madh Village

2012-01-01T22:30:00.011+05:30

Tulsi.

Friday at noon, for a short while, I was running around the Chembur Cremation Ground/Electric crematorium looking around for Tulsi leaves. I was there for a friend's cremation and the last rites involved placing among other things, tulsi leaves (which an uncle had forgotten to buy from the market) on the lips . We didn't find a Tulsi plant in the relatively green grounds.

But, Madh and Versova fishing villages are among the few places in Mumbai where homes still have a place for the Tulsi or the Holy Basil plant (some now are home to the more Mumbai-appropriate money-plant and wild weeds). For the rest, Tulsi was a character from a soap.

Also, note the travelling salesman selling cloth in the last picture. Life goes on a different pace in these villages. It's closer to the pace of life in the open sea and the rise and ebb of tides.

Sandhurst Rd. Stn + Vashi Rly Stn.

2012-01-01T08:49:00.005+05:30

Old Man 2011. Goodbye.

His accessories: AK47, grenades and a bottle of alcohol.

On 31st evening, a group of youngsters from from the Hindu Janjagruti Group were asking people not to wish each other and celebrate a Paschyat or Western New Year. It's supposed to be against Hindu culture. Other reasons are in the placard: 31st Midnight means rape, accidents and alcoholic poisoning. Stop the crime.

I'm not sure if that's what all the thousands of people who ignored them and were in a hurry to get home and elsewhere to party did.

Happy new year!

MMRDA Grounds. BKC

2011-12-31T09:15:00.003+05:30

Anna Army's Clothes.

I'm as confused as you about how the screaming war against corruption is being fought. Even the war against terror is clearer than how this campaign is progressing. Like that war, the war on corruption is a war against yourself but you go around slaying everyone else. In the war against terror, the real enemy is the hatred within you for others that you cannot control and in this war, we are the corrupt. The foot-soldiers infantry-people who enthusiastically jump into the front line are lucky that this is not a war fought with bullets. They will survive and wonder for years about what went wrong they keep giving and collecting bribes.

Haryanvi winter dressing?

This is a language we Mumbaikars understand.

Joker from MP who came looking for TV cameras.

A man dressed as a colonial British red coat

One bag traveller.

What happened here?

Home-made Winter fashion.

I rather be in Goa

United Nations of Anna

Kurla (W)

2011-12-30T14:32:00.004+05:30

Huh?

Answers via twitter:
@URM1 says:
Mother, has father come (home)?
@rajeshtahil rajesh
marathi for 'who's your daddy?!' (and mummy)

@aseemrane It means "Mother (and) Father Arrived", it is a statement and not a question.

@rin_supreme "huh" that was my reaction too when I spotted this one on the road. Only the auto owner could explain it I think.

MMRDA Grounds. BKC

2011-12-28T09:35:00.005+05:30

Uncle Anna Wants You.

Gandhi, Tilak, Netaji and trying to be elevated to the same league - Anna.

Jhanda. Topi.
The Anna Cult of Personality

The crowd isn't that big and mMost of the people seem to be regular people who travel by train and bus. But there were people from all sections of society walking in but mainly to be part of the Anna Movement last evening.

The speeches from the stage are disappointing and just plain rant and slogans against corruption. Depth - a few inches. The Lok Sabha debate that was being beamed on the large screen without sound was probably better.

OK. We all know that we have a bad government at the centre and there is no point repeating it. It would have been nice if they used this expensive stage for a proper debate and not just sloganeering. And I don't think it was a good idea for having the children rant from the stage just because the sutradar thought that bachcha bachcha janta hain ki...

But this is India. The crowd, the mob, even this one which is not hired using biryani and spirit is not interested in a debate. Just decibels. And for Anna.

They are all here to see Anna and tell their children that they were here. Those woth kids brought them along. Bought Anna Topi for 10 Rupaiya. Flags for 50 and shouted Anna Hazare Zindabad.

A lot of complimentary copies of this magazine were floating around.

The evening headlines before the parliament counted the Ayes, Noes and what they do best to avoid responsibility - walk-outs.

Anna's amplifiers

Strange bedfellows - Anna and PETA.

The ISKCON wallas were here too. Still selling Gita and making money since the spotlight was on their controversy thanks to some idiots in some krishna-forsaken town, with a population of a typical Mumbai Co-operative Housing Society, in Siberia. Hare Lakshmi before Hare Krishna. And yes, Shubh labh.

Anna CDs about RTI, Jan Lok Pal and his work in his gaon.

Anna Topi. Rs. 5

Me Anna

Dressed for television.

A volunteer t-shirt.

This farmer from marathwada supports all parties and carries their flag on a padayatra all around maharashtra. While he was at MMRDA a man approached him for a small role in a Marathi movie he plans to shoot in Wai. The flagbearer of the nation and its many political parties looked confused. The filmwalla was surprised that the Shetkari didn't have a mobile number. He however has legs that keep him mobile.

A family from interior Maharashtra who came for the protest.

War Cry: I'm signing up for the final assault.

And finally an old song by Living color: Cult of personality:

Deonar

2011-12-27T22:36:00.002+05:30

I found this on the footpath outside TISS.

Even Anna needs a help from Rajni - Rajni's son-in-law.

Kurla + Dongri + Chuim + Madh

2011-12-27T09:23:00.012+05:30

"जानवरका" शहर

Forget Dogs Vs Cats, Anna Vs Shard Pawar, Pandu Vs Bhais, Middle Class Vs Autowallas. This city has more goats, hens and in some places, ducks, pecking scratching and being eaten by each other including us.

Ducks and cats are fed from the same pail in most Mumbai villages. The leftover fish curry from the houses are mixed with water and poured into them. And as usual, the crows try their best to steal the best pieces.

I'm calling her Matsyagandha. She didn't know what to do with this rat she caught. Played with the scared little rat for half an hour and got distracted by this net smelling of fish. The little rat lived. I'll call him Jerry Bhai.

Bombay

2011-12-25T16:29:00.002+05:30

Bombay Type.
Shots and extra shots from a photo-essay I did for MumbaiBoss.com

Flotsam and jetsam from Bombay time float as letters on the walls, doors and signboards of Mumbai. All you have to do is look at them and travel back in time.

Chuim Village

2011-12-24T10:03:00.004+05:30

Godification of Dr. BR Ambedkar. Protector of our living space.

Vile Parle (E)

2011-12-22T10:46:00.004+05:30

Work Space Mumbai Series: Autorickshaw Meter Repairwalla.

The taxiwallas have no problems using electronic meters. All the new taxis in town come with one. Their meters also seem to run at a lower speed than the autorikshawallas who continue to use mechanical meters. But that depends on the autowalla who is piloting you.

There's a system in place to calibrate and repair the meters that autowallas use. They need a permission from the RTO to open it up and there are authorised mechanics to do the job. These pictures are from one such establishment in Vile Parle where I had gone along with another Mumbai explorer Matt Daniels. Thank you, Matt!

They are touchy about their meters.

Byramji Jeejeebhoy Road (Father Agnel Ashram)

2011-12-21T09:38:00.003+05:30

Before marriage.

After marriage.

Candles, wishes and prayers at Father Agnel Ashram.

Madh Village

2011-12-20T07:01:00.004+05:30

The original residents of our city, know how to dress in style.

SP Mukherjee Chowk

2011-12-19T22:35:00.003+05:30

For Mumbai Boss: BOMBAY Type

For all of those who get nostalgic when you hear or use the word Bombay.

Madh Jetty

2011-12-16T23:09:00.005+05:30

The wonderful world of Mumbai Lottery branding.

Fruits. Alphabets. Tarzan. Traffic Jam. Rocking Dhamal.Bikes. Pagal. and New Style.

Madh Village

2011-12-16T14:56:00.003+05:30

SEO Special Executive Officer Snake Lover Animal Catcher.

We Indians worship snakes and try to feed reptiles mammalian milk. But if we see a snakes, the first thing we do is scream, panic and collectively stone them to death. Special Executive Officer Snake Lover Animal Catcher helps to save the lives of these reptiles.

Mumbai has a fairy decent population of snakes. It's 10 million less than the number of mammoth mumbaiya rats but still, a fairly decent number. The best place to find snakes in Mumbai are where we are digging up wild places that border our city to build homes for us. However Madh is not yet a construction zone, but there are enough mangroves and wild places for snakes and the things they eat to survive.

Right now, snakes are being evicted in the largest number in the Trombay area. Near Deonar Depot and Panjrapole towards town where wild areas are bring dug up make roads, for our cars So if you have a snake catching business , that's where you can set up shop.

Maneka Gandhi and gang can also find some work there.

Madh Village

2011-12-15T11:21:00.006+05:30

Sailing between the Old and the New. Chal Nakhva

Social Networks of Mumbai Series: Team Sagar.

