A day to remember

- by Deepa Krishnan

It's not often that you get to spend the day with the governor of the Reserve Bank! So here's a quick look at my day, with Radhika Puri and Raghuram Rajan. What a totally fabulous couple. And such lovely, old-fashioned good manners. I really should learn from them. I met them at 8:45 am, and we talked non-stop until 2:00 p.m. Quite a feat, even for a super-talkative person like me! 

We started with a visit to Castella de Aguada, the old Portuguese fort, where I explained about all the kingdoms who fought for control of trade on the western coast. There are multiple forts around the bay (Mahim Fort, Bandra Fort, Worli Fort). Clear evidence of the strategic importance of this area.

We saw lovely views of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link.

Driving past Mount Mary, we stopped to see the prayer candles. They are so uniquely Bandra! If you want to have your wishes fulfilled, all you need to do is pray to the Mother of the mount and light a candle. There are wax figurines which you can offer to become a television star, or a movie star, and there was even one for becoming a Hollywood star :) The homes of some big Bollywood badshahs and ranis are nearby, and we saw them as we drove past Bandstand.

At St Andrews Church, we were joined by Father Caesar D'Mello, who showed us around and told us some interesting stories. The church is celebrating its 400th year. "When the Taj Mahal was built, we were already 50 years old", they say proudly.

After the church visit, we started our village walk. We went to Chimbai Village, Ranwar Village and Chapel Road; where we enjoyed the old wooden architecture, the numerous small crosses and the quirky wall art. We went to a designer studio, to see how a old heritage house can be repurposed.

 

We ended the Bandra tour with chaat at Elco Arcade, where we ordered their seasonal strawberry kulfi, as well as some old favourites of mine (I like the pani puri and the gulab jamun!). 

And then because we wanted to get more out of the day, we went to Dharavi, to see what makes the slum economy tick. What a great visit, even though it was completely unplanned. We went to Dharavi Art Room, to meet Himanushu and see the great work he is doing with children and women. We saw the papad-making (cooperative model) and how that worked. We walked into a "multiplex" to watch the migrant population enjoying a Nagarjuna movie. We saw the recylcing industry, garments industry, and all the units busily at work. We met Fahim, who I have been mentoring now for several years. Fahim told the story of how he set up and grew his slum tour company 'Be the Local'.  We walked through narrow alleyways, seeing how people lived. All in all, it was quite a day!

Lots of food options in BKC these days

- by Deepa Krishnan

I wrote earlier about how the food scene in BKC is changing, with more options coming up. Recently I went to The Capital, and was happy to see a very smart-looking Theobroma there. A nice option for a weekday breakfast. Or a quick stop with friends over the weekend.

They have a soup and salad offering on all weekdays; which is popular with people working in BKC. There's a Lunch Box for Rs 250, which is also delivered to offices. And of course, there's all the usual stuff - breads, lavash, muffins, tarts etc. I took home their olive tapenade, which was good.

The dining scene in BKC is improving day by day. Lots of new options have come up in The Capital itself. The Good Wife and Cafe Sabrosa are around 5-6 months old; both are stylish places where the 'finance types' from BKC hang out in the evenings. This photo below is from The Good Wife: a typical BKC weeknight, people relaxing over drinks after the working day.

The Capital building also has a Starbucks, which is good if you want a place with wifi. But the most exciting thing in The Capital, for those who love Chinese food, is Wok in the Box. After a successful innings at Carter Road, they opened their second outlet at The Capital in Sep 2014. They let you pick and choose ingredients, sauces and the type of noodles (or white rice) that you want. It is stir fried immediately and handed over.

Wok in the Box even offers a Jain version of its sweet and sour sauce. It's on the 3rd floor of The Capital, so they have to shut at 6:00 p.m. But it's a great option for lunch, they make deliveries to all the offices in BKC. If you go at lunch, you'll have wait times. But if you go a little earlier or a little late, then you'll have a smooth experience.

Speaking of food deliveries, there's also Box8 near the Trident BKC. It has Indian food, which works better for me at lunch time than Chinese. I must confess that anything and everything in plastic dabbas tends to put me off, but if I don't take food from home, I'd rather order this no-fuss delivery than anything else.

