Digital Transformation with 5G – 2nd 5G India 2018 International Conference & Exhibition. The conference will be held on May 17 and 18, 2018 at The Leela, Mumbai

Bharat Exhibitions is organising the 2nd edition of the 5G India 2018 International Conference and Exhibition, bringing together India’s telecom industry leaders, policymakers and telecom analysts to discuss how 5G will enable the future ushering in a new India. The conference to be held on May 17 and 18 at The Leela, Mumbai will focus on issues and opportunities related to the deployment of 5G and high-speed digital applications that will drive cross-industry applications and spur digital transformation and connectivity to catalyze growth.

With 5G promising to bring about a sea change in the digital ecosystem by servicing more industries through one architecture, the conference will address the tremendous growth that promises to take place in the next few years to revolutionize the Indian Data market and help India to emerge as a qualitative internet market as against a quantitative one. Leading experts will speak about the challenges and opportunities that operators and technology providers will face in the transformation of mobile broadband to 5G.

The event will witness the 5G Demo by various organization (BSNL, Reliance Jio, Intel, IIT Hyderabad, IIT Bombay). The conference will include sessions and panel discussions on what will it take for India to emerge as one amongst the leaders in standardization for 5G technologies and applications, enabling the positive use of Artificial Intelligence for all, global perspectives on 5G, preparing for 5G, trends and drivers shaping 5G, spectrum and technology for 5G and a CXO Round Table on Digital Transformation with 5G.

Shri Manoj Sinha, Hon’ble Minister of Communications (Independent Charge) and Minister of State for Railways, Govt. of India will be the Chief Guest, Smt. Aruna Sundararajan, IAS, Chairman, TC & Secretary (Telecom), Department of Telecommunications, Govt. of India and Mr. Malcolm Johnson, Deputy Secretary-General, ITU will be the Guests of Honour, Introductory Address by Mr. Adrian Scrase, CTO, ETSI and Keynote will be deliver by Shri Anupam Shrivastava, Chairman & Managing Director, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited. 5G India 2018 International Conference and Exhibition is being supported by the Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications, Govt. of India and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Govt. of India. With Broadband India Forum as the Knowledge Partner, the conference is also being supported by the industry associations including 3GPP, TSDSI, CEWiT India, COAI and TAIPA.

With plenary sessions, technical tracks in an innovative show formats and international case studies, the agenda will include visionary presentations from 30+ speakers across the globe including Mr. Klaus Pendl, First Counsellor – ICT, Delegation of the European Union to India, Mr. Sebastien Soriano, Chairman, ARCEP France, Mr. Daniel Brower, Vice President, Program, Deutsche Telekom, Mr. Julius Knapp, CTO, FCC USA and Dr. Wu Yong, Senior Standards Expert, 3GPP as well as Senior Spokesperson from BSNL, INTEL, Google, Savitri Telecom Services, Syniverse, Keysight Technologies, UTStarcom, Cambium Networks, CSG International, Rohde & Schwarz, Commscope, Infineon and Siae Microelettronica.

About Bharat Exhibitions

In a world where technology is erasing borders, it is indeed ironical that professionals find it increasingly difficult to maintain peer to peer contact on regular basis. Bharat Exhibitions fills in this space by managing and hosting some of India’s premier Telecom & IT events. We own niche and prestigious conference properties in the new generation technology arena such as 100 Smart Cities India, Cloud & Network Virtualisation India, 5G India, Data Centre India, Broadband Tech India, Smart-Sustainable Cities Technology & Innovation Summit, Cyber Security India, SMC Technology India and Telecom CXO Summit. We have a simple mission: Establish & deliver contacts that create value for your business.

For further details, please visit http://www.bharatexhibitions.com

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New Delhi: Instant messaging platform WhatsApp announced the rollout of a number of new features for group chats, in a bid to make the platform more interactive and engaging. Among the new features is group descriptions, wherein a short blurb will appear under the group info tab that allows users to set the purpose, guidelines, or topics for the group.

Furthermore, when a new member joins a group, the description will show up at the top of the chat.

In a move to give group administrators more authority, WhatsApp introduced a new control that will allow the former to restrict who can change the group's subject, icon, and description. Admins can also remove admin permissions of other group participants, while group creators can no longer be removed from the group they started.

Among other features, WhatsApp also introduced a 'group catch up' option, whereby a user, who has been away from a group chat, can quickly catch up on messages that mention or reply to them by tapping on a new @ button that appears at the bottom right corner of the chat.

Group participants can now search for anyone in a group by using the search option on the group info page. WhatsApp also introduced protection controls so users can't be repeatedly added to groups they've left. The new features are being rolled out for Android and iPhone users globally.

Representational picture

In India, gaming is considered as a hobby and was less than inclined towards gaming from the get- go. But the scenario is slowling changing. Looking at the growth of the industry over the years, we have finally come to a point where families have started being supportive of this career choice. Rather than opting for a 9-to-5 job, more and more gamers have started taking their careers seriously and are transitioning into professional esports athletes and streamers.

So what is gaming? Gaming is a form of entertainment which is consumed via interaction, participation and viewership. It encompasses PC gaming, mobile gaming and console gaming and is multi-billion dollar industry globally. This industry comprises of gamers who can be a casual or an enthusiast, an amateur or a professional, a player or a viewer. Gaming can be as simple as picking up your mobile and launching some birds at hostile pigs in a castle, or as complex as dedicating years to learning and mastering a game and competing against other similarly dedicated players globally with millions of dollars at stake.

The term 'esports' seem new but the concept isn't. Esports is the part of gaming that’s competitive, where various genres of games are played competitively against other players, on different platforms. From fighting against your friend at the local arcade with a barrage of virtual punches and kicks to being seated together and connected to 100s of other gamers and being the last person alive in a perilous deserted island. Esports is as old as gaming is. The only difference we see nowadays, is the higher stakes and the dedication gamers put in to reach the top. With prize pools running in the millions and a loyal audience who travel halfway across the globe to watch their teams play, esports has become a global phenomenon with major brands investing heavily in the industry and corporations building stadiums larger than conventional sports stadiums.

Professional athletes train their body and mind, regularly to stay at the best of conditions and are supported with the state-of-the-art facilities and a salary for playing their game. Another term people might be unfamiliar with is "video game live streaming”. Streaming is a form of online video broadcast on specialised platforms where you play games and entertain your viewers. A viewer might be engrossed by your playstyle or your witty humour. There can be thousands of players watching you at a point of time and cheering for you. Streaming has become a full-time job for a lot of people with them earning a comfortable six-figure income monthly by just regularly entertaining their viewers. Brands sponsor these streamers to advertise and endorse their products on their stream.

The global gaming industry is still growing at a rapid pace with a valuation of $108.9 billion and a YoY growth of 7.8% in 2017. The Asia Pacific region contributes to 47% of this with India ranked 17 th globally valued at $818 million with an 11.14% CAGR. Gaming in India is still nascent with a lot of scope for growth and recognition. Esports plays a huge part in gaming with $696 million market and whopping 385.5 million viewers watching their favourite teams and players fight for glory. That’s thrice as many subscribers Netflix has.

So how far has India come? India is slowly catching up with the rest of the world. We have 253.2 million gamers in India with 81% of them in the age group of 16 – 30. We have professional teams in India who compete globally against other teams. We have people who have taken up streaming as their jobs. Rather than pursuing a regular career like your average John and Jane, we have emerging brave souls who want to stand out and make their dreams come true. And the space is filled with brands who want to work hand in hand with these people, empowering and enabling such a career into reality.

Insight of target audience by COBX games

Gaming in India has been given a boost in the recent years with the advent of 4G and FTTH. Prices have grown more competitive which has helped not only companies but also gamers across India. We have seen a spike in mobile gaming with 4G being introduced in India and will play a major role in the industry. FTTH, which is already being deployed in tier-1 cities, provides high-speed internet connection over optical fibre directly to your home from the ISP which has increased the quality of service. In tier-2 cities, gaming cafés and colleges act as hotspots for gamers and most tournaments are hosted in these colleges, due to the presence of stable infrastructure which, in turn, promotes the growth of gaming.

Esports is on the rise in India with multiple tournaments being announced with unprecedented prize pools. Esports is dynamically changing the industry with numerous brands joining in and helping the space flourish. Monthly tournaments provide a scope for professional gamers to sustain a living and also provides growth to multiple domains attached to esports like cosplayers, shoutcasters, and analysts and so on. From small tournaments in cafés and college labs to huge events filled with gamers, esports has come a long way in India. 2018 saw numerous companies invest heavily in esports by announcing multiple tournaments with prize pools of over Rs 1 crore.

Mujahid Rupani, Co-founder & C.E.O of COBX Gaming says, "We are also expecting an increase in VR and AR gaming in India. VR gears are being readily accessible to people and families are opting in for the virtual reality experience. Mobile phones are growing powerful every day and proving to be effective AR devices. New games are being launched every day which take advantage of augmented reality and taking use experience to a whole new level. Mobile gaming is also on the rise in India due to the ease of entry and affordable and stable internet connection. With the amount of time people invest on mobiles, a lot of developers are shifting their focus to mobile games and catering to a big chunk of gamers who prefer mobiles over expensive PCs and consoles as their gaming gear. With the number of game development studies in our country, the next big title might be from India."

With the ecosystem growing and evolving every year, the future for gaming in India is bright. Gaming in India is an incipient industry and has a long way to go. We hope to see more professional players, more streamers and more parents supporting their kid’s dream. There was a time when you would idolise a sportsperson, the day is here when kids idolise their favourite professional gamer or streamer. We have a generation of parents who are gamers too and encourage their kids and help them balance gaming along with other life priorities. We hope to see more companies and brands invest their time and resource in the gaming industry and maybe one day, a kid who wants to grow up and be a professional gamer.

Also Read: Hrithik Roshan: Gaming In India Gaining Exponential Popularity

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Illustration/Amit Bandre

New Delhi: On an average, a college student in India checks his mobile phone over 150 times a day, according to a study conducted by Aligarh Muslim University and the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR).

The research, titled "Smartphone Dependency, Hedonism and Purchase Behaviour: Implications for Digital India Initiatives", has been conducted in 20 central universities, where 200 students each were interviewed.

"Anxiety and fear of missing out on information make university students check their mobile devices as many as 150 times a day on an average, an activity which can have adverse effects on the students' health as well as academics. "Only 26 per cent of the respondents said they use smartphones primarily to make calls. The remaining respondents use smartphones for other purposes such as accessing social networking sites, Google searches and for entertainment such as watching movies," said Mohammed Naved Khan, the Project Director.

At least 14 per cent of the students use smartphones for three hours or less in a day while around 63 per cent of them use it for four to seven hours daily.

"It came as a shock to us that around 23 per cent (of students) use the devices for more than eight hours a day," Khan added.

According to the study, eighty per cent of the students own a mobile phone and most of them prefer smartphones owing to convenience in the installation of applications, host of features, and ease of use and also work as affordable substitutes for a computer. The study conducted by researchers at AMU has been funded by the ICSSR with an aim to understand various facets of smartphone dependency and addiction among college-going students.

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Illustration/Ravi Jadhav

For years, every time I've gone to a beauty parlour, yaniki, what fancy folks now call salon, one of the ladies there will ask me in that characteristic beautician tone — yaniki, terrorism masked as concern — "eyebrows nahin karaate ho?" (don't you 'do' — thread and shape — your eyebrows?). Depending on my confidence levels (usually low, an unavoidable side effect of entering a beauty parlour) my 'no' might be uttered with giggling diffidence, false hauteur, or bland deflection. The response of the beauty parlour lady is always the same — "accha?", yaniki, "fine, be that way." It's on your head. Don't come crying to me afterwards. I toh have done my due diligence by asking." Sometimes, feeling a little bold, I would ingratiatingly say, "The natural shape is pretty nice na, so why get into one more jhamela." The beautician will give that sweeping, sarcastic glance at my eyebrows and say, "Haan, vaise toh it's fine", yaniki, pity and disdain, bechari thinks natural is a thing.

This has been a consistent question, of course, but as any random or regular beauty parlour visitor knows, there are others, spoken in a special voice designed to decimate your ego and turn you into a trembling supplicant, begging for beauty treatments. "Last clean up kab kiya tha?" (When's the last time you had a facial?). "Feets ko bleach nahin kara na? Bahut tanning ho gayi hai." (Don't bleach your feet? They're very tanned).

It doesn't matter if you by-hearted The Beauty Myth when you were 15, you will be engulfed by that doomful self-hate and self-doubt start, like a seventh grader in the principal's office. The crushing stereotypes of advertising are laughable wannabes compared to the beauty parlour interrogation.

These questions derive part of their potency from the fact that you are trapped in electric chair type furniture, usually with a giant plastic bib tied around you as if you still cannot be trusted to eat properly, leave alone look presentable, and several other people getting their eyebrows done, or doing others' eyebrows around, who will come to a cinematic halt and stare at you when you admit that you are not one of them.

This potency is only slightly reduced by the advent of app-based home beautician services. To the usual litany of questions they also add, "Ma'am, braazil karalo na, sab karate hain" (Ma'am, everyone gets a Brazilian wax now). You can answer coldly or pretend to be immersed in your phone, like teenagers do with parents. But dude, these are young women who magically produce footstools and pedicure tubs from a backpack. They are not so easily daunted.
With the passage of time, the questions have dwindled. I've relaxed slowly into the truth that as you approach the out-point of the conventional marriageable age zone, the beautician, like the world, starts to expect less conformity from you. The eyebrow question now comes at me only once in every five times.

It was obviously too good to be true. Last week as I submitted to the plastic bib, the beauty parlour lady looked at me with that familiar intent look. "Hair colouring nahin karate?" she asked, checking out my now no longer tentative greys. "Nahin," I said, stoically, preparing for a couple of decades of this now.

Paromita Vohra is an award-winning Mumbai-based filmmaker, writer and curator working with fiction and non-fiction. Reach her at www.parodevipictures.com

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My mother died at 84, on September 1, 2015. I was two oceans away, settling my son into his new university life in Montréal. Back in Mumbai, my two sisters and brother did what had to be done. Relatives were notified, last rites performed, and the body taken to the electric crematorium where we'd interred my father decades ago.

Cremation is a sombre moment. The tears have almost dried up, the words have been said. After years of watching a slow decline, death is not a surprise. So they stood there, my siblings, in the crematorium manager's office, to receive the warm earthen pot with the ashes of the woman who had made us everything we were.

Waiting with them was a fellow, a crematorium worker, blase about yet another death but eager for the customary tip. He made some money-seeking sounds, and my sister, distracted, pressed a Rs 1,000 note into his hand. We normally get Rs 2,000, he murmured. She gave him a second note. He still hung around, and then leaned forward to whisper. Apparently, a senior officer of the crematorium would drop by to see how things were going. It was normal, she was told, to give him Rs 3,000.

My sister, never at a loss for fire, asked him what he had done to merit that sum. It was the tradition, she was told. Haggling over a tip seemed the wrong action for the moment, so she gave him the money. But when she reached home, she Internetted out the email address of BMC's erstwhile municipal commissioner, explaining in plain, unfettered English that he was paying a salary to a staff of flesh-eating vultures who feasted off the grief of Mumbai's bereaved.

To her astonishment, within hours, she had received an invitation to meet with the man himself, three days away. A strange thing happened the following morning. The crematorium's manager and his money-grubbing workers, who had sought and received 'tips', showed up at our house. The envelope they handed over contained all the money they had extorted.

"Please take your tips back, madam," they beseeched my sister. "Just kindly cancel that appointment you have with the municipal commissioner." "Ah, no, I didn't make that appointment, so I cannot be the one who cancels it," said my sister. When she went to the Andheri office that issues death certificates, her name triggered an immediate flutter of interest. Apparently her letter to the commissioner was all the news that day. Many employees congratulated her for standing up to the crematorium's predators. At the BMC three days later, there were more surprises. The manager and key staff of that particular crematorium had been invited and were sitting in the outer room with hangdog looks. The commissioner wasted no time with them.

"You are accused of soliciting and extorting exorbitant tips from grief-stricken family members in the moment of their greatest grief — in return for doing a job that you are already paid to do," he said. "Please sign here, and here and here." He pushed letters of confession towards each of them, and they signed without a murmur. "These letters will be photocopied and mailed to every crematorium worker in Maharashtra, as an object lesson," he said.

They looked at their shoes wretchedly. "That's not all," he continued. "You are all hereby suspended from your jobs for a period of four months. This too will be made known to all your colleagues." He paused. "You may go now," he said, ending the meeting. Mumbai has surprised me in the past with its compassion. I remember during the biblical floods of 2005, when 1,094 people died and thousands were stranded in their cars, householders came out with coffee, tea and hot breakfast for those stranded souls as dawn broke.

But there is a dark underbelly to Mumbai, and it is predatory, ruthless, and astute. In 1996, I wrote in mid-day about a schoolboy, Murtuza, hit by a lamppost too close as he hung out of a train approaching Chembur. The wheels ran over both his legs. He was rushed to Sion Hospital, where he died despite all efforts.

But when his parents came to collect the body from the morgue, they found a leg missing. None of the ward boys seemed to know where it was. Eventually, it was whispered that the leg might be miraculously 'found' if a certain amount was paid to a ward boy. And so it was. That was 1996. Living in distant Bangkok, where too I'm certain corruption smiles, but in more sophisticated ways, I hear often that in the new India of the Modi raj, there is less tolerance for everyday corruption. Moments like this make me believe they may be right.

Here, viewed from there. C Y Gopinath, in Bangkok, throws unique light and shadows on Mumbai, the city that raised him. You can reach him at cygopi@gmail.com Send your feedback to mailbag@mid-day.com

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The city is shaken up by the brutal murder of a young woman working with an upmarket chain of salons. In what has been dubbed as a case having parallels with the Sheena Bora murder, this beautician's body was kept in a car post the murder and then disposed off in marshy land at Wadala. Police teams are trying to recover the body, but have been unsuccessful so far.

It's time to focus on the reason for this murder. According to the police, two colleagues, who have been caught, killed the young woman because she refused to take back a notice sent to one of the accused because of his shoddy performance at work. Despite their entreaties, the victim had not relented about withdrawing a notice sent to one accused till the last day when his employment may have been terminated.

Both colleagues claim, according to reports, that the murder was done in the heat of the moment. The family of the accused, though, insist they are innocent. What has shocked the city is the triviality of the motive. A life has been lost simply because somebody was going to lose his job. As one tries to absorb this, a much smaller report recently was indication of a society, which is weaned on instant gratification and instant rage. A young gym owner was stabbed to death and his female friend hit with a beer bottle over a quarrel with a Disc Jockey (DJ) over which songs to play.

We have been seeing murders happening over slightest provocations. Bring back regard for human life, which has been cheapened considerably. Cherish patience, logic and encourage our children to think before they act. Put an absolute premium on human life. These seem like knee-jerk murders, where rage consumes the murderers, who are mostly ordinary men and women who have no criminal record. Speed kills and in more ways than one.

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Jagadamb refers to the ancestral deity Tulja Bhavani whose shrine sits in the mid-size city of Tuljapur in Osmanabad district. But, in present-day Maharashtra, the term Jagadamb rises above the geographical address. It is an embodiment of the feisty street-fighting youth, belonging to the Marathas or other backward castes, who owe their allegiance to a goddess who was also the motivation for Maharashtra's most-revered Chhatrapati Shivaji. Flashed on hooded T-shirts and pullovers, 'Jagadamb' has emerged topmost among the potent watchwords currently dominating popular discourse. Online sales and offline retail purchases across the state speak for the all-seasons connect of Jagadamb, which has takers irrespective of commemorative days and morcha schedules.

