Afternoon DC Anniversary issue 2010

AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER, THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

After oo DESPATCH & COURIER

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hat w f o Z o t An A umbai special le p o e p , makes tM s d n even sa, ntrde places

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Past Memorable, Future Perfect Twenty five years is a good age. Enough to change the look of a neighbourhood, enough to bring a young man or woman into settled adulthood, enough to see the passing of not one but two generations. Alvin Toffler’s Future Shock has kicked in with a vengeance and change is speeding up. For a newspaper like the Afternoon Despatch and Courier, 25 years is a lifetime.

Consider this. In 1985, when the late Behram Busybee Contractor came up with the name and was helped to start the paper by those who liked his columns, EVERYTHING that we now take for granted, was in the future. Computers, freely available gas and telephone connections, cell phones, malls and multiplexes, a liberal economy, soaring flyovers, ATMs, telephone banking, credit cards, career choices, burgeoning B schools, beauty queen titles, thousands of job opportunities in IT, Infosys, Wipro, an economy worth a couple of trillion dollars, foreign holidays, brands, Oscars for Indian films, online trading, a choice of educational systems, RTI, accountability, luxe living, apartments costing Rs 100 crores, India as flavour of the century.

To an extent, the ADC has been mapping it all. So when we were deciding on a theme for this special Anniversary issue, commemorating its past, we thought of an A to Z of the things that are important to Mumbai now because they were important earlier and have grown along with the people of Mumbai.

Why the alphabet? Because of the neat number – 25 for the past plus 1 for the next year. We have done this in the form of key words. Because of a paucity of space, we have chosen to highlight a few. Some merit a mention, others a para, still others a short article. But everything you see in this issue, we consider important to Mumbai, such an indelible part of this city that we all love, that, not to have it would change its identity in a small way.

Everything’s connected. A little like the fluttering of a butterfly’s wing in the Amazon changing the weather in Chicago, or Mumbai. Twenty five years ago, a small paper was born in Mumbai, the product of a journalist’s passion for his own profession. It has been a momentous time, full of ups and plenty of downs. The story is not over yet. Great changes are in the offing. It’s on to the next 25.

Meanwhile, we hope you enjoy our offering.

Happy Silver Anniversary.

APPLE – BIG APPLE MUMBAI, ITS PLACE OF IMPORTANCE IN THE COUNTRY – CITY OF GOLD, CITY OF OPPORTUNITIES – HIGHEST INCOME TAX GENERATOR ASIATIC CENTRE LIBRARY AFGHAN CHURCH ART IN MUMBAI GALLERIES

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AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER, THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER It’s a question that has pretty much lasted the last 25 years. Why does ADC have such a long name? What’s with ‘Despatch and Courier?’ So we will try and answer.

It is what the late, Behram Contractor wanted – a long name that spread across the masthead space, giving the newspaper, even though it is a tabloid, more gravitas that is usually associated with the

format.

It is a viewpoint that has been upheld with varying degrees of success, even in the days when news about the underworld was always front page and not relegated to the inside as is normal today. The ADC is serious about the business of news while keeping up with the trend of seeing things from the readers’ side of the fence.

In its 25 years of existence, the

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believes in living life king-size. Today at the age of 62, he spends his Sundays on the Arabian Sea, alternately with a jet ski and a speedboat with his grandsons Aryaan and Azaar. Under Adi Godrej’s leadership, the group is also involved in many philanthropic activities. You could say his group is “Mumbai’s Best Corporate Citizen.”

ADI GODREJ: DIGNIFIED GO-GETTER This gentleman stands apart in his own dignified style. Adi Godrej, the chairman of the Godrej Group, which includes 7 major companies with interests in real estate, FMCG, industrial engineering, appliances, furniture, security and agri-care, has successfully steered his business that

Another New Beginning Sometimes I wonder from where to where I have come. I used to walk to Bori Bunder, like Khushwant Singh, talking to all the dogs on the way, smelling the elephants anchored outside the circus pitched at Cross Maidan, watching the hawkers setting up their business for the day. Jt was one of the more pleasant parts of my day.

Then, for Rs. 300 more, I moved to Tardeo, which

now has a turnover of over Rs 11,000 crores.

This nature lover is a major supporter of the World Wildlife Fund in India. A green business complex in the Vikhroli township of Mumbai, which includes a 150acre mangrove forest and a school for the children of company employees, is

was bad, but not so bad, once I got used to it.

The mornings had new highlights-Speeding along Marine Drive (in a No. 123 BEST bus, Rs. 300 more was not enough for a car), breathing in a bit of the ocean and patches of the gymkhana lawns (they did my lungs a world of good), looking at a deserted Chowpatty beach, first ragged and dirty, then tidied and clean through the efforts of one of the governor's

a major symbol of his achievements.

Born into business, father Burjorji and mother Jai managed to give him the middle class values that have stood him in such good stead. The greatest lesson his mother, who, as a school teacher taught him, is ‘humility’ he says. But he also

wives (I forget if it was Begum Jung or Begum Latif).

Soon Tardeo became like next door. It is amazing how a human being gets acclimatised to places and conditions, r knew everything about Tardeo, the Sardar paubhajiwalla, the Tardeo masala mill, the halfdozen Parsi fire-temples, one of them with a most impressive Persian fresco, the labourers sitting in the Tardeo traffic circle, as if it were a park. Friends used to tell me that I had moved

ADC has been witness to enormous change in every area of life in Mumbai, and has done its best to record those changes as well as reflect them. In the maelstrom of life that is the city that was still Bombay when we started, it is no longer enough to be able merely to access news, but also to interpret, analyse, describe, evaluate and distribute it, if it is to impact lives in a constructive way.

Today, we are happy to announce that we launch our website as well. Catch us on afternoondc.in Soon, it will be in the mobile space as well.

Meanwhile, you can continue to pick us up from your newsstands as usual, Monday to Saturday. And Sunday, very soon!

away so far, the other end of Bombay. I did not think so.

I think 1 quite got to like the place, in spite of the monsoon when the whole area used to get flooded, in spite of the new traffic regulations that Mr. Pasricha had introduced, and which daily took me on a compulsory tour of half of Bombay before I reached the office. I wonder where Mr. Pasricha is now and in which city is he banning all right turns and all left turns!

City life is millions of people being lonesome together.” Henry David Thoreau

Now, overnight, I find myself at Sewree. If Tardeo was the other end of the world, Sewree is another world. Outside the office, there are trucks roaring past, as if we are on the Grand Trunk Road between Ambala and Ludhiana, before all the trouble started there. And my view from the office is a long stretch of huts that look as depressing as a government housing colony.

My morning routine has also changed. Past the racecourse and the

Willingdon greens, which is nice, then through Jacob Circle and Byculla, both West and East, and Kalachowky amid some of the most crowded areas of Bombay. Like Mr. Pasricha I have moved on to new places.

And this morning I arn wondering if I was not better off working for Mr. Khalid Ansari than I am working for Mr. Behram Contractor. ......................................BUSYBEE MARCH 25, 1985

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You get yourself an AOL teacher, the way you get a nutritionist, a dentist, a hairdresser. Ever since Sri Sri Ravi Shankar began to propagate Vedic sciences, and established the Art of Living in 1981, Sudarshan Kriya which teaches you how to breathe and meditate, became the rage.

Present in over 140 countries, Art of Living provides succour to millions of persons irrespective of caste, creed or religion across the world. Basically, it is a simple 20-minute kriya, which, if practiced daily, supposedly immunises you from all stressrelated diseases. God knows Mumbai needs it!.

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We’re long past simple vaccinations for our pets, and chains with which to keep them under control when out for a walk. Earlier, you had to visit the Animal Hospital at Parel when Rover fell sick. Now there’s a vet on every street, and if there isn’t, there will be a mobile van offering you services.

These days, pets are spoilt for choice when it comes to food, accessories, grooming, even clothes. Accessories include beads, hair-clips, body belts, designer beds, pet shows provide the perfect platform to showcase your poodle’s tricks and bag prizes, and spas for that extra special treat. The breeds are outré as well, from Chihuahuas to golden Retrievers, pugs to a Japanese Spitz. And if you want your poodle to look French, it’s a hey presot thing at the local dog parlour.Laddie and Lassie, poor things, never ever had it so good.

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ANIMAL RIGHTS

AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

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ART DECO ARCHITECTURE AQUARIUM AMBASSADOR HOTEL AZAD MAIDAN APOLLO BUNDER ARTHUR ROAD JAIL AAREY MILK COLONY AIR INDIA AMUL ADS ATMS AKSA BEACH AIRPORTS

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Before the malls arrived, this was where Mumbai shopped with perfect satisfaction. This was when shopping was still shopping, and you were so grateful to get lots of stuff under one roof that you didn’t ask for anything more.

You shopped once or twice a month, saved money by buying in bulk, sometimes took the neighbours along to take advantage of discounts. Then along came the ‘mall experience’ and suddenly it was possible to be a mall rat, spend your whole day there, eat, window shop, see a movie, meet friends – and sometimes do a little shopping. Or not.

But remember, before the Atrias, the Infinities, the Hypermarkets, Big Bazaars, R Malls, Inorbits, Megamalls, Star Bazars and Nirmal Lifestyles, there was just a Doordarshan world. The ADC began then and has watched life go all colour. 800 channels, set-top boxes and DTH. We love it all.

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AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

AC – CABS, BUSES, CARS, HOMES, CLASSROOMS, CLIMATE CHANGE AFTERNOON D & C AKBARALLY’S APNA BAZAR ART OF LIVING ANIMAL RIGHTS ALL INDIA RADIO AUTO RICKSHAWS ADVERTISING ASTAD DEBOO ASHA BHONSALE ALIQUE

ASIATIC CENTRE LIBRARY The Fort-based Asiatic Central Library, nearly 200 years old in concept, over a hundred thousand books out of which about 15,000 are classified rare and valuable.

There’s 14th century original Dante’s Divine Comedy, an original Kalpasutra (a Jain manuscript), an original Shahnama (a Persian 16th century manuscript) and an original Aranyaka Parvan, an illustrated 16th century manuscript detailing the Mahabharata, are safely stocked away in a safe deposit vault at the State Bank of India’s main branch opposite Bombay Stock Exchange. Today, the 10,000-odd ‘special’ books at the library that include a 15th century Greek Grammar Book, a 10th Century Latin manuscript and Bibles in 15 languages, are safe too.

Stacked away in the basement of the library, weathering restoration, pollution and the years.

TCHED PRESTIGE A M N U : P U O R G ADITYA BIRLA er 50 per cent Journal Study 2007. Ov s his own The late Aditya Birla ha rate history. po cor s standing in India’ loved, this ch mu d an d cte pe Most res rialist ust ind ken polite and soft spo ct, which pe res d an e aw ed nd comma witnessed in till date has never been al circuit and litic po d an e rat po the cor nessed in wit be ver perhaps, may ne e was unstig pre His o. als ure the fut matched! after his sad His group was renamed

by his son Kuand untimely demise, Aditya Birla the as lam maramanga 0,000 crore 1,3 Group. It is today a Rs the prestion s ure fig d an corporation red by an cho an gious Fortune 500 list, em00 0,0 13 of ce for extraordinary t naen fer dif 30 ployees, belonging to en be s ha p ou Gr e tionalities. Th ployer in India adjudged “The Best Em in Asia” by the 20 top the and among and Wall Street Hewitt-Economic Times

m its overseas of its revenues flow fro operations. ies — India, It operates in 25 countr Brazil, Italy, , ary UK, Germany, Hung rland, Ausitze Sw , urg bo em Lux France, China, , ypt Eg , tralia, USA, Canada ilippines, Ph a, esi on Ind s, Lao , Thailand r, ma an My Dubai, Singapore, Malaysia Bangladesh, Vietnam, and Korea.

AMUL HOARDINGS - BUTTERLY FUNNY Through the 70s, 80s and 90s, as India’s first test tube baby, exPakistani President General Zia’s visit to India, Doordarshan’s launch, the Railways starting a Ladies’ special and Hrithik Roshan’s debut to stardom...till 2010. My Name is Khan, not bidding for Pakistani players in the 3rd season of IPL and the passing of the women’s reservation bill in the Rajya Sabha.

Amul hoardings have, truly encompassed India’s journey as a nation through the last 50-plus

years in its hoardings.

Launched in the 1960s, Amul hoardings have been a laugh riot all through the years, taking potshots at political, social, economic, entertainment and every other controversy in general. Adman Sylvester Da Cunha and his team started off with the first set of hoardings that featured the little moppet that went on to become the face of Amul ads over the years, and they have gone from success to success.

What is amazing is that the

Amul ads have managed to retain their sharp wit and topical relevance so that the hoardings thrive in the age of electronic distractions such as internet and television advertising. And while we’re busy surfing to escape TV ads, the hoarding tempts us to put the brakes on daily hectic routine and pause for a minute to smile.

Yeh Bambai Nagariya to dekh Babua

Even Lata tai was fair game when she complained about a

flyover at Pedder Road and threatened to migrate to Dubai!

ATMS: INDISPENSABLE TODAY When Citibank launched its first ATM in Mumbai in the eighties, everybody went to see it, but nobody trusted it and people were reluctant to use it. Today, it has become part of life and an indispensable one at that. Now it’s become a numbers game with every Indian bank doling out figures of the number of ATMs they have. It’s almost become like a prestige issue, apart from being a competitive scoring point.

Incidentally, the idea of self-service in retail banking developed through independent and simultaneous efforts in Japan, Sweden, the United States and the United Kingdom – and ATMs were born. No single company or country can take credit for its birth. Although originally developed as just cash dispensers, they have evolved to include many other bank-related functions, including depositing of cash, payment of bills, account updates and almost everything you can physically do in a bank.

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Anand Mahindra: Business Leader A football fan who loves playing tennis and enjoys sailing, Anand Mahindra has received many accolades including the ‘Knight of the Order of Merit’ by the President of the French Republic and the Rajiv Gandhi Award 2004 for outstanding contribution in the business field. He was also named Business Leader of the Year by the Economic Times.

Today, he is the Managing Director of the one of India’s largest automobile companies, Mahindra and Mahindra, An MBA from Harvard Business School, he joined Mahindra Ugine Steel Company (MUSCO) where he became President and Deputy Managing Director.

During this time he initiated the Mahindra Group’s diversification into the new business areas of real estate development and hospitality. He is a co-promoter of Kotak Mahindra Finance Ltd., which in 2003 was converted into a bank that is now amongst the foremost private sector banks in the country. His credibility as a business leader was further established after he took over the scam tainted Satyam-Computer Services, renamed it Mahindra Satyam and turned it around. His other achievement is the success of India’s best loved SUV, the Scorpio, in the global arena.

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Last year in the NYT’s Freakonomics section, a lively debate was going on about why there is such a difference in behavior between autorickshaw drivers in Delhi and Mumbai. You know the gen – Delhi rips you off all the time, Mumbai sticks (generally) to the meter.

Some of the answers were interesting, the most interesting being that it’s all about competition. Delhi has less competition for public transport, Mumbai has much more. So it makes sense not to cut each other or other forms of transport, out, by quoting prices too low or too high respectively. So, everyone just goes according to the meter.

Not always in our experience. And remember the complaints about doctored meters, crazy driving, causing accidents that leave the rickshaws themselves blithe and unscathed, or the way they move in like piranhas when there is an emergency?

How many autorickshaws are there in Mumbai? God knows because licensing is a murky area and every party has its own union owing it allegiance. But in May 2008, when taxis and autorickshaws went on strike in protest against a government plan to phase out taxis more than 25 years old, Mr Sharad Rao, president of one joint union, said 55,000 taxis and 1,60,000 rickshaws would be striking.

That’s a whole lot of autorickshaws and drivers crammed into the suburbs. Unlike in Delhi, they are not allowed to ply downtown.

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AUTO - JAYEGA KYA?

AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

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PADAMSEE ADI GODREJ AISHWARYA, ABHISHEKH, AMITABH BACHCHAN AAMIR KHAN AMBANIS ANTALYA ANAND MAHINDRA ARABS

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ASTAD DEBOO – DANCER-CHOREOGRAPHER eduBorn in Navsari, brought up and Mumcated in Jamshedpur, resident of bai, Sangit Natak Academy Award India’s winner, Padmashri Astad Deboo, eogchor cer, dan y orar emp greatest cont of en citiz a truly rapher, man-of-heart, is com re befo ced dan has He the world. bomoners, presidents and kings, colla in ts artis of e rang a rated with e, jugalbandhis that were unforgettabl and time for ible poss is it proved that ers, space to be made fellow perform and ce dan of e uag lang the changed ry given it an all-embracing vocabula he k wor y ever and each s that enhance creates. ” to Long before it became “fashionable work with “special dancers”, he was ce, busy teaching deaf students to dan y in taking them to Gallaudet Universit Washington, opening at least one .

Olympic show with them in Australia lom gcho pun ght brou he , ipur From Man tial art to the world, and used ethnic mar ns of nitio defi new t craf to s dance form modern dance. t chilCurrently, he is working with stree in dren, pushing the envelope for them the and them ing show s, way s wondrou erial world of what can be done with mat raw. as d ribe desc be only that can Only Astad could have done it.

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BEAUTY QUEENS BIRLA–HALLS, CSR, ART GALLERIES BOMBAY–DISTINCT FROM MUMBAI BOMBAY HIGH COURT BOMBAY HOUSE BOMBAY STORE BYCULLA MECHANICS–ANYONE REMEMBER IT? BALLARD ESTATE BREACH CANDY BSE BIG BAZAR

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AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER, THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

BOMBAY HIGH COURT The Bombay High Court is 148 years old. It’s still beautiful, offers stunning view from the opposite side of the Oval, and is still bulwark and protector of much of civil society.

BOMBAY HOUSE: TATA HEADQUARTERS Adorned with paintings of M.F. Hussain and noted artist Parbani Sen, the silent corridors of Bombay House, the headquarters of the Tata Empire, have their own distinct charm. Its interiors are huge and impeccably adorned in wood and serve as the place where the group’s most crucial decisions are taken. The staff is polite and extremely cordial and give you the feeling that you are within the premises of a five star hotel. This historic privately owned building situated near Flora Fountain, is a beautiful, four-story colonial structure built with Malad stone, and was designed by architect George Wittet, who later became the head of Tata Engineering Company Limited.

Changing Bombay To Mumbai While the views of all sorts of people have been taken on the re-allocation of Chandigarh and some tiny villages in the Punjab on Sunday, nobody has bothered to ask the citizens of Bombay their views on a much bigger event that is to take place on the same day-the renaming of Bombay as Mumbai.

So the chief asked me to interview some citizens and find out I asked a typical citizen

BOM TO MUM dres. The In French, London is Lon ir city the l cal e residents of Pragu doner nor the Praha. Neither the Lon ms very worsee e person from Pragu ling their cal le op pe er oth ried by ething of som It’s s. cities other name now be st mu city r ou t tha er a wond by n eve ai, mb referred to as Mu film or ar Joh ran Ka a in ne someo e. In India, there will be riots in Pun t names. In en fer dif by es go Mumbai nkani, it is Ko In ai.

Hindi, it is Bamb mbai.

Mu is it hi, rat Ma In i.

Momo

Just say BKC, Mumbai’s most famous and most expensive commercial hubs, filled with futuristic dedications to IT, hospitals, corporate houses. Everyone who is anyone is here. Corporate giants like Reliance, NSE, CMC, ICICI Bank are making it an increasingly important power centre. It’s land commands the highest prices in the city for offices and office space, and it

of Bombay, residing on the pavement outside J. J. Hospital: "Are you for, or against the changing of the name of your city to Mumbai?"

"I am happy the Mathew Commission has finally come to register my views," the citizen said.

"Well, there are several aspects to the issue, for one thing, if they change the name of Bombay, are they prepared to also change the names of some villages around Nasik. You know, you can't have one without

the other."

"Of course," I said, "but do you think you can get used to calling Bombay, Mumbai after all these years?"

The citizen thought for a minute, then said: "We would like to cooperate with Mayor Bhujbal. I mean, whatever is in the larger interest of the state, is in our interest.

But what I insist is that the entire Bhujbal accord on Mumbai should be implemented in toto.

These things cannot be done piecemeal."

Correct," I said, "but would you not say that

Bombay is a bird of gold- (Sone ki chidiya)

tween BomIs there a difference be re a differthe Is ai? mb bay and Mu stink? A d an ence between foetor to atsed cea s ha t tha polluted city es rag cou dis t tract new capital, tha

wn its shutnew talent, that turns do tter in poflu a s re’ the e tim ters every ell litical dovecotes, will sm er like a failure by any oth name.

BANDRA KURLA COMPLEX

foreigners might be confused when they buy a ticket for Bombay and land in Mumbai? Could you tell me something on those lines."

The citizen shifted himself a little on the pavement, puffed on his cigarette, then said: "There is not just one line, there are several lines to be pursued. I would have been happy if the January 26 deadline, had not been fixed and more time had been given to your commission to gather the views of all those who would be affected by the

change in name.

Changing Bombay to Mumbai is not a small matter like Chandigarh that they decide one day and the next day the . president issues a promulgation."

"Then could I say that you are against the name changing to Mumbai because Bombay is such a historical name?"

I asked.

"I am not saying anything of the sort," the citizen said. "I am considering whether we should follow Mr. Girilal Jain's advice. and maintain the status quo till the

makes the older downtown commercial Nariman Point look like an elderly aunt who has reached her expiry date, neighbouring Mantralaya notwithstanding.

The Mithi River (also see M) flows through it, the MMRDA is developing it and Asia’s largest Diamond Bourse, planned for years, even more years in the building, is now expected to be completed very shortly.

implications of the Mumbai accord are studied in greater detail or should we go through the formality of the ceremony at the Gateway of India and then take up the issue of changing the names of the villages around Nasik."

So I came back to the office and told the chief: "I am afraid there is no story. The Mathew Commission has spoilt everybody, they can't say a simple yes or no." ......................................BUSYBEE JANUARY 24, 1986

The archaic Shiva temple in Mumbai is located at a stone’s throw from Chowpatty. Shiva in the form of the Lord of the Babul tree is the main deity in this temple. Equipped with an elevator to transport devotees right up to the top, Babulnath’s highlight is an oldworld charm that has stayed intact over the years.

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The one thing common to all of these is crowds. At Badshah, Bara Hundi and Bade Miyan, there’s always a wait before you’re seated – and wherever there are crowds on pavements, you’ll find a bhelpuri vendor. All, in their own way, are the common man’s food. Bara hundi which literally refers to 12 containers filled with different heavy gravies made from lesser cuts of meat like tail and trotters are the working man’s meal. Bhelpuri the much loved, delightful snack of puffed rice tossed with different chutneys is one of the cheapest and most easily available snacks after the vada pav. Not everyone comes to Crawford Market only for Badshah’s delicious multi-layered, multihued Royal Falooda, but almost everyone who shops at Crawford market will stop by to ‘pay their respects’. Bade Miyan is probably one of the few places that people from all over the city will actually drive to for a baida roti or a mutton roll.