Masala Library at the Citibank building in BKC (the official name of this building is First International Finance Centre) is still going strong. For the past couple of years, Masala Library has been showing Mumbai what stylish, innovative Indian cuisine is all about. It's super tasty too, not just some poncy stuff that you wonder why you put in your mouth. The staff is well-trained, and enjoys presenting and explaining the food. Which is a big asset.

The same Citibank building also has a Smokehouse Deli, and a Pizza Express and another Starbucks. I've always liked Smokehouse Deli. The Pizza Express is pretty decent, always has a couple of free tables, so I go there when I don't feel like hanging around waiting for tables.

There are lots of other places also in BKC that I should write about, especially Tiffin Box, and lots more takeaways, including some more in The Capital. But maybe another time! Off to work now.

More street art from Bandra

- By Deepa Krishnan

I enjoy walking through Bandra, because I am always surprised by something new. I don't mean new cafes or shops. It's all the new street art that's everywhere (ever since the St+ART Festival that happened in November last year). It changes my experience of Bandra each time I go there.

Take this wall in Ranwar Village, for example. I don't remember seeing anything when I went there some months ago. Then all of a sudden, on a walk last week, I turned a corner, and there it was. A woman in black and white, adding drama to the wall.

I found out later that this artwork is by Luis Gomez de Teran from Venezuela. He called this artwork "Veronica". That's the name of the lane where this wall is located, by the way. Sort of bringing the lane to life, giving it a dark, smoky, interesting personality :) :) I'm not sure what exactly Ms. Veronica is holding in her hand. Can you figure it out? And check out the cat at the bottom!

Near the turning into Veronica Lane, on the main road, you'll definitely spot the colourful Jude Bakery (well, ex-bakery. The guy who ran it died a couple of years ago, and now it's owned by a guy in the hospitality business, who is not baking bread here). The street art here has a tongue-in-cheek prayer, it says "Hey St Jude, please help me. I am really a lost cause." You can only read the whole message when the shutters are down. The artist is a guy called AkaCorleone. He's Portuguese, I think. A lot of his murals are lettering-based.

This graffiti below is older, but I hadn't photographed it on my earlier visits. I don't know who the artist is. The text alongside is in Hindi, it says paidaishi junglee (born wild). I smiled to myself when I saw the real bike parked under the graffiti, and I wondered which Bandra junglee owned that one :)

This one is from Chimbai Village. It was at the entrance of a tiny lane, and it made me want to immediately turn into the lane, to see where the little boy would lead me. It's by an artist called Tona, from Hamburg in Germany. Tona does stencils, so replicas of this little kid are in other cities as well.

I walked down to the edge of the water in Chimbai and found lots more street art to photograph. Here's one of them, also by Tona.

We spoke to some of the fishermen sitting nearby, and they told us about the artists who came from abroad and painted in Chimbai. The fishermen seemed to find the whole thing amusing but irrelevant. I bet a lot of people in Chimbai think that.

Personally, I'm all for street art, because I think it's great for art to come out of the expensive and elite gallery spaces, and into a place where it can dialog with people. Street art is such a powerful (not to mention potentially subversive) medium. We're just beginning to see street art in Mumbai. Maybe over time the people of the city - the ones whose walls and streets are being decorated - will become more engaged. It would help if the effort was more participative somehow. It isn't enough to just take art to poorer, dirtier parts of the city. There's got to a be a more two-way process if this whole exercise has to have any meaning.

The movie-star graffiti of Bandra

- By Deepa Krishnan

The pleasures of wandering through Bandra are many. Bollywood Art Project's Madhubala is one of them. It brings all of Madhubala's vivacity to Chapel Road!

Earlier there was only the Anarkali painting, with Madhubala and Pradeep Kumar. But a year ago, the good folks at BAP added a solo Madhubala.

I had posted earlier, their iconic Deewar one with Amitabh Bacchan: it is on the road going downhill towards Bandstand from Mehboob Studio.