Abhijit Tarphe, a Dadar-based calligraphy artist, creates tees that occupy the fun space between political discourse, street lingo and social commentary. Pic/Ashish Raje

Apparel carrying longer mantras of Maratha loyalty — Ek Maratha Lakh Maratha, Hoy Maratha and Amhi Shivrayanche Sainik — have enjoyed cyclical demand, corresponding with the calendar of the 58 silent marches held last year. As the anecdote goes, Maratha T-shirts are in a "politically dormant" state at the moment. But fiery speaker (at the Maratha Kranti Morcha) and advocate from Aurangabad, Swati Nakhate Patil, feels T-shirts are effective communication tools. "What better reminder of the time when we took to the streets for reservations and equal terms? The identifiable catch lines recap our journey so far." T-shirt messages, she thinks, help in creating a family of volunteers. She'd know considering she is head of the Akka Foundation which has initiated a reform movement against socials ills like dowry and superstition among the Marathas. The foundation's signature T-shirt, wears a generic slogan – Sarvansathi Sarva Kahi – which indicates a wider fight for everyone's rights.

Swati Nakhate Patil, seen here with volunteers wearing their signature tee with the slogan, Sarvansathi Sarva Kahi. She heads the Akka Foundation which is fighting against socials ills. She has been one of the main speakers at the Maratha Kranti Morcha over the last one year

"The Marāthās" is a collective term referring to an Indo Aryan group of Hindus, Marathi-speaking castes of warriors and peasants who created an empire, covering a major part of India. They are not alone in the fight for rights. Another rights movement that's currently finding a reflection on T-shirts through creative slogans, photographs and graphic designs concerns the Lingayat community. They are seeking legal recognition as a religion distinct from Hinduism. Inspired by the success of their counterparts in Karnataka, the Lingayats in Maharashtra (some of whom have thronged Mantralaya too) are pressing for their religious minority status on T-shirts, which sing paeans to 12th century social reformer, philosopher and statesman Basaveshwara.

The Killa brand of tees focuses on Maratha pride associated with Chhatrapati Shivaji, and his various forts

He rejected temple worship by replacing it with direct worship of Shiva in the form of the Ishtalinga necklace, the image of the linga set in a silver casket, to be worn at all times close to the heart. Little wonder that both, Basaveshwara and the Shiv linga prominently feature on the T-shirts. As a professor of history and a keen observer of progressive movement slogans, Satara-based Amrut Salunkhe points out an interesting contradiction in the Lingayat factions. Not all sub-sects recognise Basava as the founder, but they don't seem to mind the T-shirt — available in Kannada and Marathi typography — carrying the phrase, Jai Vishwaguru Dharmsansthapak Basaveshwar! "The dissident factions have not yet come up with a counter icon. At this point, two different T-shirt creatives wouldn't have helped in lobbying for the larger Lingayat brotherhood," Salunkhe feels.

Theme T-shirts honouring the men of letters in the Marathi cultural world have been in currency for two decades; a recent manifestation was seen during a death anniversary of late Namdeo Dhasal whose fans wore the poet-ideologue's world view on a memorial T-shirt. The Bharatiya brand made use of faces of popular litterateurs like PL Deshpande and Narayan Surve, just as it made good use of the Marathi Abhiman Geet, and distributed T-shirts on Ashadi Ekadashi, Holi and Ganesh Chaturthi. They fashioned kid-centric lyrical sequence tees on monsoon joys too. Bharatiya has now extended its T-shirt ideation to Hindi and is soon to come up with Tamil messages. Their fare was earlier vended at literary summits, before it grew popular online, somewhat in the provincial cosmos where the Killa T-shirts thrived. Designed by Malvan-based artist and JJ School of Applied Art alumnus Arun Amberkar, Killa garments focus on the fortresses built by Chhatrapati Shivaji. The iconic rajmudra (official signature) T-shirt has been a hit for over a decade. Amberkar calls the line "lovingly crafted, wearable and usable slivers of history."

Dadar-based calligraphy artist Abhijit Tarphe feels customised tees are a fun zone for current affairs to find a rightful space. His T-shirts displayed apt word play (Sonu, tuza mazhyavar bharvasa nay ka?) when RJ Mallishka had attacked the BMC. He captures the Mumbai commuter spirit in the line, Mili to BEST, Nahi Toh Next.
Tarphe also has a range of occasion-based T-shirts like the tricolour-filled Independence Day special or Gokulashtami's Aya Makhan Chor creative. It is another story that T-shirts for Gokulashtami and Holi usually are gifted by political party leaders, chiefly Shiv Sena Shakha Pramukhs.

Jai Bhim T-shirts as a community-building tool have worked well over the years, not just for the April 14 Babasaheb Ambedkar Jayanti or the December 6 Mahaparinirvan Din. The apparel also comes in handy for Buddha Jayanti and during any political rally Dalit groups organise. This year, a Goregaon-based youth association, designed a special T-shirt declaring Mazhi Chaityabhoomi, Swacchabhoomi (My clean Chaityabhoomi). It served two political purposes; an affirmation of the Swacch Bharat mantra, challenging the stereotypical notion of Dalits arriving from rural Maharashtra who converge at Dadar's Shivaji Park Chaityabhoomi and litter.

T-shirt messaging extends to a range of causes — Separate Vidarbha; Who Killed Judge Loya?; Make (Women Safe) in India; Rape Roko; India Against Corruption; Donate Eyes; Pinkathon run against breast cancer. It has also been used to add cohesion to groups (I am with Anna Hazare; Desh Me Narendra/ Pradesh Me Devendra) or merely declare strength (Dr B R Ambedkar: King Number 1) or sport a vibe (Dude Please, Thane is not Bombay!/ Delhi is about Mera Baap Kaun Hai, Mumbai is about Who I am). T-shirts can help start a conversation, from the polite to the political.

Sumedha Raikar-Mhatre is a culture columnist in search of the sub-text. You can reach her at sumedha.raikar@gmail.com

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"Pheroze… is it true what I've heard? Dr Viegas was privy to the buzz around Dhobi Talao that had reached some of his nonagenarian friends at Kyani's. They were chatting about it last morning over their brun-maska routine," Lady Flora checked with her old friend during their daily midnight stroll. The two had to re-route their trail post the Metro III work, and were now happier around Rampart Row, Lion Gate and the back lanes of Colaba. Sir PM Mehta rolled his eyes and adjusted his spectacles; he was a tad surprised at how quickly the news had spread among their ilk.

"Well, if you must know, Lady Flora," he began, "The gods who run Victoria Terminus…oops! I mean Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, are planning to install air-conditioners inside the railway station. Isn't it a highly questionable and extremely debatable suggestion?" The timing couldn't have been more apt though. The city was reeling under another humid and terribly uncomfortable May. Crows and pigeons were falling off the sky, and sparrows, well; the poor little winged fellas didn't stand a chance as water fountains, spouts and pyaus vanished by the day. The city's residents carried on with their daily grind and commute as they braved the elements. Seasons may change, but Bombaywallahs don't complain, as the two icons had grown to realise.

Sir PM and Lady Flora were both witness to all kinds of challenges with each summer that hit Bombay. Yet, and somehow, the idea of an air-conditioned railway terminus, didn't sit well with the duo. "You see, Pheroze," as she wiped a few droplets of sweat off her freshly restored face, "This must be just a rumour. What do those old bumbling uncles sipping on their chai know about the real khabar. I am pretty sure this won't go through," she said, trying to calm her own doubts, and then convince her friend. "Tell me, Pheroze, does it make sense logistically, and from a heritage viewpoint?"

Sir PM was happy to take the stand. "Lady Flora, when several great architects and urban designers, most of whom hailed from the British Isles, were commissioned to plan these magnificent Gothic and Victorian landmarks in a tropical city for the public, a common feature that bound their plans was the focus on ventilation. This was a departure from the norms of buildings in their part of the world. From what I can recall of a chat with the very talented FW Stevens - who designed the terminus and the corporation building - his plans kept the city's humidity in mind," he shared.

"Not only did they 'Indianise' the style by including fine motifs and emblems that celebrated the Indian Subcontinent but they also created high arched windows and ceilings with plenty of avenues for cross ventilation that made possible for the sea breeze to pass through." By now Lady Flora was all ears. They had reached the iconic terminus and she gazed at the landmark with new-found reverence. "Pheroze, this will be tragic - if they were to go ahead and box up the fine architectural template of this place. I cannot recall even the historic St Pancreas station having to face this kind of predicament."

Sir PM's face looked wrinkled with worry. "I know that one thing is sure to happen if this is passed – the station will be less of a train terminus and more of a comfortable and very, very crowded sanctuary for all those who wish to nap or relax in 'AC' comfort. Heaven help us! Lady Flora do please consider my suggestion to retreat to Panchgani for the summers, will you?"

mid-day's Features Editor Fiona Fernandez relishes the city's sights, sounds, smells and stones...wherever the ink and the inclination takes her. She tweets @bombayana Send your feedback to mailbag@mid-day.com

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The desire to stream his speeding stunt live on social media cost a 20-year-old engineering student his life, while his cousin, who accompanied him, is battling for his life in hospital. He had stolen the keys to his uncle's car. This report highlighted once again that social media distractions and driving are a lethal mix.

The police have identified the deceased as Shivam Prakash Jadhav from Kharadwadi in Pimpri. He died on the spot. His cousin Hrishikesh Vilas Pawar, 22, was cited as critical and undergoing treatment in a Pimpri Chinchwad-based private hospital.A senior police officer was quoted in the report as saying that the car was speeding at 120 kmph. The passenger was streaming live on Instagram when the driver asked him to show the speedometer. Later, he lost control of the car, and it rammed into a grid separator.

The thrill of speed coupled with the thrill of likes, adulation and congratulatory messages is so potent that there can never be enough said about desisting from using social media while driving. Even earphones are a no-no when driving because your hands may be free, but the mind is elsewhere on the conversation and your focus and attention is compromised.

Here, we also had another factor thrown into the tragic cocktail. The driver was speeding. It was the passenger who was streaming live on Instagram, but the driver's attention was compromised as he was distracted by Instagram. It was evident that the young men were on a suicide mission unknown to them.

Let there be more awareness and we want to see a blitzkrieg on social media how it is not cool to drive and be on social media at the same time. Speed should be similarly panned. Youngsters, this is so not cool. Losing a life for some likes? Certainly not.

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It was being said that the Karnataka Assembly polls should be able to shape the political discourse of the time to come, with an eye on next year's general elections. Things are headed that way, thanks to a secondary role that the Indian National Congress has decided to play in a game that would have regional parties as dominant stakeholders. The reactions that Karnataka's high drama has evoked from the ruling regional parties and others that are poised to throw a challenge to the BJP were more like war cries.

The BJP isn't naïve to ignore what lies ahead and it should be seen changing its strategy as it faces newer challenges. We should not be surprised if BJP works overtime on dividing the outfits that the Congress wants to gather under one umbrella with the sole target of stopping BJP in its strides. The war cries we have been hearing from the foes of BJP mean a single agenda, but without a unified command centre they cannot turn it into action on all fronts where the BJP needs to be defeated. It is still a grey area for the opposition that the BJP should seek advantage from.

Regional rationale
High on ambitions, the regional parties in some states have their own calculations, permutations and combinations that have little space for the Congress, which will have to work elsewhere to emerge as the first or the second largest party at the Centre. The Congress think-tank seems to have done a reality check. After Gujarat, where it fought BJP in a straight fight and hurled a stunner that almost unseated the ruling party, it missed out on retaining power on its own in Karnataka. But it performed exceedingly well outside legislature. It learned from past mistakes and took every cue from BJP's moves. It made the right noises in the people's court and also in the highest judicial offices of the country. It was pleasant to see the Congress leaders, who are also the party's legal experts, shed their infamous arrogance, as they spoke their minds at media conferences and argued in the courts.Little wonder then, the Congress does not seem to be pushing its president Rahul Gandhi as a torch-bearer for all opposition, unless supported by the number of elected representatives.

A decision to give JD (S) the chief minister's post in Karnataka should be seen as a part of strategy that serves many purposes. It gives out a message that the Congress will make sacrifices to strengthen a mission 'say-no-to-Modi-BJP'. It embraced a post-poll partner, and it said unlike BJP (or the Congress of the past that had pulled out support to Deve Gowda's Union government), it wouldn't eliminate a friend in need.
Regionals such as Shiv Sena, BSP, SP, TRS, Trinamool Congress, TDP, RJD and other outfits have welcomed the development in Karnataka, especially the Congress' fightback in ensuring that BJP's CM steps down and JD (S) chief HD Kumaraswamy gets to run the government, as promised on the election results day.
The anti-Modi gang sees it as a positive and mature decision from the Congress, which acted with a flexibility and quickness it rarely showed in the past, in the decision-making process of the Karnataka episode.

Testing times for BJP
The BJP expects the new-found love between the Congress and JD (S) to vanish soon. It says there will be Assembly polls in Karnataka very soon and it will win, this time, with a thumping majority. If it happens or not in the southern state, the BJP will now have to keep its flag flying in three of its citadels — Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, where regional parties don't matter much, but may have an influence here and there. As has been in the past three decades, it should be a one-on-one fight between the Congress and BJP. These states will also fairly indicate where the two parties stand ahead of Lok Sabha polls. MP sends 29 MPs, Chhattisgarh has 11 and Rajasthan 25.

Going by the voting pattern of the Assembly in Karnakata, a unified opposition should at least win 22-23 of 28 Lok Sabha seats in the state. By-polls in Uttar Pradesh have established that the united opposition, mainly the regionals SP and BSP, should be able to reduce BJP considerably in a state that sends highest number of 80 MPs.
Second in the line after UP is Maharashtra, where the Assembly polls are held six months after the general polls (48 MPs) and it usually sees an impact of previous polls on formation of a state government. Yet, we may have some 'trend learning' in the offing when Palghar and Bhandara-Gondia go to the Lok Sabha by-poll on May 28.

Dharmendra Jore is political editor, mid-day. He tweets @dharmendrajore Send your feedback to mailbag@mid-day.com

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We were sufficiently chuffed after having spent some quality time with the affable, gentle Periyappa, the resident wise old doggie in the Kings Circle neighbourhood, and had retreated towards our other favourite pastime along its pavements — secondhand book-shopping.

The area holds a special space for yours truly — a Ruiaite. As a collegian, it offered an inviting mix of south Indian fare, from enterprising roadside kiosks to cafés that ran on autopilot; mind you, each of them ensured that no matter what budget you were staring at; you never went hungry when the urge cropped up just before that boring afternoon lecture. And then, there were those saviours from the pre-mega bookstore era — the secondhand pavement bookwallahs. From a mindboggling range of titles to the delightful haggling [we learnt our first lessons in bargaining here]; these booksellers were responsible for some pretty good deals that landed up in our bookshelf at home.

Interestingly, when we sat down yesterday to plan out this column, the Google doodle also helped a bit; it jogged our memory to an important nugget from back then. The doodle was to celebrate the birth of the world's first atlas created by Flemish cartographer Abraham Ortelius. Some of our first intriguing journeys into the world of maps was courtesy these secondhand booksellers whose drop dead pricing made it tough to resist the map-crazy collegian in a time where finding an atlas of hand drawn maps from the late 1800s was worth its weight in gold.

Fast forward to the present. We met with architect, photographer, archivist and collector Robert D Stephens a week before his ongoing exhibition at a swish SoBo gallery. Robert, an American who swears by his local train commute, is as 'Bombay' as it gets. And his love affair extends to his endless search for books about the city from every decade and century. Many of his finds are now part of the exhibition, themed on guidebooks that were written for tourists and city folk. As we ogled at the 'loot' that he displayed for sneak peek, the glee in his eyes [and understandably so] was akin to a pirate who had brought his treasures to the safety of dry land.

"My go-to guys are the booksellers along Fort's pavements," he shared with us, adding how over the years, this faithful bunch has ensured that buying books remains a sub-culture and part of the landscape in and around this buzzing commercial district. While their numbers have dwindled and business continues to get affected [thanks to the ongoing project to 'upgrade' the city], loyalists still throng these parts. Just like the vendors of Kings Circle, they too know that time, and many other factors might not be on their side, and with the sweeping hold of the internet, they could be staring at the dark end of the tunnel.

Yet, the optimist in us finds it reassuring when we learn how almost an entire exhibition could have been sourced not from a brick-and-mortar institution or buys off e-stores but from the neighbourhood bookseller.So, in case you haven't till now, make a trip to check out one of these silent superheroes, find our favourite read, engage in some friendly bargaining, Bombay-style, and take home that rare find. It will be well worth it, take our word.

mid-day's Features Editor Fiona Fernandez relishes the city's sights, sounds, smells and stones...wherever the ink and the inclination takes her. She tweets @bombayana Send your feedback to mailbag@mid-day.com

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Tight jackets and tunics in diaphanous materials replaced the more pragmatic, flowing qabas, Jahangir did not marry anyone after Noor Jahan, Women wore jamas of fine muslin, so sought-after that they were named running water and night dew. Pics/Courtesy Aleph

While we all remember the story of 16th century Timurid warrior and scholar Babur's arduous journey from Kabul to Punjab, from where he waged war on Delhi to become the first Emperor of the Mughal dynasty, little is known of the wives, sisters, daughters and aunts, who travelled with him, and helped him establish his empire in the Indian sub-continent.

A new book by Gurgaon-based author Ira Mukhoty, Daughters of the Sun (Aleph Book Company), is a first-of-its-kind attempt to chronicle the role of the women in building the empire, and whose stories have suffered the neglect of both, history and memory. "Women, in general, are a misremembered group in history," says Mukhoty, in an email interview. "Their achievements are constantly ignored or diminished in favour of the histories of men. For the Mughals, it is further complicated by the fact that a lot of the works are in Persian, a language that is seriously out of favour in India. There is a Persian document called the Pilgrims' Confidant, about the Haj pilgrim to Mecca, sponsored by Aurangzeb's daughter Zeb-un Nisa. I tried very hard to have the document translated into English, but was unable to. This is a beautifully illustrated manuscript, which may have interesting references to its imperial patron. The original document is, moreover, in a collection abroad, as are many Mughal documents following the great plunder by the British. So there are many layers obscuring the legacy of the Mughal women; language, despoliation and disinterest," she adds.

Ira Mukhoty

For Mukhoty, the idea of researching this book came to her when she stumbled on the story of Jahanara Begum, daughter of Emperor Shah Jahan, who reigned from 1628 to 1658. "The over-arching scope of her ambition, so clearly spelt out in all her works, took my breath away. At a time when even globally women were expected to live lives of quiet submission, Jahanara blazed such a fiery trail. And yet we really don't remember the extent of her achievements at all," she says.

The book is split into three parts. The first discusses the peripatetic queens, who travelled from Persia to Hindustan, and includes Khanzada Begum, Babur's elder sister, and his wife Dildar Begum, among others. The next talks of the wives during the imperial splendour. Here, Jahangir's wife Mehr-un-Nisa Begum alias Noor Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal — Shah Jahan's wife — find mention. The last section of the book takes us into the waning years of the Mughal empire, fraught with greed and overreaching ambition. The story of Jahanara Begum, the beloved eldest, unmarried daughter of Shah Jahan stands out here.