The fevicol that prevents the disintegration of order and adds sanity to the madness called Mumbai are the thousands of mohalla, gaothan and other local social networks of able, young men of Mumbai. Rooted to the local, these bhumiputras and several sea-faring ones are key to many of the good things in this chaotic city.

Team Sagar belongs to Madh Village, a short hop from Versova and in the path of a highway that will allow us to travel non-stop from town to Borivli and beyond. If the local village survives that Juggernaut procession of our four-wheeler raths and manages to retain a few aspects of the existing way of life. It will because of these young men.

Shivdi

2011-12-13T06:54:00.002+05:30

For some reason, many bars also have hot chai being made and served outside.

Purdah System in Mumbai Bars: Part 2

The curtains of Mumbai desi daaru addaas,

Arthur Bunder Road

2011-12-12T07:26:00.003+05:30

On the prowl....
The fashion blogger Manau of Wearbout

Nare Park

2011-12-08T13:25:00.006+05:30

Rajdhani Express. A Bhojpuri Love Story.

There's a script for a Bhojpuri film in this frame. In Delhi, a modern girl waiting with a heart shaped buckle on her belt, waiting with flowers. A beautiful woman crying in a village somewhere in Magadha or Mithila. And a long train ride, and sad songs connecting them.

Ghar kab aaoge?

This was a train ride for children called Dragon Express. But I wonder why the artist thought of decorating it with a story like this.

Causeway

2011-12-07T09:16:00.008+05:30

The Volga.

Most cities in India used to have and continues to have at least one Volga bar, restaurant or hotel. Even Mumbai has one. It's a hotel behind Leopold.

Today, it would be strange that a new affordable bar, restaurant or lodge would be named after a river that is considered the Ganges of Russia. But then, the Volgas of Indian cities were named during Soviet days and catered to the working class. The stories of wars and struggles along the river probably resonated or just the Soviet idea would have given macho meaning to the strong rum drinking Comrades (or whatever they drank those days) from those forgotten years.

Sam, tweets from Bangalore to inform me that the other popular name from that era is Tashkent, a city that was part of the former USSR and for us Indians, forever associated with the talks with Pakistan, where then Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri represented us.

There's no popular Russian word for cheers, so let's just say Laal Salaam to BJP, Trinamool and similar surviving communists of our days from Volga.

Causeway + Chapel Road

2011-12-06T13:11:00.005+05:30

Wall-Mart.
Free sastha art, both Swadeshi and Videshi and not Made in China.

Colaba Causeway. On the tourist trail, the signatures of the most prolific of Mumbai's graffiti artists share the same wall. The Wall Artist autograph book.

Are they expats? Or are they confused desis?

But who are these people who are adding colour to our walls? In yesterday's Indian Express, Amrita Jain digs deep to discover wall artists and their colourful world in The Writing on the Wall.

BEST Marg + Apollo Bunder

2011-12-05T08:58:00.010+05:30

So Kaliyug Ka Kaurava is dark-skinned and collects remnants of night soil straight from your ass.

I found this at the window display of a store or gallery called Design Temple. And technically, it was Draupadi, who was dark skinned, Her other name was Krishna. The Kauravas and Pandavas were probably fair skinned to call Draupadi dark.

So is he dark here just to look more villainous?

And if you don't want the roll to end, should we sing Hare Krishna?

Shell Colony Road, Chembur

2011-12-03T10:11:00.006+05:30

Videokaaran Sagai and Director Jagannathan Krishnan

Videokaaran Review.

And extra shots from a Tehelka interview with Jagannathan Krishnan, director of Videokaaran.

I finally got to see the Videokaaran documentary by Jaganathan Krishnan in the very room where a good portion of the film was shot: In Sagai, the Videokaaran’s room, in a roof top room in a slum off Shell Colony Road.

The trailer of the documentary sets the tone for the movie. It’s supposed to shock a country that is dishonest when it talks or portrays sex thanks to a very funny big brother censor system meant to shepherd the largest population of illiterates and semi-literates in the world. However, the content of the movie is much much more and far deeper than the trailer suggests.

The documentary is basically the story of Sagai but it’s also the story of the how a majority of Mumbaikars live. The documentary peels layers of a section of the city like an onion.

Sagai used to run a flourishing video theatre in a slum which played all kinds of action movies in Hindi, Tamil, Chinese and Thai. He used to edit his films to make them short and action packed. If the movie was boring, he used to insert porn clips to make the Rs.10 tickets worthwhile. As expected, police raids were common and that’s the criminal mind that he refers to in the trailer.

He was always one step ahead of the cops when it came to the illegal video movie business.

However, it all ended with a demolition that is very beautifully captured by Sagai with a video camera and used in the Documentary. The walls of the video hall were the thickest in the slum. The bull dozer slams the walls again and again and the wall stays.... it’s poetic.

The day before the video hall was destroyed, Sagai showed Rajnikanth movies all day long for free.

The documentary is the story of the fans’ mind. Sagai adores Rajnikanth. He’s the extreme maximum Rajni fan. Through his devotion and a friend who is a Amitabh fan, the director probes deep into the minds of Indian movie fanatics. Slowly he probes around their lives and philosophies, the thoughts and the environment in which these fans live and think. The documentary becomes a study of the space, the living and working space of the maximum fans, their friends, families and the city that produce them. It's the story of the living space that manufactures them. It's the story of Mumbai.

The real genius in the film is the editing and the way the music is put together. You become a part of the lives of the extremely like-able Videokaaran and friends. Yes, like-able. It also makes you think about your relationship with your favourite movies and the city you live in. There are some brilliant pauses throughout the film which are designed to make you think about what you just saw. And there are clips and music from Tamil and Hindi movies that pace the documentary well.

It’s a must watch if you love Mumbai. To get your personal copy, contact Jagan at jagannathan.krishnan@gmail.com

Dr SS Rao Road, Parel

2011-12-02T09:10:00.006+05:30

Symbols.

There was a certain simplicity about hand painted religious symbols of our many faiths (above). Something that we are probably losing to the blinding screams influenced by our popular bollywood and television loudness. The following two images are from across the road, from where I found the above wall painting. India Glitters.

Next year, we will have a Sunny Leone and Silk Balan rangoli.

Marine Street

2011-12-01T09:00:00.005+05:30

Pigeon Travel Agency.

How far do pigeons travel from where they are born?

How far should one go from one's home for exotic experiences?

Sec 15, Vashi

2011-11-30T12:49:00.007+05:30

On Credit Account book in a local Kirana store

Easy OC.

Samosapedia says that the popular South Indian slang word OC stands for Others' Cost or getting something for free. But as far as I remember, the origin of OC is from the "On Credit" that is usually got at your local kirana stores. Those were the days before Credit Cards, Big Bazaars and FDI in the retail minefield.

Also noticed that my neighbourhood has lost almost all the local Kirana stores. The last decent sized one closed a few days back. The surviving one is a little one sells only perishable milk, soft drinks and potato chips.

We have a "More" close by. This is how we shop.

Govandi to Malegaon

2011-11-29T12:42:00.007+05:30

Dr Salman Farsi. The Unani Doctor from Govandi who was picked up by the police after the Malegaon blasts.

Blasts in Malegaon, damage in Govandi.

We still don't know who planted the bombs that went off a few months back in the Khau Gallis of South Mumbai. Mumbai Police has not been able to crack the case yet. And unlike in earlier blasts, no one has been blamed and arrested for the bombings yet.

They have not arrested anybody because 7 people like Dr Salman Farsi were arrested following the Malegaon blast and had to be released on bail (and will most probably be legally free in a few months) because the court found them innocent.

This time, the cops will have to work hard for a change and find real culprits.

You can read the stories of the men and their families here: How do you keep the faith? By Sai Manish. Tehelka Impact story about 7 Muslims from Malegaon who spent 5 unjust years in jail including our own Arthur Road jail.

These images, the extra shots are from the home of Dr Salman Farsi in Malegaon.

Dr Salman Farsi and his wife, who is also a physician ran a clinic is Govandi when he was picked up after the blasts. While he was away in jail, his wife moved to Malegaon, Dr Salman's hometown. For days after he was picked up, cops would visit the frightened family and ask where Dr Salman was hidden while everyone knew that he was jailed. She then moved to Malegaon and in a quiet MHB colony, started life afresh with her three children.

Dr Salman came back home to a pleasant surprise. A nice neighbourhood clinic and the cosmetics he saw she was also selling made him smile. That's not a traditional Unani label. But he had missed 5 of the most important years of his children's lives.

Their library:

Union Park, Khar

2011-11-28T09:39:00.009+05:30

Work Space Mumbai: Chef

Meet Chef Thomas Zacharias. The silent craftsman behind what you eat at Olive. Here, he was teaching children who read this fabulous science magazine called Brainwave from Amar Chitra Katha, the science of cooking. The subject was caramel-isation.