And here is the Rajesh Khanna one - capturing all the charm that made him Bollywood's first ever superstar.

There is also an Amrish Puri (Mogambo) in Khar, but I have not seen it. BAP is planning a tribute to Yash Chopra also. May their tribe increase! More information here: Bollywood Art Project

The picturesque Bandra Station

- By Deepa Krishnan

I've been wanting to photograph Bandra Station ever since its restoration some 5-6 years ago. I finally got a chance to go there last week. It is by far, the city's prettiest railway station.  No, it is not grand, like the Victoria Terminus, but in my eyes it is very beautiful. The woodwork and tiles add enormous charm, don't they?

Plans for this station were finalised in the UK, and the building was erected by BBC&I in 1864. Finally in 1869, the train service (which ran only upto Mahim) was extended upto Bandra, paving the way for more people to settle in this suburb. By 1881, Bandra had 15,000 residents, of which half were Hindu, 30% were Christian and 15% Muslim. There were also Parsis, Jews and Armenians.

Apart from the attractive Mangalore tile roofing and carved wooden eaves, this station has cast-iron pillars (you can see them in this photo). Remember my previous article about Watsons Hotel? The Watsons were shipping their cast-iron pillars to India at roughly the same time as Bandra station. I wonder if the pillars all came from the same source and on the same ship :)

As part of the 1925 Heritage Regulations, Bandra Station was listed as a Grade 1 Heritage Structure (prime landmark in the city; no interventions permitted on exteriors or interiors). A conservation project was undertaken in 2008-2009 by Abha Narain Lambah Associates. The wooden eaves were restored, the roofing tiles repaired, some ticket counters and other temporary partitions demolished, the walls were strengthened. Extensive termite treatment  was done. There are more phases of restoration planned for the interiors, but I don't know what's happening to that.

The Beer Can at BKC

- By Deepa Krishnan

London may have the Gherkin, but Mumbai has the Beer Can :) Or maybe it's a Wine Barrel? Check out the photo below and decide:

In case you didn't already know, this is the ONGC Green Building being built in Bandra Kurla Complex. I have been watching this building come up, little by little, for the last 2 years (I can see it from my 14th floor balcony in Sion). I even talked about this building in my interview for Mint.

Finally last week I went to BKC and clicked a close-up photo; then I decided to read up about the building. Apparently, the Beer Can is designed to be "Green, Energy-efficient and Intelligent". This is a CDM Project - meaning that the energy conservation measures in this project will help ONGC generate Certified Emission Reduction units which may be traded in emissions trading schemes. This kind of project needs to be independently audited. A Japanese company called JACO CDM did the audit, and I managed to get the audit report copy. The original project plan filed with United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC) is also online.

ONGC has several other similar projects in India. 

ONGC Green Building, Dehradun, Hafeez Contractor

There's another one coming up in Kolkata:

ONGC Green Building, Kolkata, Hafeez Contractor

The one in Dehradun was completed last year, although I have not seen any real-life photos except this one. Construction on Kolkata has begun.

A fun day in Bollywood

- By Deepa Krishnan

I had a Bollywood day today. Saw a movie-shoot with Nana Patekar who (gasp) took off his shirt. OK, OK, there was a vest underneath but still, it was very much a case of dhakdhakheart. I am *not* old enough to be impervious to such stuff! Mercifully, I decided not to make a fool of myself and ask for a photograph. 

Also, there were Anil Kapoor and Paresh Rawal. And a whole host of younger actors whose names I *am* too old to be familiar with.

It was fun seeing the sets and the wardrobe guys and all the hard work that goes into the shoot. The scene they were filming was a party, into which Anil Kapoor swaggers in. Then he has a face-off with Nana Patekar. I loved all the glam girls and guys and how they sweated under the sun, but all smartened up miraculously when the director yelled Aaaaaction!! I especially loved how they made fake alcohol and filled it into cocktail and wine glasses.

I also saw lots of sets. Like this one, of a courtroom, with a lawyer arguing a case. Excuse the blurry pic. But it was too melodramatic not to post. What do you do when cliches come alive? :) :)

A super day!!