An interesting source for Mukhoty's book was Gulbadan Begum's Humayun-nama. Gulbadan was sister to Humayun and daughter to Babur, who arrived in Hindustan at the age of five. "She was asked many decades later by her grandnephew, Akbar, to write a biography of Babur and Humayun," Mukhoty writes in the book. "Gulbadan's account is a fascinating insight into the households of Babur and Humayun as seen by an insider. Her writing is forthright, frank and rambunctious," says Mukhoty. "It is her lack of a self-conscious eye on posterity, which made her account so invaluable. She gives us details which help us imagine a living, breathing space instead of a splendid, but unknowable place which the male biographers wrote about. Male historians of that time wrote in grave and obscure prose, about battles and ancestors. Gulbadan wrote about Humayun's opium habit and his relationship with one of his feisty wives," says the writer.

Among the Mughal women, whom Mukhoty has most affection for is Khanzada Begum, who at 65, rode on horseback through 750 km of icy passes to parley on behalf of her nephew, Humayun. "This fearless and indomitable lady made sacrifices all her life for the legacy of her younger brother Babur, and for the future of her family. She was constantly sent as peace ambassador to warring brothers and travelled endless miles through icy terrain on horseback. She wept upon seeing the infant Akbar, because he reminded her of her long dead 'baby' brother Babur. This gives us such a different insight into Babur too, no longer the marauding foreigner of legend but a dearly beloved and mourned brother," she says.

Mukhoty, however, finds Mumtaz Mahal to be the most voiceless of the lot she researched about — the irony being that she was also the most famous. "I think the Taj Mahal, and the 20th century construct of an 'exclusive love' that it generated is definitely the reason Mumtaz Mahal is viewed with affection by so many. But she left no writings, no substantial buildings, no clear evocation of an ambition. She was busy raising 14 children in 19 years, travelling the length and breadth of the country with her restless husband. She will forever be hidden by the splendour of the Taj Mahal."

Also Read: Mughal-Era Artefacts Seized From Antique Smuggler's Secret SoBo Godown

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Missed out on last week's Green Humour? You can read it here.

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When the first State of Decay came out, it was unique in the way that it focused on the survival aspect of a zombie apocalypse rather than the all-out destruction and gore of killing countless zombies. With the new game, the developers have focused their attention on the community aspect of survival.

Right from the start, you get to choose two characters instead of one and each group and character has their own strengths, skills and background. Like the previous game, you can make your posse and build a base of operations complete with a farm and fortification. There are three open world maps — each the size of the map in the original game.

This huge world is littered with empty cabins, new places to build outposts and gather resources. Risky as it may be, the game forces you to explore resources simply because weapons break and you can run out of fuel, food and medical supplies. Venturing out also helps you meet new people to add to the community. State of Decay 2 really hits you home with all the death — losing a built-up human resource can be painful. You can die by getting killed in combat or by way of infection.

Dying in combat is also rare as the AI-controlled characters do a good job of handling themselves, while you take care of business. The only real time you are in danger is when you encounter morbidly obese super zombies that can tear you apart. These guys are tough, but they are the most fun combat you will face in the game, second only to running over zombies with a car, which could have been better if the cars handled better.

Plus, it pays to remember that fuel is a limited resource that you might want to save. Scavenging for resources is fairly simple — if you need fuel, you can raid a gas station; if you need food, find a convenience store or abandoned encampment. Gathered resources can be used to build up, upgrade and fortify your own camp. While there is a ton of stuff to do in the camp and in the surrounding areas, State of Decay 2 does have a main story.

The story mode is a great way to learn about the game and experience various situations as you search for plague hearts to destroy. Plague hearts are throbbing masses of flesh, and it is what produces the infectious plague zombies, identifiable with their glowing eyes. To reduce their numbers, you need to find and destroy the hearts. While the story mode is fulfilling, the camp building and exploring is where the game's strength lies.

We played an advanced copy of the game and the final game will be released on Tuesday. State of Decay 2 still has a lot of bugs, which hopefully will be ironed out soon. Some bugs we encountered on the PC version of the game were floating zombies, breaks in rendering and freezing. This is not a big issue and the developers are sure to patch this over time. And, while the game is very competitively priced, we would recommend waiting for a future bug-free version before jumping in.

State of Decay 2
Rating: 3.5/5
Developer: Undead Labs
Publisher: Microsoft
Platform: PC, XBOX
Price: Rs 1,924

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Over a phone call from Kolkata, Vikram Rajan*, an audio engineer and guitarist formerly based out of Mumbai, wants us to listen to a track that he has composed. It's available on Soundcloud and, as we stream it, we more or less agree that its flavour of electronica-jazz could accompany a languorous Sunday evening. "For a long time, I had been unable to come up with something good. And, then, I composed this around March while I was microdosing and sometimes, megadosing on acid," says Rajan.

The 33-year-old is referring to a way-of-life that's effectively snapping the ties between drug abuse and the creative arts. This is a lifestyle experiment that some of the brightest techies in Silicon Valley are engaging in, and has got psychiatrists and anti-drug crusaders distraught. "From a 100 mics paper, I take about 20 mics, twice a week, giving the doses a 2-3 days gap. The effects of acid last for about six hours for me," says Rajan, who started experimenting with drugs as a teenager.

After a litany of prescriptions failed to control her mood swings and depression, Ayelet Waldman found relief in LSD. The former federal public defender authored A Really Good Day: How Microdosing Made a Mega Difference in My Mood, My Marriage, and My Life, in 2016. She wrote: "(It) made room in my mind not necessarily for joy, but for insight. It allowed me a little space to consider how to act in accordance with my values, not just react to external stimuli. This, not the razzle-dazzle of pleasure, was its gift." Pic/Getty Images

In need of a quick glossary before we proceed? Acid is officially called Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD), a psychedelic drug banned in India, the possession of which can lead to imprisonment from one to 20 years under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. LSD is often illegally sold in the form of stamps, with the hallucinogen embedded on blotter paper. Mics is micrograms, that's one-millionth of a gram. A microdose is when you have about one-tenth of a recreational 'party' dose, which starts at about 200 mics.

"With microdosing, you are not tripping — this is not a trip. The euphoria isn't there. It's not about feeling good, it's about calmness," continues Rajan. Microdosing first hit headlines after Steve Jobs' passed away in 2011, when a number of inspiring tales on how LSD became the new go-to substance for enhanced performance by tech employees hit the net. Espresso became passé. 'Flow states' were the new yoga. While Jobs did more than just microdose (he was known to have gone all the way), Silicon Valley techies are reportedly doing acid in quantities such that their effects are 'sub-perceptual', where you won't "see stuff" but you harness its "positive" effects.

A dropper with CBD cannabis oil, used for medicinal purposes. Initial research in the area has shown that patients can reap the benefits without its full-blown 'high' effects

Paul Austin, founder of The Third Wave, where you will find a manifesto on microdosing, defines it as, "the act of integrating sub-perceptual doses of psychedelics, such as LSD or Psilocybin Mushrooms, into your weekly routine for higher levels of creativity, more energy, increased focus, and improved relational skills." The Third Wave, according to Austin, follows the first two waves, in which psychedelics were used indigenously for thousands of years, and then, in the 60s and 70s, when they were a part of American counterculture. Austin writes that The Third Wave is upon us, "brought about by recent developments in cannabis legalisation and psychedelic research — and it will change the way mainstream culture perceives psychedelic use."

Classically acid, now weed
For Rajan, however, it wasn't sub-perceptual Silicon Valley that got him to ration his 100 mics stamps, each of which costs about R2,000. It was simply a matter of demand and supply. Mumbai had better stuff than Kolkata, and more availability. Microdosing has classically been associated with LSD, but now has been extended to cannabis as well. Austin's website has guided instructions for microdosing on nine drugs, including cannabis and ayahuasca. Mumbai-based communications officer Varna Kumar*, 25, smokes a mandatory post-work joint every night in order to cope with anxiety and panic attacks. "I feel I have worked enough through the day, without much time to understand what I am going through. At night, when I am by myself, I smoke a small joint to achieve REM sleep," she says. The joint, a mix of two strains, sativa and indica, help her body relax. It makes her anxiety seem defeatable, is how she describes it. Her counsellor, who also smokes up, has not advocated this as a coping mechanism. "It's different from when I am smoking up recreationally during the weekend or when I am away on a vacation. I will do three to four joints when I have nothing to take care of," she says.

Rajan doesn't buy it. He offers an example that may be best contemplated upon or contested by those who have done both LSD and cannabis. "With weed, you are either stoned, or you are not. You will need to smoke up as soon as the high wears off. When you get stoned, your mind becomes passive. But, microdosing on LSD allows you to be calm enough to multitask, allowing a lot of information to be funnelled into your brain easily. You are alert, you are awake," he says, adding, "What is LSD all about? When you start tripping, you see a shift in perspective." You need not agree with Rajan, as he himself says, "We are all chemical reactions", with each of us reacting differently to drugs.

Covert, not convenient
Microdosing will often be compared to that hard-earned and well-deserved one drink after work hours. It's nothing like that, microdosers will tell you, and so will psychiatrists and rehab therapists. For one, microdosing has none of the ease of getting a drink at your favourite pub. You will be persecuted in your search for your creative spell or a calmer mind. Next, it's not even like getting a drug prescription that your GP advises you to have for the course of a fortnight. Kumar and Rajan know it all too well. Microdosing means self-experimentation, knowing when you are crossing the threshold into recreational high dosages. Cannabis, for instance, is best microdosed through edibles, like space brownies, which are available legally in some parts of the world. It's probably the reason why microdosing is yet to take on Silicon Valley proportions in India. "Here, we don't often get to know what strain of cannabis we are using, or where it is sourced from," says Kumar. Saying "this stuff is craazzyy" is, therefore, not enough if you want to microdose. "If you are living with family, it's hard to make edibles. All this means that the convenience factor associated with a drink is not the same with this covert process," she adds.

The idea of the junkie, with matted hair and piercings, is a stereotype that microdosing is replacing. It's no longer cool to be a junkie, especially in the vegan-conscious, gluten-free, aerial yoga health lifestyle that we are seeing around us. Microdosing may be the most metrosexual among the various kinds of drug use, and it carries the allure of high-performance and alleviation of mental health issues, with published studies to back these up. But doctors and psychiatrists are warning us about the glamourisation of microdosing, even as research to mainstream it for mental health is going on. Psychiatrist Dr Samir Parikh says, "Microdosing encourages the thought process that you need a drug for enhanced performance or better creativity or to calm your nerves. This will mean that students microdose before exams, athletes before a run, couples before a wedding, and the next thing you know, because someone has to attend a birthday bash. There is no end to important situations in life. We are making people believe that a student could have scored an additional five marks in an exam had she just microdosed. Can you imagine the perils of this philosophy?" he says. He backs this up with the number of risks associated with prolonged drug abuse, such as a permanent change in brain circuitry, cerebrovascular diseases, and panic attacks.

Then there are those who will argue that moderation as 'one-drink-a-day' is more addictive than the weekend drunken revelry. Is addiction, even in microdoses, still addiction, where the brain searches for rewards compulsively? Kumar disagrees. "Microdosing is the difference between dependence and addiction. For example, I am dependent on a cab to take me to the station. Can I get through my day without it? Can I walk to the station? Yes, I can. That's what microdosing is. I can get through my day without a joint, but a joint just makes it a little easier," she says.Psychiatrist Dr Yusuf Merchant, who runs a rehabilitation centre at Kalyan, says microdoses pose the risk of turning into overdoses. "With any drug, the body learns to metabolise it faster. Which means, that the quantity for a microdose will keep increasing and your hold on reality will keep getting more tangential."

Rajan himself admits to a 'bad trip'. LSD users will tell you that recreational doses are best done in settings that you feel comfortable in, to enjoy, or cope, with the hallucinations. With microdosing, you are headed into your office or your studio to function better. Rajan had once taken more than a microdose, leading him to have a panic attack, the kind where he couldn't even see his hands. The golden rule, he says, is that if you don't go on a full trip, you will never know what a microdose is.

That ailing pain
The push for microdosing is coming from a quarter where its future seems to be most secured — pain management. Mumbai-based homemaker Susheela Kamath*, 48, was diagnosed with stage II breast cancer a couple of years ago, and having undergone nearly a year's worth of chemotherapy and radiation, the accompanying pain and nausea, were all too real. Her daughter provided her with high-grade hash oil. The dealer provided her with a tiny spoon, the kind that you are handed inflight to stir your coffee with. "I had to initially understand, through a lot of trial and error, by gauging my mother's mood, on what a microdose for her would be. Hash oil is very potent," says the daughter.

A little drop of it on her toast every day, helped Kamath cope with pain. "From the third day to the tenth day after chemotherapy, my mother would have about three to four spoons a day, and, on other days, just half a spoon," says the daughter. Coping with the pain meant she could do more during her day, and also have an appetite. Now, months after she has wound up chemotherapy and radiation, she has bid adieu to the prescription drugs that came along with it, and the hash oil as well, without yearning for that high. Unfortunately, unlike medical grade marijuana that is available in some countries, and still not permitted in India, the daughter did not know if the oil had cannabidiol (CBD), which gives marijuana its medical properties, or tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) which gives you the "high".

Dr Kailash Kothari, interventional spine and pain management specialist at Fortis Hospital, Mulund, says that there is not enough evidence to either prove or disprove that microdosing on cannabis can help with pain management, the way opioids, such as morphine, act on the nervous system. "Do cannabinoids work like tranquilisers or do they have long-term effect? There is not enough research as of now," he says, adding, "Getting dependent on these takes a lot of time and not something that can happen in about 15 days of use." In the meanwhile, you can enjoy a night of quiet or a better track on Soundcloud by rationing your stash. But, is it short-term solace or long-term abuse?

*All names have been changed on request to protect identity

Without access to modern technology like refrigeration, people in developing countries often have to throw away a significant proportion of the fish they catch. EU-funded researchers have delivered innovative, low-cost solutions to help such communities around the world make their fish stocks go further.

Dario Brandt

The frenetic pace of life in Mumbai is such that it can sometimes suck you in like the last bit of water disappearing down the sinkhole of a swimming pool that's being emptied out. And before you know it, you become enmeshed in the social fabric of the city, riding a see-saw that oscillates between chasing dreams and paying absurd rent for a matchbox house. Yet, we trudge on, like troopers who feel most at home in a battleground. For, despite an inevitable sense of ruthlessness, there is also the milk of human kindness that nourishes this city's soul. And everyone's thus welcome to ride that see-saw. But sometimes, it's best to take a step back, pause, reflect and then start hurtling once again towards your goal.

Lydia Hendrikje Hornung. Pic/Datta Kumbhar

That, in a nutshell, is the message in Bombay Aaram Se, a new song that encapsulates what living in this city is all about. And what sets it apart from other musical tributes to Mumbai, such as the folksy 1969 classic Bombay Meri Hai, is that the two people who have composed it - Lydia Hendrikje Hornung and Dario Brandt - are both German. They landed in the city a few years ago to teach at The True School of Music in Lower Parel, and started sharing a flat in the process. Then, at some point, Hornung floated the idea to Brandt that they use the medium of music to give concrete shape to what their experience of living in the city has been like.

A still from the Bombay Aaram Se video

Brandt tells us, "Lydia is the one who came up with the chorus, and it felt perfect because going 'aaram se' is exactly how we were both feeling about being here. I then added some beats to it and she came up with the hook lines, and we had time to work on it since we were living together. So, we would just knock on each other's doors and say, 'Hey, what do you think about this input, or that one?'"

The product they eventually came up with is a catchy, EDM-inflected number with a modern, hip-hop vibe. The track starts with a 1970s-like Bollywood song sample, before it takes an edgy turn five seconds in. The lyrics capture the intrinsic tumult of the Maximum City, with lines like "I'm hailing kaali-peeli cabs/ I'm waking up in Bombay flats" interspersed with "Let me cough up rickshaw fumes/ Don't care what time we do". And the accompanying video feels as if the two of them are on a drive around town, stopping at quintessential Bambaiyya locations such as the Gateway of India, an Irani café, Land's End in Bandra and Marine Drive.

So all in all, it seems as if both Hornung and Brandt have internalised Mumbai to the extent that they, too, are riding the see-saw that life here can be about. Brandt says, "I find that despite it being such a welcoming place, it's also easy to disappear in this city. I mean, I step out of my house and I feel as if I have vanished sometimes," while Hornung adds, "Moving here was a completely life-changing matter for me. I got the feeling of, 'This is going to be my new home for a while.' And that made me find my peace with some of the things that annoy me, like traffic for instance. And eventually that's what also led me to think, 'Bombay, aaram se.' I mean, just chill, right?"

Log on to: YouTube and type "Bombay Aaram Se" to listen to the track

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The romanticising of vinyls is not without reason - the gritty, warm sound, the bout of nostalgia and the act of listening may all be cliches, but they also hold true. And today being World Record Store Day, there is perhaps no better way of spending it than actually being in one. So here are a few that can satiate everyone from the grandpa obsessed with Madhubala to the hipster who wears socks from different pairs. Take your pick.

The Revolver Club
Jude D'Souza (seated in pic), CeO at The Revolver Club, says, "I once got a call about someone wanting to purchase weapons and another one asking how they could join this club." He explains that the name is a play on the revolving aspect of vinyls and also an ode to a Beatles album. D'Souza set up the store with co-founder Shalom Benjamin about three years ago, and it has now become a go-to hub for record junkies.
At: LJ Road, Mahim West.
Call: 9833182255
Cost: Rs 100 to Rs 25,000

Royal Music Collection
Known simply as Abdul Razaak's store to those in the trade, this shop tucked away in Fort has been around since 1982. Featuring an array of languages and genres, the stock is a treasure trove of collectors' records. "Most of my customers are regulars and now that record players are back, I get some new ones too. Much what I have comes from old collections, so it's cheap and exquisite," says Razaak, the owner.
At: Kitab Mahal, Dr DN Road.
Call: 98209 33365
Cost: Rs 250 to Rs 2,000.