You can follow Brainwave magazine, designed, art directed and edited by a wonderful team led by the young Vinayak Varma here.

Chef Thomas has a personal blog called 'Memoirs of a chef' which is worth following. I hope he updates it often, now that he is in Mumbai and we could do with a food blog that has an expert opinion.

Worli Village

2011-11-27T11:19:00.004+05:30

Extra Gems?
Extra shots from Sunaina Kumar's Anti-party Party story for Tehelka: Come on Barbie, let's not party?

It was Shaa'ir + Func who went around distributing Gems and being the panda from the Cadbury Gems ad at this anti-party which is nothing but a staged house party. Maybe it's a good idea for a city with pigeon-hole houses.

Some more shots:

This old but young man is a permanent fixture at most parties.

Ceaser Rd. , Amboli

2011-11-25T15:15:00.005+05:30

Aaj ka gunda raaj.

Indian democracy and Indian political parties are best depicted in the violence that is celebrated in B-grade movies in all the major Indian languages.

The angry young men runs into the Indian system in the neighborhood. In the Panchayat and Municipal wards. The pillars of Indian democracy are the muscles of the local goons and it is their muscles the hero usually tries to break. They succeed only in movies. Reality is Keenan and Reuben.

There's an aptly named party. Trinamool or Grassroots. When the grassroot goons of the grassroot party was arrested for gooning about, Mamta barged into a police station to flex her muscles. She came to power because she was fighting the kings of the game is grassroot goondaism anyways - the Reds.

It's the same here too. We have a lot more options. The unity in the diversity is the muscle.

When Sharad Pawar is slapped in Delhi, he flexes his muscles through the goons of the local ward in Kopri gaon. They also fill the party fund with their extortion. It's the same with all other parties. After failing in everything he tried, Rahul Gandhi is probably trying to puppet some gundagiri in UP. It's a tried and tested formula.

What if we do not have these goons at the local level?

What if the Mumbai police is actually free of political control to police?

What if we care who we will elect to the local ward?

If we had, we wouldn't have had the muscles that killed Keenan and Reuben.

Image shot for Daijiworld.com

Turner Rd + Thane-Belapur Road

2011-11-24T08:58:00.002+05:30

Mechanic

Super mechanic

Ceaser Rd. , Amboli

2011-11-23T08:56:00.009+05:30

Concrete Cemetery.

No empty roads
Or dark corners.
No dead silence
or screams.
Not a single, silent,

grieving tree.
Honk. Honk.
Screaming headlights
all night long.

Rest?

Peace?

We have no room.

Not even for ghosts.

Here the sleepless

are the living.

We terrorise

the dead.

This is a Mumbai cemetery.

SVP Nagar, Andheri (W)

2011-11-22T13:05:00.003+05:30

Beautician and her beast.
Extra shots from Time Out: Behind The Scene story. Inside the city's only prosthetic make-up studio.

It only takes a micro-second to turn any man into a beast. Tickle him the right way and the rage shoots up from his brains that hang below his abdomen, to his face.

However, Ritu Janjani uses a longer technique to bring about the transformation and it works on men, women, and kids. Unlike male aggression, they transformation lasts long enough to shoot a movie or a TV serial.

Here's how Ritu transformed her husband Kiran without anybody getting hurt.

Here's a Michael Jackson avtaar.

And some advertising.

Fort + Mahim

2011-11-19T09:43:00.004+05:30

Work Space Mumbai Series: Manholes.

This will come as a surprise for those have had the pleasure of smelling the Mumbai air: This city actually has a sewage system and one of India's best underground drainage system. At Mahim, hidden close to where the open drain called Mithi river is one of the biggest and most modern sewage treatment plant on the sub-continent. But that's a different story.

The truth is that we Mumbaikars are special, Special, compared to the residents of the rest of Maharashtra. Most cities and towns in Maharashtra do not even have a system as modern as the one found in Harrappan sites. And we call our state Maha-Rashtra. Their crap go into spetic tanks, lakes, rivers and the food we all eat, the water we all share.

Since we have a system in place, we also have manholes. They might not be covered with covers are elaborate as the ones found in Japan (pics) but they are still worth spotting.

Here are a few:

These 'Jaali' covers are used when a manhole is opened and men are working in a man-hole.

This is outside the big church at Fort. This should provide orgasms for the crowd that gets one the moment they see Bombay written instead of Mumbai.

Standard manhole covers from a few decades back. This one is at Hornima Circle.

Alien Manhole. I found just one with this shape near Rhythm House

Another common functional Mumbai design.

And finally, since the cast iron ones are stolen, the new concrete ones. In neighbouring Navi Mumbai, the local council experimented with plastic ones on footpaths and as expected they sag!

Vile Parle (E)

2011-11-18T11:55:00.002+05:30

भरत, भरत, भरत आणि परत जाधव - 2

Punha Sahi Re Sahi is a hit Marathi play. It stars Bharat Jadhav in 4 roles (Story details here in the Time Out Behind the Scene Special).

But it's not just about Bharat Jadhav. Here are a few of the people who make him go x 4. Here's the list being announced to the audience.

Hero Hiralal of Mulund!

And the Nataraja's statue that's the fixed feature at all places where art is performed in Mumbai.

Vile Parle (E)

2011-11-17T11:38:00.008+05:30

भरत, भरत, भरत आणि परत जाधव

Punha Sahi Re Sahi is a hit Marathi play. It stars Bharat Jadhav in 4 roles (Story details here in the Time Out Behind the Scene Special). The set is designed to make the 4 versions of Bharat Jadhav to play with the minds of the viewers. It's a specially erected set with a lots of exits, windows that actors can leap in through.

The Green Room steps on-stage!

The actors also have to change many times during the show. So the set occupies only half the stage, leaving enough area for the actors to move around.

Headline by: Mangesh of bheeshoom. http://bheeshoom.deviantart.com/gallery/

Vile Parle (E)

2011-11-16T09:14:00.003+05:30

पर्दे के पीछे 2: I want to experience.

You should never judge a book by its cover.

You should also never judge a writer by his or her book.

A painter by his work.

A movie from the set.

A play from the action in the backstage.

Or a band from its stage act or album.

I think, nothing can kill a concert experience like watching the team that puts the 'Act' together.

It's understandable to read the book, and then find out out how the writer wrote it. Look at a painting, see how the painter created his work. Enjoy a movie, and decipher the madness behind the scenes.

Carrying the camera allows me to see most things from behind.

Working for the advertising industry, I have seen the thought and work process that goes into making a few seconds of TV time.

And I miss the days when I was just another consumer who only sees the final product on the screen, in front of the eyes.

I want to be the believer who imagines the divine and not the rational atheist who wonders how the whole show was put together.

I only want to experience.

Vile Parle (E)

2011-11-15T13:35:00.003+05:30

पर्दे के पीछे

Extra shots from the shoot for Time Out Mumbai's Behind The Scenes Special Issue, of Punha Sahi Re Sahi, starring Bharat Jadhav, Bharat Jadhav, Bharat Jadhav and Bharat Jadhav,

Vile Parle (E)

2011-11-14T15:42:00.005+05:30

Punha Drama

After a gap of more than two and a half decades, I saw a Marathi play again. I was too young to remember the name of the play I last saw but I did see a few Marathi plays back then.

Also, I saw the plays not just in a different city or state, it was in a different age, in a world that no longer exists.

Time Travel

The place was a little township just outside Bangalore, built around one of the temples of modern India envisioned by Chacha Nehru. In the early 80s, the 'public sector undertaking' had a little over 15 thousand employees. Through the 50s, 60s and 70s, youngsters from all over India, came and populated the townships, married, swelled the numbers with the ideal hum do-hamare do family and created an interesting model for national integration.

Outside the main gate of the factory where the thousands marched in and out to the call of siren were some old barracks built during the Second World War and according to the urban legend, housed Italian prisoners of war. There was a Royal Air Force base close by too. In Free India, the barracks were turned to schools that taught students in four 'Mediums' English, Kannada, Tamil and Telugu because during the second part of the last century, the official policy was to instruct the children in their mother tongues. A system that is still followed by BMC schools in Mumbai.

Mother tongues and social glue.

The temple of modern India was a tower of Babel. At the end of the day, the workers stepped out of the factories and returned to their mother tongues. The same barracks that housed the school also housed the different linguistic biradaris. The Tamil Mandram, Kerala Samajam, Kannada Sahitya Koota, Kodava Samaj, Konkani Association, Andhra Sabha, Marathi Sangh and Bengal Association.

