Mayhem and Sadness

The attack by Shiv Sainiks at the Nallasopara function is shocking, horrifying and brutal. I read about the incident in the papers, saw the video on TV, and it was disturbing. And the function was not even held to celebrate V Day, which people assembled tried to explain.

A crowd of hooligans broke down the door and barged into the hall. Some of the men, groped at women, pulled them by their hair, pulled their clothes, slapped and kicked them. The men who tried to protect the women ended up being whipped themselves and were beaten with iron rods. A distraught girl clung to other members in her group, and one man went up to her and slapped her hard. She cried in pain, and he would have kept hitting her had someone not intervened. The DJ who had taken a loan of Rs 4 lakh for his equipment, now just has the broken pieces to behold.

Among the attackers were four councillors of the Nallasopara municipal council. How could the TV crew just film it so nonchalantly? Only a handful of the goons have been arrested.

And these vandals have the gall to say ‘Jai Bhavani’ at the end of it, chanting slogans, and laughing after molesting women, hitting men, pilfering the jewelry and watches and even pocketing the samosas and cold drinks at the party. Why this dislike for V day celebrations? What can be achieved by the utter denigration of some citizens who just assembled to have a good time. Are there no other pressing issues—poverty, education, unemployment? Why leave this trail of destruction? At least stick to the ideology of Shivaji Maharaj if nothing else.

Shivrayanchya nakhachi pun sar nahi ahe tumhala. Kharach, parat ashya jantya raja chi garaj ahe...

At Kala Ghoda

Finally, I could go for Kala Ghoda Arts festival after two years. Anya and I reached CST station at 10 in the morning. After an exceptionally refreshing cappuchino we cabbed it to the Kala Ghoda intersection. And arrived just in time for the heritage walk.

The guide, a cheerful young lad, lead our very enthused group through Elphinstone College and the David Sassoon library and garden. We gazed at those Neo-Gothic and Gothic wonders, with their corinthian circles on pillars and steeples on the rooftop. Elphinstone college for one, had a most impressive facade and an even more beautiful lobby with antique chandeliers. And it also has a staircase that looks straight out of The Haunting.

The exterior of DS library resembled a quaint holiday home more than a typical heritage structure. The peaceful garden within its precinct was where I later came back to in the evening. A wooden spiral staircase on the second floor led to the terrace which afforded a pretty good view of the city.

And after that we somehow managed to lose our group. So we went to Westside instead and while away a good hour there. Then it was looking at all the displays on the Kala Ghoda Footpath. From paraphernalia resembling bollywood sets, cartoons on ghise pite Bollywood dialogues, to astrology, mehendi, shoes, bags, clothes, papier mache, puppets, nameplates, jewelery—and lots more. It was a very carnival like atmosphere. There were some exceedingly eyecatching sketches for sale-those of the Gateway of India surrounded by a flight of pigeons and another of Flora Fountain in all its minute details were truly unforgettable.

And then Anya decided to get her face portrait done. A scrawny old painter sketched a very lifelike pretty Anya! Our next halt was at cafe Samovar. Indeed, a delightful eatery at the Jahangir Art Gallery, we pigged out on parathas, green mint chutney, an assortment of pickles and dessert: strawberry parathas with ice-cream. Yes, we reacted just as you did when we came across the food item in the menu. But to our disappointment it was nothing exotic, just rotis stuffed with jam and served with halved strawberries and a huge scoop of vanilla ice-cream. But sinful nevertheless!

We then spent a quarter of an hour gazing at some totally inexplicable paintings. Only the nudes needed no deciphering. The art works on the terrace were mostly landscapes. One depicted a cart passing through a foggy street in Old Delhi—although done in warm colours it looked very desolate.

That done we visited Max Mueller where Arzan Khambatta’s ‘I’m Only Human’ stuff was on display. Hmm, unusual, eyecatching, some spikey, others round and all in shades of brown.

And there was this other exhibition dedicated to the ‘Crow’ that had poems, essays, animations and paintings truly capturing our dear scavengers in all their glory! We headed to K R Cama for the screening of Arth, an arthouse women-oriented flick, with a great performance by Shabana Azmi. I really liked the song “Tum itna kyu muskura rahe ho?” Hmm.

Then Anya left, and I went to David Sassoon for the Non-fiction writing talk by Darryl D’Monte, Dilip DeSouza and Dionne Bunsha. Discussion revolved around books, media, journalism, falling standard of newspapers and blogs. Amongst the hundred of things that were talked about, D'Monte remarked that the MMRDA itself is situated on a bend in the Mithi river and so is the NSE. That was part of his reply to a question concerning 26/7 amd development issues in the city. Pretty Scary.

Then I sat through a few short films that were part of the 'Beats, Bars and Air Guitars' theme dealing with music in the UK. Ho hum.

All in all a very fulfilling and a happy day.