Music Circle
Pilak Bhatt, owner of Music Centre, which has been around for five years, says he has been collecting records for the last 40 years. At his store you can find both pre-owned records and new ones. "Because of my passion and love for music, I want this format to stay alive. Analogue sound is natural and warm and records have lovely artwork. Plus, there's ample information about the artistes. The sound of Mp3s isn't great, and people are realising that, which is why this revival has come about," Bhatt says.
At: V Mall, Kandivali east
Call: 9833062221
Cost: Rs 300 to Rs 2,000

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50,000
The approximate books in the library of what used to be Mahatma Gandhi's Bombay headquarters during the freedom struggle

360
Books read by Gandhi that are housed in the museum

45
Books written by Gandhi that are part of the collection log on to gandhi-manibhavan.org

Six
The number of double decker tram models in the collection, which ran in the city from 1920 to 1964. Two of them are still functional

One
A trolley bus model that ran on an electric route between Gowalia Tank and Mazgaon from 1962 to 1971

Five
The total types of ticket-issuing machines in the museum log on to bestundertaking.com

82,795
Total documents (the oldest being from 1830s; with papers revealing the genesis of the company, and architectural and technical drawings including those of typewriter keyboards in regional languages)

52,006
Photographs (oldest being from 1880s with some taken by well-known industrial photographer Mitter Bedi in 1970s) in the archives

1,266
Memorabilia (including the ballot box made for the first election of independent India, along with models of typewriters, that of a refrigerator from 1958, steel cupboard from 1930s, safes, etc.)
Log on to: archives.godrej.com

780
Clay models in the collection of the oldest museum in the city

92
Miniature paintings

230
Total metal objects including artefacts in brass, bronze, copper, bell metal, koftagiri, bidri and photographs on metal
Log on to: bdlmuseum.org

60,000
Total exhibits, which include paintings, sculptures and numismatic

5,000
Natural history specimens in the collection of which 430 are currently on display

2,000
Chinese and Japanese art exhibits in the collection of which 1,100 are on display

4,000
Indian and non-Indian paintings and prints
Log on to: csmvs.in

10,000
Total exhibits of Indian coinage, paper currency, financial instruments and monetary curiosities

1,500
Exhibits that provide a ringside view of the birth of currencies
Log on to: rbi.org.in

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Louiz Banks

I must first establish that jazz is not solely American music. It was born there, no doubt, but gradually it has become a universal musical language, seamlessly integrating with other cultures around the world driven by gifted musicians with an open mind. Thereby becoming a well-loved genre of music. There's a bunch of young and talented musicians in Mumbai and India who are getting into jazz in a serious manner despite the fact that they also play other genres of popular music.

Rhys Sebastian D'Souza

They are versatile, but jazz is their focus, which is great. Because of their commitment, supported by application and daily practice, they are bringing freshness and vitality to the growth and popularity of jazz.

Rhythm Shaw

I am happy about this because it's my dream to bring jazz to the intelligent masses. Among the youngsters who are the driving forces in this amazing movement are Gino Banks, Sheldon D'Silva, Mohini Dey, Anurag Naidu, Andrew Kanga, Rhythm Shaw, Abhinav Khokhar, Rahul Wadhwani, Vasundhara Vee, Sonia Saigal, Isheeta Chakravarty, Harmeet Manseta, Tarun Balani, Ron Cha, Sharik Hassan, Shirish Malhotra and Rhys Sebastian D'Souza, among other talented musicians.

Isheeta Chakravarty

Each of them is bringing his/her own perception and unique individuality to the understanding and 'live' performance of jazz. These artistes are taking the jazz movement forward into the now and beyond. God bless their zeal and may their tribe increase manifold. My dream is becoming a reality.

As told to Soumya Vajpayee Tiwari

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Palash Kothari. Pic Courtesy/Fahama Sawant

It's a hot, toasty afternoon in Mumbai. We can see bits of the pumpkin-coloured sky through the window blinds. The phone rings once, twice. On the other end is 21-year-old Palash Kothari aka Sparkle and Fade. "I really don't know what to expect," Kothari admits, speaking about his upcoming gig with Bengaluru-based producer-drummer duo Nikhil Narendra and Shreyas Dipali.

The Fringe is a new gig series to be launched in the city, which will feature artistes who create hybrid music. "Hybrid is very open. It can be analogue or digital, classical or jazz, acoustic or electronic, basically the coming together of conventional and non-conventional methods," explains Sainath Bhagwat, programmer at Mixtape, a Mumbai-based artist and event management company.

Nikhil Narendra + Shreyas Dipali. Pic courtesy/Mayuresh Vartak

"In the current scenario, there's a bulk of electronic and live music being made, which cannot be performed/consumed in a traditional club space. The idea for this night was born out of a collective desire to create a platform to showcase these artists in the right environment," Sainath adds.

Unsure of what to call Kothari's music, we dawdle between electronic and bedroom producer (a term used for musicians making and producing experimental music in their bedrooms) hoping to understand the use of Hindustani classical samples in his older EPs. "I am not sure what to call my music either. I began playing the synth when I was three and then, I trained in Hindustani classical. That was my first step into music, so the influence comes from wanting to put a little bit of me as a child into the music I make now," he elaborates.

"I was listening to pop and EDM in high school. Swedish House Mafia's concert in India inspired me to finally put my music out. Then I got bored, because it wasn't satisfying. So, I started making music that I felt right about. I mellowed down a little as a person and I guess that comes through in the sound, which is more solitary now," he says.

For Kothari, while the influences are aplenty, not mimicking takes conscious effort. "I am working on something now. So, I am going to stop listening to other music because it's difficult not to emulate them. I don't see any point in making music that already exists. In effect, this will probably also be my last gig before my new stuff is out," he signs off.

ON: May 10, 9 pm onwards
AT: The Quarter, Royal Opera House, Girgaum.
LOG ON: TO insider.in
CALL: 8329110638
COST: Rs 499

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Representational picture

New Delhi: From decor options to the fabrics to colour code, tweaking your decor can help you keep your home feel cool in summer, say experts. Anuj Srivastava, co-founder and CEO of Livspace, and Adarsh Menon, Vice President and Head of Private Labels at Flipkart, share some tips to keep your home fresh and cool.

Decor options: Going Scandinavian is a summer-friendly choice to make. The emphasis is on creating a muted colour palette with clean lines, to allow the space to breathe and eliminate chaos. You can add plenty of greenery to the mileu that will help keep the temperatures from rising. Floating flower arrangements or installing a waterbody at home, along with muting the lighting to cooler options, will also help.

Keep it cool: Plenty of factors, apart from air conditioning, can aid in keeping your home cool. Replace the heavy rugs, blankets and drapes with lighter, eco-friendly materials in fresh colours like white, light blue, pink and green. If you do have an outdoor space, no matter how small, you should clean it up and set up seating options. If space permits, you can even set up a barbeque and move the party outdoors. As far as fabrics go, stick to cotton, linen and sheer materials to keep your home summer fresh. You can also opt for florals in cushions, accent pieces and paintings, or even get fresh cut flowers for the table to brighten up your living spaces.

Pastel palette: Doing up the home furniture in pastel shades adds a tinge of coolness to the eye that finds its way to the mind. Apart from making one feel cooler, pastel colours add that quirky look we so like. These colours can be incorporated in dining table chairs, bean bags, sofa sets, wardrobes and beds.

The forest look: One of the most refreshing looks for the summers is the forest look. Juxtapose the dark wood furniture with green plants. You can go for real or artificial plants and use them at the sides of your solid wood study table, dark wood TV units, bedsides, on top of dining table. For more adorned look, you could cover the flanks of your wardrobes, and even inside the bathrooms.

Cooling gel mattresses: They go a long way in making summers bearable. Gel memory foam mattresses do not trap heat like latex or ordinary foam mattresses. They are made using open cell technology which helps in air circulation resulting in a cool mattress for your comfort. Apart from giving a luxurious feeling, it also gives comfort.

Metallic accents and glass: Use of of luxe metallic touches in home decors is not new. The choice of metallic finish makes a huge difference. Think silver metallic finish with dark accents. It adds oomph and makes the area look neat and clutter-free.

Important tip for all: Invest in trendy, good quality, affordable furniture. When buying furniture, one major concern is durability. In a market that is largely unorganised the assurance of durability is hard to get.

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Representational picture

New Delhi: With the summer heat scorching and the mercury level soaring, comfort is a serious concern for many. In this scenario, selecting the right fabric is a necessity so opt for the right clothing that makes you feel fresh. Designers Prarena Grover and Dhruv Sehgal list some must haves fabrics and few avoidable ones.

Must have fabrics
Cotton: Beyond any doubt pick up that cotton dress or the cotton shirt from your wardrobe. It not only makes you look smart and elegant but also scores high on the comfort level.
Reason: During summer it is a general tendency to sweat a lot and in such a situation cotton is just the apt fabric that absorbs this sweat. This helps in giving the much required relief and helps in cooling down your body temperature. In addition, cotton fabric gives you a relief if you are prone to any allergic reaction. Thus, cotton is just too apt for your sensitive skin.

Linen: The pastel coloured linen wear is just so perfect for your summer days. Fret no more and choose the right linen wear for yourself.
Reason: Tired of threat of unnecessary sweat? Considering that linen is highly absorbent and a good conductor of heat it helps in keeping your body free of moisture. So, the linen dress or blouse not just feels good to touch but also quickly removes your perspiration during the summer days.

Khadi: Khadi saris to the dress to shirts, it is the perfect wear for your summer evening.
Reason: Khadi is that handloom fabric which uses no chemicals in manufacturing. This skin friendly hand oven, organic fabric is just too perfect for your summer days.

Sheer: This is the ideal fabric for humid days. It is the fall and the interesting cut of the fabric makes it a must-have in your summer days.
Reason: As a fabric usually meant for wedding gowns or floral costumes or stockings or lingerie sheer does very little in the way of warmth for the wearer. This is the reason why it is one of the favourite fabrics for summer wear.

Avoidable fabrics

• Denim: Denim is a strict no for your summer days. It hugs your body too much and creates unnecessary suffocation in summer.
• Synthetic wear: Never indulge in a mix fabric in summer. It creates discomfort and may sometimes cause skin infections in this regard.

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Beards are to men what make-up is to women, and a quick Internet search of actors in a pre- and post-beard phase will confirm this. Such has been the impact and acceptance of facial hair that they have gradually crossed the barriers of hipsterdom to find their way to boardrooms. But are corporate firms with a strict formal dress code open to men with beards?

"We have a strict dress code, where a shabby demeanour is unacceptable. We even keep daily checks; employees cannot walk into the office in jeans or sports shoes, especially when they have client interactions. But full beards are not a concern. We have employees with full beards and twirled moustaches," says Sudhir Dhar, CHRO – director HR, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.

Dr Sujaya Banerjee

Rohan Vaswani, CHRO, Nexus Malls, a fully owned subsidiary of investment firm Blackstone Group, shares a similar thought. The company follows a formal dress code from Monday to Thursday and smart casuals on Friday. "You can't walk into the office with your shirt not tucked in or in bright blue trousers. But beards, if they are well-kept, are fine," shares Vaswani.

Dress to impress
"The first impression is created by the physical appearance of a person; it's later that you have an interaction and people get influenced by your personality. So, if you seem shabby, you create a perception even before you talk," says Dhar.

He adds that as long as one is confident of carrying it off and not look out of place, a beard is acceptable.

Rohan Vaswani

"We conduct training on executive presence — how to look, behave and dress like a leader. These aspects are now becoming increasingly important as often, you find that people are competent but they don't make it beyond a point because they don't look like the part or someone who can represent the organisation before multiple stakeholders. It's not about good looks but about appearance. A haircut and a well-groomed beard are a part of this understanding. You can't have a two-day stubble where you look like you have just woken up and come to work. We actually check if there's a valid reason behind an unkempt stubble: Is the employee unwell? Or is he battling a low?" says Dr Sujaya Banerjee, CEO and founder of Capstone People Consulting.

Do you shave before an interview?
Most HR personnel we spoke to felt there's no middle ground; you either opt for the clean-shaven look or wear a groomed full beard. "It's better to shave off a two-day stubble and not go in between. It can be interpreted as a sign of laziness," warns Dhar.

"I am more interested in knowing if a person has the right competence and capability for the job. The older generation, however, associates beards with carelessness and mistrust. Traditionally, even in films, the bearded guy will always be the villain or from the underworld. If a full beard is groomed, it's fine. Long hair is not allowed. You are not an artist or performer, you are corporate. Hence, certain norms remain. We allow personal freedom as long as you stay well-groomed," adds Banerjee.

Make a bearded impact
"Some people look smarter with a beard," says Dhar. Vaswani feels that real estate companies are often promoter-driven, and the vision of the promoter and the top management often reflects on the staff where people would go the extra mile to keep with the image. "Those with gaunt features can look fuller with a beard. It also saves you the trouble of having to shave every day. A good beard can actually help you appear stronger. Also, today, people look for organisations where individuality is encouraged, where you can bring your authentic self to work. It's motivating to be in an organisation where you can express who you are, as long as it doesn't hamper business. So, if the beard is within acceptable parameters, all's well," says Banerjee.

Grooming tips
Keep it clean
Wash your beard three times a week to prevent the build-up of dead skin cells.
Keep it moisturised Oil your beard daily to keep it soft and moisturised.
Shape it up
Trim your beard when you see stray hair or as desired to maintain the shape. Repeat this once every two weeks when you want to maintain a consistent length.
Kaushal Pratab, founder, Shepherd For Men 

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New Delhi: You may not be able to escape the sweltering heat when you are outside, but you can make your home a cool haven by playing around with colours and adding greenery to your walls, suggest experts. A colour palette, when used well, can help in creating a naturally refreshing environment at home.

Peeyush Bachlaus, Head of Marketing at Kansai Nerolac Paints Ltd, suggests four decor trends, in hues that range from cool blues and soothing greens to mellow yellows:

For a blissful green escape: Surround yourself with the colours of a secret garden, leaving everything else a pristine white. The colour green is well-associated with nature, allowing a room to feel relaxing to the eyes and refreshing for your mind. When paired with white, this palette can turn a bland room into a welcoming paradise. Green is also one of the easiest colours to adorn your interiors as pairing various shades of green with just about any other colour can work beautifully.

For a breezy haven: Large plants and strong colours are natural decor accents that bring lushness into one's home. This summer, transform your interiors into a cool breezy tropical paradise with the help of verdant aquatic colours with a cheerful palette of cool blues, mellow yellows, bright oranges and lush greens. These colours will make sure that your time home is a breeze and you feel the freshness of an aquatic theme.

For an eccentric summer makeover: Given our busy lifestyles and the sweltering heat to add to it, we all need an escape. Let your home be that much needed exotic escape by curating one area in your home. Mix and match cool blue and violet walls fearlessly, framing it with crisp white accents. Natural materials and details make this a room for all to enjoy. Colours such as blues and whites are cool colours as they help keep our mind cool and relaxed even during the sweltering heat of the summers.

For a refreshing classic look: A carefully curated palette of white and near white tones that form a blank canvas to your artistic home. As a trend, masterpiece white walls are refreshing. Radiant light coming in through the windows is the accent in these calm rooms. Bring artwork to focus by trying out alternative accent wall colours.

Sujit Jain, Founder, Griin, says vertical gardens can transform your dull walls immediately and purify the environment too.
"Vertical gardens not only add to the aesthetic value of the walls but they come with a lot of functional benefits also. The thick vegetation limits the movement of heat and helps to regulate sunlight and temperature even during the hot afternoons that makes it a perfect fit for summer decors.

"Some varieties of plants are also useful in absorbing potentially harmful gases and cleaning the air inside modern buildings. In addition to this, incorporating vertical gardens in the decor of any building brings a living element to the environment and being around greenery helps in reducing the stress levels also."

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An EU-funded project has driven collaboration on renewable energy between businesses and researchers in Armenia, Belarus, Georgia and Moldova with counterparts from EU countries. The links are boosting innovation - helping the participating countries make the transition to more sustainable energy sources.

Stretching from the imposing skyrises of Colaba and Malabar Hill to the fishermen's colonies in Worli, the prestigious VVIP Mumbai South Lok Sabha constituency is the richest in the country making it a high-stakes affair for the two main contestants - Shiv Sena sitting MP Arvind G. Sawant and rival Milind M. Deora of the Congress.

Despite being wealthy, the constituency is barely 'generous' in exercising its franchise - it was way back in 1967, when George Fernandes won on a single point agenda of providing sufficient water supply to all, that 67.42 per cent electorate voted.

Again in 1991, the voting percentage plummeted to an abysmal 38.65, giving credence to the belief that people in high-rises remain indifferent to the political process. But in 2014 the percentage went up to a modest 52.48.

The population of Mumbai South is approximately 20 lakh and the voter strength is 14,85,846 including 15 per cent of some of the country's richest, a large 70 per cent dollop of middle-class and a sprinkling of 15 per cent eking out an existence in slums in what is one of the few fully urbanized constituencies of India.

Unconcerned by the turnout figures, Shiv Sena's Sawant exudes is optimistic of winning again.

"I am the voice of the masses and the classes. I have been present whenever and wherever I was needed in the past five years," Sawant told IANS.

On his rival Deora, he shot back: "Where was he for the past four years and nine months? This is what commoners and business community ask me. It is my work for all sections and my contacts with the masses that will decide the election."

Though incommunicado despite repeated attempts by IANS, the former Union Minister Deora has remained unflustered by the opposition barbs.

After all, in a political-corporate coup of sorts, last fortnight, he secured the open support of key players from India Inc, sending panic waves in the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-Sena combine.

Ranked as one of the most cosmopolitan constituencies, Mumbai South is beset with many problems that have remained unresolved over the years.

"There are hundreds of old buildings, ancient sewage lines, house gullies, traffic congestion and slum pockets in Darukhana, BPT, Colaba and Worli which are of great concern," Waris Pathan, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen's sole Mumbai MLA, told IANS.

Though there is the ambitious Coastal Road project coming up, Patyan says "a lot will depend on its implementation, or it will be disastrous for the entire city".

Besides, there is the gnawing problem of security in the region which has witnessed two of the worst terror strikes in the country - the 1993 serial bomb blasts and the 2008 terror strikes.

Not surprising, since this constituency is home to the country's most affluent business districts which contribute hugely to the national exchequer, some of the poshest residential complexes, Indian and foreign banks, and national and international firms are headquartered here.

There are also offices of global corporates, airlines, embassies, luxury hotels, swanky restaurants and pubs, global tourist attractions, open shopping plazas, malls and multiplexes, reputed schools, colleges, an array of heritage buildings, the official residences of Maharashtra Governor, Chief Minister, the Chief Justice of Bombay High Court and other judges, the Legislature and the Mantralaya.

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A missing platform stands between Mumbaikars and the restored tram the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had promised to set up for display at Bhatia Baug, by the first week of April. While the tram coach is nearly ready, the tender for construction of the platform, which will serve as its base, didn't receive an adequate response, and a second tender cannot be floated until after the Lok Sabha elections in the city.

The BMC floated a tender last month to appoint a contractor who will construct a 3 feet tall platform. The tram, as well as part of tracks, will be installed on top of it. The overall of cost of restoration of the tram and construction of the platform is estimated to be R28 lakh. "We received a response from a single bidder so we have to float another tender. However, since the model code of conduct is in place, we will have to wait for the elections to get over," said Kiran Dighavkar, assistant municipal commissioner of A ward. He added that they will float the tender next week and it will remain open for a period of eight days.

Also read: Elections 2019: 422 polling stations in Mumbai declared 'critical'

Based on the plan, the BMC is considering letting people enter the tram under certain conditions. Before the final setup, however, the BMC will need the approval of the heritage committee. Unlike most projects that are approved based on documents, for this project, the committee members will have to inspect the tram. On April 24, A ward officials wrote to the heritage committee asking them to inspect the tram and give their approval for the project. Dighavkar added that the tram will be brought to a godown in Cuffe Parade from Rabale sometime this week.

Over the past couple of months, the tram was restored in a workshop in Rabale using the parts of another tram that was functional in Kolkata between 1874 and 1907. Once the tram has been assembled at Bhatia Baug, the BMC is planning to set up lighting in the area to attract visitors. Civic officials are also planning to install LED screens inside the tram which will display information about the history of trams in Mumbai from the horse drawn ones till the electrical ones which were taken off the road around 50 years ago.

Also read: Elections 2019: Netas appeal to citizens to vote

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Soon, medical colleges might have to keep one expert from the Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) to address cases of medical negligence.

