Mumbai Diary: Thursday Dossier

Pic/Kirti Surve Parade

A space of their own

A girl poses for a photograph while a group of women relax at Banganga Tank in Walkeshwar.

For the people, by the people

A rough draft of the manifesto; (right) Karan Jotwani

The onset of post-election amnesia among some politicians is not a recent phenomenon. Andheri's citizen community Lokhandwala Oshiwara Citizen's Association (LOCA) is making sure the candidates from the Mumbai Northwest constituency will have a handy guidebook to fall back on following the upcoming general elections. The People's Manifesto is a crowdsourced set of pleas and suggestions that will be presented to the candidates leading up to the elections. "We are open to suggestions on all our social media platforms. We will categorise and filter them to build a consolidated manifesto," Karan Jotwani, founder, LOCA, shared, adding that a majority of the suggestions are regarding pending road work, conservation of mangrove areas and providing better walkability. Jotwani revealed that a meet-and-greet with the candidates is on the cards. "A direct conversation will instill accountability. If a meeting isn't possible, we will still deliver the manifestos to them personally," he assured this diarist.

A ride to remember

Children enjoy the open-bus ride around the city with their guardians and parents

Young cancer and thalassemia warriors from Parel's Wadia Hospital and Dadar's Shree Ghadge Maharaj Dharamshala had a pleasant change of scenery at an open-bus ride across town last weekend. Organised by the Leo Club District 3231-A2 (Ulhasnagar to Chembur), the ride saw 32 children cheer on as the bus made pit stops at iconic landmarks such as Marine Drive, Bandra-Worli Sea Link and the Babulnath temple site. "The ride provided a much-needed respite not only to the kids, but also to parents and guardians who needed a break from their routine. We structured it like a school trip and discussed with their doctors before curating a menu of snacks for the kids," Disha Parab, district chairperson for cancer, told this diarist.

Under Ustad's wing

Qadir Mustafa Khan instructs a student at the academy

The late Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan's musical philosophy will live on through a new batch of young Hindustani classical musicians at the newly revamped Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan Academy in Bandra and Lokhandwala. "We restructured the academy thoroughly to align with my father's teachings. He believed in training newer generations in ways that appeal to them," Rabbani Mustafa Khan, the late Ustad's son, and co-director of the academy shared, adding that his brothers and musicians Murtuza Mustafa, Qadir Mustafa and Hasan Mustafa will take on the roles of gurus at the academy. "Absolute novices are welcome. In the words of my father - It's easier to learn when you start with a blank slate," he concluded.

A calculated mix

Gandhar Shembekar; (right) The pocket operator is built by Swedish manufacturers Teenage Engineering

If you catch a young musician on your flight tapping away on what seems like a pocket calculator, you might've interacted with Gandhar Shembekar (below), a city-based musician whose latest musical acquisition is an audio sampler shaped like a calculator. The 26-year-old shared about his first creation using the gadget that he posted online, "The device is easy to use, and the first track took me barely five minutes. You simply record sounds and assign them to corresponding keys on the pocket operator. While it is not fit for live performances, it's a fun way to experiment with sounds when you're on the go."

Let's clean the beach

Volunteers collect trash at a previous clean-up drive in Prabhadevi

Aksa beach is due for a clean-up this Sunday. The volunteers of Chennai-based Environmentalist Foundation of India will reach the spot at 7 am this weekend, along with students from Mumbai University's Department of Civics and Politics, and SIES (APJ Abdul Kalam) High School in Ghatkopar for a weekend campaign, revealed founder Arun Krishnamurthy. With the ongoing heatwave, he noted that the session will wrap up by 9 am. "We also recommend that volunteers carry bottles of water, preferably avoiding single-use plastic," he shared. The team had earlier planted balls of seeds, soil and compost along various spots in the periphery of the city on April 23.