Oh also, I photographed Ranjit Dahiya's Amitabh Bachchan in Bandra. Awesome, no?

One rainy evening at Bandra Fort

- By Deepa Krishnan

The old Portuguese fort in Bandra is one of Mumbai's favourite hangouts in the rain.  

There's a fantastic breeze, with great views of the Arabian sea and the Worli Sea-link. Families, college kids, lovers, everyone comes here to hang out in the evenings. Naturally, the bhelwalla does brisk business.

Seen from the top of the fort, the tad palms and the sea remind you of Mumbai's original landscape, as it existed before Bandra developed and grew into what it is today.

In the 1640s, the Portuguese built a fort here, called Castella de Aguada - the Castle of Water.

The fort is still there, and it has unbroken views of the Sea Link which is behind it.

Further down the road, you can see folks hanging out near Shah Rukh Khan's Mannat. There's a little garden here, nice for spending time with friends, plus the added bonus of a possible star sighting. The cafe nearby has windows with sea views.

Along the Bandstand promenade, there are lots of people walking, sitting, talking, kootchy-kooing...I decided not to click photos of the many romances - didn't want to get any of them into trouble! There are lots of pretty girls around, adding to the glamour quotient of the place. Check it out sometime!

Weekend with Ranjana

I've been working too hard, frankly, and so has my husband Pramod. This weekend, though, our friend Ranjana (bless her!) came to spend Friday night with us; and we finally made time for a long overdue night out in the city.

Friday night, at our apartment complex, waiting for the car.

I'm wearing a halter-neck top that I bought eight years ago. That's how dated my wardrobe is. As I was dressing up, I decided enough was enough. I would definitely go shopping on Saturday. Being a workaholic is ok. But wearing the same darn thing over and over again? Sheesh. I'm not *that* ossified.

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When the car came, we set out for Bandra, to pickup an old school friend of Ranjana, and then headed to Aer, the rooftop bar at the Four Seasons.

Ranjana and Pramod at the Four Seasons rooftop bar

If you want my honest opinion, this is truly the most outstanding piece of real estate for a bar/restaurant in all of Mumbai. The cover charge at Rs 3000 per couple is stiff by the city's standards, but the incredible view of the city glittering below is very worth it. We hung around at the bar for a few minutes, until our table was available.

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City glittering below

Honestly, this photo does no justice to the view. The full moon was out overhead, and the city lay beneath us. The walls are of sheer glass, making the most of the view. The seating is a sophisticated white, and the dim lighting is perfect. It lifts the spirits, this place.

All seats taken

On a Friday night, all seats were taken. The crowd is a mix of all age groups; but this is not a teeny-bopper place; it is significantly older. There were many people here catching a drink after work; I saw a lot of business suits and formal office wear. The Four Seasons is very conveniently located for people with offices in Worli and Lower Parel. For those working in Nariman Point or Fort, it is a logical mid-way stop on the way home. I rather liked the feeling of being part of the "office crowd". Tables are large, so even for bigger office groups of 8-15 people, there's lots of space.

We ordered nachos and chicken satay; the nachos were not as crisp as they should have been. The satay was pronounced excellent. I didn't even look at the menu; so I don't know what else was on offer.

The worst part of Aer is really the music. The night we were there, it was some electronica/techno type of thing; totally ugh. After an hour of listening to it, I was ready to give up and die. Pramod - who is more sensitive to music than I am - walked up to the DJ and said, hey, check out the people here, do you think this is the kind of music this age group is looking for? As it turns out, the DJ had nothing else to play; or maybe he had been instructed to play nothing but this nonsense. Pramod and the DJ chatted amicably for a long time; while the rest of us looked on and wondered what they were talking about - maybe they were earnestly discussing the city music scene :)

It was a relatively cool October night, but I think November-February would be perfect. I'm definitely going back again, to see if the music changes at all. Fortunately, the music isn't loud.

After Aer, we went back to Bandra and dropped off Ranjana's friend.