MMC wrote to the Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER) earlier this month, asking them to implement this across the state. "We have written to DMER, asking them to introduce one council member on the expert panel investigating medical negligence cases in medical colleges. This would help in bringing more transparency and better judgment of orders," said Shivkumar Utture, president of MMC.

Dr TP Lahane, director, DMER confirmed receiving the request, "The proposal is extremely welcoming but before coming to a conclusion, we need to discuss it with the council members." So far, around 500 cases of medical negligence or issues regarding treatment are still pending with the council.

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A dog with pro-BJP stickers on its body was detained along with his master in north Maharashtra's Nandurbar town where polling for the Lok Sabha elections took place Monday.

Eknath Motiram Chaudhary (65), a resident of Navnathnagar area, was spotted with his dog near Andhare hospital Monday afternoon. The dog's body was found covered with stickers bearing the BJP's symbol and the message "Modi Lao, Desh Bachao" (Vote for Modi and save the country), a local police official said.

As the polling was underway, police had received a complaint about the dog and his master who were roaming around the town, he said.

A case was registered against Choudhary under section 171 (A) of the IPC for violation of election rules which prohibit campaigning on polling day. The police have asked the municipal corporation to take custody of the dog, the official added.

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The 'No Mobile Phones' diktat issued by the Election Commission for voters at polling centres had a rather ambiguous implementation. While some carried it along inside the polling booth, others were asked to keep it out. With directions about phones not being allowed in the 100 meters vicinity of polling stations, the Election Commission had not made any provisions for safekeeping of phones.

Also Read: Election 2019: Mumbai scrapes through in voting report card

The rule ended up confusing voters across the city. Many were unaware of the 'no phone' policy and were left waiting outside the polling centres. The EC had issued such orders after some voters were found clicking pictures while voting during the last elections.

Salman Khan, SRK, Ranveer Singh, Kangana, Bachchans step out for voting

While most polling stations had police officials preventing voters from carrying their phones inside, there was no security checking of the bags that some voters carried, "thus making it difficult to ascertain if they were carrying a phone or not," said officials. Some centres also saw the police asking voters to hand over their phones to people standing behind them in the queue.

Dhanraji Yadav, who was at the Manohar Joshi Mahavidyalaya in Dharavi along with her family, said that police officials at the gate asked them if they were carrying any phones. "I waited with all the phones while my family voted. But while I was waiting there, the same police officials allowed other people to carry them by switching them off," Yadav said. An official said that the directives had come from the Election Commission of India. "We couldn't be responsible for everyone's phones and asked them to not bring them."

Also Read: Elections 2019: Regular voters find their name missing at polling booths

100m
Distance around polling booth where phones were not allowed

Election 2019: Prominent personalities, other Mumbaikars come out to caste vote!

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Couple begins 36th anniversary by casting votes
Ranibai and Ramanlal Bakliwala

Ramanlal Bakliwala, an 81-year-old resident of Colaba arrived at the polling booth to cast his vote along with his 77-year-old wife Ranibai. It was a special day for them because it was their 36th anniversary which they started with a "noble" cause. "Every year, we first go to the temple to seek blessings but today, we came here to cast our votes as it is more important. We wanted to start the day with a noble cause. We missed the previous elections as we were out of Mumbai. This time we thought there is no better way to celebrate our anniversary than by first voting for the development of our nation," said Ramanlal holding Ranibai's hand.

'Found name only after searching for two hours'
Sanjay Jain

Like thousands of Mumbai residents, Sanjay Jain, a 48-year-old businessman, left home early with his family to cast his vote at Mumbai Central. But he had to run from pillar-to-post for hours as his name was missing from the voters' list. "When I reached the polling booth, I was told that my name is missing. Then I was told to go to the main office where after almost two hours of searching, I was told that by mistake they have put another similar name in my place. After almost three hours of waiting, I had to return home without casting my vote," he said.

Senior citizen encourages voting
Pervin Daruwalla

Like thousands of Mumbai residents, Sanjay Jain, a 48-year-old businessman, left home early with his family to cast his vote at Mumbai Central. But he had to run from pillar-to-post for hours as his name was missing from the voters' list. "When I reached the polling booth, I was told that my name is missing. All my family members cast their votes except me. Then I was told to go to the main office where after almost two hours of searching, I was told that by mistake they have put another similar name in my place. After almost three hours of waiting, I had to return home without casting my vote," he said.

Also Read: Elections 2019 in Mumbai: Physically challenged, elderly, get little help at polling stations

Lack of facilities
Anil Kejarival shows his mother's voting ID

Lalitadevi Deviprasad Kejarival, an 81-year-old resident of Pedder Road, fractured her leg few months back and was advised bed-rest. On Monday, she was determined to cast her vote. But the lack of basic facilities at the polling station meant she couldn't do so. "Her serial number was at booth No 2 which was on the first floor. She can't move so it was impossible for her to climb 22 steps. She requested she be allowed to cast her vote on the ground floor but the officials told her that it is not allowed. But don't rules say that for senior citizens there should be volunteers and other facilities? This is a very sad state of affairs," said her son, Anil Kejarival.

Also Read: Elections 2019 in Mumbai: Official inks both fingers of mid-day photographer

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Mumbai: Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut has said Indians were, in the past, enslaved by an 'Italian government', in a veiled jibe at the Congress party. The 32-year-old, while speaking to reporters after casting her vote at a polling station in Khar area in Mumbai on Monday, said, "This (polling day) is a very important day for us, it comes only once in five years. I feel India is gaining independence today in real sense. Earlier, Indians were slaves of British, Mughal and Italian governments. Please exercise your Swaraj (independence) and vote."

The 'Italian government' remark is an apparent reference to UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, who was born and raised in Italy. Gandhi was the president of the Congress party for nearly two decades before handing over responsibilities to her son Rahul Gandhi in December 2017. Kangana went on to say that the situation that prevailed in the country was the worst during Congress' government at the Centre.

"The political leaders used to chill in London and the country used to suffer from an array of issues like poverty, pollution, rapes etc. The situation in our country was worst when Congress was in power. Now that our time has come, we should vote in large numbers," she added.

Polling was held on Monday for 72 seats across nine states including five seats in Bihar, one in Jammu and Kashmir, three in Jharkhand, six each in Madhya Pradesh and Odisha, 13 each in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, eight in West Bengal and 17 in Maharashtra. An overall voter turnout of 64.05 per cent was registered in the fourth phase of polling. Seven-phase elections will end on May 19, and results will be declared on May 23.

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This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever

Mumbai Congress president Milind Deora on Monday took to Twitter to congratulate the Election Commission for peacefully conducting the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in the metropolis. In a statement, Deora, the Congress' Mumbai South Lok Sabha candidate also appreciated the efforts of the Mumbai police and other security personnel deployed for poll duty and heaped praises on them.

I'm grateful to all @INCMumbai karyakartas, @MumbaiPolice & other security personnel, @ECISVEEP officials, and - last, but not the least - lakhs of voters who made our festival of democracy that much more vibrant. pic.twitter.com/GeJqzJsq7t

— Milind Deora (@milinddeora) April 29, 2019

"The voters are the real heroes of this election and I thank them for strengthening our democracy today. On behalf of the Mumbai Congress, I congratulate the Election Commission for peacefully conducting elections in Mumbai," he said.

Also Read: Elections 2019: This how Mumbai police helped senior voters at booths

"I also appreciate and thank Mumbai Police and other security personnel for maintaining law and order in the city," he added. Deora also thanked his party workers, stating they "demonstrated their commitment to the values of the Congress". He also said that the media kept a close vigil on the proceedings of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Mumbai.

Blessings of the elders after a day of hard work ! No reward can even come closer to this #MumbaiFirst #YourChoiceMatters #LokSabhaElection2019 #लà¥Â‹à¤Â•सभानिवडणà¥Â‚à¤Â•२०१९ pic.twitter.com/9BHTyAWh6t

— Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) April 29, 2019

On April 29, 2019, Over 12.79 crore voters came out and cast their votes in order to decide the fate of 945 candidates. On the other hand, the Mumbai Police's Twitter handle which is well known for their quirky yet remarkable tweets, on the voting day, shared an impactful message of senior citizens of Mumbai setting an example for the youth of the city with their active voting. Mumbai Police on Twitter shared a heartwarming post of senior citizens at different polling booths.

While we salute all Mumbaikars who voted, this one’s for all of you who have excuses for not turning out to vote today. Meet Laksmi Aniruddha Kantawala, 100 years and going strong...keeping democracy stronger! We ensured she has no discomfort #Salute #LokSabhaElections2019 pic.twitter.com/wLvYSz85zu

— Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) April 29, 2019

Mumbai Police personnel posted at various polling booths across Mumbai on April 29, 2019, earned kudos for lending a helping hand to senior citizens and differently-abled people who had come out in numbers to cast their votes in the six Lok Sabha constituencies in the city and suburbs that went to polls.

They know their duty and we know ours! Always there to lend a helping hand to every good cause in the city. Very proud of each Mumbaikar who has stepped out to vote #YourChoiceMatters #LetsVoteMumbai #LokSabhaElections2019 #लà¥Â‹à¤Â•सभाà¤Âšà¥Âनाव2019 #लà¥Â‹à¤Â•सभानिवडणà¥Â‚à¤Â•२०१९ pic.twitter.com/pESY2Vaqb1

— Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) April 29, 2019

The Mumbai police personnel were seen helping the elderly voters at the polling booths by holding their hand and offering them assistance as they walk towards the polling booths to cast their valuable votes. In the Fort area in South Mumbai, which falls under Mumbai South Parliamentary constituency, police personnel of Mata Ramabai Ambedkar Marg police station were seen assisting senior citizens to their polling booths.

मतदान à¤Â•रणà¥Âयासाठà¥Â€ à¤Âœà¥Âयà¥Â‡षà¥Âठ नाà¤Â—रिà¤Â•ाà¤Â‚नà¥Â€ दाà¤Â–विलà¥Â‡ला पà¥Âरामाणिà¤Â•पणा यà¥Âवा पिढà¥Â€साठà¥Â€ नà¤Â•à¥Âà¤Â•à¥Â€à¤Âš पà¥Âरà¥Â‡रणादायà¥Â€ ठरà¥Â‡ल. तà¥Â‡वà¥Âहाà¤Â‚ à¤Â†ता मतदान न à¤Â•रणà¥Âयाà¤Âšà¥Â‡ à¤Â•à¥Â‹णतà¥Â‡हà¥Â€ à¤Â•ारण नà¤Â•à¥Â‹. मतदान à¤Â•रा à¤Â†णि लà¥Â‹à¤Â•शाहà¥Â€ला बळà¤Â•à¤ÂŸ बनवा #लà¥Â‹à¤Â•सभानिवडणà¥Â‚à¤Â•२०१९ #LokSabhaElections2019 #YourChoiceMatters #LetsVoteMumbai pic.twitter.com/2G14yfWEo9

— Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) April 29, 2019

Similar scenes were witnessed in areas that fall under the rest five constituencies that cover the island city as well as distant suburbs. Many Mumbaikars who exercised their franchise to vote clicked photos of the goodwill gesture of Mumbai Police and shared them on social media.

Fighting all the odds for an able democracy! Our salute to all the specially abled voters for not compromising on their duty! Let’s not make any excuses, #LetsVoteMumbai #YourChoiceMatters #LokSabhaElections2019 #लà¥Â‹à¤Â•सभानिवडणà¥Â‚à¤Â•२०१९ pic.twitter.com/0Mjj4qte9I

— Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) April 29, 2019

"Fighting all the odds for an able democracy! Our salute to all the specially abled voters for not compromising on their duty! Let's not make any excuses." Mumbai Police tweeted from their official tweeter handle at Mumbai Police.

Raising the bar for the youth, senior citizens across the city are turning out in large numbers at the polling booths to vote. It is our pleasure to help them in every little way we can. #YourChoiceMatters #LetsVoteMumbai #LokSabhaElections2019 #लà¥Â‹à¤Â•सभानिवडणà¥Â‚à¤Â•२०१९ pic.twitter.com/jH2KAO0IcS

— Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) April 29, 2019

In another tweet, Mumbai police said, "Raising the bar for the youth, senior citizens across the city are turning out at large numbers at polling booths to vote. It is our pleasure to help them in every little way we can."

Leading by example, they vote till this age so that democracy lives longer and healthier! They have fulfilled their responsibility of creating a legacy, it is our responsibility to keep it alive. MRA Marg policemen assisting senior citizens to vote comfortably #LetsVoteMumbai pic.twitter.com/lDUkJyJSVm

— Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) April 29, 2019

A heavy contingent of over 40,000 security personnel, including local police, QRTs, Central forces, was posted on election duty in Mumbai.

Over 17,000 officers and men of Mumbai Police have registered to cast their vote via postal ballot, to ensure they do not miss fulfilling their duty towards democracy while being on duty for its people #LetsVoteMumbai #YouChoiceMatters #PostalBallot #LokSabhaElections2019 pic.twitter.com/nwBvYdfnz3

— Mumbai Police (@MumbaiPolice) April 29, 2019

Over 17,000 officers of Mumbai Police cast their vote via postal ballot, to ensure they do not miss fulfilling their duty towards democracy while being on duty for its people.

See Photos: Elections 2019: Politicians, Bollywood celebs, Industrialists cast their vote in Mumbai

Here's how netizens lauded Mumbai Police for their selfless service during the Lok Sabha polls in Mumbai:

it was awesome to see senior citizens come out in full force to vote at my polling statation too. All the officers on duty were pleasant helpful & made it a wonderful experience for all. Kudos @MumbaiPolice https://t.co/LqVJQqmqjP

— Suchitra Krishnamoorthi (@suchitrak) April 29, 2019

Mumbai police was helpful at polling booth of Bhartiya vidya Bhavan- even to our enthusiastic grandmother Sushilaben D Jhaveri aged “100 “ years - residence of Morvi lane Girgaum chowpatty sea face - thanks for assisting her . Jai Hind jai Maharashtra pic.twitter.com/zx1psGxumJ

— Jyot Jhaveri (@bharatkajyot) April 29, 2019

Mumbai police is best in country. I never seen such courteous police personals in any such sensitive public gathering like national election. Iwas in a polling stn for 80min due to EVM snag. Everyone was tensed & irritated. Only smiling faces were the cops there. Salute to u all

— Sudipto SEN (@sudiptoSENtlm) April 29, 2019

Impressed with Police professionalism. One citizen had come with an election slip issued by political party. The policeman on duty guided the citizen but tore off the political party sign. Smart and professional policing

— AshwinYardi (@AshwinYardi) April 30, 2019

Thank you Mumbai police for your hard work and support. Proud to be a Mumbaikar, proud that we have you to watch out for us!

— Nononsense (@nononsese) April 29, 2019

There are also many policeman who never HELP for Photos but keep working for citizens. My salute to them & all who are always kind. Dev Jain

— DEVENDRA JAIN (@shubham9601) April 30, 2019

Salute to this grandma🙏...She inspires masses... Hats off to Police force for their tireless efforts in making it so convenient for all of us to go n vote🙏👍

— CA. Vivek R. Kasat (@cavivekkasat) April 30, 2019

The Mumbaipolice was very coperative in the booths. Hats off Mumbai police

— ahmed bhatkar (@2963ff9265b8491) April 29, 2019

We salute the Mumbai Police for doing an excellent job yesterday inspire of the weather conditions prevailing.. helping the aged and physically challenged. Hats off to you guys.

— Maneesh Prabhakar (@maneesh_pr_here) April 30, 2019

A great job done by the Mumbai a police yesterday at the Polls. They were very cordial and helpful

— Manjunath Hegde (@manjunathheigde) April 30, 2019

We should salute the mumbai police too, you have a huge responsibility u work so hard for us. Whether its helping elders people, and getting the process done smoothly so that the voters don't find any discomfort..

— Kavita Sunita Muknath (@KavitaMuknath13) April 30, 2019

We citizens Salute the Police Force . Standing in the que for casting vote we realised that our Police were performing the duty in the same heat for hours 🙏🙏

— Muzaffar (@muz08887) April 29, 2019

Great job done today on Election Day ,Sir! Absolutely professional policing. 👌👌🙏🙏

— Chowkidar Capt.Harish Pillay (@captpillay) April 29, 2019

It was well deserved blessings. Standing in the heat, yet alert and doing your job.Well done @MumbaiPolice for ensuring that the day was organized and safe for civilian.

— Dolly Kota (@DollyKota) April 30, 2019

The results of the Lok Sabha Elections 2019 will be announced on May 23, 2019. You can log on to eci.gov.in for more information.

With inputs from PTI

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A Nepalese farmer’s son will walk the ramp at the upcoming Mumbai style extravaganza, Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2017, and ‘he’ isn’t modeling menswear Anjali Lama, born Navin Waiba to a family of agriculturists in Nuwakot, is Nepal’s first transgender model. In another first, she is about to become the first transgender person to model clothes at an Indian fashion show next month.

Before Anjali, 32, could tackle the identity crisis, she was battling poverty. “My family is uneducated. We hail from a small village. We had no electricity when we were growing up. I completed my education by studying under lanterns,” she says, her flawless skin showing no signs of the struggle when we meet her at a central Mumbai hotel.

But juggling her dreams with anguish was something she learnt early. For as long as she can remember, Anjali wanted to be a girl. Finding solace in the company of her late mother and female friends, she realised she didn’t identify with the gender she was assigned at birth. “By the time i hit my teens, I was drifting away from the family. My brothers wondered what was wrong; they had already heard rumours. I decided to come out. When I did, they told me to stay away from the family. But my mother supported me. She would have been thrilled to see this,” she says, taking a moment.

Anjali’s success coincided with Nepal making progress in recognising the rights of transgender communities. The country allows its citizens to choose their gender identity, and issues passports with a third gender category.

In Kathmandu, where she moved to find her freedom, she was ostracized in the hospitality industry that she tried breaking into. Then, she met others like her and was guided to a community center that worked for LGBT rights. Friends suggested that with her lean frame (she’s 5’ 9”) and killer cheekbones, she stood a chance at modelling. “I liked the sound of it,” she says about the career she dabbled in back in 2009 while continuing to work for the centre. When she was featured on the cover of Voice of Women, a Nepalese magazine, that same year, she thought it would be her big break. “There were times I was better than the others but didn’t make it. My trainer at a modelling agency admitted it was my orientation that was coming in the way of success. Brands didn't want to associate with me.”

The next year, when she walked for an event titled, Monsoon Fashion Show, she caught a blogger’s eye, who told her story to the world. That was the turning point. “By 2016, I had established myself in Nepal,” she recollects, although she was yet to crack a premier fashion week. “I didn’t have the money to travel far or invest in an expensive photoshoot.” India was close at hand. She wrote to the Lakmé organisers last year to check if they’d entertain an entry from a transgender model. And although, they were game, she failed the audition. A disappointed Anjali returned to Nepal but couldn’t take the idea of walking the ramp before hundreds out of her head.

“I couldn’t sleep, and began working out to distract myself. I spent the year reaching out to agencies in Mumbai, gymming and learning the catwalk from youtube videos. “The models out there were young, beautiful. I was already 30,” she says, explaining how an attempt to put on weight with calorie rich foods ended in acquiring a paunch. “I decided to work out every day for 30 minutes, and managed to crack the auditions this year. I was in the top 5.”

Anjali says if she hadn’t made it, she was planning to quit modelling. But that’s another story.