The centre of every association was a library, and they had the usual cultural and social activities that made up the social networks of the age before television. Dance, music, language classes, etc. It's surprising now, but there was a time when people had the evenings for themselves.

The centre of the township was the hall. It was called Kalakshetra. On weekends, a giant white screen would be stretched across the stage and they would screen movies in different languages. Amitabh, Rajkumar, Kamal Hasam/Rajnikant, NTR ruled the screens on weekends. So that the others are not left out, English, Marathi and Bengali movies were played once in a while. We used to watch all of them, irrespective of the language. All the kids in the township were multilingual.

Drama Festival

The Kalakshetra was built for one reason, several times during the year, the association came together to compete with each other. The annual Drama Festival was one such event. And that is where we used to watch Marathi play every year, along with the other ones. And we as kids would've already peeped into half the rehearsals already. And it was always easy to slip to the backstage and watch the play from there, instead of having to sit like good children among the boring adults.

So when I got a chance to click the backstage pictures for Time Out Mumbai's Behind The Scenes Special Issue, of Punha Sahi Re Sahi, starring Bharat Jadhav, Bharat Jadhav, Bharat Jadhav and Bharat Jadhav, it was like punha going back to the good old days that I had forgotten.

More pictures of Bharat Jadhav mutiplied by 4 in action, tomorrow.

2011-11-11T09:00:00.005+05:30

Fathers on Education - Part 2.

I clicked these portraits across Mumbai for a presentation made by a speaker (I'm not sure if it was actually used though) at the recently concluded Thinkfest in Goa about the common man and his views on education.

Key-wala

Name: Hakim Khan
Has 4 children. 3 girls and a boy. The boy is not the youngest. They study in a Government School in UP.
Location: Vashi Node
Home: UP

Education: Education is probably better in Mumbai, but I can’t afford to have the family and give them an education here. The cost of living in Mumbai is too much. But UP is also a place that is only for the rich. Who cares for me, I have no money.

Toy-seller

Name: Usman
Has 4 children. And had to think a bit before he could tell me which class/grade they were studying.
Location: Fort
Home: Antop Hill

Education: I earn a few rupees and say and live from day to day. (He means that he has more urgent needs to worry about than his children's education)

Driver

Name: Prakash Govind Surti
Has 2 children. They study in an English Medium School in Bhayandar.
Location: Fort
Home: Bhayandar

Education: Higher education is a Takleef Galli (difficult road for him, money-wise). But it’s a road we should take. That’s my duty. It’s up to the children to study though. And I think they will understand.

Parel + Mahanagarpalika Marg

2011-11-10T14:53:00.012+05:30

Fathers on Education - Part 1.

I clicked these portraits across Mumbai for a presentation made by a speaker (I'm not sure if it was actually used though) at the recently concluded Thinkfest in Goa about the common man and his views on education.

Istriwala

Name: Brij Mohan
Has 4 children. 2 boys and 2 girls, between 8th standard and KG back in his village.
Location: Parel
Home: Near Allahabad, UP

Education: It's all the child's Naseeb. They will study if that's their destiny.

Securitywala (Currently unemployed)

Name: Rajesh Chandrakanth Pabekar
Has 2 children. Elder son in a Marathi medium school. This boy studies in an English medium school
Location: Elphinstone Rd
Home: Kalyan

Education: Made sure he paid a donation and got his younger son into an English medium school even if he can't really afford it.

Astrologer

Name: Arun Joshi
Has 2 children who have completed their schooling
Location: Mahanagarpalika Marg
Home: Kurla

Education: Parents want their children to be educated and try their best to give them a good education. But, distractions are too many for the children of today. Even the mobile phone is a distraction. The next generation is not interested in education.

Milan Subway

2011-11-09T00:20:00.003+05:30

Waste Wizard

If you live in Santa Cruz, you would've seen messages like these written in chalk for the past few years. Today, I finally met the person who proudly claimed that he was the one who writes them. Here he is. He turned out to be a Limca Book of Records - record holder for making a mind boggling number of replica of the Cricket World Cup using discarded plastic bottles.

Friends at Ogilvy. No, this is not our man VR in a new role.

Opera House

2011-11-07T16:25:00.004+05:30

Extra shots from Opera Round the Corner for Live Mint.

The last time, me as well as the reporter I went with, had been to Opera House area of Mumbai was soon after the blasts. It happened on 13th July, 2011. It was like the coldest experience we ever had. The people were angry and reporters and camera people were on the receiving end and maybe rightly so.

It would've all been fine if we had known by now who actually planted the bombs.

However, this visit to find people who live in the area who have actually seen plays or movies at the Royal Opera House was the exact opposite. Warm smiles, hot chai, nostalgia. It was one good trip. Here are a few faces and pictures from the walk.

Opera House Bedding House

Singdaanawala outside Opera House

Dubash. An old resident who was visting the area he grew up in. Also, Silsila was the movie most people remember seeing.

Love his mustache!

The chair at Café de la Paix

Santa Cruz (W)

2011-11-05T11:04:00.003+05:30

Naughty cookies.

There are things you discover if you manage to become invisible behind a camera. Like this time when I was shooting images of a lady who makes naughty cakes for parties that are meant to shock and make people giggle.

After a while the women forget that I'm there with a camera and I discover that men and their obsessiveness with breasts pale in comparison with what women feel for pricks. That's the number 1 imagery that gets women salivating when made into a cake.

So guys, they are as simple as us. It also explains why penis enlargement ads (and breast enlargement for women) are so common. Go for them. Men can be happy, being pricks and nothing else, to women, no matter what they claim.

If a woman calls you a prick, maybe it's a compliment. You also know what to order when you order naughty cakes for men and women. Breasts and Penis.

B S Road, Dadar (W)

2011-11-04T09:22:00.005+05:30

Work Space Mumbai Special: A Kapdawalla's Story. Part 7:
Khotwadi to Dadar

Nalin Jain was forced to say goodbye to Khotwadi a few months after he started his operations. And he moved to Dadar.

In Dadar, you can witness what i think is a very interesting shift. It's a change not just restricted to Dadar. There are a group of builders who are now building 'mall' style retail plus work spaces for businessmen and garment makers.

The rent is definitely higher than what you will pay in a chawl or one of the garment gaons. But there are enough businesses who are now ready to scale up. A big risk for Nalin but a good one to take.

This is the space where Nalin will commence his business from. It even has a window that faces the street where he can stick an ad for people on the street to see. It will function as a work space as well as a place where he can meet customers and vendors. He will also have to look for a new set of craftsmen.

Many of these mall-style workspaces are filling up fast. But when I asked if there is a chance that others from Khotwadi will also move, I was told that a few will, but most of them won't. They are very comfortable with the niche they have created for themselves in a place. Change is not easy.

But there are many who are not afraid of spending a little extra for the most precious commodity in Mumbai : Space. Here are a few other people who do business from the same place.

Read the full story here: A Kapdawala' story

Khotwadi. Santa Cruz (W)

2011-11-03T11:59:00.007+05:30

Work Space Mumbai Special: A Kapdawalla's Story. Part 6:
The importance of a work space loo

After a round of the by-lanes of Khotwadi, it's time to return to the life of the Kapdawala - Nalin of Gamma. A few weeks after landing in Mumbai, he had his production in full swing from the little sweatshop with the friendly, skilled craftsmen from UP who landed in Kurla on the same platform as Nalin.

It was a good arrangement, but not perfect. They were good at work, quality was better than what he got down south, the work happened faster.

Nalin also felt comfortable enough to bring his wife ( he stays with a friend in Chunnabhatti) from Coimbatore. She would help him with his business. As he settled down, there were a few things that cropped up.

The hundreds of workers and residents of Khotwadi have only one public loo. All day, there is a queue outside the loo.

Is that a problem in Mumbai? It is but this is a city where the first thing an aspiring politician does is build a loo for the masses who don't have one. And even after thousands have been built, there are still not enough.

But the problem is not just about the loo.

It's about space. While Khotwadi provides you with people and skills, it's not a place where you can sit and think. If you are copying designs, it's a perfect place. But if you decide to pause and think, on a full bladder, this is not a place.

And if he wants his wife to come and help him with his work, Khotwadi would be a difficult place.

It's easy to install an Air conditioner. But it's not easy to build a loo. And humans don't function like the buffaloes in the tabela downstairs.

Even then, Khotwadi was where a famous designer Anita Dongre first churned out her clothes from. The one who started the industry here. However, she has moved on now to a bigger place close by.

Nalin is not a hardcore designer or an Anita Dongre, but he felt that he needed space to think and not just churn out clothes. He also needed a place where his wife could work, help him with his accounts. He also wanted a place where he could invite a client. So what did he do? We will find out in the next post.