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It was midnight by then; and on an impulse we decided to check out more places. I dragged Pramod and Ranjana to Pali Village Cafe for pasta and dessert and coffee. But we got there too late; they could only offer wine and dessert. So off we went to that old favourite, Olive.

Chilling out at Olive

For a place that is so much part of the city party scene, Olive is quite unpretentious. The food is good, the service is decent, and the crowd is a merry mix of all sorts. We found a nice corner at the bar to hang out; and then Pramod wrangled us a table to take a late order for pasta and pizza and tiramisu. Quite a lovely end to the day.

Oh - and one more thing - if you're wondering whether I kept my shopping resolution - here's the proof :)

A productive Saturday afternoon at Zara

We went shopping at Palladium on Saturday. Ranjana and I were joined by my sister, and we spent a happy afternoon trying on all sorts of things.

Zara is such a delight - I could kiss every single designer that works for them. By some miraculous magic, the clothes at Zara make you feel feminine and beautiful, in a way that other stores don't quite manage. Ranjana bought up half the store; and my sister bought winter clothes for her upcoming trip to Istanbul.

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I was content with three simple additions to my wardrobe. But I'm already looking for another weekend out now, so I can wear them. Pramod, are you reading this? :)

Disappearing Act

- by Aishwarya Pramod

Up until I was 5 years old, I spent most of my time at my grandparents' place. My mom was a working woman and during the day time my grandmother and grandfather looked after me.

Their house was on the ground floor of a set of apartments, in a small lane behind Roopam cinema (now Cinemax Sion). One of my earliest memories is of a tree, growing near the gate of my grandparents’ building. The strange little flowers on that tree spread a red carpet on the ground. And in and around that tree, there were tons of sparrows. Sparrows hopping around (when moving on the ground, they prefer to hop instead of walk), sparrows scolding angrily, sparrows flitting busily about the whole building.

When I was almost 6, we went to live in Chennai. When I came back to Mumbai seven years later, I saw that the tree was gone and only a few sparrows were in sight.

I wondered where they all had gone. I wondered if it was only from our building that they disappeared, or from all of Mumbai?

The answer, I found out from newspapers, is that the little birds have dropped in population drastically - more than 50 percent- since the time I was last here.

Sparrows are tough city birds, but in Mumbai, they've been subjected to an unholy combination of challenges that has broken their hardy backs.

For one, they have fewer places to nest now. The old, traditional houses had lots of hidey holes and protected crevices for sparrows to make their nests. Box style flats have fewer of these spaces.

Traditional roofed housing in Bandra -
But these old enclaves are disappearing fast. In the background you can see new modern style concrete housing.

A fisherman's old-style home in Worli Fishing Village.
This sort of house has lots of nooks and crannies where sparrows love to build their nests.

Another surprising reason is the introduction of unleaded petrol. When unleaded petrol combusts, it releases compounds that kill insects, which are an important food source for baby sparrows.

Radiation from mobile towers also affects the reproductive and nervous systems of sparrows. Their babies have high mortality rates and many of them are born with serious deformities.

Pigeons, crows and other bigger birds are serious competition.

City folks don't dry grain out in the open as much as they used to, so sparrows can't steal grain from here (another important food source gone).

Surely, the sparrow is disappearing from the city. This is a bird that has characterized not only my childhood, but that of many others in Mumbai. Perhaps the disappearance of the sparrow indicates the passing of an old way of life in Mumbai. Or maybe Mumbai was always rapidly changing, and I just didn't notice it when I was 5 years old.

You know it's the monsoon when...(3)

...everything's covered in blue!

Motorbike parked in Sion - it was covered last evening to protect it from rain at night.
.Goods Tempo with blue tarpaulin lashed down.

Slum colony in Bandra
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Make-shift blue roof at cinema complex

Verandah cover to protect the daily washing

This morning I saw a pav-wallah on a cycle, his bread was covered with a blue sheet. The temples have blue coverings. Shop awnings are blue. I saw an apartment block where the whole terrace was covered in blue. In Dharavi, there is a street where 4-5 shops do nothing but sell these blue sheets.

Keep your eyes open and you'll see bright blue just about everywhere!