Shacking up with friends at an apartment in Santacruz, she is already dreaming big the way everyone does in Mumbai. The breast augmentation she underwent in 2010 was a step towards transitioning fully, which she hopes to do with a sex change surgery. “I hear things get better for models with this big a platform, but my orientation worries me. That the fashion industry is a lot more open gives me hope,” she says, wondering if she’ll ever model for the designer she has her heart set on. “Manish Malhotra… I want to walk for him.”

'I realised I’m not the typical model'
He is “obsessed” with Manish Malhotra’s designs, but also digs Sabyasachi and Manish Arora. That’s a string of strong likes for someone who will model on the Indian runway for the first time.

Czech-born Petr Nitka, 23, is used to making news. And it’s no different here, with a ramp gig planned at fashion week in early February. Hailed as Czechoslovakia’s first gender-neutral model, Petr says over an email from his country that he, like his colleagues back home, is curious about what Indian designers are going to dress him in.

Having taken to modelling like fish to water, Petr first modeled for designer Alexandra Blanc at the South Africa Fashion Week in July 2016. Johanessburg-based menswear designer Roman Handt saw an article on him in a publication the next day, and was keen that Petr become the face of his brand.

A career in fashion, predictably, allowed him to explore his passion for make-up and clothes. Growing up in Ostrava, a city in north-east Czech Republic, he remembers a childhood marked by an unusual interest in getting made up. “When I was a kid, I was disappointed that I couldn't wear make-up or nice clothes. Contrary to that, I feel free now.”

His mother’s support and a move to Australia to pursue academics proved to be game changers. The trip led to a meeting with independent photographer Bharathan Kangatheran in Perth. When pictures from a shoot were published in a leading magazine, Petr met his moment of truth. “I realised that I wasn’t the typical model. The best aspect of being a gender-neutral model was that I could pursue my profound love for fashion.”

Petr, who in an interview to fashion magazine, Emma, last year, said he was a bit of a man and woman (“I am empathetic [like a woman] but I am lazy like a man. I’m a mix of both sexes.”), has worked towards moving away from conventional gender identification. Gender-neutral persons prefer not to identify as man or woman, and have recently begun taking on unisex pronouns like ‘they’ or ‘them’. Petr’s variegated choices reflect in long, mascara-lined lashes and unwaxed arms.

When he isn’t working, Peter prefers to dress in unisex clothing. “But I am skinny and it is difficult to find basic male clothing. I prefer simple fashion for women — skinny jeans and tops. They look like they were made just for me.”

Petr is excited at walking the ramp in India, because it’s only in strange places that he has found fame and acceptance. His career really began outside of his own country after he found that no Czech agency wanted to represent him. Now, he walks for brands that make menswear (Brandt) and womenswear (Jaroslava Prochazkova, Marcel Holubec, Lukas Krnac). Although, he does admit to designers finding it challenging to figure what they will dress him in.

Is Manish Malhotra racking his brain?

Bombay Chamber Orchestra concert

Did you know that world renowned classical composers like Mozart, Beethovan and modern day legends like George Gershwin and Nat King Cole were Freemasons?

Well, they were. Freemasonry is not the shadowy organisation it is made out to be in popular fiction. Freemasons are actually the world's oldest and largest non-religious, non-political and charitable organisation. It also has the honour of being the world’s largest fraternal society.

The first Grand Lodge in England is said to have been formed on June 24, 1717. This means that 2017 is the 300th or Tercentenary Anniversary.

The Freemasons are celebrating the completion of three hundred years of their formation, with a series of events in Mumbai, spread over the two days of January 27 and 28.

Many non-Freemasons, know very little of Freemasonry, and even if they do, consider it a secret society. Even lesser is known about the fact that Western Classical music has been deeply influenced by Freemasonry and many leading composers were Freemasons themselves.

Freemasons, together with the Bombay Chamber Orchestra have invited leading performers from India and abroad, and have put together a once- in-a-life time musical soiree. The event is scheduled to be held on Saturday, January 28 at 6:00pm, Sophia Bhabha Hall, Bhulabhai Desai Road, Mumbai.

ALSO READ: Not such a secret society, after all

Donor passes for the premium segments of Rs 5000 and Rs 1500 have already been sold out. The last few regular seats at Rs 1000 are still available. The funds raised by the event are earmarked towards the cause of dementia.

So you have got to rush and book those passes right now.

For programme details and online donor passes log on to:
http://freemasonryintheeast.dglbombay.org/concert/

WORKSHOP

Do yoga by the sea
Sat, feb 25 & sun, feb 26 Set your mat aside and dig your toes deep into the sand. Listen to the sound of the waves and breathe in the fresh air as you move through energy boosting yogasanas. Taught right on the shore by Shweta D’souza, this yoga class is structured to give you a full body and mind workout.
TIME: 7.30 am to 8.30 am
AT: Silver Beach (beach entrance from Godrej House), JVPD, Juhu.
CALL: 9820401592
COST: Rs 650 per class

PLAY

Witness a strange reunion
Sun, feb 26 Catch a play titled Class of 84, which tells the story of seven friends who belonged to a tight-knit college group from 1979-84. They come together because of the death of their eighth friend. Will the friends come to terms with this death, and, more importantly, themselves, through the course of the evening?
TIME: 8.30 pm onwards
AT: Prithvi Theatre, 20 Janki Kutir, Juhu.
LOG ON TO: bookmyshow.com
COST: Rs 500

ART

For the love of pets
Till today View the work of young artist Manish Bobade, whose love for animals finds expression in his series My Pet. Bobade has created his works in the semi-abstract genre, which showcase dogs, cows, goats and in some instances, birds.
TIME: 11 am to 7 pm
AT: Gallery Pradarshak, 100, Kalpana Building, Plot 338, 12th Road, Khar(W).
CALL: 26462681

Go artsy with humour
Today Attend a talk on art and a demonstration by Sanjeev Sonpimpare at the Bombay Pier Pop-Up. The artist is known for reshaping Mumbai street scenes, middle class protagonists, magazine covers, and advertorial images with a tinge of humour in his works.
TIME: 5 pm to 6 pm
AT: Radio Club, 26, PJ Ramchandani Marg, Apollo Bandar, Colaba.
Call: 22845025

SHOP

Drop in at a flea
Sun, feb 26 Attend the Big CSR Flea and shop for a cause. The curated flea market will comprise stalls put up by a number of NGOs, women entrepreneurs and start-ups. There will be an array of handmade products to choose from.
TIME: 11 am to 10 pm
AT: Urban Community Development Center, 104/B, 14th Road, Bandra (W).
CALL: 9833984214

Get ready for summer
Ongoing Kolkata-based designer Vedika M brings her latest Spring Summer 2017 collection to Mumbai. The collection, which comes in vivid hues, uses a combination of brush and block printing techniques. Pick from short and long dresses, skirts and jackets.
CALL: 9830020022
LOG ON TO: vedikam.com
COST: Rs 3,000 onwards

FOOD & DRINK

Celebrate Margaritas
Till tues, feb 28 Raise a toast to Margarita Day by celebrating it for a whole week. Paying tribute to the refreshing citrus beverage that is loved the world over, a special menu has been curated to honour iconic women from Mexico. Try drinks named after not just the famous Margarita Carrillo Arronte, but also Frida Kahlo, Ellen Ochoa, Salma Hayek, and more.
TIME: 12 pm to 1 am AT The Good Wife, ground floor, The Capital, Bandra Kurla Complex.
CALL: 40039433
COST: Rs 450 plus taxes for each drink

Take a bite of cheesecake
Ongoing Dig into a new cheesecake menu that includes unique flavours such as Sprinkle Birthday Cake, Banoffee, Ferrero Rocher (in pic), Gluten Free Smores, and the seasonal classic, Strawberry, which features organic Mahabaleshwar strawberries and homemade strawberry jam.
TIME: 7 pm to 1.15 am
AT: Bastian, B/2, New Kamal Building, opposite National College, Linking Road, Bandra (W).
CALL: 26420145
COST: Rs 500 (per slice), Rs 2,750 (full cake)

Try a festive menu
Ongoing Celebrate the Year of the Rooster with a new menu featuring dishes like Beggar Spring Chicken (in pic), Charcoal Grilled Spare Ribs, Wood Baked Spiced Oily Pomfret, and more.
TIME: 6 pm to 1 am
AT: Dashanzi, JW Marriott, Juhu.
CALL: 9769311654

DEAL WITH THE WEEKEND

Be an early bird
Till March 31 Arrive for dinner between 7 pm and 8 pm, and enjoy a 30 per cent off on a dinner buffet featuring soups, salads, starters, main course and desserts.
AT: The Earth Plate, Hotel Sahara Star, Vile Parle (E).
CALL: 39895000
COST: (after discount) Rs 1,610 plus taxes

Shop for a steal
Ongoing Get up to 70 per cent off on the entire collection of 80 designers. Shop from a wide variety of outfits along with clutches and jewellery.
TIME: 10.30 am to 9 pm
AT: Kashish Infioré, Hughes Road.
CALL: 23613111

Go sip happy
Sun, feb 26 Enjoy extra long Happy Hours this Sunday and indulge
in unlimited drinks
such as Apple & Malta Sangria, Watermelon & Mint Sangria, flavoured wines, and beer, all for `899 (inclusive of taxes). Dig into Crab Cakes and Pork Van Dogh.
TIME: 11 pm to 12.45 am
AT: Veranda, Hotel Executive Enclave, Pali Hill, Bandra (W).
CALL: 33126749

Search engine giant Google unveiled a special doodle on Holi. The doodle shows a group of children splashing the Google logo with many colours.

According to Google, "Today, the Google letters are taking on a fresh set of colors in honor of the Holi festival. Coinciding with the arrival of spring, the vibrant celebration looks a lot like the Doodle: people run around happily covering each other in a rainbow of powdery hues.

Amid the cloud of red, blue, yellow, green, and everything in between, festival-goers can often be found laughing, singing, and dancing in the streets. The joyous event, which takes place in India, Nepal, and other countries around the world, traditionally marks the triumph of good over evil. It also gives family and friends a chance to simply come together, enjoying a spirited “Festival of Colors” that undoubtedly lives up to its name."

About Holi
Holi is a Hindu spring festival in India and Nepal, also known as the "festival of colours" or the "festival of love", It signifies the victory of good over evil, the arrival of spring, end of winter, and for many a festive day to meet others, play and laugh, forget and forgive, and repair broken relationships, and is also celebrated as a thanksgiving for a good harvest.

The first day is known as Holika Dahan (हà¥ÂŠà¤²à¤¿à¤Â•à¤¾ दहन) or Chhoti Holi and the second as Rangwali Holi, Dhuleti, Dhulandi or Dhulivandan.

MUSIC

Melodious tunes
Sun, mar 19 Get enthralled by the music of Rakesh Chaurasia, one of India’s most promising musicians and an accomplished flautist. He blends his flute with mixed instruments. He will be accompanied by Ojas Adhiya on the tabla.
TIME: 7.30 am
AT: Prithvi Theatre, Juhu. LOG ON TO bookmyshow.com
COST: Rs 300

Travelling musician
Tonight Catch Nicolette Gore, a singer, songwriter from Ahmedabad, performing original numbers at a gig tonight. An avid traveller, her songs are inspired from her numerous trips across the country.
TIME: 10.30 pm
AT: Tuning Fork, first floor, Hotel Unicontinental, Khar (W).
CALL: 9833358490
COST: Rs 550

ART

Beauty and nature
Ongoing Catch the latest works of artists Ishaque Ali Sayyed and Avinash Deshmukh, which feature nature, still life and spiritual elements, at an exhibition titled Funne–Hayyat.
TIME: 11 am to 8 pm
AT: Nehru Centre Art Gallery, Worli.
CALL: 9833833149

Recycled furniture
Till sun, mar 19 View a unique exhibition, Installation Furniture, which has 60 furniture pieces divided into three series, Emotional, Recycled and Art. The recycled series uses materials like old tyres, cloth, wood, trees, and chains.
TIME: 11 am to 8 pm
AT: The Art Hub, Atria Mall, Worli.
CALL: 9167221322

WORKSHOP

Yoga for peace
Sun, mar 19 Attend a workshop with Bijay J Anand and learn how to deal with the physical and emotional pain in your life. He will be using Kundalini Yoga mantras and kriyas to lead you on a better path.
TIME: 11 am to 12.30 pm
AT: Arts in Motion, 57, Rajdoot, Khar (W).
CALL: 65533333
COST: Rs 1,000

Droning on
Sat, mar 18 Learn to make drones and quadcopters. You will learn about each component and how they work together, and get to fly the drone you create.
TIME: 10 am to 1 pm
AT: Todi Mill Social, 242, Mathuradas Mill Compound, Lower Parel.
CALL: 65110361
COST: Rs 2,500

SHOP

Bridal stop
Till mar 31 Upgrade your wardrobe, especially your wedding collections, at Payal Singhal’s annual sale. On offer is a 50 per cent to 70 per cent discount on all outfits at the store.
TIME: 11 am to 7 pm
AT: Shop No.3, Raj Mahal Building, Altamount Road.
CALL: 65656121

PLAY

The Juhu life
Sun, mar 19 Take a peek into the lives of Balvinder aka Bubbles, brother Goldie Siddhu and sisters Pammi and Smiley, a dysfunctional family living on the 14th floor of a high-rise, Sea View Towers. Despite the location, there are problems in the building and within the family. These issues form the basis of the play, The Siddhus of Upper Juhu.
TIME: 7 pm
AT: TATA Theatre, NCPA, Nariman Point.
COST: Rs 975

Diplomatic treaty
Sat, mar 18 Motley production, A Walk in the Woods, is about two diplomats who take a walk in the woods to achieve a breakthrough in negotiations between their countries. Rajit Kapur and Naseeruddin Shah play the lead roles.
TIME: 7.30 pm
AT: Bal Gandharva Rang Mandir, Bandra (W).
CALL: 9892585856
COST: Rs 200 onwards

FOOD & DRINK

British brunching
Sun, mar 19 Join this Sunday brunch and enjoy dishes such as Grilled Ham and Salami, Stuffed Omelettes, French Toast, Chicken Tikka, Pepperoni Pizza, Shepherd’s Pie, and Bread Butter Pudding. Sip on craft beer or apple cider.
TIME: 12 pm to 4 pm
AT: The British Brewing Company, High Street Phoenix, Lower Parel.
CALL: 65656121
COST: Rs 600 to Rs 1,200

EVENT

Jenga fun
Sat, mar 18 Unwind this weekend over UNO and Jenga contests. UNO will be knockout style while the Jenga games will be one
on one or team-based. Winners get free beers.
TIME: 3 pm to 8 pm AT Reise All Day Bar & Kitchen, Andheri (E).
CALL: 33836086
COST: Rs 300 to Rs 500

Deal with the weekend

Pocket friendly
Today Now, enjoy your favourite cocktails and other drinks at prices starting at just '70. Premium drinks are available for an additional '70.
TIME: 4 pm to 8 pm
AT: All Hoppipola outlets, except Todi Mills.
CALL: 8286089737 (Khar)

Jim Beam day
Sat, mar 18 Groove to the beats of DJ Nikhil while sipping on Jim Beam for just '150, this Saturday. There will be cocktails like Sunrise, Bourbon House, House Side Car and Big Booty available as well.
TIME: 8 pm onwards
AT: The House Gastropub, Bungalow 1, JP Road, Aram Nagar, Versova, Andheri (W).
CALL: 39652955

Happiest hours
Till mar 19 Drink unlimited beer (till your bladder bursts) for only R420 or unlimited Sangria for R899. You can also munch on Chicken Faffa and Caribbean Chicken Strips while you drink.
TIME: 5 pm to 8 pm
AT: Raasta Bombay, Rohan Plaza, 5th Road, SV Road, Khar (W).
CALL: 8655000811

DANCE

Celebrate Kathak
Sat, Mar 25 Watch dancers from Kadamb Performing Unit present Vivarta, a Kathak performance based on Ni-ra-tata-dhang, a composition that narrates the actual bols of the Kathak vocabulary and highlights its classical techniques. It has been choreographed by Kathak exponent Kumudini Lakhia.
TIME: 7 pm
AT: Tata Theatre, NCPA, Nariman Point.
COST: Rs 200 onwards
CALL: 66223724

EVENT

Take a walk
Sun, Mar 26 Attend a two-hour walk where underprivileged children from the non-profit Angel Xpress Foundation will take you around the Bandstand neighbourhood and offer a glimpse into their lives. The kindness-themed walk has been organised by EverytingOnAPlate and Yash Rane as part of World Insta Meet.
TIME: 3.30 pm
MEETING POINT: Opposite Mannat, Bandra (W).
CALL: 9820246669

EXHIBITION

Trace different strokes
Till Mar 27 Check out a group show titled, Three Visions, showcasing mixed media sculptures by Vishal Rajas, along with paintings by Nilesh Nikam and Shivaji Mhaske. Nikam plays with textures and motifs while Mhaske's works offer a glimpse of ethereal landscapes of Maharashtra.
TIME: 11 am to 7 pm
AT: Jehangir Art Gallery, MG Road, Kala Ghoda.
CALL: 9967440683

MUSIC

Soothe your soul
Tonight Catch a performance by singer-songwriter Shanay Shah to add a soothing touch to your weekend. Apart from Western music, the versatile singer is also known for his renditions of Bollywood tracks and traditional Sufi songs.
TIME: 9.30 pm onwards
AT: Fat Man's Café & Grill, Tian Building, Gulmohar Road, JVPD, Juhu.
CALL: 26254446

Meet Jan Jaani
Sat, Mar 25 Swing to the tunes of singer-songwriter Jan Graveson, also known as Jan Jaani. Her set will be a blend of Alternative, Pop and Rock classics. Howard Pereira will accompany her on the guitar.
TIME: 8 pm onwards
AT: Thalassa, 21st Street, off Carter Road, Khar (W).
CALL: 9820004019

Find your FOMO fix
Sun, Mar 26 Attend the first edition of FOMO Fest and groove to diverse sounds by experimental outfit Bombay Black, singer-songwriter Monica Dogra (in pic) and Electro-Rock group Donn Bhat + Passenger Revelator. Meanwhile, Electronic artistes Zokhuma, Chhabb, DJ Beat2, Twisted Bass and Shivani Sawant will spin
Trance beats.
TIME: 12 pm onwards
AT: Razzberry Rhinoceros, Juhu Hotel.
CALL: 7400402604
ENTRY: Rs 500 (12 pm to 4 pm); Rs 1,000 (4 pm onwards)

WORKSHOP

Get a taste of Singapore
Today Learn to make Flat Rice Noodles with Fresh Herbs, Forest Mushroom Rice Spaghetti with Fried Shallot and Chinese-Style Pak Choy and Rice Vermicelli Soup at a Singaporean cuisine demo.
TIME: 5.30 pm
AT: Foodhall, Palladium, Lower Parel.
CALL: 30264581

FOOD & DRINK

Dine in the dark
Sat, Mar 25 If you're keen to do your bit for the planet, participate in Earth Hour celebrations, which also make for a great way to bond with your partner. Enjoy a candle-lit dinner and sip on glow-in-the-dark cocktails.
TIME: 8.30 pm to 9.30 pm
AT: Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel, Powai.
CALL: 66927491

COMEDY

Laugh away the stress
Tonight Stand-up comedians Amogh Ranadive, Sonali Thakkar and Abhishek Upmanyu will pull out new jokes from their bag at a special comedy gig. They are best known for their observational and anecdotal comedy.
TIME: 10 pm onwards
AT: Andheri Base, Whistling Woods Sharyans Audeus, Andheri (W)
CALL: 30916003
COST: Rs 200 onwards

WORK

Enter an open house
Today If you're a freelancer, head to the Open House at Todi Mill Social to avail of high-speed Wi-Fi, on-demand printing, office stationery and a 10 per cent discount on membership if you sign up on the spot. You can also participate in networking sessions planned by the team.
TIME: 9 am to 6 pm
AT: Mathuradas Mill Compound, Lower Parel.
CALL: 7045940448

Deal with the weekend

Cool off with hot stones
Ongoing Pamper yourself with spa therapies offered at 30 per cent discount. Opt for a 90-minute Hot Stones Therapy (Rs 4,500) done using volcanic basalt stones, or a 75-minute Rope Massage (Rs 3,500).
TIME: 11 am to 10 pm
AT: Caressaa Day Spa, Peninsula Grand Hotel, Andheri (E).
CALL: 28519191

Enjoy a girl's drunch out
Ongoing Catch up with your gal pals over a lunch, brunch or drunch and avail of 10 per cent discount on the entire bill. Enjoy eats like Rosemary Cottage Cheese Kebab and Salmon In Labb Sauce and sip on Orange Basil Mojito and Sunday Sangria.
TIME: 11 am to 3 pm
AT: Terttulia, Hotel Parkway, Ranade Road Extension, Dadar (W).
CALL: 24468833

Get high on beer
Till Sun, Mar 26 If you love beer, especially Bira, don't miss this offer. For every 330 ml bottle that you buy, you get a 500 ml can free.
TIME: 12.30 pm to 1 am
AT: Reise – All Day Bar & Kitchen, Tarun Bharat Society, Dr Karanjia Marg, near Cigarette Factory, Chakala, Andheri (E).
CALL: 33836086

ACP Sanjay Kadam starts his day early at the gym, before heading to his office in Bandra West. Pic/RANE ASHISH

Right opposite Dongri police station, cut only by a turning road-strip, is a small ground that sees a flurry of activity every evening. Men in khakhi head out here post work, and engage in a few minutes of pushing and pulling under the dim street lighting, before finally calling it a day.