Read the full story here: A Kapdawala' story

Khotwadi. Santa Cruz (W)

2011-11-02T15:51:00.004+05:30

Work Space Mumbai Special: A Kapdawalla's Story. Part 5:
Mobile Culture.

This is how a garment worker in Khotwadi took down my number on the back of a paper/receipt. He drew a caricature of me and wrote my number next to it.

Yes, I wear eye glasses.

They usually draw a character with the main feature or features highlighted and the number next to it.

Also, this place teems with visitors: buyers, craftsmen, service providers all day long. And they all use the mobile phone to do business. In fact, around 10 in the morning, the Vodafone network (and others) reaches saturation point. It eases only after 7 in the evening.

See the full story: A Kapdawalla's Story.

Khotwadi. Santa Cruz (W)

2011-11-01T11:58:00.003+05:30

Sallu Bhais.

Work Space Mumbai Special: A Kapdawalla's Story. Part 4:
Brands of Khotwadi, Santa Cruz (W)

khotwadi, Santa Cruz (W)

2011-10-31T08:30:00.004+05:30

Two-tiers: Tabela and Garments

Work Space Mumbai Special: A Kapdawalla's Story. Part 3:
Living, Working and Dyeing in the Two-Tiered Village: Khotwadi, Santa Cruz (W)

Prom Girl on top. Buffaloes and cows below. That's the way the economy of Khotwadi functions. Khotwadi is not all work-space, it also houses a large population who live in tiny homes with family sleeping-space as well as work-space for services for the garment business.

It's easy to differentiate the workshop from the homes, they all have exhaust fans and some of them have air-conditioners, so it wouldn't be right if I call them sweat shops.

Khotwadi is just 1% of the Mumbai garment industry. There are parts of it which have been demolished to make way for luxury apartments. The people who stayed there will be shifted to the standard 320 sq ft 1 Room Kitchen homes as part of the Slum Rehabilitation Plan. Businesses are paid compensation too for displacement. But what is rebuilt will be homes or sleeping places, not work-spaces. People who live there will probably have to travel to work elsewhere.

And here's someone who lives and dyes in Khotwadi.

Tomorrow's story: The national brands of Khotwadi

Khotwadi. Santa Cruz (W)

2011-10-29T10:12:00.005+05:30

Work Space Mumbai Special: A Kapdawalla's Story.
Part 2: Lokmanya Tilak Terminus to Khotwadi, Santa Cruz (W)

When you get off a 36 hours train ride at Lokmanya Tilak Terminus from Coimbatore to set up a garment manufacturing business and limited funds in your pocket, the size, the buzz, the smells and the sea of people that makes up Mumbai can make the task seem a bit daunting. It's probably easier to come here with a skill and then look for job. (No skills? Read "where to start, when you land in Mumbai, with only a shirt on your back")

But we also need people who can create jobs and invest in our city, even though the sweat the city extracts for setting up a business is high. Here's the long story of how Nalin is setting up his establishment, cut short for you.

The Textile City.

The mills of Mumbai that attracted thousands of workers and probably made Mumbai what it is after the boom following the American Civil War, when we cashed in on the Cotton. That basic cloth business may have moved or continues in other cities of Maharashtra and India. But today, the Kapda business employs more people than the mills ever did in Mumbai.

From the Dongri to Malad, Dadar to Antop Hill, the whole city is filled with large pockets where people, communities, organised industries and even zoppadcities with population of a sizable towns are engaged in clothing India. It's the kind, quality and the market they cater to that differ.

For example, in pockets around Worli, you find the highly skilled workers who make clothing for the high-end designer markets. Jogeshwari, Antop Hill/Wadala and Bandra (E) produce very affordable and cheap Bombay Fashion for all Indians. Parts of Dadar produces Ethnic Style clothing. And then there are the people who bring in and sell Tiruppur Maal by the truckloads.

Nalin had to choose where he had to set up his business. Off the train, the first thing he did was map the city.

Skill City.

Luckily for Nalin, he knew exactly the kind of skills and resources he was looking for. He also had distant relatives, the Biradari system that's the lifeline of all Indians, that helped him with contacts. Within a few days, he got a crash course in Mumbai geography and textile skill map and since the clock ticks two times faster in Mumbai than the rest of the world, he zeroed in on a place called Khotwadi where he found a small shop manufacturing street fashion that could scale up their production and had people with the skills to make clothes for his label - Gamma.

The other brand the work-shop makes.

So why did a man from Coimbatore come to Mumbai to restart his label? Why not continue in Coimbatore? Or why not go to what seems to be the more organised Garment Industry in Bangalore?

Before he landed in Mumbai, Nalin did his research across South India. You do get everything you get in Mumbai there too, but it's all spread out across the city and towns down South. Since he will be using different skills from different people, he wanted a place where he gets everything close by.

Skilled labour is a major problem down south. In Mumbai, people with skills land on the same platform in Kurla Terminus and look and find work the moment they land. You also find people with different and new skills.

Since Gamma sells in the South, these different or new skills, a special kind of botton or stitch, for instance, can make his label stand out in a crowded market. Plus, he does not have to run around to look for them.

He wanted to be one extra step ahead of his competition and he hopes to get that edge here in Mumbai.

We are Mumbai Indians.

If the Mumbai Kapda business could be visualised as the hands of a skilled workers, each finger would represent a different region of India. From Gujarat to Midnapore, Madurai to UP. And that's not mentioning the generations from Mumbai itself, the foundation on which the business that employs over a million in this city alone functions.

And here's Nalin's label, Gamma taking shape.

In the next part of this story, I will take you through a tour of Khotwadi. The sweat shops, the workers, their sweat, their brands.

Dadar + Santa Cruz

2011-10-28T08:08:00.010+05:30

Work Space Mumbai Special: A Kapdawalla's Story.
Part 1: Coimbatore to Mumbai.

His Honda Activa is washed and wiped everyday, but he deliberately ignores washing or cleaning the number plate. It's a TN - 37 plate, from Coimbatore, in Tamil Nadu and he's afraid that the cops will stop him and ask him to pay the road-tax or a bribe.

Nalin is a young business man from Coimbatore, the industrial and trading town on the Tamil Nadu near the gap in the Western Ghat that forms the main Gateway to Kerala. Nalin Jain's family has been in trading in and around this textile machinery manufacturing hub, a city created by entrepreneurs who fought the system and made machinery for the industries during the tough days of tight controls on Indian industry post-independence.

Nalin's geographical footprint and contacts revolved around the many towns to the east and south east of Coimbatore. Towns like Tirupur that exports millions of dollars of finished clothing, the garment factories and service providers as far away as Bangalore. Each town here specialises in some form of special textile related product or service. Kapda is big business in India, South Indian included and that's the world Nalin, knows like the back of his hand.

Nalin has an brand idea.

When you have roots dug in deep, the best thing to do is try and grow. Nalin had a dream of setting up his own fashion label based in Coimbatore, to use his network of contacts to create something new. He knew the best suppliers, the best tailors, craftsmen, people he could source fresh new trends in style from and most of all he knew the taste for clothes people in South Indian cities have. He knew the network of small but specialised boutiques that cater to the need of the college students and the new generation of youngsters who earn enough to spend more on clothes than before.

He created a brand called Gamma from Coimbatore. It's a brand that is doing very well in the market he is in. But, then he decided to move to Mumbai. From the well woven textile and garment network of the South to Mumbai.

Why did he move here?

What's the Mumbai fashion/garment industry like?

Is it easy setting up a business here?

Who are the people he works with?

Mumbai Paused hopes to take you through a tour of Mumbai, via Nalin Jain's eye and the making of his brand - Gamma, over the next few days.

Colaba

2011-10-26T13:24:00.006+05:30

And green Shoes from Mumbai.

I was at this event at the naval base where Sonu Nigam sang. When he sang the song from the movie Border called Ghar Kab Aaaogey, I saw grown up sailors cry and sing along with a faraway look in their eyes.

Andheri (W)

2011-10-24T09:30:00.004+05:30

Bollywood Rockstar: Sonu Nigam

One evening, a few months back, me and Nishita Jha, the reporter I was working with, happened to have a flypast Sonu Nigam's home, car and a concert. We started off from his home-office, followed him in a taxi to the concert and got a chance to jump back stage. However,we never got the interview from him because we were probably too slow for the Mumbai-speed of the Bollywood Playback singing Rockstar.

But first. What does a Rockstar fill his wall with?

Quotes. Please note the time mentioned next to the date.

The rockstar's vehicles.

There are his biggest inspirations - Rafi and friends.

There's also the bike that he uses to take his child for a ride, every day when he is in Mumbai.

And this SUV is his Riyaz machine. Sony Nigam drives his own car and why would a singer play music when he is driving? He sings his own songs.

Actually, Sonu Nigam uses the Mumbai gridlock traff*ck to good use. If he has a concert in Mumbai. He spends the hours behind the wheel preparing for the concert.