Any evening in the week, the little lane behind the Taj is swamped with vehicles and pedestrians congregated around the sigdi, waiting for their order to be delivered by an army of runners.

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BARA HUNDI, BHELPURI, BADSHAH, BADE MIYAN:

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BANGANGA BADAL BIJLEE BARKHA BANDRA FORT BANDRA RECLAMATION BANDRA FAIR BANDRA KURLA COMPLEX BANDRA-WORLI SEA LINK BORIVALI NATIONAL PARK BABULNATH TEMPLE BRABOURNE STADIUM BHARAT MATA

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AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

BOMBAY GYM BNHS, BMC, BPT, BEST (ALPHABET SOUP THAT IS STILL SIGNIFICANT) BOMB BLASTS BANDHS BHAIS AND BAIS BOOK SALES, BOOK SHOPS BRITISH COUNCIL BAUGS BRIDGES BEACHES BARAH HUNDI BUILDING BOOM,

AB THE LEGEND

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THE BACHCHANS: JAHANPANAH, TUSSI GREAT HO!

BAL THACKERAY Bal Keshav Thackeray, the most powerful man in the state for the last forty years. Significantly, he never held an official post or contested any election, but his stature and position remained unaffected. Balasaheb was often referred to as the Hindu Hridaysamrat (“Emperor of the Hindu Heart”) and the roaring Tiger. He was the first leader who took up the issue of growing influx in Mumbai and the rights of the Marathi Manoos. Amid allegations that it employed illegal and sometimes violent tactics, Thackeray’s party the Shiv Sena grew into a major political force in the state. In alliance with the BJP, Shiv Sena won 138 out of 288 seats in the state’s Assembly in 1995 and formed the government.

Thackeray was the sole architect of this victory. He was instrumental in renaming Bombay as Mumbai. When Shiv Sainiks helped destroy the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya in 1992, Thackeray justified this act. In 2000 he was arrested on charges of having incited the 1992–93 riots in Mumbai.

Though Thackeray never denied the charges, they were dismissed. Now eighty plus and perceptibly ailing, Bal Thakerey seems unable to put the sceptre down.

So we don’t have royalty. So what, we do have the Bachchans, don’t we? In this egalitarian, film-obsessed city, the Bachchans — Amitabh, Jaya, Abhishek and Aishwarya Rai — are as close to royalty as you can get.

And what perfect casting, too. There’s the wise old king who built the dynasty and is worshipped by the people. At his age (67), he’s not afraid to speak his mind or to take pragmatic decisions that will fill the royal coffers. Then the Queen Mother, who wields a different kind of power and involves

herself in matters of state. The dashing young prince, eager to make his mark.

And finally, the beautiful princess, whose tinkling laughter fills the castle.

Could be a fairy tale.

Except that this royalty, in a manner perfectly appropriate for this city, has worked rather hard for its riches and glory.

And the king is not above chastising his subjects either, especially when they step out of line. In fact, Amitabh Bachchan has become quite the one-man crusade against media ex-

cesses these days. We may not agree with him all the time, but he does have a point.

And courage, too.

How many of our celebrities would dare take on the press in the manner that Amitabh Bachchan has? And hold his own against its combined might? In all honesty, we must applaud that courage.

But what do we do with his endorsement of Narendra Modi’s Gujarat?

In all honesty, we must note that Bachchan is behind Ratan Tata and Mukesh Ambani, who

have rather publicly placed their faith in Modi as well. And all three could well be

called Mumbai’s Shahenshahs.

Next controversy, please.

BANDRA WORLI SEA-LINK

It’s a miracle that it was completed, a marvel to look at, and a time-saver, if you live at Worli and work in Bandra or vice-versa.

It’s really called the Rajiv Gandhi Sea Link and when it opened finally last July, Mumbai had a party on the world’s longest cablestayed bridge. We celebrated with traffic jams.

After almost five years

BOMBAY STORE The first Bombay Swadeshi Store, at the present Times of India building at CST, was inaugurated by Dadabhai Naoroji on December 17, 1906. It stored indigenously made products and gave the people an idea of what their homeland was capable of producing.

In 1928, The Bombay Swadeshi Stores’ head-office was shifted to Cruikshank Road near the then VT station till 1938, when it was shifted to its present-day location, Pherozeshah Mehta Road. Today it is still swadeshi, serves the swish set, is madly expensive and shows we’ve come of age where quality goods are concerned.

BOMB BLASTS You get used to the idea that there is no way you can lock-down a city of 16 million people the way it is done in Kabul expatriate compounds. Not after March 12,1993, when serial blasts shook Mumbai out of its complacency.

Since then, we have resigned ourselves to the fact the security measures will only go so far, that there could be a bomb on a bus, on trains, on station platforms, anywhere that millions of people converge on their way to and from work.

From 1993 to 2006, there have been 12 cases of blasts, the last one easily the worst with serial blasts in trains on Western Railway. So far, the toll is 181 killed, 890 injured. We go on because we must.

of delay and disputes, the Sea Link opened.

The marvel of modern engineering was built

by Hindustan Construction Company (HCC), with a huge cost over-run, at least three times the original estimate. At Rs 1,634 crore, the eight-lane freeway has reduced the 40-minute journey for the commuters between Bandra and Worli to five minutes.

It should have come up a decade earlier, but what the heck, we’re happy it’s here, happier to be using it, in spite of the maniacs who think they can do a Michael Coulthard and clear it in 50 seconds (he did).

Quite a few nasty crashes later, speed arresters and cameras, as well as constant police monitoring have brought some sanity to the proceedings.

Next on the agenda – at least three more loops and a cut and cover tunnel designed to get you from coastal Versova to Nariman Point in 25 minutes.

NDY BREACH CA

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BEAUTY’S THE FIRST STEP Here’s the thing: No one gets famous, not really famous, for becoming a beauty queen. There’re tons of PYTs out there; it’s what you do after the crown that matters.

And ‘after’ is largely defined as Bollywood.

Don’t believe us?

Okay, quick, name us one beauty queen who hasn’t gone into Bolly-

Bombay is quick upword mobility and a scam is a shortcut

wood. We rest our case.

There was a time, in those dreary days before the economy opened up, that a victory at an international beauty pageant was a Big Deal for national pride and all that. And we had a spate of them after the late 90s — Aishwarya Rai, Sushmita Sen,

Priyanka Chopra, Lara Dutta, Dia Mirza… but after that the roll call became a blur, they all ended up in Bollywood, and now no one cares any more.

Except the film producers forever on the lookout for a new face.

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It is India’s first cricket stadium. Our version of Lord’s. The MCC owns Lord’s. The CCI owns the Brabourne.The promoters of this club, formed in Delhi in 1934, opened it in 1937. The stadium staged Test cricket between 1948 and 1973. Big cricket, which had gone away in 1972-73 when the Wankhede Stadium came up in 1974, came back when the ICC Champions trophy was held there in 2007.

It would have got a Test in 2008, except 26/11 happened, the India-England Test was cancelled. First-class cricket has returned there since and ODIs as well as Wankhede Stadium goes into reconstruction mode for World cup 2011. Currently, the IPL is lighting it up and it is, aftert all, home ground for the Ambani’s Mumbai Indians.

The Brabourne has seen a lot of stuff, starting with dog racing, through a recital by Uday Shankar, Nani Palkhivala’s budget speech, a reception for the Shah of Iran, the Aga Khan being weighed in diamonds, even the centenary celebrations of the Congress.

Now it is returning to cricket.

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BUILDINGS, REAL ESTATE, BUILDERS BHELPURI BADSHAH BADE MIYAN BAGHDADI BUSYBEE BAL THACKERAY B SCHOOLS BANDS (ROCK MACHINE) BOLLYWOOD BAR DANCERS, BAR GIRLS BIRD WATCHING BEST BUS STOPS BIHARIS

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BORIVALI NATIONAL PARK Also known as Sanjay Gandhi National Park, Borivali National Park is probably the only national park in the world to lie bang in the middle of a city. With developmental encroachments occurring slowly and surely, the wildlife within has begun moving into residential premises. So, you’ve

BAND SOUNDS ARE BACK In fear of sounding like the Uncle Sam of live music, when was the last time you heard a band perform. Live!!!

There are about 12 active music venues in Mumbai. That is 9 more than 2001, including two five-stars that have Lobby Jazz.

There is a band performing around every corner, in every pub

and every club. Mumbai seems enthused because it loves originals.While bands that play covers have always been around, Mumbai owes this insurgence to the dawning realization that originality has sheer spunk and character.

American Idol’s Simon Cowell knows it, and even the 200+ bands in this city know it. Audiences have begun to appreciate new ideas, new thoughts and the resultant performance art.

Exciting times ahead the Internet and Radio is streaming new music locally and globally; plugging the next best

BOMBAY STOCK EXCHANGE Most tourists and indeed, Mumbaikars themselves, see the soaring Bombay Stock Exchange Building (BSE) as the embodiment of the city’s financial clout. However, for those who care to remember, it is also an enduring symbol of the grit that has made Mumbai urbs prima in Indis.

On the Black Friday of March 12, 1993, a bomb left in the BSE’s parking lot exploded, leaving behind a mangled mess and more than 80 people dead. That bomb was one of 13 detonated all over the city, intending to paralyse it. But on the next trading day, Monday, the BSE opened as usual at 9.30 am.

There was deep sadness, but also, a resilience that has kept Asia’s oldest stock exchange, which started off in 1875 as ‘The Native Share & Stock Brokers’ Association’, going strong for more than 134 years now.

Today, it is the world’s No1 exchange in terms of the number of listed companies, and the world’s fifth largest in handling of transactions.

The BSE reaches out to over 400 cities and towns nationwide and has around 4,937 listed companies, and more than 7,745 scrips being traded on it. Indeed, there is perhaps no major corporate in India that has not sourced the BSE’s services to raise resources from the capital market. Here is where the money is.

Mumbhai ekdum danger place where u survive.. if u got the pace

thing and even the TV channels have got into the act with Realitytype-Talent-contests.

But is that enough?

The media is doing its part but the drawback is that live music is only available to people in small pockets, and also not to people with little pockets.

Clubs try, but as deceptively inclusive as the word sounds, it also is not somewhere you can go as a family. And how many of us music lovers can afford the entry?

The stark truth is there aren’t enough venues to showcase all the talent available in this city. But this is Mumbai.

From necessity arises invention. Art festivals dedicate stages to musicians. Mini-movements reviving the bandstand culture also represent a large interest group of people that love live music.

got leopards scaling restriction walls and getting into residential societies to attack dogs or children for food.

Proximity with nature has its drawbacks, especially if man is the predator to begin with.

BIG BAZAAR Guaranteed to give you “the best products at best prices,” at any of its 120 outlets throughout the country, it’s a shopper’s delight. Sabse sasta aur accha is Big Bazaar’s catchphrase as it opens doors into the world of fashion and general merchandise including home furnishings, utensils, crockery, cutlery, sports goods and much more at highly competitive prices.

BAUGS Among the string of colonies housing Parsis, it’s the Dadar Parsi Colony, the largest Zoroastrian enclave in the world, which won a six-year-long legal battle to allow only members of the community to live in this “reserved area.”

Of the 45,000 Zoroastrians in Mumbai as many as 15,000 live in Dadar Parsi Colony alone. Even luckier are those who live at Khushroo baug in Colaba, the Wadia Buildings at Hughes Road or at the Godrej baug on Nepeansea Road. The rest have to settle for the other baugs in Byculla, Bandra, Andheri, Jogeshwari and beyond.

Millions of Mumbai’s citizens would settle – happily. Alas, they aren’t Parsis.

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CHURCHGATE COLABA CAUSEWAY CHHATRAPATI SHIVAJI CRAWFORD MARKET CHOR BAZAAR CHOWPATTY CUFFE PARADE CHIRA BAZAR CARTER ROAD CHRIST CHURCH CHAITYABHOOMI CENTRAL LIBRARY CST-THANE 1ST TRAIN

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CHOR BAZAAR Mumbai’s official thieves’ market has been around for years, a shopping destination for street smart shoppers who dont mind literally getting a steal in a bargain on everything from antiques to wooden furniture and car spare parts to rich interior knick-knacks.

And in keeping with the latest trend, the bazaar now stocks shoes, sun glasses, clothes, watches and denims among other things in its Jumma (Friday) market. In fact this thieves’ market is so much a part of Mumbai’s landscape that even Bollywood does not shy away from accepting that it shops from Chor Bazaar. According to some reports, Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan’s look in the recently released Teen Patti, was put together by getting some great bargains, including an old, worn-out, leather strapped watch, from Chor Bazaar!

And yet over the years some vital rules of shopping at Chor Bazaar remain unchanged. Not bargaining is a sin. You double check your goods before sealing the bargain or you may not even get what you’ve actually picked up. And lastly, no one carries anything of value to this place. It is definitely likely to get stolen, and you would be buying your own goods back from Chor Bazaar the next day, albeit at a much lower price then what you had originally paid for it.

C COMMUTING Commuting in Mumbai can be looked at in two ways. Mumbai’s roads are shocking, everything’s dug up, there are around 1.6 million cars on these same roads and it is not uncommon to spend an average of four hours a day traveling to office and back.

The other way to look at it is in the spirit of the public transport system – the best in the country, certainly the most cost efficient in the world, its trains legendary, its red BEST buses synonymous with everything tat the city stands for – dogged dependability that enables you to earn a living and have some kind of life.

Commuting is something everyone talks about, whether it is at ritzy cocktail parties, cutting chai shops, around the water cooler in office, even while you are actually doing it.

You talk about the road component screwing up your timing, compare the rail component to a trip by bus, figure out whether using your car three times a week makes sense in terms of time and money saved.

It dictates where you live, how much you can afford to sell your home for, what kind of neighbours you have. Commuting can give you friends or enemies, tell you the mood of the city, decide whether you should get a job instead of have a career.. In Mumbai, unless you are among the three per cent of the population who lives close to their offices and travels only by car, it matters. So make that commuting with a capital C .

Cricket Returns To Brabourne Stadium Ah, Brabourne Stadium!

I used to occupy the East Stands. My favourite position, if I could get it, was towards the centre and on top as high up in the tiers as possible.

The first cricket I saw there was the last of the pentangulars. The Hindus won that year, as they had been winning most of the time, the Parsis were the other finalists. K.C. Ibrahim, who later opened for India, though with not too great distinction, played for the Muslims, Vijay Hazare led the Rest,

and, for the Europeans, there was Denis Compton, an almost regular team from the Bombay Gymkhana, and a couple of county players specially flown from England, Rusi Modi was the star of the Parsi team, he was on his way to becoming he was on his way to becoming an India No. 3 then, and Jehangir Khot, a driver on the Western Railway, the team's allrounder. Pilloo Palia, who had been to England with one of first Indian teams, was the captain. All red in the face and very Parsi-Euro-

COOPERAGE GROUNDS

best

pean.

The Hindus, of course, were almost a Test team; Vijay Merchant, Vinoo Mankad, Shinde and Sohoni, a toss-up for the wicketkeeper's slot between Hindlekar and Madhav Mantri (I think, over the years, during his playing days and after, Indian cricket has owed more to Madhav Mantri than has been realised or conceded), G. Kishenchand.

That was the last of the Pentangulars. Then they stopped it, because they thought it raised communal feelings. Possibly, one day, they will stop the Ranji Trophy and the Zonals because

Cooperage Grounds – is synonymous with football. However, did you know that the Cooperage Grounds along with the Oval Grounds, Azad Maidan and Cross Maidan were once a single stretch called the Bombay Esplanade Grounds, to provide the British India Military an open field of fire against the Malabar pirates and against the Dutch, Marathas and Sidi Sultan of Janjira who made several attempts to conquer Bombay from the English?

Home stadium to leading Indian football clubs in Mumbai, football enthusiasts visit these grounds to

of regional tensions.

Still the Pentangular gave India all its early cricketers.

The first Test I saw at the Brabourne was against Goddard's West Indians.

It was almost as good a team as the West Indies today. Stollemeyer and Allan Rae opening the innings, the incomparable Everton Weeks, who completed during the tour his five Test centuries in a row, Clyde Walcott, as big a hitter as they come and one of three 'Ws'. In the years to come, there would be Ramadhin and Valentine, Sobers and Kanhai, Wes Hall.

Brabourne Stadium was

In the Mumbai, all over India .. we are the Bhai.

watch national and state league soccer matches. The stadium capacity of 12,000 is far surpassed during important matches and the rickety wooden stands collapsed during a Rovers Cup match leading to several injuries but thankfully no fatalities.

These grounds in recent times have held receptions for some high profile weddings and even used as venues for share-holder meetings.

Football lovers take heart. A two member FIFA team have opined that as part of their ‘Win India With India’ project for India, Cooperage ground met the criteria set to lay an artificial turf.

the scene. And, in my young days, there has been nothing as stirring as the opening morning of a match at the stadium. The flags flying, the 297 governor in the governor's pavilion, the East and North Stands packed, the gymkhana stands slowly filling up, the cane-chairs in the Bombay Gymkhana stands and the waiters serving, the CCI balconies with the sun shining on the silk saris of the wives of members (if Gavaskar was playing then, he would have cleared the women in their silk saris from behind the bowler's arm).

The umpires coming out,

the fielding team, then Vijay Merchant and Vinod Mankad coming in to open the innings.

Or, on other days, Dattu Phadkar walking back for his run-up.

I am happy cricket has returned to the Brabourne Stadium, however, briefly. And I am happy that 1 am spending today watching it from the East Stand. It is the only way to watch cricket no TV, no Garware Pavilion, no pressbox.

......................................BUSYBEE JANUARY 20, 1987

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CHOTA KASHMIR - FILM CITY CHHATRAPATI SHIVAJI MAHARAJ STATUES AND NAMES COOPERAGE GARDENS CELL PHONES CUTTING CHAI COMMUNAL VIOLENCE CRIME CHARAGH DIN CLUBS COLLEGES

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CADBURY: BAR BAR DEKHO It’s an unlikely location for the world’s second largest candy maker: a noisy, dusty, non-toocorporate corner in one of the city’s toniest residential localities. Even stranger still, the building — a rather low-key white one— has become a landmark of sorts. That’s a tribute to the power of the purple-and-gold logo that has held its own in India despite the attack of the liberalised Toblerones and Fererro Rochers and a worm scare in 2003. To large swathes of India, the word Cadbury’s is synonymous with chocolates, much like Godrej and cupboards or Xerox and copiers. In fact, it enjoys a market share of over 70% — the highest Cadbury brand share in the world.

While Cadbury’s Dairy Milk leads the march, brands like 5 Star, Perk, Éclairs, Bournvita, Halls and Bubbaloo help buttress the ranks.

That’s a lot of brand names. But then, Cadbury’s came to India just one year after Independence in 1948.

And its corporate headquarters, ‘White House’ (not to be confused with 15, Pennsylvania Avenue or even the Jindal mansion down the road) came up in the late 50’s a beautiful s, replacing a beautiful bungalow.

CHINESE FOOD Everyone’s favourite bastard cuisine, Chinese is available in more forms than there are regions in China. There’s Chinese for every budget and for every palate: from thela Chinese, Udipi Chinese, Jain Chinese, Kolkata-style Hakka and Cantonese Chinese, to Punjabi and Mughlai Chinese and finally five-star hotel Chinese. Chinese has been so whole-heartedly embraced by every community that everyone from the beggar on the street to the fat cat in the Mercedes knows their Szechwan from their chopsuey. No one cares about how true the food is to the original or the traditional, we’re as happy eating it when it’s been made by imported Chinese chefs as we are when it’s made by imported Nepali cooks. It’s become so much a part of our daily fare that we want it on our pizzas and inside our dosas, we’ll happily eat a chicken chilli with our biryani or a chicken Manchurian with a chapatti. It’s not Chinese anymore, it’s Indian-Chinese.

When Victoria Terminus was rechristened Shivaji Chhatrapati Terminus, we sneered, we wept, we mourned, we stubbornly persisted in calling our Gothic beauty VT. Somewhere along the way, we slipped to a grudging ST, for Shivaji Terminus.

Then came the airports, Santacruz and Sahar, and suddenly both were CSTs too. But we’ve survived those as well. Victoria may still be remembered, but Shivaji is firmly in the saddle. As for the airports, we just call them the Domestic and the International. And the Prince of Wales Museum, re-christened (you guessed it) Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, is mostly Museum.

But as has happened in the case of the re-christening of the city, it’s possible not just to get used to change, but also like it. After all, who remembers Peking any more, except in connection with duck!

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CATHEDRAL AND JOHN CONNON CAMPION CYBER CAFES COFFEE PLACES – CCD, BARISTA, MOCHA, COSTA’S CHINESE FOOD IN MUMBAI CAFÉ NAAZ CAFÉ LEOPOLD COPPER CHIMNEY CITY KITCHEN CAFE SAMOVAR CHOCOLATE GALLI

COMMON MAN

CHURCHGATE IS WHERE YOU START Church Gate is named after the gate of the 18th century St. Thomas Cathedral, situated near the present day Flora Fountain and was one of the three gates of the walled city of Bombay. In the mid nineteenth century, the city walls were torn down to aid expansion.

Starting point of numerous trains, one can witness the conundrum of office goers - millions alighting each day to get to their offices in South Mumbai. Also tourists alight to go the Marine Drive area, known as the ‘Queen’s Necklace’ made famous through countless Bollywood movies.

Focal point of educational institutions like the University of Mumbai, Government Law, Jamnalal Bajaj, etc. there are also the stadiums for sports lovers –Wankhede, Mahindra Hockey and Brabourne. And of course the Oval Maidan - where countless school boys perfect their cricketing skills - and young waiters and helpers from the area come and reclaim their childhood by playing some football during weekends. Stroll around this area to get a feel as to how Bombay must have looked like back in time.

CLUB CULTURE

clubs

From golf clubs to sports clubs to night clubs, this city has them all.

Now with all the dance bars around, topless is no big deal. Today, clubs are located in fancy 5 star places, and you do all the topless dancing.

In Mumbai, however, clubs are those exclusive spaces with restricted entry and unaffordable membership, as well as a waiting list running for decades, or where membership is just plain closed. Willingdon Club, US Club, Bombay Gym, WIAA, NSCI, Breach Candy and CCI are harder to crash than the Billionaire’s Club, some like the Catholic, Hindu and Islam Gymkhanas are of the old mold, spit and polish territories that observe dress codes but are easier to gain entry to, and then there are the new clubs..

They’re rich, they’re flashy, they are not old world, but they are mighty interesting. They offer time shares, flat screen televisions if you join, and they usually have plenty of facilities. And they have names like The Club, Country Club etc., with swimming pools and tennis and squash and DJ nites.