The open-air gymnasium was started 18 months ago. Until then, the vacant plot doubled up as a makeshift storage area for seized goods. But, with a fitness-conscious senior police inspector, Nitin Bangale, at the helm of affairs, the force had a slim chance of escaping a tough physical regime. When not manning his jurisdiction, Bangale goads his juniors to train with him. In 2015, when Sangram Balasaheb Kadam, a trained body-builder, joined as sub-inspector, Bangale found a willing partner to fuel this obsession. Together, they pump enough iron to put Salman Khan to shame. But, could that be said of the rest of the force serving in the 97 police stations within the city's jurisdiction?

Last month, after the Mumbai police fired back at author Shobhaa De for a tweet that fat-shamed a cop, whom she had incorrectly assumed was from Mumbai Police, the force made no pretence at hiding its disdain. Whether this confidence had anything to do with the healthy turnaround that they have witnessed of late, was what piqued our interest. What we learnt on our 'fit cop' trail was that Bajirao Singham and Chulbul Pandey aren't just figments of Bollywood's popular imagination. Some of them are right there in your nearby police thana. The success stories, however, weren't written overnight. They have been in the making for years.

Seasons of change
Mumbai Police historian Deepak Rao says it was Arvind Inamdar, who first introduced the rigours of exercise within the force as joint commissioner of police, crime, in 1987. Now, 77 years old, the retired Mumbai-based top cop, recalls, "Back in the 1980s, the gang wars in Mumbai were at their peak. To tackle them, we started the Special Operations Squad (SOS), with brand new weaponry. But, unless they were physically fit, they wouldn't be able to fight anyone. So, every morning, I would meet them and run with them for at least six kms." However, this fizzled out after five years.

While some health initiatives were revived years later under former CP MN Singh (2002), the noose around ill-health only tightened during the last decade, says Rao. "Unlike earlier, 80 per cent of the force takes fitness seriously. You don't see hawaldars or officers smoking on duty these days," says Chimaji Adhav, inspector, crime branch, Unit 11.

When the present CP, Datta Padsalgikar, took over the post on January 31, 2016, he was confronted with disturbing figures from the previous year's health report. Of the 163 policemen, who reportedly died in 2015, 30 per cent had suffered from heart-related ailments. Long-work hours, stress, and poor-eating habits, were leading contributors to the problem.

Work hours re-jigged
Within a few months of taking charge, Padsalgikar called for a meeting of all senior cops to discuss possible solutions to the problem.

Top on the to-do list was slashing work hours of constables, who form 80 per cent of the force, from 12 to eight. "The idea was to ensure that the constable gets enough time to spend with his family and also exercise. This would ultimately make him mentally and physically fit," said joint CP (Law & Order) Deven Bharti. However, the project is still a work in progress.

Eight months ago, the Mumbai police also launched a free health-check drive, which made it compulsory for every cop to get an annual medical test done.

Defining a cop's fitness
What makes for a fit cop? Someone who has "learnt to start his day with fruit and not chai," says nutritionist Rujuta Diwekar, who has been working with the Mumbai police since 2016. Phase 1 of the Mumbai Police Welfare Project kicked off in October, in Zone IX wherein for over three months, she and her team visited all police stations on Tuesdays and Thursdays to conduct morning and evening sessions. Here, they would share inexpensive tips on diet and relaxation. They also tied up with gyms to help policemen get access to quality workout facilities. "They were reluctant at first — the eight chais a day didn't come down to two for everyone, but we got it down to five. The banana became the first meal of the day. As they observed positive changes in their body, they became more receptive," says Diwekar. The second phase of the programme will see her working with police representatives, in a more feedback-led module.

For holistic health professional Mickey Mehta, who continues to work closely with the Mumbai police, fitness in the force is more about mental resilience. "A cop who can clock in 15 hours a day and still has the energy to go on, is a fit cop. They, I feel, are more tenacious than their counterparts in Delhi and Haryana. The amount of pressure these guys can take is not funny," says Mehta, who conducted a training camp at Naigaon last year. The road to fitness, he says, is an uphill one for the police. There aren't enough training facilities, and maintaining a diet is a challenge. But, he rules out the need for gyms. "We don't want beefcakes. We are looking at resilient cops, not athletic ones. I recommend a desi workout — 21 minutes of dand baithak (push-ups/squats), stretching, naukasan (boat pose), chakrasan (wheel pose), dhanurasan (bow pose). They need more of military drills and agility training. For instance, I'd scatter potatoes on the ground and make them collect them in the least time possible."

While expert guidance is always at hand, the force too, has its own set of in-house experts. Inspector Sanjay Nikam, crime branch, was a fitness enthusiast even before joining the force in 2001. However, for him the need for mental strength trumps physical fitness. "When you don't have the opportunity to maintain a proper diet and get good rest, it is only your mental strength that keeps you going," says the 41-year-old, who set up a gym at the Wadala (East) police station, which was his first posting. "That gym is still used by policemen. Later, when I moved to Unit 4, I built one on the upper floor," says the inspector who would organise body-building competitions between 2001 and 2006, for the police force. Nikam's sustained efforts also inspired his seniors, who have followed his example and provided fitness equipment at their respective outposts.

DCP Dr Vinay Rathod enjoys the advantage of being a medical expert himself. "Having worked as a resident in one of Nagpur's busiest medical colleges has helped me deal with stress and pain. That comes handy when my staff approaches me for help. If someone has migraine or acidity, I'll recommend anulom vilom. The body's well-being impacts the mind and vice versa," says Rathod, who has run the half marathon for five years.

An endearing image
Sub-inspector Sangram, who grew up idolising Ashok Kamte, former additional CP, Mumbai police, still remembers the late cop toiling away at his gym in Kolhapur, during a brief posting there. Another popular role model is Himanshu Roy. ACP Sanjay Kadam says, "He changed how people perceived the police force. When he walked into the crowd, people scattered, not out of fear, but respect."

The ACP says that when a cop is fit, his confidence "increases by 100 per cent". "It boosts your morale," he says, adding that you begin to feel like a 'superhuman,' which changes how you handle work too.

Image consultant Rukhsana Eisa stresses on the importance of a smart-looking cop, because that has a direct impact on how the public perceives them. "Fitness will translate into confidence and that in turn will lend them a positive demea-nour while interacting with people. If they maintain a correct posture and a level of hygeine, it only adds to the overall image of a fit cop. This way, the feeling of negativity that people generally tend to associate with the police, will fade away."

ACP Sanjay Kadam starts his day early at the gym, before heading to his office in Bandra West.  PIC/SHADAB KHAN

Sanjay Kadam, 56ACP, Bandra police division
I begin my day at 6 am with a glass of milk and four almonds. An hour later, I head to the gym. I become a child in the gym, working out for at least two hours. I do a combination of weights, cardio and functional exercises. If I had to give advice on staying healthy, I would suggest taking packed lunch from home. On most days, my dabba comprises four to five rotis and sabzi. I eat rice only on Sundays. I don't smoke, drink or have tea.

Mickey Mehta, holistic health professional
Mehta says, "A cop who can clock in 15 hours a day and still has the energy to go on, is a fit cop. Mumbai cops, I feel, are more tenacious than their counterparts in Delhi and Haryana. The amount of pressure these guys can take, is not funny." For tenacious cops, not beefcakes, he recommends a desi workout of dand baithaks and yoga asanas.

Rujuta Diwekar, nutritionist
Diwekar and her team have been working with the force since 2016, sharing inexpensive diet and fitness tips. She says making the banana the first bite of the day is a small victory.

Arvind Inamdar is believed to have introduced the rigours of exercise within the force as joint commis-sioner of police, crime, in 1987

Himanshu Roy, former ATS Maharashtra chief, says ACP Sanjay Kadam, changed how people perceived the police force with his image.

Sub-inspector Sangram Balasaheb Kadam often works out with his immediate boss, senior PI Nitin Bangale, at a gym near Dongri police station. Pic/SHADAB KHAN 

Sangram Balasaheb Kadam, 29 Sub-inspector, Dongri Police Station
There's never a fixed schedule [for a police officer]. But, if I start work at 8 am, I wake up at 6.30 am. My diet is different because I am training to become a professional bodybuilder. I begin my day with six boiled eggs, one boiled sweet potato and oats soaked in water. I pack my own dabba. So, around 10 am, irrespective of where I am, I eat three boiled eggs, and a sweet potato. For lunch, I eat two chapatis and 300gm boiled chicken. This is followed by a cup of brown rice and 2 boiled eggs at 5 pm. At 9 pm, just before my workout, I have 3 boiled eggs again and mosambi juice, followed by a protein shake. Dinner is at around 12.30 and is the same as lunch.

DCP Vinay Rathod runs at least 15-20 km each week. Pic/BIPIN KOKATE

Dr Vinay Rathod DCP (Detection), Crime Branch
I joined Force 1 (a specialised counter terrorism unit) in 2011. For this, you need to undergo commando training for two months, where you run 25 km in full gear, while carrying 30 kg. I completed my training and then ran my first half marathon in 2011. Since then, running has become a part of life. I run three times a week and try to clock 15-20 km over seven days. As marathon season approaches, I increase the mileage to 17 km and then leave it at that. Also, while running the race, I am not keen on minimising time. I finish it comfortably in 2.5 hours. I intend to take my officers on regular treks as part of their physical training.

Inspector Chimaji Adhav swims twice a week to stay fit. Pic/NIMESH DAVE

Chimaji Adhav, 47 Inspector, Crime Branch, Unit 11
I wake up at 5.30 am and head out for a one-hour morning walk. I follow that with an hour in the gym in my housing society, where I do weights, skip-jumping and walk the treadmill. Twice a week, I swim. For breakfast, I have chapati-bhaji and do a light lunch if I get the time, which is usually three days a week. Else, I make do with a vada pao and bananas. For dinner, I have chapati-bhaji and one glass of milk.

Inspector Sanjay Nikam carries a mobile workout kit wherever he goes, so that he doesn’t miss a session

Sanjay Nikam, 41 Inspector, Crime Branch, Unit 4
I follow a seven-day workout rule because during a work week, you are bound to miss at least one day. My morning and evening workout schedule lasts from 6.30 to 8.30 am, and 20 minutes after 9 pm. In the morning I do cardio and weights. In the night, it's walking, running and lunges. I also carry a mobile workout kit, comprising extension, rollers and dip sets. That helps me maintain my schedule even when I'm on duty, especially out-station. I begin my day with 15 egg whites and a glass of protein shake, followed by a light lunch of three chapatis and bhaji (if possible). Between 4 and 5 pm, I have 100 grams of chicken. At 7 pm, I have a light snack with coffee. This is my last meal for the day. I only have a glass of warm water before going to bed.

Constable Sushant Mohite is professional body builder and continues to participate at events

Sushant Mohite, 30 Constable, LOCAL ARMS DIVISION, MAROL
I wake at 6 am, and eat an apple, three boiled egg whites, and brown bread or chapati. At 10 am, I eat two to three idlis, a banana and drink a glass of mosambi juice. If I don't manage to get my hands on this, I eat a sandwich without butter and potatoes. For lunch, I eat boiled chicken, chapatis and salad. Around 5 pm, I eat dry fruit, apple and some boiled eggs. Dinner is light with salad and fruit. I work out twice a day — 20 minutes in the morning and another 20 in the evening. I have struggled with my fitness, but a disciplined lifestyle has helped.

April 23, 5 PM: Do you believe you have the coolest dog on the planet? Maybe it's time to let the world know that too. Vile Parle's ZooBar is organising Dog's Got Talent, where your mutt can show off his skills right from his obedience levels, fetching ability, turning tricks, love for food, loudest bark or even for simply looking the cutest. The Applausometer will reward the swaggiest waggers in multiple categories, because we all believe every dog's got a talent."

Humans have had enough fun, it's now time for our paw friends to enjoy. This event will see dogs indulging in a lot of games, competitions and delicious canine goodies. It gives pet owners the time and opportunity to take their dogs out and spend some quality time with them and be a great change and source of entertainment for dogs," says owner Nishant Joshi. The highlight of the event will be some summer treats for y our furry friends by K9 professionals, a nice grub by Mutt Hutt, a photo-op and accessories sale.

Go funky with Benny
Dance to the tunes of Benny Dayal and Funktuation this weekend. The band, formed in 2011, has the Bollywood singer on vocals, Joshua Satya on guitar, Carl Fernandez on bass, Alok Merwin on keys and David Joseph on drums. Dayal's popular songs include Badtameez Dil and Daru Desi. He is mostly known for his work with AR Rahman in both Hindi and Tamil.
TIME: 9 pm onwards
AT: Todi Mill Social, Lower Parel.
CALL: 65110361
ENTRY: Rs 500 (includes a beer)

Friday

Catch a tribute gig
Catch the band, The Big If, at a Pearl Jam tribute gig. Relive the early '90s classics like Alive and Jeremy. They also draw inspiration from Alter Bridge and Nirvana. The band comprises Sumeet Menon (vocals), Rohit Murugan (guitar), Kartik Gopalkrishnan (guitar), Aaron (bass) and Chirag Vachcha (drums).
TIME: 10 pm
AT: Tuning Fork, Hotel Unicontinental, 3rd Road, Khar (W).
CALL: 9833358490
ENTRY: Rs 500

Get your Bawa facts right
Ever wondered how the Parsis arrived in India? Do you know the story of Zarathushtra and his disciples? Learn more about the community at a three-day exhibition conceptualised by Cyrus Dastoor. There will be cultural activities, and stalls featuring Zoroastrian books, artefacts and cuisine.
TIME: 6.30 pm
AT: All Bless Baug, opposite Charni Road Station.
CALL: 65069313

The flavour of mint
On the occasion of the first anniversary of Mintageworld.com (an online museum of coins, stamps and currency notes), you can gift them a currency note from your collection, which is not in circulation, and it will be clicked for you professionally.
TIME: 11 am to 7 pm
AT: Stall 69, Numismatics Fair, World Trade Centre, Cuffe Parade.
CALL: 8976001704

Saturday

Of marriage and bride
Catch the play, Beewion Ka Madarsa, which is about a character named Haneef Mohammed. He did not marry thinking all women are dishonest and they cheat on their husbands but then, life takes a turn. He decides to customise his bride.
TIME: 7 pm at NCPA, Nariman Point.
CALL: 39895050
ENTRY: Rs 300 onwards

Keep it stylish
Attend a fashion styling and design and trends workshop organised by Mod'Art. Popular designer Babita Malkani (in pic), who has been in the field for over a decade will helm the workshop.
TIME: 2.30 pm to 4.30pm
AT: Mod'Art International, Rama Gulab Apts, Subash Road, Vile Parle (E).
RSVP: 9619777841

Revel in poetry
Add a poetic touch to your weekend as award-winning poets including Adil Jussawalla, Jayanta Mahapatra, Keki Daruwalla, K Satchidanandan and Eunice de Souza read from their work alongside prominent Gujarati and Marathi poets. The two-day poetry festival has been organised by Paperwall Media & Publishing.
TIME: 10 am to 5.30 pm
AT: Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Chembur.
CALL: 49235008

Sunday

Flavours with a twist
Tuck into a new menu at a restaurant that celebrates the legacy of Irani cafés. The offerings include staples like Boil Egg Sandwich and Bhuna Chicken Sandwich, Bacon Vada Pav, Persian Soup, Crispy Corn Bhel, Khattu Meethu Pumpkin, and innovative desserts and cocktails.
TIME: 12 pm to 1.30 am
AT: SodaBottleOpenerWala, BKC.
CALL: 9892841456

Listen to the expert
Attend a talk by Amol Palekar as the veteran actor, director and producer discusses a new wave in Marathi cinema. He will explore a paradigm shift in the last decade.
TIME: 11 am
AT: Dr Bhau Daji Lad Mumbai City Museum, Byculla.
CALL: 23731234

Soak in art by kids
Landscapes, portraits, still life, flora and fauna and social issues are only some of the many themes you will find at Yellow Canvas 2017, a group exhibition of artworks created by 71 students from across schools in Mumbai. The canvases have been created in various media like water colours, acrylic, mix media among others.
TIME: 11 am to 7 pm
AT: Cymroza Art Gallery, Breach Candy.
CALL: 23671983

Deal with the weekend

Sip and munch to glory
Ongoing Avail a flat 20 per cent discount on all food and beverages at a newly launched restaurant. The menu includes appetizers, juicy burgers and sandwiches. You can also dance to the beats of the in-house DJ.
TIME: 12 pm to 1 am
AT: Nerve, Hill Road, opposite Le Reve (Globus), Bandra (W).
CALL: 9930008049

Add to your collectibles
till april 23 Replenish your wardrobe at a thrift shop for a cause by Back Alley. There will be pre-loved products including crockery, home décor, gift items, western and ethnic wear up for grabs. The initiative is by Radhika Dhawan and Maya Bhogilal Goyel.
TIME: 11 am to 3 pm
AT: Ave 29, Kohinoor Mansion, 29 Hughes Road.
CALL: 23804981

Grab a meal between work
ongoing Taste the 'Working Lunch Menu' at a five-star by chef Shadab Qureshi. The planned luxury meal will feature the chef's delicacies from the North West Frontier.
TIME: 12 pm to 3 pm
AT: Jyran-Tandoor & Dining Lounge, Sofitel, BKC.
CALL: 8268152597
COST: Rs 1,500 (veg), Rs 1,700 (non veg)

(From left) Kamal Sidhu, Purab Kohli, Dino Morea, Maria Goretti, Cyrus Sahukar, Mini Mathur, Cyrus Broacha, Luke Kenny. Location Courtesy/The Bombay Canteen; Pics/Rane Ashish

When video killed the radio star in the 1990s, we were not complaining. Our eyes were glued to the TV as cable television made its debut. We had heard our rock and pop idols on FM, and now, we had them, in our living rooms. MTV had landed, followed by Channel V. Along with them came a glam and chatty species called VJs. On them we pinned our hope for a favourite song, crushed on them, and sought fashion wisdom during our fumbling teenage years. Suddenly, we had new pin-up stars.