Pom Pom.

MG Road

2011-10-23T10:32:00.001+05:30

Juhu Beach + Bandra

2011-10-22T08:13:00.004+05:30

Should Writers Be sexier than you?

Author Karan Mahajan was asked to strip and pose for a magazine called Canteen. In this week's Tehelka, he wonders aloud about this new trend to sex up writers.

Read Should Writers be Sexier than you?

To support the article, Tehelka got a few storytellers to create a chota Tehelka with their looks. The ideal Mumbaiya slang would be with their 'Bold' images. The above bold image of Annie Zaidi, author of Known Turf, The Bad Boy's Guide to Good Indian Girl,and Crush was shot to add spice to article.

Also read City Lights 2 now. A poem by Annie that was published in Verve.

Book reading:
You can also listen to her as she reads from her book on 21st October, 7pm, at the Crossword Bookstore, Dynamix Mall, Next to Chandan Cinema, JVPD Scheme.

And here's the real Annie Zaidi. Don't judge her books and writing by the cover or her clothes, she's got a lot of interesting stories to tell.

Navi Mumbai + Nalasopara

2011-10-21T06:23:00.007+05:30

Religion.

On a school notice board, an interesting mix of beliefs. Even "Unknowns and all others" have a place, but not atheism.

Imagine there's no Heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky

- John Lennon

Is it that hard to imagine?

And this is what ideal children (and adults) are supposed to be like in any religion.

Fort, Mumbai + WR

2011-10-20T08:20:00.005+05:30

Branded Plastic Carry Bags.

The trend probably started with the Dubai Airport Duty Free bags with the huge Marlboro logo. Then, we had local bags printed with Marlboro and the McDonald's logos. Over time, the Marlboro bags slowly disappeared and elolved into/was replaced by Mokembo Kush Hua, while the McDonald's logo evolved into the design on the bag shown below.

I'm loving it.

Kurla

2011-10-19T11:19:00.003+05:30

Meter Up.

Things have changed. Mumbai Autowallas, at least a sizable chunk of them, are now rude and refuse to ply to where customers want to go anymore, just like their brothers in other parts of India.

So the classification system for photos (below) on Mumbai Paused will henceforth be called "Like Mumbai Autowallas, I can only take you to places I want to go."

Off D'Monte Road

2011-10-15T17:59:00.003+05:30

Co-author of "The Bad Boys Guide to the Good Indian Girl": Annie Zaidi.

Her books: http://www.flipkart.com/author/annie-zaidi

3rd Pasta Lane

2011-10-14T06:20:00.005+05:30

Work Space Mumbai: Artist T Venkanna's Open Workshop at Gallery Maskara.

Baroda's T Venkanna allowed the whole world to come and see how he works, his different mechanical, chemical and artistic methods. His work is also interesting, for example, a review of his last exhibition at the same place called him a Sexual Deviant. But that's for art lovers and people to decide.

His work-style, the tools and methods he used was interesting and I left hoping that the people who draw dirty graffiti in toilets and trains all over India had a chance to see his work, they will get an idea about how they can make it look really good.

Venki, you are very naughty boy, just like all of us. But bloody hell. you can etch it out so beautifully.

This photo was found below his work table.

Also see T Venkanna in the Saatchi Gallery.

Thank you, Sunaina Kumar of Tehelka for sending me to T Venkanna.:)

Powai

2011-10-13T11:57:00.006+05:30

Narayan Murthy kush hua?

Images shot for the the story about Mumbai's own student-built satellite called Pratham in this week's Tehelka by Sunaina Kumar. Read the full story here.

The idea, according to the professor who guides the students, is to get them to work as a team and try to get them acquainted with the way useful things are created out there in the real world through collaboration. Narayan Murthy can breathe a little easy, they seem to be working on your complaint here.

More power to you guys!

If you ever wondered what the inside of a satellite looks like, this is it:

Mankhurd

2011-10-12T14:25:00.002+05:30

What's cooking in the Salt Pan?

Last weekend, I had shot a few images for Supriya Nair's story in Mint Lounge about the Salt Pans of Mankhurd. (Read story here)

The 12 men who work and live in the Salt Pan have the largest space around them for any resident of Mumbai - almost a square kilometer each! No wonder the people who run the Government are making sure that they realise how the rest of us live and populate that place with concrete buildings and bad drainage and an annual cycle of flooding.

For now, the Salt Pans and the tide driven water system provides these men with dinner. The evening we visited them, there were fresh Inglis Fish or Tilapa and live crabs. Soon they will be made into a simple, spicy curry and served on the plates shown drying on the roof of their hut.

They will also fortify themselves with a good load of alcohol which they will need to deaden their senses to the buzz and bites of mosquitos that can easily slip in through the well-ventilated walls of their humble hut.

It's always a hard days night for them, after spending the whole day clearing channels, regulating water and walking several kilometers around their salt pans.

New Link Road, Andheri (W)

2011-10-11T13:12:00.003+05:30

Villu Paatu or the Bow Song.
Wordfully Yours. 1st Mumbai International Story Telling Festival.

The liveliest acts at the festival was the Villu Paatu storytellers from Neyyatinkara, a small town near Trivandrum in Kerala.

Kesavan Nair, the lead story teller of the group started of in the best South Indian English one can imagine. He spoke about the Bow and the costumes that catches the attention of the listeners first.

The Bow Song evolved in the old hunting communities in the Southern most part of India and Northern part of Sri Lanka. After the day's hunt, they used the bow, the pots, narrated stories and sang songs around the fire as the meat cooked. That should also explain the leopard-skin clothes.

The story narration and music was not the usual, stereotype tribal Jumbaho Jumbaho but regular. The story was about unity in diversity among the different castes, cultures and religions of Kerala. To use his example, the intermingling of people like how the three seas meet at Kanyakumari.

It was the story of a brahmin scholar from Vikramaditya's court who unknowingly marries a Paraya or lower caste girl. He abandons his caste and moves to Kerala, on the banks on the Nila or Bharatpuzha and raises a family with 11 children. They disperse due to certain circumstances and are brought up by different communities.

Nice thought. Only if Kerala would learn from this message.

The performance was great. However, the bow was mostly for visual effect. The sound of the bow was drowned by electronic instruments. The songs were in Malayalam.

No animals were harmed in the narration of this story.

New Link Road, Andheri (W)

2011-10-10T13:13:00.007+05:30

Dastangoi: Dastan-e-sedition.
Wordfully Yours. 1st Mumbai International Story Telling Festival.

Dastangoi - to recite a Dastan, is an old, oral, story telling tradition what was popular in India, probably brought it from Persia/Afghanistan and Urdu-fied or Indianised. It's most famous version was even printed. Known as the the Dastan of Hamza, it had 46 volumes of about 1000 pages each and was printed in the late 19th century at Lucknow by the publisher Munshi Nawal Kishore.

You can read all about its history here.

Not a single extra word in the whole performance, expression or a wasted second. Bloody well written. Super tight.

Danish Husain.

The dastangos who performed at Wordfully yours were Rajesh Kumar and Rana Pratap Senger. The co-writer, Danish Husain introduced the audience to the story behind this art form and how he and his co-writer Mahmood Farooqui revived it.

That's not surprising because Mahmood Farooqui's book, Besieged. Voices from Delhi, 1857, is one that I recommend to people whenever and where ever I can, especially to those who have read The Last Mughal by William Dalrymple. However, digging up all the letters and voices from the grave of Mughal Dilli for his compilation and reviving the Danstongois is something totally different. Hats off to him and Danish.

But that's not the best thing about the story told at Wordfully Yours. It was how the art form was used to send electricity down the spines of listeners and opening the minds of people through a hard-hitting, funny yet sad story called Dastan-e-sedition.

It was written in support of Dr Binayak Sen. A sad story that makes one boil with anger. But not the one that was told to us. The story became a mirror of the society that we are part of. It made us laugh at ourselves and the government machinery that functions in our name. It's a must listen. It will make you laugh and them make you go home and think.

From now on, along with his book, I will recommend people to go an watch the Dastangos when they come to Mumbai or wherever you are.

Coming back to Wordfully yours, this performance was a perfect example about how an old story telling technique can come alive brilliantly when the issue is contemporary.

Indian television should also learn from them. (Mahmood Farooqui co-directed Peepli Live)

See this clip online.

So what's the latest in Dr Binayak Sen's state? Read the story of Soni Sori by Shoma Chaudhury

Vidyanagari, Kalina

2011-10-08T06:29:00.005+05:30

Wordully Yours. The 1st Mumbai International Story Telling Festival.
Nasseeruddin Shah Narrating Ismat Chughtai's (عصمت چغتائی) Lajjo.