Finally, in the gullies of downtown Mumbai, you will come across the phenomenon of village clubs, originating from Goa, where people from one village can crash when they come to Mumbai for a day, a month or a year, on a small payment. But few people think of these now when you say “Club”.

The film world and the underworld, the police and the press, all live of stories

Also known as aam aadmi. Referred to all the time by politicians and economists, industrialists and businessman, especially at Budget time, when everyone wants to know how said CM or AA is going to be affected.

Still the term conjures up one of the world’s greatest cartoonists and his depiction of the common man as a dhoti-clad, checked kurta, desi footwear wearing little man constantly watching, observing, listening to the rulers and the way they run the country.

So, thank you R K Laxman.

A bit of an anachronism now, since CM, even in the villages, can be seen dressed exactly like his urban counterpart (thanks to satellite television). More important, he has begun to demand accountability, is a participant in government and doesn’t believe in hanging around, just looking.

COPS COOL CABS CHHOTA RAJAN

COOL PAAN QUOTIENT

don d times but still a Gangster fallen on ba ng ga ay t-d sen pre force to reckon with, if n . When the ADC bega wars are to be believed od wo Da the of rt pa a s its run in 1985, he wa nd even er who stood by his frie aning Ibrahim group, a partn me , trip gan its “our boys” when the Shiv Sena be ns. do slim Mu sus wli ver Hindu dons like Arun Ga lieved to have 1993 bomb blasts, be rch Ma the e cam en Th two fell out. the d an , im ah wood Ibr been engineered by Da believed , law is a fugitive from the murders Chhota Rajan himself nt oya mb Fla i. ba sia or Du en twe to be variously in Malay be d feu y ntries as the blood rest have shaken both cou Mo rs. yea 15 n tha for more the two has continued killing of s been suspected in the ha jan Ra ta ho Ch tly, cen ding fen de s wa i Azm Mumbai. lawyer Shahid Azmi in rying out car of d suspecte Fahid Ansari, the man 26/11. for nce issa na on the rec to have ed ort rep is Chhota Rajan from ing ap esc ck ba his broken ngkok Ba in life his an attack upon confirno is ere Th o. ag e a decad w. mation on his health no th on bo es, tinu con ut clo But his D ht fig s ng ga the street as his police the in as ll we as y, an Comp a party alforce, where in January, his lieuof e on by d ste ho legedly l police era Sev d. tenants was buste e having tap on t gh cau re we officers a good time.

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A luxury specific to Mumbai, especially the Sobos. Thanda paan, is the iced version of a sada or meetha paan, a much sought-after postdinner morsel. All paan walas in Mumbai claim that they belong to Allahabad, thereby certifying their credibility.

Areas like Walkeshwar, Colaba, Churchgate, and Breach Candy in South Mumbai, have their own favourites, and the well-heeled and fashionable are prone to stopping by and ordering in bulk. With all the usual ingredients, laced with kesar, khus or any other popular flavour, the cool paan is a unique concept to Mumbai.

“Accha lagta hai, kuch thanda kha ke (it feels nice to have something cool)” is the only reason people can cough up to explain their liking for the thanda paan. Muchad, a small shop round Kemps Corner is known to sell the best and the newest flavour in town. Never sampled his offerings? There is something wrong with you. Address? Google him. Of course he’s on the internet!

THE NAME IS CHHOTA RAJAN

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CORN ON THE COB COOL PAN COMMUTING COMMON MAN – LAXMAN’S

Visitors keep trying to figure out if it is a market, a bridge (to Old Woman’s Island), a shopping arcade, a neighbourhood, a tourist spot, a heritage site. Truth is, it’s all of these and more. It’s the Colaba Causeway, an area so sharp and shabby, slick and sleazy, vibrant as a whiplash, with top brands in the shops and gimcrack on the roads, that it dazzles the mind and numbs the senses. As a visitor, you come here at least once so that no-one looks at you in amazed disbelief that you didn’t, when you return home. And if you live elsewhere in town, you just check in periodically, to make sure you haven’t missed out on anything. Also to stroll down to Apollo Bunder and make sure the Gateway’s still there.

CORN ON THE COB The monsoons in Mumbai mark the arrival of the bhutta. Carts pop up all over equipped with stacks of bhutta, a sigdi, a bunch of nimbus and a large plastic box of mixed amchur, chilli and rock salt masala.

Earlier when there was only the pale yellow Indian corn you needed to press the niblets to check which ones were full but now with the plump, golden American corn no one does that anymore. Everything else stays the same: choose your bhutta and the bhuttawallah grills it on the sigdi till the corn is nice and roasted, then it’s rubbed well with the cut nimbu that’s been dipped into the masala. The fancier bhuttawallahs will offer lashings of butter as well, for a glistening buttery masala bhutta.

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DAVID SASSOON LIBRARY D.Y. PATIL STADIUM DADAR (WEST, EAST, TT), FLOWER MARKET, TEXTILES DHARAVI DAGDI CHAWL DONGRI DUMPING GROUNDS DOME THEATRE (WADALA) DAIRIES (AAREY, WORLI) DELHI DURBAR

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DILIP KUMAR AND DEV ANAND At 79, you can forgive Dilip Kumar, master of the understated, choosy now as he was then, if he doesn’t act in movies any more, and makes only the occasional appearance. At 78, it’s sometimes a little difficult to understand why Dev saab, immensely likeable though he is, continues to make tacky turkeys that do little for his image or bank balance.

They’re the two oldest actors still in the public eye, and they couldn’t be more different. But Mumbai loves ’em both. A city whose memory is notoriously short still has the mindspace for these two legends.

Like Living On A Double Decker For some time now I am living in a house which hangs over the Kemp's Corner flyover. It is like living on the upper deck of a BEST bus.

It has been an interesting experience. The traffic dipping down the flyover and then climbing up to Peddar Road is in line with my window.

All through the day I can see them all, Fiats and

Ambassadors and a few Marutis and an occasional Mercedes Benz, moving past like in a permanent parade.

I can make out the time of the day by the speed of the traffic. In the morning, it zooms over the flyover, like a plane taking off. And it is scattered, a few vehicles, and, in between, the thump-thump of the joggersvas they make their way up the Hanging Gardens ridge.

Then, as the morning advances, the office traffic takes over, a cacophony of impatient horns, and the view from my window is so many roofs of cars.

After three months, I have become accustomed to living in the middle of the sound of cars. The age of the motor car has finally arrived for me. For a while, when I wasn't working, I would lie in bed and listen to the cars passing by.

I particularly enjoyed the

late afternoons turning into evenings, the light outside on the flyover turning dull and grey, the homeward-bound traffic gradually increasing. Then, every evening, the policeman would arrive, stand below my window and start blowing his whistle.

At first I thought it was an exotic bird, which came out only in the evenings and cried for the rains. I would listen to it, through the evening, sometimes sharp, shrill bursts,

Each Bombayite inhabits his own Bombay” – Suketu Mehta

sometimes soft laments, guiding the traffic, extricating it from snarls.

I have come to know the policeman well now.

With that same whistle he stops passing taxis for me. And I have come to know the other sights around. The sound of : Malayali voices in the restaurant below, the aroma of the kheema being prepared in the mornings, the view of Woodlands opposite, rising beyond the reach of my window.

And the street lights

coming into the house in the night, lighting up everything in a yellow sodium-vapour glow. I have become used to sleeping under those lights, as I have become used to living over the flyover.

And I will miss it all, because I have to move on, find another place, another house.

......................................BUSYBEE APRIL 8, 1985

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like a bad Hindi The name would sound connotations, if it did film, full of fake-funny arded as so vicious reg n ma not represent a holds nothing sacred. and depraved that he ntry against which cou n ow Certainly not his fin d anced athe has orchestrated an neral mayhem. ge d an s tacks, bombing ms now only a Yet Dawood Ibrahim see a of organide the y, an part of D Comp ken even the rta ove g vin ha e crim ised malefactors of y arm man. So it is an ntries, dicou l stretched across severa wars, the ng ga of ct du recting the con . In ism ror drug trade and even ter Com‘Dt tha ed ort 2008, it was rep ts oo cah in pany’ is now officially netror ter ’s iba -To r-e with the Lashka

torious Inter-Services work, with Pakistan’s no wood Ibrahim to Da g ttin ge ) Intelligence (ISI fundamentalist terthe h wit ng ga his merge a game plan to of rt pa as n ror organisatio pa cam ign. crank up its anti-India when one considers ed tch -fe This is not so far mthat ISI’s links with D-Co old pany are reportedly enough to go back to 1993 when serial bombs tried to rip Mumbai apart. Payback for s the Babri demolition, wa d ere the commonly off reason. As if terrorism dly ” could ever have a “go core.

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Firmly part of Mumbai’s political, social, economic cityscape, you see them equally at home in operation theatre or NCPA, in cinema or clinic, cocktail party or seminar. There are the doctors who s party, the doctors who charge doctor a bomb, the doctors who operate on prime ministers, doctors who set up hospices, doctors who have been around for the past three decades and look all set to stay on for the next three.

The names are the thing, the specializations dictating this, and word of mouth is king. And word of mouth it is and years of practice that

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DHANSAK LAV NEE DANCE BARS...MUJRAS CABARETS NOT SO POPULAR NOW DELUGE, FLOODS, WATER DEBONAIR MAGAZINE DIGGING DEPRESSION – STRESS, SUICIDES DANCING (NOT ONLY BOLLYWOOD OR FOLK DANCE) EVEN SALSA,

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DADAR HAS IT

cause the names to trip off the tongue like a roll-call of honour: Soonawalla, Udwadia, Panda, Mukherjee, Joshi, Goyal, Mehta, Borges, D’Souza, Sheth, Fernandez, Desai, Haribhakti, Pai, Zain, depending upon whether you want a heart specialist, neurologist, orthopaedics, oncologist, endocrinologist, nephrologists, rheumatologist, paediatric surgeon, cosmetologist, plastic surgeon, nutritionist, psychiatrist….

Prior to the mall culture which has mushroomed across the city, Dadar was shopping Mecca for middle-class Bombay. It helped that it was an area which has the railway station on both the Western and Central line. In fact, the two lines converge here and sort of split the area into halves. So you have Dadar TT in the east, named so after the fact that this used to be a tram terminus (now right under the flyover), and the west section known as Dadar BB. (short for the Bombay-Baroda and Central India Railway).

Still one of the most crowded and busiest stations of Mumbai, Dadar bustles with activity all the year round. Shivaji Park is adjacent, so is Wadala and its Five Gardens, and Mama Kane still offers mouth-watering Maharashtrian snacks. What more canyou ask for, especially when shopping for a wedding?

There was a time when Bombay was the safest city in the world - Busybee

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HIP-HOP AND BELLY DANCING ARE DANCE FORMS TO CHOOSE FROM DEADLINES FOR EVENTS AND CONCERTS DANDIYA DEEPAK PAREKH DHARAM GARAM DILIP VENGSARKAR DADA KONDKE DILIP KUMAR DAWOOD IBRAHIM

DHARAVI DAYS A city within the city, Dharavi may be Asia’s largest slum, but it is equal parts tourist trap 9for reality tourism) and middle class potential. Home to more than a million people out of which many are second-and-third generation residents, Dharavi’s development was given a boost of Rs 100 crore by the late Rajiv Gandhi, in honour of the Congress centenary, coincidentally in the year that the ADC first saw the light of day.

Today’s Dharavi bears a dim resemblance to the old rabbit-warren of twisting lanes and gullies bounded by roads, punctuated with flyblown garbage heaps.

A good way to describe it would be Entrepreneur Central. Check out all the smart leather shops selling everything from shoes to jackets, and ladies clutches to travel bags.

The slum re-hab buildings that have sprung up in response the the

: DEEPAK PAREKH KABLE ABSOLUTELY BAN influential and Amongst India’s most ders, this man lea respected corporate FC ChairHD . ion uct od intr needs no always s ha man Deepak S Parekh it was in er eth Wh . ud pro ia made Ind and ct fun de enabling the almost its feet on ck ba t ge m tya fraud-hit Sa recke ma to led or when he was cal rees issu the on s on ommendati ng financial garding the deteriorati ess of en titiv pe com d health an n for every BSNL, he had a solutio quality of a problem. And it is this kes him a ma t trouble-shooter tha ive memact an d an ce guiding for d ecoere ow ber of various high-p s, up nomic gro Advisory Government-appointed ces, For k Tas d an es Committe perhis ate many awards decor an d de ad he tly, en sona. Rec An t. ha other feather to his first FCA, he has become the e Th of nt international recipie countInstitute of Chartered Ac les’ (ICAEW) OutWa d ants in England an dge player, not Award. A fearsome Bri age standing Achievement porate honcho of that cor ly on 66 and was the n. ho rat Ma d many know that he is ere year’s Standard Chart who participated in this

We all know that the Arabs come to Bombay to see the rains

vi dhara

first grant are themselves being pulled down to make way for the first swanky constructions. The middle classes are moving in, but the old residents, now in possession of expensive real estate, are moving up as well.

More comfortingly, enterprise is still the watchword and Dharavi’s little businesses continue to thrive - embroidered garments, export quality leather goods, pottery and plastic. The state government has plans to redevelop Dharavi and transform it into a modern township, complete with proper housing and shopping complexes, hospitals and schools. In the next ten years, it could well be an address to aspire to!

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Not the Indian classical dance such as Kathak and Bharatnatyam. Arangetrams are okay for Chennai. In Mumbai we’re talking salsa, samba, rhumba, belly dancing and krumping, break-dancing, waltzing, jiving and hip-hop. Learning, not just watching.

Dr. Priti Gupta, a medico who is a salsa and ballroom instructor and founder of Dance Sport India, attributes “increased awareness about different dance forms” to changing preferences. With the youth, particularly in Mumbai, taking up dance professionally, there has been a sudden surge in the availability of teachers for western dance forms. “When I was a kid, I thought ballroom dancing was exclusive to Army and Navy dances. I did not know that any person could learn ballroom dancing,” reminisces the instructor.

A minimum of 10 dance forms are listed online, so you can try out salsa, ballroom dancing, hip-hop, jazz, ballet, contemporary, krumping, break dance, afro, cha –cha, waltz, jive and meringue. With growing awareness, there is even new appreciation for Bharatnatyam and Kathak..

“Dancing has originated in India and there is no way classical dance will die. In fact, classical dance helps you pick up western classical at a later stage in life,” adds Priti.

Also, with men realising that they can twirl a girl easily on the floor and be the leading partner, as is the case with most western dance forms, dancing is no more a forte of women alone.

DHIRUBHAI AMBANI: OLD FAITHFUL Dhirubhai Ambani once remarked that as a schoolboy, he was a member of the Civil Guard, an outfit similar to today's National Cadet Corps (NCC). “We had to salute its officers who went round in jeeps. So I thought: one day I will also ride in a jeep and somebody else will salute me,” he reminisced Dhirubhai’s final salute was one that would have gladdened the tycoon’s heart as few stock prices or balance sheets could have. When he passed away on July 6, 2002, his funeral was like nothing the city has ever seen.

In attendance was everyone from the Prime Minister, chief minister and leader of the opposition to small-time investors who had made their biggest killings with the Reliance scrip and believed they owed him a lifelong debt. But Dhirubhai himself declared: “I can never fully repay the debt I owe to Mumbai… My past was shaped in Mumbai.”

Truly, Dhirajlal Hirachand Ambani could not have become the astounding, inspirational success story that he was anywhere else but in Mumbai. He may not have been born here or spent his early life here (Raj Thackeray, please note) but this is the city that encouraged him to bloom.

He took Reliance Industries public in 1977, and repeatedly made history with it. A pioneer in introducing financial instruments like fully convertible debentures on the Indian stock markets, he was one of the first entrepreneurs to draw retail investors to the stock markets in a big way. He understood, protected and rewarded the small investor as no one else has, before or since.

Critics allege that his success was largely due to his ability to manipulate the levers of a controlled economy to his advantage. But that would be doing an injustice to his great entrepreneurial spirit, his instinct for timing, and his supreme risk-taking. In a city built by traders, he was the biggest and, quite simply, the best.

dance

DHAN SAK If there is one dish that is instantly associated with Parsi cuisine, it is dhansak. There are more interesting dishes, there are far tastier dishes, there are richer dishes, but nothing in the entire repertoire of Parsi cuisine is as famous as dhansak. So what makes it so popular amongst non-Parsis? Perhaps the fact that dhansak is simply an elaborate version of dal-chawal, a pairing much loved and easily identified by most Indians, has something to do with it. But the dhansak dal is no ordinary dal; it is a spicy combination of several dals, vegetables and meat and the caramelised brown rice with kebabs is closer to a fancy pulao than an ordinary chawal. What most of us don’t realise is that dhansak dal with meat is a dish associated not with celebration but with mourning: it’s the first meat dish eaten by the family after the funeral fast during which they eat only vegetarian preparations.

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If money is Mumbai’s Big Daddy, depression is rapidly getting to be Big Mommy.

According to a ten-year-old study, mapping depression on Mumbai’s campuses, four out of every ten students suffer from some form of depression and 14 out 100 have actually thought of suicide.

It looks as if these figures are coming home to roost, with kids, some as young as nine, killing themselves. The causes are variously attributed to genetics, biochemical or environmentally induced, while treatments range from acupuncture, through music to drugs and therapy.

Whatever the direct cause that is making people take this extreme step in cities and in villages and across all age groups, one thing is clear. We have created a killer society that spells success in very limited ways and seeks to punish those seen as unsuccessful. By the yardstick of material achievements and monetary gain, that would be 90 per cent of us.

And our children, subjected to tremendous pressure usually by parents, are the biggest sufferers of all.

Paradoxically, as cases go up, so do the number of counseling centres and helplines. And while there is a shortage of psychiatrists, the numbers of counselors is up. Thankfully too, people are now becoming aware of depression as a sickness that one does not necessarily bring upon oneself and that is can be treated.

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DEPRESSION

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DOCTORS – RAMAKANT PANDYA, B K GOYAL, ETC DABBAWALLAS- RECOGNISED ALL OVER THE WORLD FOR THEIR SIX SIGMA POLICY DHOBI GHAT DISCOUNTS – ALL YEAR ROUND

EROS THEATRE ELECTRIC HOUSE ESSEL WORLD ELEPHANTA CAVES ELPHINSTONE COLLEGE AND STATION ELCO ARCADE EXPRESSWAY ESCORT SERVICES EXORBITANT PROPERTY PRICES ENTERTAINMENT ENCOUNTER SPECIALISTS, HIT MEN

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AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER, THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

EXPRESSWAY TO EVERYWHERE tain ranges via tunnels, has five interchanges Maharashtra created history by building the at Kon (Shedung), Chowk, Khalapur, Kusgaon Mumbai-Pune Expressway, India’s first six-lane and Talegaon, two carriageways with concrete, high-speed, access-controlled three concrete lanes each separated by and of course tolled expressway. The a central divider and a tarmac or conexpressway has reduced the travel s s xpreay crete shoulder on either side. Construct time between Mumbai and Pune apw by the MSRDC for the state government proximately two hours. It has also in March 1997 on Build, Operate and Transironed all he romance out of the old Ghat fer (BOT) basis, it will continue to collect toll drive. for the next 17 years, since it has permission The expressway starts at Kalamboli (near Panto do so or a total of 30 years. vel) and ends at Dehu Rd. (near Pune). It As for Mumbaikars – we are lovin’ it! cleaves through the beautiful Sahyadri moun-

Ghazal Etiquette I do not know how to behave at a ghazal concert. What exactly to do when a man in a scented silk kurta, the soles of his slightlysoiled feet peeping from underneath his crossed legs, sits on a gaddi, in front of a harmonium, and sings.

I do not know whether to look at him or throw my head back and listen with my mind or nod to

the tune of the music or look around and applaud when the others in the audience do so. T also do not know how to keep my eyes away from his soiled feet.

I think my education in the art of appreciating ghazal singers is lacking.

I like the sound of highflown Urdu, like a controlled waterfall, but I do not understand the language, except for a few Hindi and Hindustani BEST OF 1985

words here and there.

And 1 cannot distinguish a well-known ghazal singer from one who sings at parries, when the other people at the party keep telling him, "Please, sing." For that matter, I cannot distinguish Pankaj Udhas from Anup Jalota or either of them from Talat Aziz. The only two I can distinguish between are Chitra and Jagjit Singh and that only because I know that one of them is Chitra.

I am aware that ghazal

is the latest craze in Bombay. And, from what I have heard and have been told of how ghazal singers are always moving from town to town, today in Bombay, tomorrow at the Malviya Hall in Delhi, the day after in Allahabad, the following afternoon in Shahjanpur for a matinee, I can understand that it is popular throughout the country.

I am also told that Indian ghazal singers are very popular in Pakistan and it must be so. I have

I call it (Mumbai) the maximum city in my - Suketu Mehta

myself attended a concert of a gentleman named Mehdi Hasan, who, I understand, is Pakistan's most famous ghazalist.

The concert was at the Birla Hall and it was an interesting experience.

Members of the audience shouted requests to him, Mr. Hasan sang them all, one by one, each ghazal, sounding like the preceding one.

In between, his assistants fed him, little rolls of paan-patti.

That was the only time I

attended a concert of a Pakistani ghazalist. With Indian ghazalists, I do not know what to do, with Pakistani ghazalists, I found I knew even less.

The fault, of course, is entirely mine. Not only the profession of ghazal singers, but most professions I know little about.

In fact, the only profession I am familiar with is one in which you sit on a typewriter and type. ......................................BUSYBEE AUGUST 30, 1985

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UNIQUE TO MUMBAI EDUCATIONAL SCENARIO ENGLISH SPEAKING CLASSES ECCENTRICITY EKTA KAPOOR EHSAAN NOORANI EKNATH SOLKAR EAST INDIANS ELECTIONS

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GET AN EDUCATION

tion educa

EDU-STREAMS: SSCISCISCEIBHSC

Once you figure out what your kid should be doing, the weightage it will give him or her in the final exams, the advantages accruing in college admissions, the kind of college the child will be able to attend, the advantages this will give him or her in later life, the status accorded to you as a smart parent who has thought all this out – then you’re home and dry. Simple!

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Gone are the days when getting a Bachelor’s degree in conventional courses was enough. Today, graduation is just the start of a learning curve that might last the rest of your life. You’re nowhere without a professional course. The favourites are in the IT sector, the mass media, and of course, management. All of which are supposed to give you access to lives that are (a) lucrative (b) glamorous) or (c) at least exciting.

You stop at a Bachelor’s at your peril. A Master’s means better pay packages. The links are direct – more education actually means a better life.

That’s good, right? Not when it’s so good that the bar is pushed ever higher, everyone’s in education because it is such good business, and the pressure starts in pre-kindergarten.