At a reunion of India's first set of VJs at Lower Parel's The Bombay Canteen, we saw model-VJ from MTV and Channel V Kamal Sidhu; the brain behind Channel V Luke Kenny; mad-hatter MTV VJ Cyrus Broacha; crush-worthy Channel V VJ Purab Kohli; model-actor with dear dimples Dino Morea; MTV's effervescent Mini Mathur; MTV's Mr Comical Cyrus Sahukar and MTV VJ-turned-food TV host Maria Goretti.

Madness ensued, with a whole lot of laughter and wisecracks. There were blows below the belt but not a brow was raised. For us, the '90s kids, they were the epitome of cool. It's true that we saw them in a different light — some of them are now parents — but they are just as charming.

Launching with the '90S
Kamal: I think I speak for everyone when I say, without the '90s, we wouldn't have had a career.

Mini: I was doing TV much before music television arrived. At that time, all of it was based out of Delhi, and only fiction came out of Bombay. But the music channels made it all cool.

Cyrus S: There were a handful of these networks in operation. It was a great time to be in and we got away with murder.

Luke: One of the things that happened was that the 18 to 24 demographic was created. That's the demographic for youth programming even today. Once 2000 rolled in, the concept of the TV anchor was born, but the VJ had died.

Kamal Sidhu makes a point as Purab Kohli listens in

Kamal: While the role of the VJ was fairly new to India, around the world there were VJs we were exposed to. In Canada, we had a local music channel, which didn't allow MTV to enter the country. There was Downtown Julie Brown (who hosted Club MTV from 1987 to 1992). On the show, the light switch went on, with the camera going up her legs and under her skirt, while she went, 'Waba Waba Waba Downtown Julie Brown'. She was among the real pioneers. When MTV launched in Asia, we beamed shows from Hong Kong. And, then, we launched in India with a party at the Taj Mahal Hotel [in 1992] in Mumbai. It was called The Bombay Blast Weekend. It received a lot of backlash, I remember, because the riots (Babri Masjid) had just happened.

Where i want to be: Vjing
Maria: I used to watch Kamal and Danny [McGill] VJ, and, suddenly, I was one of them. I didn't know what I was getting into until I did. The thing about VJing in the '90s was that it let you be who you wanted to be. I was lucky to be part of something I loved. Today, everyone wants to be something more, so, a lot of people get nudged out of television. MTV put Indian VJs on air and that changed something. It was now damn cool to be Indian; there was no need to have an accent. I didn't realise I was cool but apparently, I was.

Purab: I joined Channel V as a host for a travel show, and, gradually, when other slots opened, I started VJing too. There was a serious naiveté back then and VJing wasn't thought of as a stepping-stone to other things.

Cyrus Sahukar tells a story to Luke Kenny

Cyrus S: We were all there with the knowledge that this where we want to be.

Behind the scenes
Purab: There were times when we shot close to five episodes a day. It was intense. Sophiya [Haque], Laila [Rouass] and Meghna [Reddy] would do their own make up, write their own shows and select their own music. There was a transition, when I came in 1999 to Channel V. There was one show where we were asked to write and select songs. We would run it by Luke.

Cyrus B: Luke? Was everything right?

Purab: Yes!

Cyrus B: Luke himself didn't know what his designation was.

Purab: He would approve songs and that was our process.

Maria: Producers hated it when VJs would get together because that meant no one would be working. Once a year, we did a show together for Christmas or New Year and that would be a blast. I miss all of us working together — miss the travelling, the early morning flights, sleeping at airports because we had missed our plane. When I look back I realise that what I did was part of history.

Music then, music now
Luke: What do I think of the indie music scene? It's very niche, and some of the musicians have a chip on their shoulder. But, that aside, what business are they doing? Few manage to get paying gigs, and whoever turns up to support, comes, has a drink, pays R300 and then doesn't buy the album. How does it help the artist? I have been consulting with Channel V recently, and we are trying to go back to the model where the music channel only plays music, and supports indie acts by giving their originals air time.

Cyrus Broacha monkeys around as Dino Morea greets Kamal Sidhu

Kamal: I remember they would send us pop music videos at the Hong Kong office. And most of them were bad. We had to consciously decide to help some artists with their videos. And then Rahman and acts like Indus Creed came in, and the videos changed.

Luke: Kids today love their pop as they did back in the '90s.

Kamal: It was more authentic back then.

Luke: That's because the labels saw a market and invested in it. No one sees a market in today's indie scene.

Cyrus S: They were competing with an international kind of space and knew that spending money on videos was requisite. Everybody was trying to match international standards.
Kamal: And then everything got homogenised into one game plan — the Bollywood game plan.

The '90S role model
Dino: I landed in Bombay in December 1997, looking for opportunities and I remember sharing a room, not even a flat, with a girl who wanted to be a model too. Back in Bangalore, I remember seeing Kamal. I was in college and had to go meet a photographer. There she was, shooting for some perfume or cosmetics ad, and I was like, "Whoa!" Models were these superstars then. I did stare at her.

Kamal: Did I stare back at you?

Dino: (Laughing) I don't think you noticed me.

Sinking into reality
Kamal: A big change from the '90s, well, is that reality television came about, for better or worse.

Luke: One of the earliest reality shows to come was Channel V's Popstars, from which [girl band] Viva emerged. History rewrote itself in that decade with reality television.

Cyrus B: There was also MTV Bakra, which started towards the end of 1999.

Kids with an edge
Kamal: I think it was the time of the Asian liberation. Everything was booming. Also, it was a time for adjustment. Parents of '90s kids looked at people like us and questioned our place as role models. They said, we need to control the remote control.

Luke: No, there was no parental control at all.

Purab: I think it was because those kids were the first movers into the globalisation space.

Cyrus S: Even I used to come home and watch TV. It was a time when I had a VCP, not even a VCR.

Luke: Do you know why those kids had an edge over today's? Because they didn't have these. (Points to a mobile phone).

Maria: I think it was because there was a more organic interaction between people. The communication was real, which I don't see today. These days, it's about the phone. My kids just asked me why they don't have the blue tick on Instagram. Everyone is looking into their phones. We have become tech-savvy but have lost a bit of the soul. (Snapping her fingers). It's now all about reaching a place and changing the game.

Your fav music video of the '90S was?
Luke: Pretty Child by Indus Creed
Cyrus Sahukar: Ice Ice Baby by Vanilla Ice
Dino: Can't Touch This by MC Hammer
Kamal: Anything by AR Rahman
Maria: Freedom by George Michael
Mini: All Sukhbir and Lucky Ali videos

Friday

Laugh out loud
Kick-start your weekend with a stand-up special by Jeeveshu Ahluwalia. His jokes sway between the amusing life of chubby people, and his failed attempts at pleasing his over-optimistic mother.
Time: 8 pm at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Chowpatty, KM Munshi Road, Grant Road West
Log on to: bookmyshow.com
Entry: '540 onwards

Shop till you drop
Get ready for the festive season as 17 designers and brands showcase apparel made from khadi, silk using ikat, jamdani, shibori and other techniques. You can also find accessories and home décor items at this two-day event.
Time: 11 am to 7 pm
AT: Tranceforme Designs, Laxmi Mills Estate, off Dr E Moses Road, Mahalaxmi
Call: 24939916

Groove to live performances
Listen to Arunaja aka Ammu, a gospel-inspired vocalist from Kochi, who is currently on the TV show The Stage 2, singer/songwriter Vedant Joshi and Vikram Nathwani aka DJ Mark IV.
Time: 8.30 pm
AT: Luca, Todi Mills, Lower Parel
Call: 49714450

Saturday

Watch the story of Gandhi
How did Gandhi become the Mahatma? What impact did his days as a barrister in South Africa have on his philosophy of peace and non-violence? Gandhi — The Musical, about the journey of the Father of the Nation, has the answers.
Till: August 15, 7.30 pm
AT: Jamshed Bhabha Theatre, NCPA
Cost: '500 onwards
Call: 22824567

Craft your own rakhi
Instead of store-bought rakhis, how about giving your brother a sweet surprise this Rakshabandhan with a handmade creation? Take inspiration by exploring the colours, patterns and designs at this museum's permanent collection. Pay for the entry ticket, while the activity and all materials come free.
Time: 11 am to 2 pm
AT: Dr Bhau Daji Lad Mumbai City Museum, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marg, Byculla East
Call: 23731234

Start clicking
Sign your little ones up for The Secrets of Still Lives, an art-cum-photography workshop. It will begin with an interaction with artist Shahid Datawala (whose works are on display), followed by a photography exercise on capturing everyday objects in a surreal way.
Time: 11 am to 1 pm age group Eight to 11 years
AT: TARQ, Dhanraj Mahal, Apollo Bunder, Colaba
Call: 66150424
Cost: '1,000

Sunday

Go for Lalbaugcha tour
Explore the history, culture and secrets of Lalbaug including a hidden agiary, temple of the buffalo god, the oldest dargah in Mumbai and more at a walk by Khaki Tours.
Time: 8 am
Starting point: Gundecha Gardens Gate, Godrej Gas Compound, Lalbaug
Call: 8828100111
Entry: '644

Dine with your bestie
This Friendship Day, spend a laid-back Sunday with your best friend by sharing punch bowls and comfort food such as Chocolate Gluten-Free Pancake and Waffles and Rocky Road Waffle (in pic).
Time: 7 pm to 1.30 am
AT: One Street Over ground floor, 35th Street, off Linking Road,Khar West
Call: 26002224

Raft through Kundalika
Pack your bags for a river rafting trip on the river Kundalika in Kolad. The organisers have also added archery and Burma bridge to the agenda.
Time: 6.30 am (meet at Kala Nagar junction, Bandra East)
At: Kolad
Call: 9867952811
Cost: '2,350 (includes transportation and tea and snacks)

The Second Act

U/A: Comedy, Romance
Director: Peter Segal
Cast: Jennifer Lopez, Leah Remini, Vanessa Hudgens
Rating: 

Jennifer Lopez probably fancies herself as a 'Working Girl' and that explains her producing and acting in a film that has shades of the Oscar winner mashed up with done to death romcom elements. The script credited to Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas and Justin Zackham transforms an uneducated, street-smart 40-year-old woman, Maya(Jennifer Lopez) into a winning corporate consultant – and to get there she jumps the truth about her background, gets a resume makeover and wins the confidence of the head honcho. The boss (Treat Williams) sets up two teams, one lead by Maya and the safer one led by his daughter, Zoe (Vanessa Hudgens). But no prizes for guessing who won that battle. The usual alienation from old friends is followed by a redemptive effort at truth-telling.

Peter Segal's Second Act tries to do too much. The impetus for Maya's cheat makeover comes from professional rejection - We meet Maya the day she loses out on a big promotion at Value Shop, because of her lack of an MBA and a dopey idiot gets it because he does. We see Maya reconciling with the daughter she gave up for adoption and then losing her again for a bit before they reconcile again. The same happens with her friends and colleagues from her former workplace. They are the ones who support and encourage her (to hilarious results sometimes). Corporate skulduggery notwithstanding there's also the romantic interest whom she failed to confide in. It's all too complicated rather than complex.

Check out the trailer here:

The few times the film manages to perk you up involves an impromptu dance with Maya leading her office nemesis (Freddie Stroma) onto the dance floor in an attempt to sideswipe his attempt to expose her. And another time you feel the passion is when she and her girlfriends (Remini, Lacreta, Dierdre Friel) do a "Push it REAL good" dancing sing along. The writing is not without its frivolous light-hearted banter but much of it is lost in the attempt to paint Maya in a gratifying light. This romcom is fairly bearable but not exactly likeable.

Also Read: Jennifer Lopez explains why she did Second Act

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Glass

U/A: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Cast: Sarah Paulson, Bruce Willis, James McAvoy
Rating: 

Shyamalan’s earliest films (The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, Signs) were brilliant, they intrigued, shocked and entertained all at the same time. The same cannot be said about the films that came later. The big budget ones especially were all jumbled up and schlocky. It felt as though the director never really achieved his vision. ‘Glass’ is a far better effort in terms of visual context but it fails on cohesion and lucidity – especially in the third act dominated by Shyamalan’s signature twists.

Glass, a sort of sequel to both Unbreakable and Split, spends its two hours plus without a strong story to tell. It is every bit as inconceivable and snaky a film as his worst but it still has a psychological depth that could have amounted to much more - if only the director had been a little more focussed. There’s so much he is wanting to say that it all gets lost in the confusion and incoherence brought on by a lack of emphasis.

Glass opens with Dunn(Willis) tracking down Split's villain, Kevin Wendell Crumb aka 'The Horde' (James McAvoy), a serial killer suffering from multiple personality disorder who has been preying on girls in the Philadelphia area. After some visceral action Dunn and Crumb are captured and taken to a secret wing of a psychiatric hospital also housing Mister Glass(Jackson) – to be studied by Dr. Ellie Staple (Sarah Paulson), a psychiatrist obsessed with decoding the phenomenon of men who believe themselves to possess the powers of comic book characters.

Check out the trailer here:

This is an indie film (in partnership with Blumhouse)with no big studio backing it so there are budget constraints which Shyamalan could have overcome by running a tighter ship. Shyamalan manages to get close to poignant and memorable but the third act(rather threadbare) pulls you off that track all the way through. The twists don’t make much sense and in fact renders the entire work rather directionless.

The build-up is pretty good even though the action is all visual, internalised and verbose but the third and final act fails to make something out of that. The director and DP Michael Gioulakis manage to compose some fascinating and striking visual mayhem but it doesn’t amount to anything powerful. If you followed ‘Unbreakable’ and ‘Split’ then there is a chance that you might cotton on to Shyamalan’s wavelength but for a large part of the audience this is going to be a film without a strong sense of purpose.

James McAvoy is simply the best thing about this movie. His enthusiasm and effort in playing out multiple personalities is extraordinary. Jackson wakes up from his stupor a little late and loses out on creating an impact while Willis looks on strategically- the thing he does best I guess. This is at best a baffling and inconsistent exercise in cinema!

Also Read: James McAvoy on Glass co-star Bruce Willis: He is most chilled dude

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Mary Queen Of Scots

U/A: Biography, Drama, History
Director: Josie Rourke
Cast: Taylor Russell, Logan Miller, Deborah Woll, Jay Ellis, Tyler Labine
Rating: 

Director Josie Rourke and writer Beau Willimon's attempt to give two warring Queens, the widowed Mary Queen Of Scots (Saoirse Ronan) and Queen Elizabeth I (Margot Robbie) of England, a larger voice in their historic confrontation, makes for fairly compelling viewing. This is a tapestry of discontent woven with a rare female gaze and allows for greater involvement in the royal proceedings.

Mary, following untimely widowhood, returns to her native Scotland to assume her throne. Her half-brother James Moray (James McArdle) is not enthused and his peace-keeping allegiance to the Protestant regime in England may have well become meaningless. Mary's cousin, Elizabeth I, monarch of England is also wary of Mary's far more valid claim to her own throne. So the intrigue and betrayals begin. And it's the men on both sides who play out the deceit in bloody fashion.

Check out the trailer here:

This is largely a biopic on Mary, Queen of Scots beginning with her return to the throne, subsequent precipitous marriages, the power struggle with her brother and several other aspirants to the throne and eventually her tragic death on the orders of her cousin. So there's more than enough drama to be had. Unfortunately, clarity is not a strong point here. Framed largely as per the version put forward by John Guy's biography of the Queen, the film has some controversial moments but fails to concretize the reasoning for her eventual beheading.

We get to meet Mary's ladies-in-waiting, her attempts to solidify her claims to the throne of England, her fight with the clergy who are largely protestant, her brother James' attempts to undercut her authority, John Knox's(David Tenant) outrage at having to know-tow to a female ruler and Elizabeth's helplessness and insecurity in having to deal with a more beautiful, younger claimant to her monarchy. Most of the narrative gives vent to Mary's life story but towards the end the focus shifts to Elizabeth's, thus creating a dichotomy that is a little difficult to empathize with. This filmed drama is largely faithful to the established record, has authentic fashionably period costuming and make-up and intensely committed performances from the two leads as well as their co-actors in crucial roles. So it's a vividly engaging experience even if not an entirely lucid one!

Catch up on all the latest entertainment news and gossip here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates

Captain Marvel
U/A: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Director: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck
Cast: Brie Larson, Samuel Jackson, Ben Mendelsohn, DeWanda Wise, Samuel L. Jackson
Rating: 

Brie Larson's entry into the Marvel superhero fold as the titular hero in Captain Marvel is not the 'Wonder' we expected. Though Captain Marvel is the first Marvel Studios film to be built around a female superhero, it comes minus the savoir-faire that gave Marvel productions its high brand value over the years. There are two directors, Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck at work here, alongside several writers including Nicole Perlman, Anna Boden, Geneva Robertson-dworet, Meg LeFauve, Ryan Fleck, Jac Schaeffer, Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch. And it does feel like too many cooks have literally subdued the vivacity and nihilistic exuberance unique to the comic book cinema superhero universe.

The Captain Marvel female counterpart first appeared in comic books in 1977 but the real inspiration for this film comes from Kelly Sue DeConnick's series, beginning in 2012, that featured the alter ego of Carol Danvers.

Check out Captain Marvel trailer here:

While the experience of this film is not exactly unfavourable, the narrative never really takes off into the stratosphere even though it has a storyline that has Carol Danvers (Brie Larson) straddle a galactic war between two alien races. The narrative is a little jumbled up and the eventual aim to launch her into the Avengers team becomes a little too obvious even as the non-linear plotting is laid out with convoluted reasoning. Danvers' is with the Air Force, but she is also the eponymous warrior on behalf of Starforce, an intergalactic fighting squad committed to battling the fiendish, shape-shifting Skrulls. As the film opens we see her being tutored by her mentor, Yon-Rogg (Jude Law), leader of the intergalactic military force of the Kree. Danvers is shown as uncertain about her past and as the narrative trudges along things get a little too murky and distorted for comfort. Danvers may go from cosmic to earthbound (C-53) in the fraction of a second and then back up into the skies again but for the viewer, this is not much of a roller-coaster thrill ride. The action is set in the '90's, the storytelling is obligatory at best, none of the characters stay on in your mind after the movie is done and the writing and direction lacks definition and seems a little too obviously patched-up towards a grander purpose.

Brie Larson tries hard to instil humour into the role but there's only so much she can achieve in a jumbled-up universe. She is solid if not exciting and that's the mainstay of this film – if at all it can be considered to have one!

Also Read: Captain Marvel reviews: Here's what the critics are saying

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