There couldn't have been a much better opening for this festival that celebrates the art of storytelling than one of the city's best actors narrating the story written by a writer who lived and died in this city - Ismat Chughtai

The English translations of her work is mind-blowing. That's because it seems so much ahead of her time. Listening to it narrated in Hindustani, a language that very few now read takes it to new heights. And imagine Nasseer doing it!

He stole the limelight at the morning's inaugural session. This was followed by an almost hypnotic key note address by Laura Simms of NY, USA. A story teller for many decades, she used a technique that suprisingly reminded me of the story telling tools our godmen and women use to mesmerize their flocks. Except that here it was to illustrate the power of telling a good story.

She will be narrating a story on Saturday afternoon, 4.30pm, at the Barfiwalla Hall, Valia College. It's on New Link Road, Andheri (W) Opposite The Club.

She will be followed by Muriel Bloch from France, Traditional Kerala Story tellers and Carmen and Lorenzo (Spain).

Be there! Bring friends, family and especially children along.

Website: http://www.wordfullyyours.org/

Facebook Page

Kurla + Andheri

2011-10-06T09:56:00.010+05:30

Patriotic citizen of the republic of cowrashtra.

Car Culture in Mumbai series 3. Jeep

For those who can't afford the larger cars or trucks that tower over other mortals, there's always the jeep. With an old jeep you don't need an international logo or the depth of the purse to make you feel different, you manufacture your own style.

See the full Series here: Car Culture.

Here are a couple of interesting videos about cars.
This song called Car Car Car from a Kannada movie that compared the car culture in America with the road sense in India. But it actually defines the car culture in Bangalore better.

And there's the Baba Sehgal statement which is more Delhi-ish because that was the first city in India where the middle-class took to four wheels first.

Oshiwara

2011-10-05T08:58:00.004+05:30

Car Culture in Mumbai 2: Thrones for sale.

Sector 19, Airoli

2011-10-04T11:21:00.007+05:30

Design in schools? Why not?

Not satisfied with designing buildings, a group of young architects from the city are taking a few hours every month to go to schools and teach students the importance of design and to observe how interesting and intelligent the designs we find in daily life are.

I assume that it's because it's easier for these architects and designers to teach kids some commonsense than greying clients.

Jokes apart, this experiment called Designin Schools is an attempt to introduce children to get their hands dirty, design and make simple things. For example, these images are from a session where they were introduced to the properties and use of colours. The children then used it to design posters for the school sports day. It wasn't a competition, it was holi with paper, pen, scissors and glue.

According to Jinu Kurien, the architect leading this initiative, Designin School is not about designing posters or copying what's shown on kids television. It is also not what they do in their regular art and craft classes. It will concentrate of how to come with innovative ideas and to design. He wants to find out if design and innovation can become a spirit that can be inoculated into school children. So that they go around appreciating the wonderful world of designs, ideas and making ideas come alive.

And hopefully one day architects or any one from a idea based industry can explain to clients a concept or and idea without it bouncing.

Those who design for a living with interesting ideas nd interested in doing their bit can contact Jinu Kurien at jinu.kurien@design-works.in

Website: Designin Schools

Thank you Designin School and Euroschool for allowing me to click these images.

Kumbharwada, Dharavi

2011-10-02T15:43:00.003+05:30

Book Recommendation: Alex's Adventures in Numberland by Alex Bellos.

This is an image I shot many months back while I was on an assignment in Dharavi. This lady was counting the number of pots she had baked on the walls of their soot covered workspace. I found the marks she used for taking stock interesting and wondered how bundling them as 5s would've made it a little more easier.

It was when I picked up the book named Alex's Adventures in Numberland by Alex Bellos that I realised that there are interesting stories behind how we count, how we add up and how the world can be explained through numbers. It also explained why I failed for the first time in Mathematics and why numbers make my head spin.

It also made me wish that I had read a book like this when I was in school and I could've given a copy of it to my teachers because from counting to explaining the limits of infinity (Yes. It's not as infinitely limitless in the way I thought it was).

If you hate numbers or know a child or someone in high school who has difficulties with understanding mathematics, please do pick up this book and read it/share it. Even if the numbers stump you, the amazing stories from the beginning of human history to the present and from around the world will keep you glued to the book.

Surprisingly, this is the book that people on the most crowded locals always asked me details about and took down the name. I found it at Strand. You can order it online.

It's never too late to initiate a friendship with numbers.

Read the Guardian Review.

CST + Parel

2011-10-01T19:39:00.003+05:30

Street Style.

Jogeshwari

2011-09-30T08:56:00.005+05:30

How to make Mumbaikars open their jebs.

This ex-professor from SP Jain and Marine Engineer can give you a crash course in how to touch the hearts of those bored expressionless men in a typical western line first class gents compartment and make them open their purses.

In the time it takes to reach Goregaon from Jogeshwari (which is a little longer than most other stretches), he gives a talk about his life mission: running a free school for kids in South Konkan.

He starts by waving laminated copies of news reports about him in English and Marathi. he then talks about his school and introduces himself (in English and Marathi). When he starts talking, most of them lift their eyebrows and look at him like they look at that unfortunate second class ticket holder who got into first class by mistake. Then they keep their ears open and either look back into the newspaper or close their eyes and pretend to sleep. However, by the end of his horizontal elevator pitch and when the transparent box with cash comes before their face, they are already pulling out Rs. 10, 50, 100 and 500 Gandhi notes out!

His name is Professor Sandeep Desai. This is his Mission: Shloka. The trustees.

He's not the only person I have seen doing such magic. Mumbaikars actually shell out a lot of cash if convinced that the person deserves it. The other magician is a guy who plies the Kurla -Vashi section. He plays one of those 2 string contraption to play music from the Kumar Sanu era. But he plays it so beautifully that people, who don't blink while downloading illegal music, open their purses, and just give. There's hope for those who make music - good music.

Lalbag, Dr BR Ambedkar Road

2011-09-29T09:05:00.008+05:30

No Man's Land.

Every town in India has one or many of the election or party propaganda material shops. Battleground-Mill-land-Lalbag-Parel also has a few of them where all parties are equal. Election time or not, they are always doing good business because local politicians are always sponsoring local events (especially festival pandals).

Things are a little hotter than usual these days, building up to the 2012 BMC elections.

Dip Stick.

MNS seems to be spending the most on colouring this part of the city. The odd combination of saffron and blue, Shiv Sena and RPI flags, are tied together and trying very hard to make their combination work. NCP seems to be a little dheela this time, the youngsters here seem to prefer MNS. There were a few Congress and BJP flags too. But the new entrant this time is the Anna Hazare cap for the politically neutral or those who don't traditionally bother to vote.

But to judge the voter's mind, we will have to wait until February. It's going to be fun.

Is there an online map like they have for Bangalore wards in Mumbai?
http://bbmpelections.in/
It would be a great idea to know who apun ka local goons are.

Off MG Road, Fort

2011-09-28T09:13:00.007+05:30

Surviving Trades of Mumbai Series: Surviving Change

Everything co-exists in India, especially Mumbai. Especially the new and the old. The modern and the traditions with lines blurred. Those who resist continuing old methods and those who resist change.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I feel that this city which always heralded (an obsolete word) change is no longer the cutting-edge (again a phrase that came and died). The overall balance of people in this city has tipped towards the resistors instead of the change makers. Or is that, the other cities in India, which resisted change have taken over or over taken us Mumbaikars?

Facechange

Then there are those who complain about change. An example would be the noise a few tweaks Facebook did a few days back created from the young and the constantly changing. Facebook is a good example about the need for constant change and why it is not a Orkut, Ryze, Hi5 or any of the networks it replaced.

The good thing is that ones who complain are the ones who also adopt and use the change on Facebook best.

That's how it works on real life too. Surprisingly, among my friends, the one's who complain about change also seem to crib and adapt to the need and the volatility of life and environment. There's a simple trick to handle the change, you can use religion, numerology, etc. to balance the irrational doubts and emotions but mostly as an anchor to something that one feels is something that doesn't change.

Those who don't believe in such superstitions can follow the best advice anyone can give. Go read a book (or e-book).

Dr BR Ambedkar Road

2011-09-27T09:05:00.004+05:30

Ha ha Mahadev!

It's always fun to watch retail warfare. And there's so much to learn from how people lure customers. Let's hope that the gods, rishis and Che are with him this festive season.

Shubh Labh.

Nare Park, Parel

2011-09-26T10:09:00.004+05:30

Mauth Ka Kua a.k.a. Potholes

Or you daredevils can use any of the potholes in the city.

Mia Md. Chhotani Rd (Mahim)

2011-09-24T12:19:00.004+05:30

Festival Collection. September.

Work Space Mumbai. Needful Things. Fresh Stock.