An apt example to give here as mentioned by a colleague, “My cousin who has a 10-month-old kid has already bought a book to teach him the alphabets.” He’s gotta learn fast if he wants a good school!

FIRANGS - MORE THAN JUST TOURISTS (EMPLOYEES, EXCHANGE STUDENTS, ASPIRING MODELS ACTORS. FOREIGNERS HAVE GONE BEYOND JUST VISITING MUMBAI. HAVE MADE IT HOME) FLORA FOUNTAIN FORT AREA FASHION STREET

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n fashio

FASHIONABLY FORWARD At first it was just Ensemble, the high-end fashion store that opened in 1987. It set the foundation and put India on the fashion map, Everyone wanted to emulate Tarun Tahiliani and the late Rohit Khosla’s brain child.

After that the fashion scene snowballed as haute stores like Glitterati, Mélange, Arreesa and the Designer Studio pushed Indian fashion into the forefront. Designer labels by pioneers in the busi-

Feedback On The Congress Centenary A delegate to the Congress centenary session in Bombay returned to his village in North Bihar yesterday and narrated his experiences to his fellow-villagers.

"So how did it go?" asked the village patil, garlanding him on his safe return.

"Things could not have gone better," the villager said. "From the minute we arrived in Bombay, they looked after us. We were put up at one of their new housing com-

ness like Abu Jani, Sandeep Khosla, Shahab Durazi, Pallavi and Bhairavi Jaikishan, Krishna Mehta, Suneet Varma, Wendell Rodricks, Ravi Bajaj, Rohit Bal, Ritu Kumar, Ritu Beri, J J Valaya and many more set the look for the decades to follow.

Mom and pop stores like Sheetal and Roopam went in for a major face lift. The former brought in Australian trained Hemant Trevedi as design

head, while the latter roped in and introduced Rocky S. Even busy Premsons the family store on Warden Road, known as Mumbai’s Rodeo Drive added Eternia an up market section in 1993 filled with designer names and the first Shoppers Stop opened in 1994 putting the multi brand stores firmly onto the fashion scene.

With the opening of the Indian economy in the 90s and the foreign label

invasion, Indians turn into brand and label junkies.

Pepe, Wrangler, Levi’s, Louis Vuitton, Versace, Gucci, Jimmy Choo, Burberry, Zegna, Pal Zileri, Max Mara, Triumph, La Senza, Mango, Promod, the list is endless.

Zandra Rhodes, Lecoanet Hemant and Pierre Cardin came and went, Chanel replaced the sari on the Red Carpet.

Bollywood drove fashion as a new brash set of designers and styles set

plexes called Tilak Nagar. I tell you, I have never seen so many lavatories in my life, lines and lines of them.

Bombay people are very hygienic."

"What about food? I hope you ate well," his wife said.

"You are always worried about my eating," the delegate said. "There was a truck which used to come every morning, filled with bananas. We had to climb on that grab as many bananas as we could and eat them."

"You ate bananas all the

time?" the delegate's brother said.

"Not at all, I tell you we were well taken care of," the delegate said. "In the afternoon, we used to walk from Indira Nagar, a big stadium that belongs to our party, to Gokhale Nagar, where they gave us, where they gave each one of us puri-bhaji which was packed in a bag. We were told they serve it the same way in big airlines, in their first class."

"You brought back anything from Bombay?" one of the younger women in the village asked.

"Everything was very ex-

pensive and they said things had become more expensive because we were there," the delegate said. "Some of the delegates, who stayed in guesthouses, took back with them towels, bedsheets, forks and spoons. There was nothing like that where we stayed. But then you can't have everything."

"True," the village elder said, "Gandhiji had taught us to live simple and dignified, not to want too much. Tell me how Bombay was. I have never seen it and now I am too old to ever do so."

"Well, first and foremost,

Yeh Bombay hai; yaha time ka matlab hai paisa

trends for the masses to follow. Manish Malhotra, Neeta Lulla, Narula and Sabyasachi Mukherjee were the norm. Jackets became a part of the Indian woman’s wardrobe

you must understand it is a Congress city, it is full of our flags, wherever you go. The people of Bombay are also very fond of our leader, there are pictures of Rajivji all over the city," the delegate said.

"Did you meet any citizens of Bombay?" a villager asked.

"I was very keen to meet one and exchange views, unfortunately, I could not," the delegate said, "The people of Bombay had all left their city and gone away, so that they would not inconvenience us. I told you, they are very considerate."

thanks to Shahab Durazi and Ravi Bajaj. Power dressing was the buzz word for both men and women as the latter climbed up the corporate ladder.

Finally, the village teacher said: "You keep talking about food and shopping. You went there to participate in our party's centenary session. Tell us about the speeches made, what our leaders had to say" "I do not know whether any speeches were made," the delegate said. "You see all the microphones failed and nobody heard a word that was said in the three days."

......................................BUSYBEE DECEMBER 31, 1985

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FILMCITY FANTASY LAND FIVE GARDENS FORTS OF MUMBAI FLYOVERS LIKE JJ CAME UP ALL OVER THE CITY TO FIGHT ITS TRAFFIC WOES FASHION, SHOWS – THIS INDUSTRY HAS GONE BIG IN LAST 25 YEARS FLAMINGOS FRANKIE

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A FESTIVE SEASON THAT STRETCHES ALL YEAR ROUND Sure there is Holi, Eid, Christmas, with their attendant gaiety.

But the biggest of all are Ganpati and New Year, and that’s chiefly because of the crowds and the fact that both are synonymous with images.

The big one of course is the Lalbaugcha Raja, the idol for which a flyover has been demolished, to be rebuilt higher in order not to obstruct its passage to the sea. Ganpati going in a procession of hundreds of thousands of devotees is an icon for Mumbai.

The other big festival, one that brings the hundreds of thousands out, is New Year, of the Gregorian calendar, and usually celebrated out of doors, preferably at the Gateway of India. These are festivals in the real sense – involving the whole of Mumbai and not just a particular community.

FILM CITY

FASHION STREET

Mumbai is Film City, separate from the comparatively little one at Goregaon. It is the biggest film industry in the world. Then, there are the old studios - R.K. Studios, Mehboob and Rajkamal to name a few.

Most of them are defunct, having been overtaken by Goregaon which is a studio complex cum training ground. Set up in 1977 by the Government of Maharashtra and named after Dadasaheb Phalke, it could have been our Warner Brothers. But of course it is not. It’s not even Ramoji of Hyderabad fame..

Still, it’s big enough to impress. Sprawled over 520 acres of land, it has over 100,000 sq. ft. of built-up air-conditioned studio facilities-with power, water, trained support staff, catering and hospitality and postproduction facilities. The huge stretch of varied landscape allows any kind of set-up to be built according to requirement of the film – temple, church, court, police station, jail, chawl, shopping arcade, log hut and cottage, tribal village, a multipurpose building suitable for college or hospital hostel, plus streets for heroes and heroines in which to dance.

Itana sannata kyu hai bhai

t for eet is a must visit haun n, Mumbai’s Fashion Str tlets in the country, which hio fas t en vem pa of Setting the trend t export surplus ou r buyer. One of the firs rted originally near any Indian or foreigne nai, Fashion Street sta en Ch d an re, alo ng Ba mkhana. Its main lhi, Gy De ay in spawned many shifted opposite Bomb s wa er ow lat d an a od with foreign labels at thr the Museum at Kala Gh for fashionable clothes ink g Th . inin tre rga me ba of kilo a ill thr into attraction is the ich are crushed y 130 roadside stalls wh nest! away prices from nearl ho – cks bu red ple of hund working women who Ralph Lauren for a cou ly the college kids and on t no latest for ing pp sho browsing through the It’s a haven for apparel and famous who enjoy rich up k the pic n eve can t o bu wh et rs dg ne have a tight bu ence for foreig et. It’s a thrilling experi ular Fashion fashion trends on the stre ich they probably can’t afford back home. Reg wh ally ts rm en no rm are ga bargains and goods – which ents en to strike for the latest Street loyalists know wh shipped or surplus garm un ir the d loa un s use ho ort exp en twice a year wh . make good their losses into the local market to

FAST FOOD FARIYAS FESTIVALS – KALA GHODA, BANDRA FAIR, MINARA MASJID DURING RAMZAN FLOODS FOOTBALL

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Is it just nature’s fury or human error?. This is the unending debate as far as flooding in Mumbai is concerned.

With global warming taking its toll and making its presence felt, a city like Mumbai has its bad days and worse days. The monsoon was once eagerly awaited because it was reason for rejoicing, even here. For the last couple of years, it has either played truant, or given us too much too soon.

Every year, we would have at least two days of heavy rain which justified staying home. 2005 was the lowest point, marking the Great Flood and thousands of crores of rupees lost as a result of BMC negligence and apathy towards maintenance and cleaning of th city’s drains. At least it woke them up.

FLYOVERS There was a time when traffic just crawled through the main thoroughfares of Mumbai. We were proud to have arterial roads, like D.N. Road, S.V. Road, Tulsipipe Road, Ambedkar Road,etc. One fine day, the city fathers decided to get the whole city decongested and flyovers were planned. Keeping up with the 1995 dream to give us 52 flyovers, the idea was to make driving in Mumbai, especially during non-peak hours, a breeze. So today, we have these grand structures criss-crossing over roads and between buildings, supposedly helping us jump into the fast lanes on the highways. We are still figuring out whether the dream is now a nightmare. The city’s ever increasing population, along with the growing number of vehicles, has already put a strain on this newly-built infrastructure. Is the answer more and more flyovers, so that finally commuters will be kept a aloft like extraterrestrials?

25 THE FUN IN FOOTBALL The beautiful game has always been “the other sport” in India. And although Mumbai, with its strong cosmopolitan population has contributed to football, it has been nothing like cricket. Adib Kenkre, football coach at school and club level for the past twenty years believes that Mumbai’s young footballers have massive potential. This is evident in the highly competitive school tournaments played across the city and supported vigorously by the public. Sadly enough, poor infrastructure and apathy of sports authorities have hindered their progress. Kenkre also founded an academy and club, which has nurtured national footballers like Abhishek Yadav and Gorky Pereira.

In the National Football League (now I-League), Mumbai have two of the oldest clubs in the form of Air India (1952) and Mahindra United (1962).

Due to the steady increase in I-league viewership and renewed interest in the sport in recent years, another club, Mumbai F.C. was founded in 2007. All the three clubs are currently playing in the top division and the Cooperage Stadium in South Mumbai is their home stadium.

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FILM AWARDS FISH FISHING OFF OUR COAST FANTASIE CHOCOLATES

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AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

FASHION SHOWS

FILM AWARDS There was a time (many light years ago) when the intelligentsia sneered at film awards, their juries and their star-spangled dances, their trophies and their audiences.

No one has the time to do that any more — too many award ceremonies to watch/attend. Lofty magazines, shrill news channels, propah business papers, well-meaning NGOs — they’re all handing out the trophies like there was no newscast tomorrow. Saas bahu soaps have their own awards, restaurants want ’em too, and politicians will not be left behind. What would Rajiv Gandhi have said if he saw Katrina Kaif gyrating at an awards show in his name? Approved thoroughly, perhaps — you can’t fight trophies and titillation any more.

Baje sargam har taraf se, gunje bankar deshrag!!

A quarter century of fashion shows have been considered the Golden Years for the industry and has seen the business turn more professional. Mumbai’s early choreographers like the Spencer Sisters, Jeannie Naoroji, and Sangeeta Chopra who created top models Mehr Jessia, Madhu Sapre, and Anna Bredmeyer have given way to their successors, Lubna Adam, Alison Kanuga, Achala Sachdev, and Marc Robinson. The advent of fashion weeks in Mumbai has given the back and front stage stars a new and burgeoning profession.

From wildly dancing entries on the ramp which were the trademark of Jeannie Naoroji and Sangeeta Chopra; the new ramp stars of Amazonian proportions, strut haughtily down the catwalk while domestic and foreign buyers grimly critique and observe the clothes. Mumbai is the Mecca of fashion; designers, models and anyone connected with the fashion business who wants to make it big as to make it in this mega metropolis if they want to be known nationally, for Mumbai is the New York of India.

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Not just a bus destination or a former tram terminus, but the place where Gandhiji issued the Quit India speech on August 8,1942 decreeing that the British must leave India immediately or else mass agitations would take place. This maidan is now known as August Kranti Maidan. The tank still exists underground. Trams would start and finish there and one could travel to the Prince of Wales Museum. This ground itself has been split into 5 smaller grounds, with one playground for children, one garden for promenades which is frequented by senior citizens and one ground used by schools.

The last park area houses the Smarak or martyr’s monument which is a white marble tower that cradles a pink lotus on top.

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He’s been Sunny G for so long that we have all but forgotten Sunil Gavaskar’s Grant Road's Chikalwadi connection. What we never forget is that he was the first to reach the Everest of batting, the milestone of 10,000 runs. It has been surpassed since but Gavaskar was the first and he continues to be named the best of his time because he scored runs in India and abroad and against the fastest bowlers of all time and without much protection like today's warriors who are armed with helmets, shin pads, arm guards, thigh pads and chest guards.

Above all, he and Bedi led the fight against the Board of Control for Cricket in India to get the players their overdue decent remuneration for their efforts. In his second and third innings, Gavaskar has served the game as columnist (for over a decade now), commentator and advisor to the BCCI and ICC. His Professional Management Group launched Indian cricket's first `sterile' cricket awards --ones which pay money (big) to current and ex-players through the Ceat and Castrol awards. PMG's Champ’s Foundation is a charity that has given new life to sportsfolk who have fallen on bad days, through a monthly pension scheme.

GOONDAGARDI Right from the local pathan dropping by to recover his dues from a client on Colaba Causeway to the local goon forcing you to pay up for vargani, Mumbai drips with goondagardi. The weakest here puts up a fight with the most menacing goonda. After all, it’s something he has to live with. With Dawood lying low and most others on the run, the onus of goondagardi has shifted to the white-collared. Plenty of that going around, especially in high-powered cars late at night!

Sunil Gavaskar, The Cricketer And The Man Sunil Gavaskar is playing what could possibly be his final first-class match at the Wankhede Stadium. It is, a personal moment in his life, though everything Gavaskar does is also a national event.

It has always been so, from the time he burst into big cricket with several centuries and a double century during the Wadekar team's suc-

cessful West Indies tour and thus gained instant cricket fame. From that point, he has progressed both as cricketer and man.

In Gavaskar's case, the cricketer and the man have always to be taken together. As a man he is as single-minded, determined and stubborn, as he is as a cricketer, when he goes out to bat and makes up his mind not to lose his wicket.

Over the years, he has both scored runs for

India and secured for his men a more-than-decent living as cricketers. Both the battles he has waged alone, in the silence of his mind. When he lost the Indian captaincy, ran into a lean patch, was in danger of almost losing his place in the team (though they would have never dared drop him), he fought his way out, working new theories in his mind, changing styles, adopting new approaches. And when he took on the board for the sake of his team and

other cricketers in India, he did that also alone.

Gavaskar keeps his own counsel. 1 do not think he discusses his problems with anybody, except, perhaps, his wife, and the immediate members of his family.

And he does not take advice easily, and, probably, justifiably. During the season, he d oes not read what the newspapers have to say about him, and his critics he treats with dry sarcasm.

The sarcasm, of course, goes over the heads of most of the critics.

Both as cricketer and man, he is pugnacious, a fighter, combatativc.

There is a lot of Geoff Boycott in him, without Boycott's cussed-ness.

Boycott is a loner, Gavaskar is a private person. We have seen a lot of him of late, thanks to Channel Nine's dramatic close-ups, pokerfaced, chewing gum, the tensions of the game only occasionally reflected in the eyes. We saw him rumbling up to collect the trophy, the manner laconic, the voice gentiy drawling. It

Mumbai se aya mera dost, dost ko salaam karo; Raatko khao piyo din ko aaraam karo

is a temperament he has created for himself to be the great cricketer he has become.

Only once in recent years has he allowed himself a little emotion.

That was on Monday, when he scored what he knew was his last Ranji century on his home ground (unless he scores one more in the next two days). Then, for a passing moment, he threw his hat in the air, his hands to the skies. .....................................BUSYBEE APRIL 3, 1985

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(GULLY CRICKET IN MUMBAI’S STREETS) GYM CULTUR GLOBAL WARMING – HOW MUMBAI IS LOSING ITS MOST CHERISHED SEASON – MONSOON GAMING GANESHOTSAV GAIETY THEATRE (G7) MAXIMUM SCREENS UNDER ONE ROOF GODREJ

GIRGAUM CHOWPATTY The original one, in English it would just be ‘Beach’. It’s the others, Dadar, Juhu, Versova, which need the place names attached. Chowpatty is bhelpuri and kulfi and for a long time, the place was a plastic mess. Now, however, with the chaat lines cordoned off into a bhel plaza, the foodies were confined and so was the littering. A nearby dumping ground was converted into a Nana Nani park by Pramod Navalkar on January 26th 1998 exclusively for use of senior citizens.

Chowpatty is now a prettier version of it filth-ridden past.

GOLAS Every summer, even the sight of a gola machine sends heartbeats racing. At a few rupees, you’re guaranteed to get the most lip-smacking gola of crushed ice fingerwrapped around a dandi, doused with your choice in flavour that could range from lime to kalakhatta. If you’re really picky, try the gola guy at Chowpatty who will make your gola with mineral water and milkmaid for effect.

GAYLORD WHEN YOU’VE HAD ENOUGH Plugged as India’s ‘melting pot’ of various ethnic cuisines at Churchgate, Gaylord has resisted falling prey to the years and moved with the times.

Their Continental fare remains to die for, their bread and bake counter and dessert spread is enough to tempt a saint during Lent. White-painted wrought-iron furniture in a patio lush with greenery affords a lovely sit out almost like a café in Paris, and you can just ignore the cars whizzing by 20 feet away.

GOD erytell you He’s ev Do we need to t Mumbaikar ’s are os where? And m in to any edifice that ng pi ep st used to eir if God is on th op-off is convenient, dr ad as pr at, a minds, for a ch rt. So it’s the fo athi, or just for com ena (in Hindi, English, Mar rshan at Sidov da N y ay da Wednesd Mahim, Tues at it) e ah on Frim rg na e Mahim da th Konkani, you d an vi de Prabha everywhere! dhivinayak at Everyone goes e? or m ow kn days. Want to

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GAVASKAR GALLOPS GAYLORD GRANT HOTEL AND THE RESTAURANT GOLAS GOONDAGARDI GOOGLE BROUGHT MORE PCS AND LAPTOPS HOME GUJARATI THALI GULSHAN KUMAR AND HIS T SERIESSERIES REVOLUTIONIZED MUSIC GOD

THE GATEWAY OF INDIA Built to commemorate the visit of King George V and Queen Mary in 1911, the Gateway of India has been the focal point of tourism in Mumbai.

While millions of tourists, both Indian and foreign, take in the city on tourist buses and Mumbai darshan tours, the Gateway itself has been closed to visitors for over a year now. The last time it found itself in the news was following the 26/11 terror attack on the Taj Mahal Hotel after which BSF as well as local policemen moved into the precincts of the heritage structure to stay there. An Afternoon Despatch and Courier report later, the activity came to a halt and the original use of the structure was restored.

GLENMARK PHARMA: INNOVATING SUCCESS Gracias Saldanha, a ‘pharma wizard’ and an employee of a multinational, founded a company his two sons, Glenn and Mark, and called it Glenmark Pharmaceuticals in 1977. He introduced many novel products in the country.

Today, while he continues to remain chairman, his son Glenn Saldanha, the Managing Director, oversees the entire operations of the organization. In fact, it is Glenn who has taken his fa-

ther’s ambitions further. He has managed to transform it from an Indian-driven branded generics business into a research-driven innovation led organization that focuses on discovering new molecules. Simultaneously, he has built a strong branded formulations business across emerging economies including India and has also established a strong foothold in the US generics market in a short period.

Today, the company with a turnover of over Rs 2,600 crore is a leading player in the discovery of new molecules both chemical and biological and has eight molecules in various stages of clinical development.

Headquartered in a distinctly modernistic glass and steel building in Andheri East, Glenmark employs nearly 6000 people in over 80 countries. It has twelve manufacturing facilities in

four countries and five R&D centres.

Glenmark was chosen as the “Best Pharma Company in the World – SME” and “Best Company across emerging markets” for 2008 by SCRIP, the largest selling and most respected pharmaceutical magazine in the world.

Forbes, another leading international publication, recognized Glenmark as the “Best under a Billion Dollar companies in Asia” for 2008

GLAXO: STILL A HEALTH CARE-TAKER Established in the year 1924 in India as Glaxo and today known as GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals, it one of the oldest pharmaceuticals company in the country.

Located at Worli, the company’s name has become synonymous with the area. It employs over 3500 people and is a market leader with a turnover of Rs. 1880 crore. Its corporate mission is to improve the quality of life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer.

Its India product portfolio includes prescription medicines and vaccines. Its prescription medicines range across therapeutic areas such as anti-infectives, dermatology, gynaecology, diabetes, oncology, cardiovascular disease and respiratory diseases.

The company is the market leader in most of the therapeutic categories in which it operates.

GANESHOTSAV GULLI MAIDAN when time or do it. So, to watch it all the tion, it’s s na r ha i he ba ot y um an M d y Cricket craz between India an ed e child th ay t pl ou g in gs be in e, the game br there’s no match ag of ve Azad cti pe or s es eets. Irr Oval, Cros time to hit the str city’s maidans – e ve th u’ of yo y , ay an g nd Su itin ss. If it’s a in all of us. Try vis look at the madne or fielding in some sort nd ha stfir a r fo Maidan g, bowling g, bowling cricket buffs battin other players battin of got hundreds of ve cti pe es irr y mphon of orchestrated sy proximity. se clo in g in ld fie or

Muktarsing ka naam suna hai tumne....

Ganpati Bappa Morya’, and the god really belongs to everyone, benevolent, warm, eagerly awaited for the festival.

For 10 days, from Bhadrapad Shudh Chaturthi to Ananta Chaturdashi, Ganesha is worshipped. On the 11th day, the idol of lord is taken through the streets in a procession accompanied with dancing and singing, to be immersed in a lake, river or the sea. The festival which was started by Lokmanya Tilak during pre-independence time has now become a big event. So it’s not one idol we are talking about, but thousands.

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Humour, Bal Thackeray Style My feelings about Mr. Bal Thackeray's latest triumph are mixed. As his former colleague, I am happy at his success, as I would be at the success of any old colleague.

As a citizen of Bombay (Mumbai), I am not quite sure.

To reassure myself, and a few readers, let me reflect on all the nice things about him.

For instance: The little, modest corner that he occupied at 21, Dalai Street, from where he functioned as the staff cartoonist of The Free Press Journal. The caricature which he once drew of me, and which, not aware of its worth later in life, I have lost.

I remember him as a quiet, soft-spoken gentleman, a little timid, sad-eyed, peering at the world through large glasses. There was something very melancholic about him, a sort of a Maharashtrian Woody Alien.

He used to smoke

cigars then (now he smokes pipes, which he does not know how to pack and light and keep going), or deshi cheeroots, since none of us were particularly rich on Free Press salaries and could not afford Havanas, though at that time they were available in Mumbai (Bombay) for 50 paise a piece.

Winston Churchill was his favourite cartoon character, a John Bull figure that he used to draw with rapid strokes.

Perhaps, his fondness for cigars was because of Churchill. There were other figures he used to draw; Nehru, looking like everybody's uncle, C. Rajagopalachari, in dark glasses, like a flying fox.

He used to let us watch him drawing, doing his daily cartoons. Probably he could not help it, because he was sitting in such a public place, nobody had bothered to give him a cabin.

His desk was next to the commercial desk, Shantilal

Shah and son Kirit Shah, the all-Gujarati commercial desk of the Free Press. It made a strange combination, the Maharashtrian artist and the Gujarati share bazarwallas.

At the end of the day, he would pass through the reporters' room, a halo of cigar smoke round his face. And he would joke and laugh, because unlike most cartoonists he had humour in private life also. All the reporters were very proud of him and very loyal, we used to say he was better than Laxman.

Which he was, for a while, though no longer.

People do not change, they only reach different stages of life. Possibly Bal Thackeray has not changed, he is still the cartoonist who likes to draw Winston Churchill. If that is the case, it would be good for Bombay (Mumbai). ..........................BUSYBEE APRIL 29, 1985

Rich as can be , South Mumba pered with he ritage structur i’s streets are pepes that range David Sassoo from n Li stitute of Scienc brary, Elphinstone College , Ine, Mumbai Uni Court, the Mus versity, High eum, the Gat ew so on and forth ay of India an . Mumbai’s pr d BMC headqu arters, The Tim ime CST and the es and the now-d of India build ef in prime heritag unct Capital Theatre are al g e sites mostly l re original glory. st However, a lit ored to their tle bit of publ cation in this ic eduregard is very much in orde r here.

HINDUJA AND BROTHERS The saga of the Hinduja Group started in Sind, when Parmanand Deepchand Hinduja, a young entrepreneur from the fabled town of Shikarpur, realized early in life that business was all about spotting opportunities and seizing them, wherever they surfaced. He travelled to Mumbai in 1914, and quickly learnt the ropes of business. The business journey, which began in Sind, entered the international arena with an office in Iran (the first outside India) in 1919. Merchant Banking and Trade were the twin pillars of the business and the Group remained

headquartered in Iran, until 1979 when it moved to Europe.

The Group has expanded and diversified its businesses, with significant social and charitable contributions, under the present leadership of Chairman, Srichand, ably supported by his brothers, Gopichand, Prakash and Ashok.

Today, the group has become one of the largest diversified groups in the world spanning all continents. The Group employs over 40,000 people and has offices in many key cities of the world and all the major cities in India. In India it owns

the automobile giant Ashok Leyland and the Indusind Bank amongst others.

The Hinduja Family has always adapted to free-market reforms moving quickly in new markets that have opened, and capitalising on new economy opportunities.

They’re in Mumbai, active and charachteristically lowprofile, with their own building at Worli, all dark windows and bland facade, a little secretive and inward looking, like the family itself. And nothing to tell one that it houses a corporate long-fabled for its global success

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BANDRA, GILBERT HEERA PANNA MALL HAJ HOUSE HOSPITALS IN MUMBAI HOTELS HOOKAH HERITAGE HIGHRISE AND HOUSING HELIPADS ON BLDGS HOVERCRAFT SERVICES ENDED BEFORE THEY BEGAN HINGLISH HIJRAS OF

HINDUSTAN UNILEVER: ON TOP HOSPITALS There’s specialty and there’s super specialty, take your pick. There was also a time when going to Bombay Hospital or Jaslok Hospital or Breach Candy meant you were rich, really rich and if you were middle class and were diagnosed with cancer, before Mediclaim and cashless insurance, you automatically trundled off to Tata Memorial.

Then, before you could say TPA, up sprang the healthcare system – and suddenly Bombay Hospital began to look like everyone’s elderly out-dated aunt. With Leelavati, Wockhardt, Ambani, Hiranandani and Kohinoor making an appearance, the others started sprucing up, from Holy Family and Holy Spirit, to Bhaktivedanta and Shushrusha. And then there were the tie-ups, Harvard Medical, Cleveland Clinic, or the ISO 9000 benchmarks.

Finally, there came the Asian heart Hospital and Ramakant Panda and a new lease of life to our Prime Minister.

Meanwhile, St George, KEM, JJ, Nair and GT, the old-style state government and civic hospitals, were undergoing transformations of their own, band-aids, it must be admitted, to the rot within. But at least the authorities were doffing their hats to the need for change.

Currently, Cooper, the first civic hospital to go ‘Specialty’, has been demolished in Vile Parle west. In its place is rising a Rs 550 crore structure to rival the smartest hospital in island city or suburbs. How times have changed!

OUR HIJRAS Far from being shunned, we know people who look out for particular friends chiefly at traffic signals. The cruelty continues – chhakka, people shout. The jeering is still loud. But understanding, sympathy and an awareness of what makes the third gender tick are growing.

Today, this faceless community that lived in the hidden corners of Mumbai,has now come out in the open and has a face called ‘Lakshmi’. Speaking fluent English and completely up to date with what is happening around her, Lakshmi says that she had never expected that things would take such a positive turn for them chiefly because of the hypocrisy endemic to our society. Both print and electronic media and globalization in general, have actually helped. “I wouldn’t say that it only because of one Lakshmi that things have happened. Many like minded people have come together and made this change occur,” says ‘she’.

“Mumbai has given us a face.

From the invisibles we have become the visibles. Just keep loving us and supporting us,” she says.

It meet your everyday needs for nutrition, hygiene and personal care with brands that help you feel good, look good and get more out of life. It is India’s largest Fast Moving Consumer Goods Company, touching the lives of two out of every three Indians with over 20 distinct categories in home and personal care products and Foods and Beverages. That’s Hindustan Unilever which has a turnover of over Rs. 20, 000 crores and is a subsidiary of Unilever, one of the world’s leading suppliers of fast moving consumer goods with strong local roots in more than 100 countries across the globe.

It was recently rated among the top four companies globally in the list of “Global Top Companies for Leaders” by a study sponsored by Hewitt Associates, in partnership with Fortune magazine and the RBL Group. The company was ranked number one in the Asia-Pacific region and in India.

HINGLISH Once upon a time the divide was clear and simple. It ran along the line that separated those who spoke English naturally and fluently from those who didn’t. Now, with the advent of tapori, the slang of the roadside Romeo, things are a little more complicated. Tapori is the Indian middle class way of making itself feel safe when confronted by the Great Unwashed. It is a method of distancing and it is a method of appropriation. Just as white people took to the black music that was jazz, the Indian Middle Class has taken tapori unto its soul and into its wallet. Advertising now routinely uses a mixture of English and Hindi and tapori. We are all being asked what our bahana is, we all want our lives to be jhingalala, and then some because our dil maange more.

But that’s how English operates. The language has always been a bottom-feeder, shamelessly taking words from whatever other linguistic tradition it encounters.

When the British came to India they did not

bother to find another word for ayah. They simply said ‘ayah’ and then bunged it into the dictionary. Hinglish is only a logical extension of that ability.

And it is a powerful force because there are 350 million Indians who speak English.

These Indians represent the growing middle class and its growing spending power.

The linguist Max Weinreich said, “A dialect is a language with an army and a navy.”

Today, one might say, a dialect is a language that has plastic.

And Mumbai has enough to fund a language.

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MUMBAI HELPLINES IN MUMBAI (NORTHCOTE) HAFTA HATE – KUMAR KETKAR OR NIKHIL WAGLE HEAT HAWKERS HARSHAD MEHTA, 1992 HAJI MASTAN HINDUJAS HEROES – BOLLYWOOD HEROES PERSONALITY HAS CHANGED. IT DOES

HIGH-RISE AND HOUSING

HIRANANDANI GARDENS–POWAI

Urban planners believe that the only way is up, given the huge scarcity of land. So the skyline is changing, the chawls are disappearing, the highrises are coming, exclusiveness and privacy, security and safety are at a premium. Mumbai is going in the direction of other cities in the second world like Rio and Johannesburg, filled with gated communities that keep the poor at bay. Not sure we like the swap at all.

HANGING GARDENS After Marine Drive’s open stretch, it’s the greenery of Hanging Gardens that provides the muchneeded breather to SOBO’s smog-filled lungs.

The perfectly manicured terrace garden lies just opposite Kamla Nehru Park and the hedges are ornaments to the art of topiary. It remains the preferred choice of lovers looking for that bit of privacy close to Marine Drive’s hustle and bustle.

“We can remove all the slums in Mumbai if we are allowed to, if the eco-terrorists who are blocking our country’s growth with restrictive policies are reformed or removed.

As far as I am concerned, at least I have shown the way with my townships. I feel I have done my duty to the best of my ability,” says Niranjan Hiranandani, MD of the realty firm that has lent its name to Mumbai’s arguably most famous township in Powai.

Peppered with skyscraper residential towers, its skyline distinct with Greco-Roman architectural influences, except for the autorickshaws, it is possible to believe oneself in a foreign country. Residential towers often have a second underground parking level. The roads are perfect, the security is tight, the street lights in their ornamental shades never go out. Hindi film makers have long since discovered its cheaper to come here and pretend to be in suburban US or Europe. As have the ad agencies.

Not that we agree that Mumbai has eco-terrorists of course!

HAJI ALI Immortalised by Amitabh Bachchan in Coolie during a breathtaking climax scene, Haji Ali’s brilliance can be witnessed best when it’s night and the place comes alive with all its lights. During high tide, the nearly one km long stretch of land leading to the dargah gets submerged underwater cutting off Haji Ali from the rest of the city.

Is sheher kai hai naye naye se apne raastey, sapne sach ho yahan agar kismat saath de

a life itnro me

The craze has only started. With flavoured hookahs hitting the scene, it’s a huge hit with the youth for whom sheesha is a must-have status symbol. Age limits and smoking bans by law haven’t really managed to keep the young away from hookah. They’re ready to carry their own flavoured ones for a session.

hed hookuap

There’s a book about this spot titled Zero Point Bombay, published in 2008, written by Kamla Ganesh, Usha Thakkar and Gita Chadha. This is “an apt metaphor for Horniman Circle. Located in the heart of the ‘Fort’, it holds within itself the early history of the Portuguese and British presence going back to the mid-sixteenth century. It is the very birthplace of Bombay. It is, at the same time, a hub of contemporary Mumbai, anchored in its economy and ethos.”

Which is all very well, but for us, Horniman Circle is the garden named for Benjamin Guy Horniman, editor of the Bombay Chronicle, who was deported for being a staunch supporter of satyagraha. It’s a beautiful location, used for poetry readings and small performances, as are the steps of the Asiatic, and the Tatas have restored it beautifully and taken great care of this lovely piece of the city’s past, preserved like a little jewel in the heart of congested Fort and open to all.

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NT NEED ACTORS ANYMORE BUT STARS, THE PICTURE OF A HERO NOW MEAN GOOD PHYSIQUE, LOOKS, STYLE ETC. HOMOSEXUALITY- FROM BEING A DISEASE TO A PREFERENCE- A CHANGE IN MINDSET HIPPOS

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HAFTA Every department of government demands hafta, those sweeteners above and beyond mere salaries. The worst thing is that everybody pays. Some, like the police, keep accounts in little black diaries, the numbers in tiny, crabbed writing far better than applied to the registration of FIRs. The civic staff hand out hand-written parchis that you keep to show you have paid your weekly bribe in order to do business. Arun Gawli, don turned politician turned don, now jailbird, had a red one, with details of payments received from builders, developers, matka operators, bookies and cable operators. His, of course, ran into lakhs and crores. The rest are much smaller sums. All of which add up to a huge amount every year. How huge? An estimate of what cops manning traffic outposts leading into and out of Mumbai puts the figure at Rs 3 lakh per day. That’s Rs 100 crore a year. And that is just one source! No wonder people are willing to pay vast sums for a lowly government job.

HUTATMA CHOWK/FLORA FOUNTAIN Its a sculpture set up in memory of the 105 deaths that occurred in 1960 when a peaceful demonstration by the Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti (United Maharashtra Committee) was fired upon by the police for the creation of the State of Maharashtra. Hutatma Chowk lies next to Flora Fountain which was built in 1864. The Fountain itself is a fusion of water, architecture and sculpture and depicts the Roman goddess Flora, hence the name.

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ISKON TEMPLE IRANI RESTAURANTS IDLI SAMBAR IPL INDIAN INSTITURE OF TECHMOLOGY (IIT) ICSE TO IB (CHANGES IN EDUCATION) I-POD/I-PHONES IMMIGRANTS ONCE AGAIN AN ISSUE, AFTER THE 70S

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IVF When Baby Durga was born 27 years ago, she was the country’s first test tube baby, the second in the world after britain’s Louise Brown.

The pioneer of the technique, Dr Subhash Mukhopadhyaya, hanged himself in shame, having failed to convince his colleagues of his achievement. The international scientist community has now accepted his claim.

Durga herself, actually Kanupriya Aggarwal, is an mBA from Symbiosis in Pune. And test tube babies are a ho-hum factor in Mumbai’s assisted re-production landscape.

“With a sizeable population of infertile couples and availability at an affordable cost, IVF has become quite big in Mumbai. There are around 50 IVF clinics here and at least 5000 cycles of IVF go on in Mumbai every year.

Around 40% of our patients come from places like the US, where IVF is very expensive, Pakistan and Bangladesh where this facility is not available,” says Dr.Aniruddha Malpani, Medical Director, Malpani Infertility Clinic.

It’s one up on Mother nature. Never mind IVF, now surrogate motherhood is the way to go, both to have a baby and make some money.

And yes, adoption is picking up as well.

INDIAN PREMIER LEAGUE There always existed a captive cricket audience in India, especially in the absence of other any other marketing effort to make other spot viable. Lalit Modi recognized this and saw ways to make the shortest recognised format of cricket, the twenty-overs game, rake in the moolah. And boy, it’s kept coming! Like the famous soccer leagues fought by clubs the world over, the idea of forming multinational teams, get the corporates to clash not just in the stock markets but on the cricket field, adding celebs to the party proved a heady and profitable mix.

Ironically, football could have been the first beneficiary as Modi had offered to do a Japanese type ( J-League) league involving the world’s best soccer stars, but the national federation didn’t give him the reins. IPL’s first event was such a hit, newer people began watching. No even moving it to South Africa last year in the wake of post 26/11 security concerns hurt the game an iota.

It’s back and going on and bigger than ever!

Interviewing The IC Computer Ever since Indian Airlines sacked all its booking staff and employed a computer instead, it is said that things have been in a mess at the booking offices. So the chief asked me to interview the computer and find out if it had any problems.

When I went to the office at Nariman Point, I found a large crowd of impatient passengers crowding around the counter where the computer was sitting. The

computer was saying: "All right, all right, look I have got only one screen, I can't serve all of you together."

It took me a couple of hours to reach the computer and, when I did so, it said: "It is time for my lunch." Then it switched off.

I spent the lunch-break talking to passengers and getting their views.

One of them said: "1 have been here three days, trying to get a ticket for Calcutta. If they must give their computer time off for lunch, they should hire two comput-

ers, so that while one is having its lunch, the other could continue the work."

After lunch, before I could tell the computer who I was and what I was doing there, it said: "If you want to book a ticket for Delhi or Calcutta, that is out. The P and T lines are down for both the places and I cannot say when they will be restored, may be two days, three days."

I explained I had not come for a ticket and I wanted to interview it and find out what problems it was facing.

The computer said: "You are the first person who

Basanti en kutto ke samne mat nachana...

thinks I may have some problems. Otherwise, 1 have had nothing from the press except criticism, criticism, criticism."

"That's a shame," I said.

"Now then, is it that you find the workload too heavy? Do you think the Indian Airlines should go in for one or two more computers to help you out?"

The computer said: "I don't think any of you Indians, except Mr. Rajiv Gandhi and his computer boys, understand how a computer functions. It is not the number of computers that you have that matters, it is how you programme

them that is important."

"Are you implying that they have not programmed you properly?"

I asked.

The computer said: "I am not saying anything, it is for you to judge. How can a computer function if after it has registered a scat, the chief minister is summoned to Delhi and the computer is asked to call back the booking from memory and reschedule it. No computer in the world is made for chief ministers who keep making airdashes. And I don't have to look after just the Bombay-Delhi route, but from all the state capi-

tals, except Bangalore and Hyderabad."

"I think I can understand your problems and the grave handicaps under which you are functioning," I said.

"Go ahead and write them," the computer said, "but don't let it appear that I have been complaining. Otherwise, the main computer in Delhi will get annoyed."

......................................BUSYBEE JULY 2, 1985

IDLI SAMBAR This one rules the roost in Mumbai. It arrives in dabbas, on thalis, in vatis, on foil, in trains, on dishes, at stalls, in paper plates and doesn’t stop coming. From a quintessential ‘Madrasi’ food item, the south Indian savory doubles up as a swift snack that can be ingested almost any time of the day. And you can have them with butter, cheese, dal, dahi and more. If there’s a limit, it’s only to your imagination.

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IDIOTS – 15 MILLION, FOR LIVING HERE AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

IDIOTS (Also see P fo r Population) Why are more than 15 m in this city and illion people living accepting all th crap doled ou t to them by th e e civic body, the stat e and the Cen tre?

Because they are idiots.

IMMIGRANTS

ICICI BANK: FASTEST GROWING

Could be you, me, the istri walla, your bai, the baker, the butcher, the candlestick maker, your doctor, lawyer, plumber. Touted as Mumbai’s biggest problem, the fact is, migrants have contributed to making the city what it is today, a cosmopolitan hub that attracts people who want to make it and don’t mind working to do so.

The figure is 350 families every day. It is a political problem and also spells largesse to the same class as they build up vote banks to keep themselves in power. They are a thorn in the side of local regional parties, as well as an opportunity to show the sons of the soil how much they “care”. Thanks to political opportunism, everyone is now oversensitive about the immigrant problem,

An aging and almost failing government owned financial institution ICICI was converted into a private bank. Today, ICICI Bank is India’s second-largest bank with total assets of Rs. 3,562.28 billion (US$ 77 billion). Presently, headed by the Banking Industry’s ‘first lady’ Chanda Kocchar, the bank seems to be taking giant strides by the day.

It already has a network of 1,658 branches and about 4,883 ATMs in India and presence in 18 countries, but has greater ambitions for the future.

The Bank currently has subsidiaries in the United Kingdom, Russia and Canada, branches in United States, Singapore, Bahrain, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka, Qatar and Dubai International Finance Centre and representative offices in United Arab Emirates, China, South Africa, Bangladesh, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. It has a UK subsidiary and has established branches in Belgium and Germany.

IRANI RESTAURANTS Living in Mumbai without having tried out the bun-maska or the brunmaska at an Irani restaurant would be a sad thing indeed and if you’re living in SOBO, it would be blasphemy. The fast disappearing Irani restaurant which has literally struggled to survive in the face of soaring property costs, changing tastes and operational hassles, still offers their specialities, each one

competing with the others and with other restaurants in the area, to preserve image and identity.

The legendary Bastani has downed its shutters, but Kayani is around, as is Sassanian. And

Yazdani at Fort still promises that if you eat its bread, you will have only sons. Comfortingly, in Ballard estate’s Britannia, famous for its berry pulao, Boman Kohinoor still displays his pet cockerel on the pay counter. The regulars keep coming but “With rising costs and manpower crisis it’s difficult to survive,” says Boman.

Buland bharat ki buland tasveer, hamara.......

going to the extent of suggesting absurdities as setting up borders and giving people “permissions” to come in.

The families in question thumb their noses at all such efforts and continue to flood in. Is there a solution? Sure – improve the infrastructure, stop the corruption, improve conditions in villages that are home to these people. The last would appear the easiest, but you think anyone is listening?

Population of Greater Mumbai? Go to P. It’s scary.

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JUHU BEACH Located on the shores of the Arabian Sea off Juhu, this beach has three entrances – one from Vile Parle, another from Santacruz and a third from Andheri. It’s like the one at Chowpatty, only more romantic. And every tourist, after he or she has run, jumped and scaled the parapet at Marine Drive, comes to Juhu to dunk toes into the Arabian sea.

Bolshoi goes Jogging As frequenters of Marine Drive in the mornings would be knowing, my dog, Bolshoi the, Boxer, and I jog over there every morning.

However, this morning, as I was putting on my Dawood walking shoes, Bolshoi said: "You go, I don't think J will come jogging with you any more. It is dangerous for Russians."

"What are you talking about!" I said. "You know. I don't like these

ercop for Otherwise known as Sup Punjab en -riv ion ess his work in sec s, Julio in the 80’s and early 90 ure as ten a ing ish Ribeiro was fin r of this city ne ssio mi com lice po the 1985. when ADC took form in form is as his , 80 ng chi tou ay, Tod ost as loud impressive, his voice alm r into ck fea as it was when he stru officers. Not ior jun his his cops and d even an to mention politicians, the NCP, of w no al, ujb Chhagan Bh Sa iv inik, then an aggressive Sh be taken to t no s learned he wa tly. ligh who were One of the few officers and politihst wit to le ab lly sfu ces suc of transtter ma the in cal pressure also he e tim e sam the at s, fer . After retirehandled the tribe deftly ania as ment, he was sent to Alb pt was em att an d an Ambassador,

heavy political discussions, which make no sense, early in the morning."

Bolshoi said: "This is not a political discussion.

Everybody knows it is not safe for Russians to jog any more, the Americans are all around waiting to pounce on them and kidnap them to Washington. And I am a Russian dog."

I said: "First of all, you are not a Russian dog, you have only got a Russian name, which is entirely my fault. Sec-

ondly, the Americans are not at all keen on kidnapping anybody and taking them to their country. They try and keep out even Gujaratis with green cards from entering America."

Bolshoi said: "If that was the case they would not be picking up everybody from Lodhi Gardens. In any case, I do not want to take any risks. These days it is best that all Russians should stay at home. But you go ahead, you will be safe.

Besides you need to jog."

"I beg your pardon, I don't need to jog, it is

you who need to," f said.

"I lead an active life, work for my living and keep my figure trim. It is for you, that I come jogging every morning. You should be grateful for that and not tell me, you go."

Bolshoi said: "You know they are picking up Russians everywhere. At Chanakyapuri, Mahalaxmi Racecourse, Karol Bagh, Worli Seaface.