The man who sells odd things on the footpath opposite the parsi colony gate in Mahim has a fresh and interesting collection as always. Like Vivaldi and Fashion designers, he has seasons.

These are the images from the previous seasons.

Spring Collection. March

Monsoon Collection - July

See the full Mumbai Work Space Series here.

Slater Road, (Nr. Grant Rd. Station)

2011-09-23T09:26:00.008+05:30

Dance Ka Shoe-Mantar.

In yesterday's post, I had pictures of some dance crazy Rangeela boys from the streets of Mumbai, the kind who eat, breathe and float around to the beats of music. But it's not just the kids on the street who have been mesmerised by dance, it's something that has effected people across all layers of society.

To understand the craze, I met an interesting couple who are on the upper end of the colourful dance spectrum - Vineet and Sahiba. They were able to articulate why we feel the need to dance and they showed me their shoes - the dancing shoes.

One Size Less.

Vineet and Sahiba are married to dance. While it's a kind of madness, they are trying and succeeding to add a method to it. It's been a craze long enough to stop being a fad. It's time to mould artists out of the serious dancers. So they created an entity known as Dance Factory which has no relation to Ram Gopal Varma, and they also teach dance.

Now, there are enough dance enthusiasts for the Ballroom kind of dance to actually prepare the infrastructure for a full-fledged industry around it in India, a need based one.

One of the main ingredients for the whole mix are getting the right shoes.

When it comes to shoes, there are hazaar imported choices that may or may not fit the Indian feet or purse. But these guys custom-make affordable shoes that would take you higher-up, especially as you explore new levels of dancing.

And as you can see they are beautiful, colourful.

The culprit is the colourful Vineet who loves to mix and match vibrant colours. (most of the choices in the market are black, and shades of grey all the way to white).

These shoes are made to fit. They are a size-less than what one would normally wear. They are light. The soles are made from suede derivatives. They allow you to turn around without friction that cause you to twist and shout on the floor instead of the way you intended.

They can also be made into any colour you like.

Look at how the shoe caresses the bridge of your feet in the following picture. The special strap allows your shoes to become the second skin.

Between them, Vineet and Sahiba own 240 pairs of dancing shoes. That's not a prudent thing to do if you do not use them well, especially in Mumbai with its hot-liquid-air atmosphere.

And your feet are not exactly shoe-friendly. You swear buckets, especially when you dance and the cloth soaks in all the sweat. This in turn set of chemical reactions that are best not imagined or smelled.

Luckily, the beginners usually do not invest in shoes. They use whatever is comfortable or dance in their socks. It's a good idea to wait and watch.

These shoes are meant for dancing.

Dance Factory shoes were born out of a need. The duo first got the materials and still gets them from Tanveer of Aadil in Lokhandwala Complex. The supplier was perplexed when Vineet went to him with his colourful designs and what looked like impractical materials and design. He soon caught on and now they have a good partnership going.

To boot, Sahiba is a designer with years of experience behind her. She knows the stuff and knows how to make shoes that are meant for dancing.

It looks like you don't just have to know dance to be dance evangelist. You have to be a cobbler and a fashion merchandiser too.

These feathers are used to line the shoes on the outside. just for Chamak.

Shoe-mantra trivia: Musicality.

In ballroom dancing, before the masculinity and femininity come together, there's Musicality. Dancing shoes won't move until one learns to listen. So first come lesson in listening and understanding music and then comes dance. And there's very little dance without music.

Reminds me of the only dance I have ever attempted. Headbanging. And the most popular show of that age was the MTV Headbangers Ball.

Shoe-mantar watch: Dance floors in Mumbai.

There are two places where you can see and dance: Zenzi and Shiro.

Thanekars have United 21.

There has been experiments with Latin Live bands in Mumbai. Blue Frog had flown in some artists recently. Apparently, they play for 11 minutes which is quite a long time for someone to do a proper dance.

Why ya dance?

1. The No 1 reason, is stress-busting. People are coming to get an adrenaline high that will bust the blues and nothing like Salsa, or jazz to get those chemicals flowing naturally. Like the gym, the dance classes also come with mirrors where you can watch yourself get high naturally. I'm sure it helps.

Well, I headbanged for the blood rush. It kept me off cigarettes, alcohol and drugs and it's highly recommended.

2. TV shows are a big influence. And that needs no elaboration.

3. Then there are the husbands, boyfriends and a few wives who can be dragged to the dance floor by their partners and we can bet if they will take to dance or not.

4. And for Vineet and Sahida, people who see them dance in different places come to learn from them.

5. Then there are those who look at it as an exercise.

Shoe-mantra: Old adage

You can judge a person by the shoe he or she wears.

Judging these two: They are colourful yet thorough like the shoes they design. And since they so happily narrated their business secrets (most of which I have withheld) to a stranger with a camera, I would like to thank them by sending you to their drool worthy online store.

Drool over the shoes here: http://www.thedancefactory.co.in

You will also find details of their dance classes (in Grant Rd, Bandra and Andheri) there.

And a big thank you to Kayomus and Anubha of Delhi's Ballroom Dreams who guided me to The Dance Factory.

SP Mukherjee Chowk

2011-09-22T09:06:00.002+05:30

Street Fashion: Rangeela Version 201X

The Bollywood Rangeela of the kind Aamir Khan and company portrayed is dead and forgotten. Govinda is so 20th Century even in Virar. In fact, the happening Rangeela characters on our streets are not even influenced by Bollywood, except for a miniature set of copied beats that it churns out and usuable only after it has been remixed by someone else. The Rangeela 201X's influence is dance and they rarely even open their mouths to speak much. They are connected to the rest of the world via youtube and underground tremors creared by the moves of the street dancers from the ghettos of France and America.

They rather dance and let the colours of their clothes speak, highlight their passion and their difference.

Kalaghoda

2011-09-20T20:32:00.007+05:30

Chai. For those voting with their feet.

This man is serving tea to those waiting for an interview with an overseas recruiting firm. This is Fort after all, the place where all the main overseas recruiters operate. On Sunday mornings when the Mumbai crowd is not making the engines of Indian economy huffing and puffing, the ones who have opted out of the race can be seen waiting for their call or visa or the ticket. They were from all over India. UP, Bihar, Konkan, Gujarat, Malabar, Bombay Karnataka, etc.

Off New Link Road, Andheri

2011-09-20T12:57:00.004+05:30

Mumbai University's International Storytelling Festival.
Line up.

7th and 8th October, 2011 - 9.30a.m. to 3.30p.m.

Dr. Rajan Welukar, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Mumbai will preside and Mr. Naseeruddin Shah will perform at the inaugural session on 7th October and Ms. Dolly Thakore, on 8th October.

This conference will involve teachers, students and storytellers from India and other countries and will focus on theorizing storytelling as an oral art form and outlining its usefulness.

7th October, 2011 4.30p.m. to 8.30 p.m.
Celebrating Human(e)ity: Future Writers and Tellers

Students from 15 schools and colleges (including those from tribal schools and schools for the differently abled) in and around Mumbai will be creating group stories and perform them.

Mr. Amol Gupte will preside over this part of the programme.

8th October - 4.30p.m. to 8.30 p.m. and
9th October, 2011 – 9.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m.
Celebrating Human(e)ity: Storytelling Festival

Professional storytellers from India and other parts of the world will be invited to present stories at the festival. Internationally acclaimed storytellers:

Ms. Laura Simms (U.S.A.)
Ronald LaRocque (Canada)

Dave Arthur (U.K.)

Muriel Bloch(France)

Carmen and Lorenzo (Spain)

Hazuki and David(Japan) and

Abeer Soliman (Egypt) ...

...have agreed to come to Mumbai for the Conference and Festival. Storytellers from the different parts of India, Delhi, Kolkata, and Trivandrum and tribal artists from Wada have also confirmed their participation.

10th to 13th October, 2011 - 9.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.
Workshop on the Art and Technique of Storytelling by Laura Simms

A workshop conducted by internationally reputed storyteller, Ms. Laura Simms and will be open to students, college and University faculty, school teachers, drama professionals and parents. The aim is to create interest and develop expertise in this powerful oral art form.

And finally, images of Future Story writers and tellers rehearsing at Valia College.

The youngest story writers and tellers from the 15 schools that will be participating.

A boy from a St Stanislaus scares the organiser with his paint.

St Joseph's

Nishi Doshi listens to the stories before helping them polish their stories.

More than the organisers, it was the teachers who accompanied the children who seemed to be surprised and proud that their students can write and present such a varied set of stories. There were stories concerning racism and discrimination to the need to conserve electricity.

It was also interesting to watch the kids in between the stories. They were all busy playing or sending sms, or bbm-ing. I'm sure their parents are also on the receiving end of their creative stories as short, precise messages.

We are all born story tellers.

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