And yet you don't seem to mind endangering me. What will I do in Washington among all those senators and Mr. Buchwald."

Baboomoshai.....Jindgi aur maut uparwale ke haath me hai jahapanha!!

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by Sikh made upon his life there separatists. ay continBut he survived, and tod sier than bu n eve life ues to lead a that is if e, when he was in servic en twe be r do ssa ba possible. Am aker, om-m ace pe es, niti mu com y could budsman, his typical da over meeting sid pre en twe be ing sw , how to tion rup cor s ings to discus ere to wh tackle communism, or women. for s sse cla ter hold compu citizens’ for He is in great demand a fearver ene wh gs, group meetin needs n inio less voice or a blunt op when d an , red live de or to be heard tadic wn do e there is a need to fac it s tell He m. nis ria rita torial autho like it is – always. s fulA man who thinks he ha l stil we s, am dre his all d fille salute him.

I said: "You are confusing Delhi with Bombay.

And I don't think any Russian has been to Karo! Bagh. Besides, if it is dangerous for you, it is dangerous for me also. And a dog's job is to protect his master and not sit at home while the master ventures out for.

Bolshoi smiled. I mean, he did not smile, because dogs cannot smile, but he looked like he was smiling. "Indians are in no danger of being kidnapped to America. What will anybody do with Indians.

You can safelv go and

do your jogging every morning."

I said: "Look, we are not living in Delhi, we are in Bombay. And our Bombay police are very efficient, they do not allow anybody to be kidnapped. You know very well how efficient Police Commissioner Ribeiro is and he has tightened security all over."

"If that is the case, then why doesn't your Police Commissioner Ribeiro's dog go jogging in the morning," Bolshoi said. ......................................BUSYBEE MARCH 27, 1985

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HOSPITAL, SCHOOL OF ARTS, ARCHITECTURE JASLOK HOSPITAL JAMSHEDJI BHABHA AUDITORIUM JUICE PLACES JUMBO KING VADA PAV- IS IT A REAL COMPETITION TO MCDONALDS? JAI HO! JAZZ YATRA

JET AIRWAYS: JETTING AHEAD Entrepreneurial risk and achievements have always been a Mumbai story. And this is one achievement that makes Mumbai proud.When Naresh Goyal, the founder Chairman of Jet Airways set up his private airlines, almost everybody presumed that he would fail. Yet he was confident and at the time of the launch he had stated, “Soon Jet Airways will be the most preferred domestic airline in India. It will be the automatic first choice carrier for the traveling public and set stan-

dards, which other competing airlines will seek to match.

It will achieve this pre-eminent position by offering a high quality of service and reliable, comfortable and efficient operations. It will be an airline which is going to upgrade the concept of domestic airline travel, a world class domestic airline.” That seems to have come true.

Today, it has the youngest fleet of aircraft and is India’s second largest airline after Air India. Already considered the market leader in the do-

mestic sector, it operates over 400 daily flights to 80 destinations worldwide. Incidentally, the company also operates two low-cost airlines, namely JetLite (formerly Air Sahara) and Jet Airways Konnect.

International recognition has also come. In a poll conducted by SmartTravelAsia.com in September 2008, it was voted the world’s seventh best airline overall. And now, with 2009’s recessionary trends behind us, the skies are once again the limit.

JAM-E-JAMSHED

family of Mumbai ck, it was the Marzban ba rs yea en sev tyen sis.

One hundred and sev -e- Jamshed, for the Par n massive which floated a daily, Jam ry-old existence, the Jam-e- Jamshed has see s weekly. ntu he During its nearly two-ce content. The erstwhile daily nowt only publis nerad ge an w ip ne rsh the ne to ow changes in tion to cater paper has an English sec editor is a its ge d ua An ng e.

-la ag ati gu jar lan Gu e ted Th adop read the community ’s oon. tion, most who do not for a time with the Aftern d rke wo o wh , eer gin En z aa ern Sh – n ma wo

JOGGERS’ PARKS Resident associations and citizen groups have actively been pushing for the creation of green spaces across the city. So, over the last decade or two, space crunched Mumbai has grown to develop lungs of its own.

There are Joggers Parks across the city to provide residents the muchneeded space to walk, jog, run even sit and meditate. And, most of them double up as laughter club centres where regulars circle up in the mornings and break into a range of chuckles and giggles to drive away their woes. “It works,” says Laughter Club Priyadarshini Park chairman Kishore Kuvavala.

Joggers Park was immortalised in a very successful film by the same name wherein a retired married judge falls in love with a freelance model. In the real parks, this seldom happens.

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The legendary Rudy Cotton played the first Jazz notes at Mumbai’s Rang Bhavan. This started the tradition of a jazz festival in Mumbai. And, it was with an inaugural concert by Krin Krog that Jazz India was founded in 1975. Jazz Yatra was a bi-annual event till 2000. Thereafter, it was organised annually till 2004. ‘Jazz Yatra’ is now known as ‘Jazz Utsav’ - one of the oldest and

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longest running jazz festivals outside America.

Although India may not be a country where jazz enjoys a widespread fan following, Jazz Yatra/Jazz Utsav enjoys a reputation for having a longer run than any European jazz festival. The only sad bit is that Rang Bhavan is no longer its venue.

JEWS About 2.500 Jews live in Mumbai and worship at the eight synagogues in the city. After having settled in the Konkan more than 2,000 years ago, the low-profile community came into the limelight again following the terrorist attack on 26/11 in which six Jews were held hostage and murdered at the Mumbai Chabad House Jewish Outreach Centre. India has always protected its

JJ PHENOMENON Jamsetji Jeejeebhoy, better known as JJ, founded the J.J. Hospital, and donated to the acclaimed Sir J.J. School of Art, Sir J.J. College of Architecture, Sir J.J. Institute of Applied Art and the Seth R.J.J. High School. A 2.4 km flyover from in front of J.J. College swings over crowded Mohammedali Road to terminate in front of J.J. hospital. Naturally, it’s called the J.J. Flyover, and is easily the best one in the city.

Jews. As a consequence, Maharashtra has an outpost of considerable size in Israel, where the Bene Israel Jews from the Konkan coast who made Aliya (returning home), speak Marathi, eat as they do here, wear saris and generally behave as if they’ve taken a piece of the state with them.

SLURP UP THE JUICE All along Mumbai, the swiftest replacement to a meal is a fruit juice.

And nothing like it if you get it fresh. So, you’ve got fresh fruit juice being squeezed out at stalls lining Ballard Pier, Gateway of India, Chowpatty along every

railway station and marketplace including in and around Bombay Stock Exchange where there’s little time for traders or investors to pool in that lengthy meal and a juice packs in a punch at competitive price too. Even if

you’ve never been here, surely you have heard of the Haji Ali Juice centre, with its systematic parking along the crowded main road and runners to get you your orders in a jiffy as the police look on in benign approval?

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KALA GHODA KAMATHIPURA KAMALA NEHRU PARK KANHERI CAVES KOTACHI WADI KABUTAR KHANA KOLIWADAS KALA NIKETAN KC COLLEGE KALA GHODA FESTIVAL KAILASH PARBAT KAMATS

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filmai s u f nd

KARAN JOHAR-SHAH RUKH KHAN

Baby-Sitting Vishal Kamat

Now who would have thought a film by Karan Johar would roundly discredit the Shiv Sena’s ageing tiger, alienate the party from most Mumbaikars, and strike a blow for creative freedom — even if by default. Given Johar’s capitulation when the Sena objected to the use of the word ‘Bombay’ in his pro-

duction, Wake Up Sid, this was sweet revenge.

The famed goodwill that Johar and his lead actor Shah Rukh Khan enjoy was put to the test when Balasaheb held a cinematic gun to their heads, insisting that he wouldn’t allow their film to release if Khan didn’t apologise for his remark regretting the absence of Pakistani

players in the IPL. Khan refused to, and Mumbai, indeed all of India, rallied behind him. And MNIK went on to make some Rs 175 crore at last count. Proving once again that nothing unites the country like Hindi cinema and cricket. And that today’s Shiv Sena can’t take on even a Bollywood film, much less its competition

Navjoke Sidhu!

Eat these words

Yesterday, my young friend, Vishal Kamat, all of twoand-a-half yearsold, just returned from Tirupati-Tirumalai, with his head shaved and a neat pom-pom on the crown, was left with me for a couple of hours while his mother was busy with her household chores.

For a child who is described as naughty and mischievous and a little goonda and other such endearing terms that no selfrespecting child would ever like to hear I must say he was polite and wellbehaved and considerate about my need for quiet and peace.

He did ask a lot of questions, but then what are adults for, if not to answer the questions of children. He wanted to know why did people always smile in photographs, did owls bite, what work I did and was typing really work, why I wore shoes in the house, what was the puppet on the TV screen supposed to be doing.

We watched TV most of the time, or at least the TV was on, right in front of us, and we went about our work. He seemed to be not watching, but he was quite alert, and everytime the puppet came on the screen, he would point it out to me.

Then, when Mr. Bachchan came on the screen, he pointed him out to me. Amitabh Bachchan, he said, with the same enthusiasm or lack of it, as he had shown for the puppet.

At one stage, I taught him how to switch off the TV and switch it on again. And the rest of the evening, he spent doing that. I was happy I had taught him something new during the evening.

On his part, he showed me a lot of things. He showed me how Vispy Kapadia breaks a block of ice, puffing his cheeks and rolling his eyes and leaping in the air and bringing his forearm down with force.

And he showed me how he had pushed a boy in school that morning, who had made fun of his Tirupati hair-cut.

I looked around the house for something that a child could eat, then offerred him a choice of cream biscuits and chocolates.

Chocolates, he said, very definitely.

So I gave him a Cadbury 5-Star, with instructions he was to eat it only after his dinner.

He told me that he had already had his dinner and promptly began struggling with the wrapper to open it. I have never understood what marketing policy is involved that makes

Cadbury's pack their 5-Stars so tight that children make a mess before they manage to open it.

As I said earlier, throughout he was well-behaved and extremely considerate. He sat in the chair, his legs dangling from the end, playing with some freshly-minted coins that he informed me were meant for his piggy-bank.

Then he deposited them, one by one, in the lining of my chair, from which, I extricated them with great difficulty. Then he deposited them back in the lining.

And he asked me more questions.

Why did some people not shave?

What could happen if you pushed his teacher? How much, actually, did a Maruti cost? And ' did I think he had enough money in his piggy-bank to buy one.

By that time the news was on on TV and Mr. Rajiv Gandhi made his regular appearance. And I remembered the prime minister's famous statement - "I am young and I too have a dream."

And, I thought, no, Mr. Gandhi was not young, far from it.

Vishal Kamat was young.

............................BUSYBEE JULY 24, 1986

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K RUSTOM KHYBER KAMLING KOLIWADA FISH AND KOLIS KARATE CLASSES KHANS OF BOLLYWOOD KISHORE KUMAR KISHORE BIYANI KANNADIGAS KASAB, KAZMI, KAMTE, KARKARE, A.A. KHAN, KANG

KAILASH PARBAT, K RUSTOM, KOLIWADA FISH Kailash Parbat is not just a Sindhi restaurant, it is one of Colaba’s most well-known landmarks. Before they opened their branches people would come from all over for the dahi puri and the bhel puri, they would come for the ragda pattice and the dahi wada, they would come for their sweet, gaudy, milky but, oh so sinful, falooda kulfi. Sleepy, slow-paced K Rustom is a favourite for just one thing – the ice cream sandwich. It drips all over but the thick slab of ice cream between two crispy wafers brings out the child in you. Despite its name, Koliwada fish has nothing to do with the Kolis but was an invention of the Punjabis who settled down in Sion-Koliwada. Spicy and juicy, the batter coated fish topped with chaat masala is a favourite now across the city. All good K’s!

K.V. KAMATH: ‘NUMERO UNO’ An aging and almost failing governmentowned financial institution is converted into a private bank and in a few years it becomes the ‘numero uno’ in its segment. The credit goes to just one man – Padmabhushan - Kundapur Vaman Kamath, the non-executive Chairman of ICICI Bank, the largest private bank in India. He served with great ingenuity, as ICICI Bank’s Managing Director and CEO from May 1, 1996 until his retirement from executive responsibilities on April 30, 2009. Literally speaking, he turned the tables on failure.

A GSB Konkani born on December 2, 1947, in Mangalore, Karnataka, he is a mechanical engineer by qualification with an MBA from IIIM-A. He started his career with ICICI (Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India), but moved to the Asian Development Bank, Manila in 1988. He returned to ICICI as its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer. Kamath was instrumental in expanding the Group’s services to the retail customers. He initiated a process of a series of acquisitions of non-banking finance companies in 1996-98, and led the way to the formation of ICICI Bank. The rest is history.

Elected to the Board of Directors of Infosys Ltd on May 2, 2009, it is being speculated by the media that Kamath may become the non executive Chairman of Infosys upon Mr Narayanamurthy’s retirement in 2011.

KOHINOOR GROUP KALA KHATTA

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THE K FACTOR IS NOW K-K-K-K-ING DOWN Through the ‘90’s and up till three years ago, the K factor automatically referred to Balaji head honcho Ekta Kapoor’s obsession with the alphabet with which she started the titles of all her television soaps – ridiculous in the main but money-making machines all the same. The whole world, it would seem, identified with the saases, the bahus, the scheming sisters-in-law, the murderous ghar jamai, households where everyone was dressed for a wedding every minute of the day or night and the most tedious camerawork you can imagine.

The times and New Age requirements have caught up with all that, and high time. But here we are referring to another K factor that seemed curiously at work on the day that Mumbai will never forget – 26/11.

Notice how so many of the protagonists had names beginning with K? Kasab for one. Then Hemant Karkare, and Ashok Kamte, the men, who, along with Vijay Salaskar, were killed by him. In the Taj Mahal hotel, the family of Karambir Kang died as Kasab’s colleagues rampaged around, burning and shooting. And then there was his lawyer, another K, Abbas Kazmi, who did his best to defend him and was finally sacked for his pains.

All of which means nothing, unless astrologists and numerologists would like to read something into it.

KISHORE BIYANI: RETAIL RAJA KUMAR MANGALAM BIRLA: LEGEND’S SON Son of the legendary Aditya Birla, this dynamic man shares most of the qualities of his father. He is polite and soft spoken and commands the same awe and respect as his father did. Born on June 14, 1967, he is a Chartered Accountant and did his MBA from the London Business School.

He took over as Chairman in 1995, at the age of 28, after the sudden demise of his father, noted industrialist Aditya Birla, after whom the group is named. An iconic figure, he holds several key positions on various regulatory and professional boards. He is a

director of the Central Board of Directors of the Reserve Bank of India, serves on the Prime Minister of India’s Advisory Council on Trade and Industry, and is the chairman of the Board of Trade constituted by the Union Minister of Commerce & Industry. Additionally, he is on the National Council of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII); the Apex Advisory Council of the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India, New Delhi and the Advisory Council for the Centre for Corporate Governance.

He served as the chairman of Securities and Exchange Board of India’s Committee on Corporate Governance, and as chairman of SEBI’s committee on insider trading. He has authored the nation’s first report on corporate governance.

Mere paas maa hai!!

People laughed at him when he was toying with the idea of “Corporatising Retail’. Today, Kishore Biyani is laughing all the way to the bank. Just 49, he has recently authored a book, “It Happened in India”, that captures his entrepreneurial journey and the growth of modern retailing in India.

A calculated risk taker, he is the MD of Pantaloon Retail and the Group CEO of the Future Group. He has led Pantaloon Retail’s emergence as India’s leading retailer operating in multiple formats that now cater to the consumption basket of a large section of Indian consumers.

Both Pantaloons, the family store in 1997, and the launch of Big Bazaar, a uniquely Indian hypermarket format that democratized shopping in India in 2001, sort of changed the way India shopped. It blends the look, touch and feel of Indian bazaars with aspects of modern retail like choice, convenience and quality. This was followed by a number of other formats including Food Bazaar, Central and Home Town.

The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2006 in the Services Sector and the Lakshmipat Singhania - IIM Lucknow Young Business Leader Award, the CNBC First Generation Entrepreneur of the Year, and that was just 2006. Obviously, he hasn’t hit his stride yet!

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Despite the influx of private Insurance companies into the country, this one still stands tall and remains amongst the most trusted financial institution. From 1956, when it was founded, to the present day, the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) remains the behemoth of insurance, only now changing its fuddy-duddy ways. Perhaps it can be fogiven its olddfashioned outlook, considering that it also funds close to 24.6% of the Indian Government’s expenses. It has assets estimated at Rs 7, 82,000 crores (or about $170 billion dollars), and money will always stay very much in style!.

Everytime you walk past the cresent sweep of its headquarters in Churchgate reclamation, remember it has 8 zonal offices, 101 divisional offices and at least 2048 branches located in different cities and towns of India..

It has a network of around 1.2 million agents. And the best part is that it remains “scam free”.

Location Shooting The other day, watching the annual Filmfare awards, I thought of my days as a film journalist.

Once I went with Mr. B. R. Chopra's unit to Dehradun and Mussoorie for the shooting of Karam. The entire party left from Santa Cruz airport one afternoon, though Rajesh Khanna was late and missed the plane and two of the party had to stay behind to escort him the following morning. I do not quite remember now, I think he missed the plane the following

morning also.

The other stars were Shabana Azmi, (my, so intelligent) and Vidya Sinha (who spent most of the time with her maidservant), Rajesh Khanna had brought his valet along. His job was to carry at all times Mr. Khanna's tape recorder, State Express cigarettes and lighter.

The shooting was done quite fast. Mr. Chopra had brought along his whole family, son, sonin-law, etc., and all of them, would direct together and separately.

Mr. Chopra was also a gracious host. When we

returned to Bombay, he presented each one of us with two kilos of rice bought from the Dehradun rice bazaar.

Except Rajesh Khanna, he was not given any rice. I suppose, Mr. Chopra gave him Rs. 50 lakh or whatever fees he commanded in those happy days.

There was only one embarrassing aspect of the entire trip. Outside the hotel in Dehradun, where we were staying, large crowds used to collect from morning to late night to spot the stars. Which was natural.

However, every time I passed through the gates in one of the unit

taxis, the crowds would rush forward to look in, then, disappointed, they would shout back to the others in the crowd that it was nobody, just a chamcha.

I must also, at this stage, mention the character actors, the bit role players, who were present.

One was my good friend, Pinchoo Kapoor who, I think, played the principal of the little school in Mussoorie where Rajesh Khanna was supposed to have put his little son, (Master Bintu, I think, a lovely child, though quite aware of all the attention that was being paid to him).

Yeh pulice station hai, tumhare baap ka ghar nahi...

The other and this also I think, was Iftekhar, the gentleman who plays police officers in films and on whom, the present police commissioner, Mr. Soman, seems to have based his personality.

In any case, everybody was all praise for the character actors. The shooting of their scenes did not take more than two shots (the second only to make sure) and everybody said they were thorough professionals.

Rajesh Khanna also, once he was there, was thoroughly professional.

He knew his lines by heart, all the expressions were correct, one minute

he would be talking to people, next he would be in front of the camera, his whole personality changed to suit the role. Small wonder he was being paid what he was.

After Dehradun, I went to three other location shootings. Then, I decided, enough was enough. Now if you make me the editor of Filmfare, 1 would not go to a location shooting.

For that matter, why Filmfare! I would not go even if 1 was made the editor of Stardust. ......................................BUSYBEE OCTOBER 18, 1985

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(BANDSTAND, BANDRA PROMENADE, MARINE DRIVE AND GOING INTO THE CULTURE OF INTOLERANCE TODAY ETC.) LAWRENCE & MAYO LIBERTY LIJJAT PAPAD LADY CAB DRIVERS LADIES SPECIAL LOCAL TRAINS INTRODUCED IN 1992

LEOPARDS: THE REAL VICTIMS Corbett’s man-eater of Rudraprayag may have killed 126 people before the legendary hunterturned-conservationist shot him down in 1925.

But in Mumbai, we aren’t doing too badly either! In 2002, leopard attacks in and around the Sanjay Gandhi National Park accounted for the deaths of 36 people. Perhaps a total of 20 were killed from 2000 till 2005.And it’s all our fault.

The National Park has long been seen as a squatters haven by politicians eager to build up vote banks. There is encroachment in the park and buildings on its pe-

life in metro

riphery. The result is a disturbed leopard population of around 40 animals straying into human habitation with disastrous conseuqnces.

How is the problem dealt with? By dislocation. The animals are trapped, taken to the middle of the park and released. They have an unerring homing instinct, so back they come from the place they come to the place they last visited. More human terror, more human screaming.

It all seems to have stopped now with the spotlight on the problem of encroachments. Let’s see how long the leopards (and we) stay safe!

AT LAST, A CONNECTION t Larsen & Toubro migh of s red nd hu ilt bu have mega projects through out the country successfully. But as far as Mumbai is concerned, this Rs mph and test p company’s biggest triu 35,000-crore blue chi T- Scomi & L rail. With the words will be India’s first mono off digging g nin do cor es s of barricad gineering stamped across dozen en the t, this is going to be sites for Mumbai projec h the city. giant’s big connect wit

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LOCAL TRAINS – MUMBAI LOCAL TRAINS LOAD SHEDDING LALBAUGCHA RAJA LOTTERY SYSTEM – MHADA FLATS LAW AND ORDER LAKME FASHION WEEK LEOPARDS LAKES OF MUMBAI LAND LEAVE AND LICENSE LEBANESE CUISINE

IT S SI L

Lebanese food in Mumbai, like Mexican, has had a chequered history in Mumbai. We’re not willing to accept full-scale restaurants but we’ve completely embraced the snacks. The only Lebanese dishes that have really worked are the ones that cater to two very strong preferences: our love for rolls and our love of dips. Technically, a wrap, the shawarma with its stuffing of shredded, grilled chicken or lamb, pickled vegetables, fries and mayo is a wonderfully compact package of flavours and textures. Not only is it adequately filling but also, like the Frankie, it’s food on the go, something that Mumbaikars have always appreciated. Hummus, the thick smooth chickpea dip, and pita triangles are slowly becoming a very popular party snack. It’s simple, convenient, no fuss and suitably exotic.

All sorts of Mezze, as the assortement of bite-sized foods are collectively called, have found a fan following in Mumbai. Falafels, the deepfried, tikki-sized balls, baba gannouj, the creamy brinjal and tabbouleh the mint and bulghur-based salad are all extremely popular.

LUXE LIVING

LINKING ROAD If a study were to be conducted on how people spend their time in Mumbai, it would not be surprising to know that women, especially young girls spend a substantial part of their time shopping at Vitthalbhai Patel Marg. Greek? The official name of Linking Road is Vitthalbhai Patel Marg, a road that extends from Bandra talkies to Shanti Ashram, Borivali. But this is not exactly how Mumbaikars know Linking Road. Linking Road, Bandra is a paradise for subsidized shopping in Mumbai.

Not that articles bought at Linking last for a lifetime, perhaps just about six months of regular use, yet, the trendiest accessories, clothes, shoes and bags are available out there. It’s a cause of worry if Linking Road is not bustling with women at any given point of the day or the week.

“I have to go to Linking” is a standard old favourite which women keep regurgitating every time they realize that their cupboard is out of stock or out of fashion or both.

But can we really blame them? Linking Road is the obvious haven for cash strapped shoppers because this is the place where the price range for any item be it trendy shoes, stylish dresses, pretty stoles or funky accessories, might start from Rs.200. But if you know your tricks and are a pro at bargaining, then you can get that very thing for Rs.100. In these times of inflation, this place definitely gives us and our pockets a reason to smile as this is the only place where prices actually fall in a matter of minutes. Which is why we link up at Linking road.

When William Lauder, Chairman and CEO of the Estee Lauder group came to India four years ago, he took a quick look at Mumbai and lamented the fact that, “the city does not have a High Street!”, where people who enjoyed luxury could spend time in a plush environment and shop to their hearts’ content.

The luxury industry also looked. It was true. Except for a smattering of high end watch stores scattered in a few malls, in deluxe hotels and individual stores, there was no cohesive structure to selling luxury goods. As if nudged by William Lauder, the city now seems to have a semblance of ‘high streets’ in the elitist pockets of the city. You only have to check the tiny strip of real estate from Nariman Point to Lower Parel and from Bandra to Andheri.

The former is where the ‘old money’ clients live, and the latter is for the new urban rich. The Galleria for instance comprises high end stores with Judith Leiber bags vying for attention with Jimmy Choo shoes. Where the two grand houses of Luxury, LVMH and the Richmond Group compete fiercely for its share of clients by building little temples of luxury in Mumbai.

Check out the latest luxury lounge, The Palladium where brands jostle for attention. A huge hoarding inside the mall reminds us that Zara is coming to Mumbai, rubbing shoulders with The Collective, one storey higher, that houses brands like Versace, Armani and Todd’s. Why, it even has Lauder’s blessings! Three stores in a row grandly display luxury cosmetics of Estee, Clinic and Mac, all belonging to the Estee Lauder group.

After all, luxury is known by the company it keeps and our new High Street, The Palladium, immediately puts every store it houses in the

luxury bracket. Even Celio, a mid-range brand in the West, get promoted to high end.

After all, it’s rubbing shoulders with Rosenthal, the beautiful table-ware store, so exclusive that even dining divas look in wistfully at dinner sets that cost a small fortune.

Is there enough traffic in these stores? An hour at any of these luxury malls: Atria, Palladium or even individual stores like Vileroy & Boch, or the numerous Swiss watch brand stores, will reveal a poor walk-in traffic. But before you jump to conclusions about how badly luxury in India is doing, consider this: Every luxury brand that comes to India has only one figure in mind: 2 percent.

No it’s not the market share they’re looking at; remember, for luxury, money is no object. Nor does it refer to the net turnover, or the ROI. The 2 percent they are interested in is the demographic profile of their clientele: The super-rich, the old money and the new rich. And it is this two percent alone that will make or break this industry.

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MALABAR HILL MARINE DRIVE MADH ISLAND MUSEUM MANTRALAYA MAHALAXMI RACECOURSE MAHALAXMI TEMPLE MUMBADEVI MADH MANORI MAHIM CHURCH MATHAR PAKADI MARATHA MANDIR METRO MAHAKALI CAVES

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MITHI RIVER RUNS OVER US The river which created havoc in Mumbai claiming many lives in 2005. Mumbai’s only river connected all the way from Vihar Lake towards Powai Lake and reaching the Arabian Sea. It is the only creek which balances the water level of Mumbai during heavy rainfall and during the Mumbai monsoon. It’s almost 16 to 17 kilometers long and this river mainly takes away the waste, so it is a drainage channel cum sewer, and in many places, is reduced to nallah size In 2005, enraged by its misuse, it rose in fury and caused the Floods. Since the, the authorities have been trying to placate it, widen it, clean it, clear it. Miles to go, we are afraid. BMC, you have been warned.

MANI BHAVAN HADA MRVC, MMRDA , M bet Maha-important alpha ilRa ai mb Mu soup for us. ion rat rpo Co as Vik y wa ted (MRVC) was incorpora pleim to , 99 19 , 12 y Jul on of rk wo ay ilw ment the Ra ort Mumbai Urban Transp ion rat rpo Co Project. The ts so will execute the projec also l wil d an far identified ing nn pla the in ed olv inv be mMu of nt me and develop . tem sys il Ra an urb Sub i ba in t jec pro re ctu Any infrastru inthe s nd ma de ai mb Mu t of evitable the involvemen

Bolshoi Ban Gaya Moti!

I was telling my dog, Bolshoi the Boxer: "We had better get an identity card for you, so that you can legally continue to reside in Bombay. I don't want any trouble with the Shiv Sena."

Bolshoi said: "What trouble! The Shiv Sena, just because it has won some small municipality election, can't go about deciding who should stay

Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development e Authority (MMRDA). Th authority plans and exe ctru ras inf s cutes variou tural development projects.

The Maharashtra Housled ing Board formerly cal ” “Bombay Housing Board as wn kno tly and presen and Maharashtra Housing rity tho Au nt me op Area Devel ed in (MHADA) was establish over and had a jurisdiction the entire State of Maha

in Bombay and who should not. It is against the constitution."

"Do you know about the constitution or does the chief minister know about it!" I said. "If it was unconstitutional, the chief minister would not have said his government is studying the identity card proposal of Mr. Bal Thackeray."

Bolshoi said: "Have Mr. Thackeray's dogs got identity cards

a. rashtra except Vidharbh con ok rto de un This body struction of residential s buildings under variou ferhousing schemes for dif soof ns ent sectio ciety. Impresed?

We thought not!

that other people's dogs have got to get them!"

I explained: "Probably, Mr. Thackeray's dogs do not require an identity card, the 1974 cut-off line may not be applicable to them. In any case, it is not for us to talk about what big people's dogs do, or do not do.

We have to safeguard our own interests. So, tomorrow, I will take you to the municipal corporation and get you an identity card. Then even Mr. Chhagan Bhujbal

It is as quaint as the name of the quiet street on which it stands, Laburnum Road in South Mumbai, but once upon a time, it was the residence of the Mahatma. It is a pretty, two-storey building which has a small library of around 2,000 books and some exhibits of memorabilia that he once used, including an old spinning wheel. Today, its main visitors are old Gandhians and the occasional school group or a tourist. For Mumbai, while we

will not be able to tell you to get out."

"Chhagan Bhujbal or no Chhagan Bhujbal, I am not going to get an identity card," Bolshoi said.

"The minute you apply for an identity card means you have conceded to the Shiv Sena's point. Today, they will ask me for an identity card, tomorrow they may ask you or they may ask the chief minister."

I smiled: "They won't ask the chief minister and me, we arc Maharashtri-

No, it’s cities are not paved with gold, but the pavements can be home – beggar at CST

love it and would hate to see anything happen to it, it is a symbol of a time long past, an anachronism

ans, that's obvious. And 1 do not like the way you are referring to our new mayor-to-be. It is not proper."

Bolshoi ignored this.

Then, after thinking for a moment, he said: "I don't think they can check each and every dog to find out which one is before the 1974 cut-off line, which one is after. If they start doing that, all their five years in the corporation will be spent in that only and nothing else will be done."

in the new Mumbai for which “money, money, money’ is both mantra and way of life.

"What else is there that is as important as checking the influx of migrants into Bombay!" I said. "Let us just go and get you an identity card and be done with it. And, while we are at it, let us change your name also."

"What name do you have in mind?" Bolshoi asked.

"Moti", I said, "yes, Moti.

I should think that is a nice Maharashtrian name. ......................................BUSYBEE MAY 8, 1985

MANDAPESHWAR CAVES MANI BHAVAN MANISH MARKET MILL LANDS MITHI RIVER MTNL MUMBAI SAMACHAR MONSOONS MARATHI MANOOS MNS MUMBAI MARATHON MONORAIL MALLS MULTIPLEXES MOHALLA

MONORAIL Mumbai will perhaps understand Monorail as an elevated rail only due to the space constraint the city faces. Occupying just 1 metre (0.8mx1.5m) of road space, the first Monorail service (Jacob Circle- Wadala – Chembur) is likely to start by the year end, as promised by Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority, the developing body.

Made first in Russia in the 1820 by Ivan Elmanov, the use of monorails till about 1980 was limited to amusement parks like Disneyland in California. However, with rising traffic, most modern cities around the world adopted it as a major feeder system in transport. In an effort to ‘change the way Mumbaikars travel’, the city’s infrastructural body launched the idea, thereby making Mumbai the only city in India to have such a service shortly.

The only closed-door, air-conditioned service to run at an elevation of 6.5m, carrying close to 575 commuters, hawker-free, paan-stain free (almost surreal in the long run), the monorail is sure to become a major tourist attraction for several years to come.

See how we behaved when the Delhi Metro first started.

MUKESH AMBANI Mukesh Ambani is now the chairman and the largest shareholder of Reliance Industries.

His personal stake in Reliance Industries is 48%. His wealth is valued at $ 32 billion by Forbes, making him India’s wealthiest person. Brother Anil Ambani chairs the other companies of the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, and is also a billionaire. With an estimated personal wealth of $ 17 Billion, he is the third richest Indian in the world, behind Mukesh Ambani and Lakshmi Mittal…But both brothers are traveling on different paths.

MNS It was not “outsiders” but Maharas htrians who stabbed the Shiv Sena in the back, said a furious Bal Thackeray after the party’s debacle in the elections. The factor which caused the Sena supremo to throw a tant rum is the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MN S). Nephew Raj hackeray has mer ely proved that he’s a superb study, and that what uncle can do, he can do muc h better now.

However, the party which started off with a broad perspective, has now hijacked the Sena plank of the Marathi man oos over the outsiders, meaning Nor th Indian labourers, hawkers etc.

It’s alsl smart politics. In 2007, the MNS got seven seats in the BMC elec tions.

Then it discovered the Marathi man oos and things got much better. Shre wd Raj tested pulse of the people and raise d (or lowered) the bar for issues acco rdingly.

Many people feel that Raj should look beyond the Marathi agenda, but he is in no mood to pay the heed.

Who knows, getting tied up with cour t cases all over the dangerous Nor th might induce him to change his min d and his politics.

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COMMITTEES MATOSHREE MUMBAI UNIVERSITY MEHBOOB STUDIO MANNAT MOCAMBO MONDEGAR MAHESH MCDONALDS MAMA KANE MANGALORE STORES MEDIA MANGOES M F HUSSAIN MANGESHKAR FAMILY MANGROVES

MOCAMBO, MONDEGARS, MCDONALDS, MAMA KANE Institutions all, each represents the varied palate that constitutes Mumbai. Mama Kane is a veritable old Maharashtrian restaurant next to Dadar station, one of the few in the city where you can get Home-style Maharashtrian food. It’s seen better days but its old customers still flock back for a bite of kothambir wade and a sip of piyush.

In Fort, Mocambo used to be a sleepy Parsi restaurant where you could have a beer and watch the world go by. After reinventing itself into an up-market

MUSEUM It was built as a museum, used first as a hospital during the Second World War, has an astounding collection ranging from Indus Valley artefacts to Assyrian bas reliefs that were left there and never claimed sometime in the early forties, jeweled daggers, chain mail and armour that seem as if they belonged to a race of giants, collections of paintings from the late Karl Khandalavala, lawyer who fought the Nanavati case, collections from the Dorab Tatas. And its dome presides over an eight-sided jharokha from an ancestral home that must be seen to be believed. Most Mumbaikars have the Museum on their bucket list. That’s what happens when you take beauty for granted.

MTNL: DON’T CALL US, WE’LL CALL YOU It would be nice to say MTNL’s greatest asset is its customers’ goodwill. Especially since the acronym is no longer a four-letter word, no longer tweaked to My Telephone Not Live. But what might surprise you to know is that one of MTNL’s biggest assets is its real estate holdings in Mumbai — estimates value it at over Rs 20,000 crore.

No wonder, some 10 years ago, the behemoth was sitting comfortably, not willing to bestir itself until absolutely necessary. It all seems so far away now — those days when getting a telephone connection in Mumbai was the biggest hurdle any business had to overcome. Palms had to be greased for a connection, then greased again to keep the telephone ringing. To its credit, MTNL hauled itself up after 1992 when the telecom sector was opened up to other service providers. And prospered too, with a variety of services including wireless, landline and mobile telephony, Internet services and the latest 3G service.

Plus, customer service. They’ve rung out the old, rung in the new.

MUMBAI INDIANS ON MISSION POSSIBLE

M.F. HUSAIN Only one of India’s greatest modern artists, possibly its highest selling. Oh yes, he’s 95, has been hounded out of the country by rabid fundamentalists who call his sometimes nude paintings of Hindu gods and goddesses obscene, never mind that the Supreme Court and assorted High courts have found nothing wrong with them, and now he is no longer even Indian. Qatar’s gain is our loss.

Our Team! Big business houses of Mumbai had a cricket connect through their teams that played in the world’s biggest inter-office tournament: The Times of India Challenge Shield, founded in 1933-34, which is older than the National Championship which came a year later. Tata’s, Birlas, Mafatlals ACC, Cipla, Nirlon all had superb teams boasting of internationals.

When Reliance came on the scene, one wondered if they would also take the big cricket plunge. They didn’t, until the IPL came when they saw their chance to invest and enjoy a return, a twin objective that other corporates lost sight of, so focussed was their aim of pure sport promotion!

Mukesh and Nita Ambani’s Mumbai Indians arewinning the approval of the city, as Mumbai’s darlings, Sachin Tendulkar and Zaheer Khan are in the side and doing great.Already, the first edition is being forgotten. But the boys had better remember, we are not swayed by sentiment. Let’s see what happens this year.

Continental restaurant, Mocambo is where you go for nice thick pork chops, juicy steaks, pastas and burgers.

Mondegars with its claustrophobic seating and noisy ambience marches on unchanged. Collegians bunking class to guzzle pitchers of beer, brush chairs with tourists who love the old world café charm lingering over a coffee and sandwich during the day. In the evening, it’s a raucous yuppie hangout, and weekends – don’t bother trying to get in.

McDonald’s is the face of Modern India, the one that is happy to sit in and stuff itself with tasteless burgers, great shakes and the crispiest fries. Tradition, history, culture, health – forget it, this is instant gratification and this is as good as it gets.

MAHESH FOR LUNCH There are three or four iconic seafood places that one makes it a point of visiting at least once in Mumbai, and Mahesh Lunch Home is one of them. There are regulars who have been coming here for decades, grumbling nowadays at the costs, but returning all the same.

Once upon a time, it was the exclusive preserve of Konkani clerks, and a meal of fried fish, rice and spiced rasa would set you back less than 20 bucks.

Now? Think 15 times! But the quality of the food is consistent, the neer doas coming soft and hot to the table, the prawn gassi, the pomfret or surmai, by the fish or by the slice, setting up a tango in the taste-buds on mere arrival!. So it may have transformed itself into a gentrified restaurant that now offers Punjabi and Chinese, but while the Mangalorean seafood maintains its expected standard, we can ignore the first and the second and concentrate on the third.

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NATIONAL STOCK EXCHANGE LAUNCHED IN 1992 NIRMALA NIKETAN NEWSPAPERS OF MUMBAI NANI PALKHIWALA NANA PATEKAR NELSON WANG NASEERUDDIN SHAH NEERJA BHANOT 1986 ASHOKA CHAKRA

NANI PALKHIWALA: BEING MISSED Writing about Mumbai would be incomplete, if the name of the late Nani Palkhiwala is not included. In fact, in the eighties and nineties, he was the only authority whose views on the budget could actually swing the trend on the stock markets. In reality, his post budget speech, always held two days after the budget was tabled, was an annual affair that was looked forward too by businessmen, lawyers, stock brokers, investors, chartered accountants, journalists and anybody even remotely associated with the world of finance. Later, it was even college students, housewives, society ladies, for this was an event not to be missed.

t budngge ki

Crowds numbering over 20,000 used to throng the Brabourne Stadium to hear this man dissect the budget and in simple words explain the ramification of the government’s policies.

It was aptly said in those days that “there were two Budget speeches, one by the Finance Minister and the other by Nani Palkhivala, and Palkhivala’s speech was undoubtedly the more popular and sought after.”

Nani Palkhivala died at Jaslok Hospital on Dwecember 11, 2002. He was 82. We miss him still.

THE NANO ISN’T A CAR, IT’S AN IDEA What a furore, what excitement, over India’s tiniest, cheapest car!

Currently, it’s still almost as rare as the sighting of a Pied Crested Cuckoo at the height of the summer in Mumbai, but by the end of the year, it’s possible that they will be jamming up some areas, as the traffic pundits so woefully predicted!

For, by the end of the year, the first booking order of 1 lakh cars will have been exhausted, and quite a few will be seen in the city.

What a journey it has been for this sturdy, little addition to India’s roads. Last year in April, when bookings were announced, a record 2.03 lakh orders were taken, and the first three people to actually get delivery became minor celebrities. To re-cap, at present,4000 a month are coming out from the Tata Morors factory at Pantnagar in Uttaranchal, but in a month or two, commercial production with begin at Sanand in Gujarat, and then you will see the numbers really rise.

The Sanand factory has a capacity of 250,000 cars, expandable to 500,000 units per year, so deliv-

ery should be swift. Even in the trial period, the cumulative production of Pantnagar and Sanand has already reached 8,000 per month.

What else? It’s in New York, at the Cooper-Hewitt Museum, on display till April 25, proof that the Nano has caught the imagination of the world beyond India. It will be going into Bangladesh as well.

And when it was displayed at the Geneva Motor Show recently, Tata Motors officials

announced that in the next 30 months, the electric version would be rolled out, a four seater instead of the current five.

Oh, and if you’re worried about fuel costs even with the Nano, wait for June. Two diesel variants should be available by then.

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A buzz word that has graduG ally taken Mumbai over, IT S SI L whether it is eating, wearing or living organically. And the stores are burgeoning.

Down to Earth, r Mother Earth, the e h t o M ss Health Shop, Conscious Food, Spar, nature Nature’s Basket, Magna Nutrition. Mumbai has the largest number of health and organic food stores in India. People are twigging on to the underlying philosophy of cutting out pesticides and opting for ahimsa. Spend a little more on what goes into your body to save a huge amount later on hospitals, doctors and medicines. Add walking, jogging, weights, gymming to the mix and you could live forever – or at least you could drop dead one day far into the future, while still perfectly healthy for your age!

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OPERA HOUSE OVAL MAIDAN OLD LADY’S SHOE OLYMPIA ORCHID ONLINE TRADING OVERHEAD BRIDGES OMLETTE PAV OM PURI

SUNDAY MORNING AT THE OVAL Called as such because of its oval shape, this maidan opposite the lovely Gothic sweep of the High Court, University and the Sessions Court, is the lung of the business district of Mumbai. In the British era it was the end of a nine-hole golf course of the Bombay Gymkhana. It extended from the Cross at the Metro end of the Cross maidan to Cooperage. In time, after the golf ended the maidan was spilt into two with the Nariman Road passing through.

It became a public ground. Cricket plots then came up as Mumbai cricket got organised and they bred the who's who of the sport; Vinoo Mankad, Dattu Phadkar, Madhav Mantri. Corporates like Century Rayon, Customs, Sachivalaya Gymkhana, colleges like Sydenham, and the Institute of Science, had their practice nets here. Football was also played. A couple of decades ago, as the ground was neglected and turned into wasteland, the Oval Residents’ Association took a hand. Dilip Vengsarkar's Elf academy sprung up there making the northern tip very attractive. The local residents association have made a walking track round the maidan and the Oval once again fulfils a great role for the people of a city bursting at its seams.

An Ode to Maharashtra And what songs shall I sing of Maharashtra on this 25th anniversary of the state.

The road to Pune, lined with neat factories on both sides, like a permanent exhibition of the state's industrial progress. Or the Khandala Ghats, that wind their way on to the Plateau of the Deccan, with Fiats manfully trying to struggle up and Marutis stalled along the way.

Of Nasik, on the banks of the Godavari, a more

gentle and peaceful Benares. Or Pandharpur, the other holy city of Maharashtra, with its presiding gods and deities dressed in gold pugrees and ornaments. (I remember the time the trustees of the temple opened the gold wardrobe of the gods for me to feed and weigh).

Or shall I sing of the sugarcane belt of Maharashtra. The roads at harvest time filled with bullock-carts carrying the crop to the sugar factories. And, at the factories, the sweet alcoholic smell of sugar. Or, at the

koli a crickend t

end of the harvest season, the families returning to their villages, often a hundred miles away, in caravans of bullock-carts.

Or, in the orange glow of the fading evening, suddenly coming across the backwaters of the Jaeckwadi dam, like a vast lake of still waters. And the memory going back to the day Mrs. Indira Gandhi had inaugurated the dam and opened its floodgates.

Or shall I sing about Pune, still very much a colonel's city and of fairskinned and grey-eyed Maharashtrians, proud

and aloof and living in a culture within a culture.

Or Amravati, with the orange groves, the fragrance of Tango in the air, extending from Amravati to Nagpur, the orange city.

Or Nagpur railway station, with ready-packed baskets of oranges, or Palghar station with its coconuts, Golvad with chikoos, the chikkiwaUas at Lonavla station. And the hill-stations of Maharashtra, Mahableshwar with its lake folded between the hills, Matheran with a toytrain chugging up Monkey Hill.

And Shivaji's forts adorn-

Ek chidiya anek chidiya, dana chugane aayee chidiya!!

ing the countryside, citadels of the Maratha Empire. Pratapgadh, and Kamalgadh across the Panchgani valley, and the Satara Fort hanging over the town and watching it.

And the border towns fading into Gujarat and Andhra, Dhule and Nandurbar and the touch of Hyderabad culture in Nanded. And the Kachgodam Express, travelling from Manmad and Aurangabad via Nanded to Hyderabad.

And the ST buses and Mughal Line ships go to coastal Konkan.

Or shall I sing of the people of Maharashtra,

tough, hardy, frugal in their habits, hospitable with jowar rotis and raw onions and lasoon chutney. Eventually it is the people who make a state, give it an identity and a purpose, they were there before Maharashtra was formed by Jawaharlal Nehru (after considerable persuasion), they will be there when it celebrates its centenary.

......................................BUSYBEE MAY 1, 1985

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PHOENIX HIGH STREET PRIYADARSHINI PARK POWAI TO PALI PRINCESS STREET PEDDER ROAD PARSI COLONIES PRATEEKSHA BUNGALOW PANCHRATNA POTHOLES ON ROADS OF MUMBAI PARADISE RESTAURANT

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AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER, THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

A MESS THAT TASTES DIVINE

POPULATIO

It’s a global dish now. What was native to Maharashtrians, with one half borrowed from the Portuguese pao, is now no longer any particular community’s prerogative.

It originated from the textile mill culture in Mumbai where mill workers would have pav bhaji instead of heavier meals during lunch breaks. As the employees would have to return to physical labour after lunch, roti or rice was replaced with pav and the curries that usually go with Indian bread or rice were made into one spicy concoction - bhaji.

Today, variations can be found in many parts of the world, where there are Indians. In South Africa, for instance, it would be the Bunny Chow, or curry in a bun!

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The populatio n of the Great er Mumbai ur cluding suburb ban s (all three prob like Kalyan-Dombivali, Nav agglomeration, inably with over i 1 million inha Mumbai and Thane calculated by bitants nowad the UN to be 18,978,000 in ays) was Answers). The 20 population of the Greater M 07 (according to Wiki ration, includ ing the two di umbai Municip stricts of Mum al Corpotogether, is th bai and Mum em bai Suburban population was ost common definition of the city of Mum probably abou bai, There is also t 13.5 million a de by the same da It’s Mumbai Metro finition for local planning te. th politan Region itants in 2001 , which had 17 at’s called , and may ha .8 m illion inha ve reached ap 2007. prox. 21 millio bn by

pav bhaji

Sharad Pawar on Congress culture Since nobody seems to know what exactly is Congress culture, except Mr. Sharad Pawar, the chief asked me to interview him on the subject and find out. So 1 called on Mr. Pawar the day before he left for his foreign study tour of England, France etc.

Mr. Pawar was packing his bag. "The chief would like to have an interview with you on the subject of Congress culture," I said. "Could you telf me

exactly what it is?"

Mr. Pawar looked up from his suitcase, frowned a little, then said: "It is amazing how few Indians know about Congress culture. It should be made a compulsory subject in all schools. Well, in its simplest form, it is the kind of culture Mr. Bahuguna, Mr. Jagjivan Ram and I have."

"You will have to be more specific, not many of our younger readers will know who Mr. Bahuguna and Mr. Jagjivan Ram are," I said.

"Tell me, is it the kind of culture that is embodied in Mr. Rajiv Gandhi or the kind that was in the late Mrs. Gandhi?"

Mr. Pawar folded one dozen bush-shirts, one dozen pyjama type trousers, put them in the suitcase, then said: "It is going to be a long trip, I have been invited to so many places. Now, to come to your question, the Gandhis have got nothing to do with Congress culture. Nor, for that matter, any other of the present Congress leaders."

"Does Mr. Vasantrao Patil have Congress culture?"

I asked.

Mr. Pawar, smiled, rather sarcastically, I thought, though he has not got the kind of face that registers sarcasm. Then said: "If Mr. Patil had Congress culture, then why would I be joining the Congress!"

"That is a good point/' I said, making notes, "Does Mr. Chandra Shekhar have Congress culture?"

Mr. Pawar took from the hanger a little used dark grey suit and put it in the suitcase, saying: "The Latifs may give a dinner in my honour in Paris and 1 would require a

Kaun kambakhta bardash karne ke liye peeta hai....

suit. Now, then, to answer your question of Mr. Chandra Shekhar having Congress culture, my reply would be, yes and no. A Congress 43 culture implies a certain amount of ambition in the individual and Mr. Shekhar lacks it. His ambition is limited to continue to be the president of the Janata Party."

"What about Mr. Charan Singh?" I asked.

Mr. Pawar sat on his suitcase and closed it. Then, after I had helped him to stand up again, he said: "In this matter, each person has to decide for himself. If Chaudhary

Charan wants to have Congress culture, he can have it, if not, he can continue where he is."

"Just one more question," I said. "What exactly are the advantages of acquiring a Congress culture?"

"I do not know about others, but for me it would mean becoming a chief minister of Maharashtra again," he said, sticking labels of U.K., France, West Germany, Italy, on his suitcase.

......................................BUSYBEE MAY 28, 1985

PARTY PEOPLE Check out Page 3. The same old names will come up again and again and again. That’s why they are called “the usual suspects”. We suspect that if they did not go out to at least three parties every night, they would drop dead.

And no, you don’t really need to know your host. Just be the friend of a friend of a friend.

Know how to dress.

Carry a branded clutch (you can now rent them). Wear bling. You’re home.

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Huge changes in the police force have marked the Bombay police, now known as the Mumbai police or the Brihanmumbai police. But the 19th century Gothic heritage structure at Crawford Market, headquarters to Mumbai’s finest, remains the same, at least from the outside.

The big difference is that now it is a virtual fortress, but there are plenty of people, especially journalists, who remember when you strolled in, met the officer of your choice for a story or a cup of chai, and just strolled out again. Now, shored up by five joint commissioners, the commissioner of police, while “protecting the good and punishing the bad”, must deal with terrorism, cyber crime and an increasingly aggressive public who demand accountability and answers. It ain’t easy!

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Only in Paradise will you find Temptation. The chunky deep-fried, batter coated shredded Mutton Sandwich has been a permanent fixture on the menu now alongside other favourites like Scotch Broth, mutton cutlets, their delightfully juicy steak and the masala-ish Mexican rice. Of course, Paradise has always been renowned for its Parsi food. The Parsi menu is limited with fixed daily specials: Sundays is dhan sak and if you miss out on it for lunch, there’s no guarantee that there’ll be any left for dinner. Little has changed at Paradise over the decades. The customers are mostly regulars and the only thing that changes on the menu are the prices. A few years ago, they air conditioned and renovated the inside, adding another room and changing the lighting, but the changes were purely cosmetic. At heart, Paradise remains what it always, was - a bastion of old-world, Parsi-style continental food.

PLASTIC BAGS

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PANCHAM PURIWALA PUNJABI HOTELS, DHABAS PAN KA THELAS PURANDARE’S HOSPITAL PRESS CLUB POLICE HEADQUARTERS PRITHVI THEATRE PLAZA THEATRE PARTY ANIMALS PLASTIC BAGS PARLE BISCUIT PAV BHAJI

IT S SI L

When the state government decided to prohibit the use of plastic bags all over the state, Mumbaikars were more upset as carry bags had become part and parcel of their day to day life. Of course, a deluge and deaths forced the government to take this decision and finally that lethal environment killer, the plastic bag, was banned.

Discarded plastic bags choked the drains and the sewerage of Mumbai, draped every bush along the tracks as your train speeded into town from far away, and caused unprecedented water logging.

Time and again the government has banned the bags, or banned bags below a certain micron level, or fined shopkeepers or threatened to fine people found using them.

Effect? Pretty much invisible. There are still plenty of these little killers around.

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QUEENS NECKLACE QUEENS ROAD QUEENS - BEAUTY QUEERS

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QUOTAS QUEUES

QUINTUPLETS

AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER, THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

QUINTUPLET FEVER

QUEENS’S NECKLACE The diamonds are still aglitter, more than ever actually, because the lights on Marine Drive that comprise the Queen’s Necklace are bigger and brighter. Who can ever tire of looking at this 3-km sweep of six-lane road, stretching from Nariman Point, ending finally at Chowpatty, gving you fabulous views of the sunset. You may neve be able to live here, but the view belongs to every heart that beats for Mumbai.

Something Simple like the QE II My friend, who lives on the 21st floor and who has more cars for all weathers than Ebrahim Currimbhoy and Co. have umbrellas, was telling me this morning: "I think I will buy a boat to travel through Bombay's streets when they get flooded."

"You had a difficult time yesterday?" I asked.

"It was difficult, but one must not complain," my

friend said, "after all everybody suffered.

From my house to the office, I had to change 12 cars and nine drivers.

As one car would fail in the order, through the car telephone, the driver would order another one from the house. None of the helicopters could be used because of poor visibility."

"Tough," I said.

"Yes," said my friend. "In view of this, I have decided to buy a boat. I have asked my agent to

find a good one."

"Do you have any particular kind in mind?"

I asked.

"Not particularly, any old boat would do. What you need is something that will take you to the office on a rainy day," my friend said. "The only thing I am concerned about is that it should float and it should have some sort of a cover, so that your head does not get wet."

"Yes," I said, "it is important to see that your head does not get wet.

Are you expecting

Mai chota sa nanha sa pyara sa baccha hu...

any difficulties in finding an appropriate boat?”

"I don't think so," my friend said. "My agent has already seen one or two, but he says they are too small - I mean the boat has to be big enough to accommodate my butler and valet and my secretary. I always put in a spot of work, dictating letters, etc., on my way to work.”

"Yes, one does get a lot of work done that way," I said. "Only, it is difficult to do any work in a

In particular, Mumbai’s quins, born to a couple in far-off Mira Road, carefully nurtured by Dr. Priya Alvares of the Bhaktivedanta Hospital, finally delivered on the first Friday of last September at the Ambani Hospital in Andheri. Five males, all born safely (though one died three five r weeks later in the same hospital), e h t e tog this is only the 17th case of natural quintuplets, conceived without fertility-inducing drugs.

Parents Obaid and Sabira Khan have ensured that their tiny lives are peaceful and free from media frenzy. India’s first set, of quins (minus one) continue to do very well, thank you. Though with their first child also being a boy, the mother says she would have liked at least one girl!

crowded suburban train, even if you have a firstclass pass, with your photograph."

"I can't afford to travel first class," my friend said. "I would also like some facilities on the boat to prepare breakfast. I will be carrying my cook with me and the kitchen staff. You save so much time if you don't linger over your breakfast at home."

"You do," I said. "Anything else?"

"Not much," said my friend. "A little place to keep my office files,

some place for the office staff. Possibly a little place to carry friends who may find it difficult to otherwise go to work on particular bad rainy days."

"I see, what you want is a boat holding about 10 people. Like the one the Godrej's have to go to Mandva," I said.

"No, not exactly," my friend said. "What I had in mind was something like Queen Elizabeth II." ......................................BUSYBEE JUNE 18, 1985

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RAJABHAI CLOCK TOWER RACE COURCE RANIBAGH RANG BHAVAN RAJ BHAVAN REGAL THEATRE RAVINDRA NATYA MANDIR RK STUDIO

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RAJ BHAVAN: FIT FOR A GOVERNOR The Governor of Maharashtra’s official residence is at Walkeshwar on 50 acres of prime land surrounded on three sides by the sea in Malabar Point in Mumbai. This is an isthmus of peace, that, we like to think, can never be altered. Or taken over by builders. However, there is talk of building a highrise to accommodate staff. Thin edge of the wedge perhaps!

RATAN TATA: GENTLEMAN EXTRAORDINAIRE REMAKING OF MUMBAI Not the government, but a federation comprising of 10,000 local members, 50 associations, institution, chambers and NGOs have taken upon themselves the task of rebuilding Mumbai in a manner that is sustainable for the future.

About 32,000 old dilapidated buildings of about 10, 000 sq feet, supporting a population of about 2.5 million stand precariously all over South Mumbai, surprisingly the hottest real estate zone. Often, some of these decrepit structures collapse leading to lose of innocent lives.

To put an end to such continuing fatalities, the Remaking of Mumbai Federation (RoMF) lead by Lalit Gandhi, Chairman RoMF, PN Bhagwati, Ex, Chief Justice of India and activist Mayank Gandhi, has taken upon itself the onus of rectifying what the government refuses to do. Limited Floor Space Index (FSI), lack of sustainable development plans and inadequate infrastructure has added to the existing problem of growing population.

An average of six people living in a space ranging between 125-180 sq feet makes the density of population in C and D-ward area of Mumbai the highest in the world.

While an interest of starting the pilot project of rebuilding 233 acres in Kalbadevi and Chirabazaar has been submitted to the Government of Maharashtra in November 2007, a decision is yet awaited. In years to come, the city will see for itself whether the unhygienic conditions, dilapidated structures and inadequate open spaces that plague the costliest area of Mumbai will change with the efforts of a federation that seems to be working for a good cause.

Rainy Monday Morning Blues There are few greyer combinations in life than a Monday morning and rains. As it was this morning, the rain overstaying its Sunday welcome and continuing into the new week.

It is a strange thing; the sound I love to wake up to on a Sunday morning, the swoosh of the rains on the road outside, the chatter on the windows, I

dread so much on a Monday morning. Because rain on a Sunday morning is an object to luxuriate in, more time in bed, dawdling, reading the long, lazy articles in The Sunday Observer. It is the rain of the poets, the nature lovers, the rich with the money to protect themselves against the rains, through chauffeur-driven cars and underground parking spaces and even the choice not

to go to work if it is inconvenient.

But the rain on Monday morning is cold and damp and floods the roads with garbage floating in the water, and disrupts the trains and airlines and makes me curse myself that I have once again postponed buying an umbrella.

Even The Sunday Observer, so utterly readable on a Sunday, would be impossible to read on a Monday if it were to come out on that day.

Monday mornings as

such are bad, but rainy, Monday mornings make working life not worth living. The grey gloom that it spreads over the world, or that part of the world where it is raining, the dampness that affects the bath towel, the clothes, the shoes, every bone in the body. The very need for a light in the house, or office, contributes to the gloom.

And the idea of venturing out in the rain and then, finally, doing so.

Crossing an increasingly wet city through pools of

Agar maa ka dudh piya hai toh samne aa...

A shy man who rarely features in the society glossies, Ratan Tata lives in a book crammed, dog-filled bachelor flat in Colaba and is considered to be a gentleman extraordinaire. The respect he commands amongst the political and business circuit is awesome. There is a saying that “No man can say ‘No’ to him” Born to Soonoo and Naval Hormusji Tata on December 28, 1937 in Bombay, he is presently the head honcho of the Tata Empire, India’s largest conglomerate founded

by Jamsedji Tata and consolidated and expanded by later generations of his family.

After completing his BSc in structural engineering from Cornell University and an Advanced Management Program from Harvard Business School, he joined the Tata Group in December 1962, after turning down a job with IBM on the advice of JRD Tata. He was first sent to Jamshedpur to work at Tata Steel. He worked on the floor along with other blue-collar employees, shoveling limestone and handling the blast furnaces.

In 1991, he took over as group chairman from J.R.D. Tata, shuffling out the old guard and ushering in younger managers.

Since then, he has been instrumental in reshaping the fortunes of the Tata Group, which today has the largest combined market capitalization on the Indian Stock Market.

waters that ripple and rise in waves as vehicles cut through them, and the rain, lashing across the face, the back, and the cold wind accompanying it.

It is not a healthy rain, the rain in the city. And it serves no purpose. It does not help the farmers, for the only farmers in the city are those who have sold or abandoned their farms and are working in mills and factories. And they do not ensure future water supply to the city because

the lakes where the water is collected are outside the city and often in places where it does not rain. And the rains do not clean the city, because nothing can clean Bombay, not even the municipality.

And I am not objecting to the rains. I am only objecting to rains on a Monday morning.

......................................BUSYBEE JUNE 17, 1985

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RAZBERRY RHINO ZOO RHINO RBI RESORTS REAL ESTATE REMAKING OF MUMBAI ROYAL BOMBAY YACHT CLUB RELIANCE RIOTS REALITY SHOWS- AN EASY TICKET TO MUMBAI AND FURTHER BOLLYWOOD RATAN TATA RAKESH MARIA

RAJABAI TOWER The Gothic clock on the University Convocation Hall towers 260 feet high and is adorned with oriental figures. From the times it played Rule Britannia, God Save the King and a Handel Symphony, among 16 tunes that changed four times a day, it now has a repertoire limited to the wafting chimes of the Big Ben on the quarter hour. It is named after the mother of a 19th century stockbroker, Premchand Roychand, who paid Rs 2 lakhs to build it. The tower itself is now closed, partly to conserve the beautiful spiral staircase, partly because of some unfortunate cases of suicide. And judging from the way kids are off-ing themselves these days, a good thing too! Incidentally, descendants of the the Roychand family now live in Switzerland.

RAKESH JHUNJHUNWALA : LIVING LEGEND

ion. A He needs no introduct ost alm om wh living legend, but te, ula em to s trie ne everyo is He d. de cee none have suc the t bu ... ted ha is he , loved ct on man commands respe he is nt, blu is He et. stre the is his ty gri inte rude… but his India’s led cal ten Of . ark hallm one l stil is he t, Warren Buffe iind est rich y’s ntr cou of the t ne his d an vidual investors r ove be to d ate im est is worth . res Rs 4,000 cro thinker He is an independent equifor n ssio and has a pa risk red asu me a is He . ties ke ma to aid taker. Is not afr de ma s ha he if t bu , kes mista it, es niz og rec a mistake, he on. writes it off and moves ays alw t bu s, Never regret emolearns. No religion, no s no low fol he tion, no ego… rehim for s an me t Bu es. rul n the tha nt rta po main more im and cs isti ter rac cha His ds. en ve investing principles ha he at wh , him de ma today is: India’s most successful investor.

THE ROSHANS/ HRITHIK ROSHAN RBI: BANKING BOSS

RAYMOND: STYLE GURU It’s 80 years old, and still clothing the young. ‘The Complete Man’ slogan became a brand that had the who’s who of India, including former cricketer Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi and the formidable journalist Rusi Karanjia, modeling for it. That’s Raymond, the Style Guru The group, with a turnover of over Rs 2500 crores it is one of the largest players in fabrics, designer wear, denim, cosmetics & toiletries, engineering files & tools, prophylactics and air charter services in national and international markets.

Over the years it has transformed from being an Indian textile major to a global conglomerate. Few companies have such a diverse product range of nearly 20,000 varieties of worsted suiting to cater internationally to customers across age groups, occasions and styles.

Its past Governor is today the prime minister of the country. It is the regulator of the nation’s finances. And it has done a good lob so far.

Founded in 1935 to respond to the economic troubles that arose after the First World War, the Reserve Bank of India was set up on the recommendations of the Hilton Young Commission. The Preamble of the Reserve Bank of India describes its basic functions as to regulate the issue of Bank Notes, to keep reserves with a view to securing monetary stability in India and generally to operate the currency and credit system in the best interests of the country. The Central Office of the Reserve Bank was initially established in Kolkata, Bengal. In 1937, it moved to Mumbai.

REKHA What’s tinsel town without a diva? Even if she is — or perhaps because she is — an enigmatic recluse. Not exactly your ageing star pining away pathetically on Sunset Boulevard

For an actor who just about manages to make a film a year, and doesn’t chase publicity, Hrithik Roshan gets talked about a lot. For his new, wild-curls hairstyle, his steamy love scenes in the hugelyhyped Kites, his alleged affair with Kites co-star Barbara Mori, and the “termites” that saw him and wife Suzanne move temporarily into a five-star hotel last year. Papa Rakesh Roshan stoutly

denied any discord whatsoever in the Roshan household, much less over the Mori rumours, but it didn’t help and the rumours still fly higher than the kites at Sankranti. No doubt, they will reach a crescendo when the movie finally puts us out of our misery and releases in May. PS: In case you didn’t notice, Hrithik’s acting drew no attention at all. Yahi hai Bollywood, meri jaan.

(though the sunsets at Bandra Bandstand can be spectacular).

She’s a bejeweled mystery who steps out in a cloud of Kanjeevarams and mogras… and speaks very, very little. Thank God for that. We couldn’t take one more chattering star holding forth on everything from biscuits to the Union Budget. Keep that mystery goin’, we say.

RAJESH KHANNA

Rajesh who?

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AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

RAJ THACKERAY R K LAXMAN RAVI SHASTRI – YOU MAY BE REST ASSURED RAJESH KHANNA RAKHI SAWANT REKHA RAM GOPAL VERMA ROSHANS RANJI TROPHY

RELIANCE: 3 MILLION AND COUNTING 1: 4. No, that’s not the ratio of Reliance Industries’ bonus issue; that’s an estimate of how popular the company’s stock is. It is believed that one out of every four investors in India own Reliance shares. With more than 3,000,000 shareholders, it is one of the world’s most widely held stocks. And of course, amongst the best performing companies in the Indian stock market.

So, when Reliance sneezes, Dalal Street holds its breath.

But when its owners start squabbling, hallelujah, its investors actually benefit, even if they are handed some duds as part of the settlement.

So while Mukeshbhai and Anilbhai slug it out over thousands of crores, the investor on the street goes to bed secure that his prized Reliance stocks will see him through the bad times.

For the record, India’s largest private sector conglomerate (by market value), managed by Mukesh Ambani, has an annual turnover of over Rs 150,000 crore, profits of Rs 16,000 crore, and is a Fortune 500 company.

Now let’s see what records will be set by Mukeshbhai’s new 27-floor house on Altamount Road, estimated to cost $ 2 billion or close to Rs 10,000 crore.

REAL ESTATE: GOING SKY-HIGH Mumbai’s real estate has its own story. Prices here are as volatile as those on the stock markets. Nothing comes as a shocker anymore, not after an apartment at the NCPA, which during construction had commanded a price of Rs 5,000 per square feet, sold at over Rs 100,000 per square feet.

But this bubble is simply not ready to burst. Small and sharp fluctuations notwithstanding, prices continue to head northwards. There is

just no land left,whether it is Dombivali, Mira Road, Bhayander. The movement is now upwards, with 40-storey buildings increasingly becoming the norm. At least one, somewhere in Wadala, will be 100 floors. Not yet The Burj, but getting there!

RIOTS The first really bad one in Independent India was 1992 December – 1993 January. Even the earlier one in 1984 wasn’t too bad. But the tone was set and left us shaken on August 18, 1982, when policemen mutinied and rioted for a day. We were still Bombay, but briefly we resembled Beirut, with army machine gun nests set up at major junctions like Worli naka, and tension lying thick over the city. A day later, quelled with a firm hand, it was over.

But in 1992-93, the city covered itself with a sectarian shame from which it has still not recovered. Suffice it to say, we have experienced riots and are determined never to let them happen again, or countenance a state government that watches as Mumbai burns.

SACHIN TENDULKAR

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SOUTH MUMBAI SOBO – THE SOUTH MUMBAI SAGA SINGLETONS AND LOVING IT SHIV SENA BHAVAN SHIVAJI PARK SHANMUKHANAND HALL

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Just when the world of cricket was wondering if there would be life in Indian cricket after Sunil Gavaskar, there came a 16year-old who put his hand up. It was Sachin Tendulkar who began performing far better than Gavaskar did at school level. In time this prodigy turned into as big a legend as Gavaskar, surpassing him statistically. And setting new benchmarks in avatars of the game that Gavaskar’s era

didn’t have in abundance —50 overs and 20 overs cricket. Tendulkar chose to develop the Bradmanesque trait rather than the Gavaskarean one —stopping the bowler from bowling well. Gavaskar’s was slow demolition of the opponent dictated by the demands of his time—rebuilding the innings after constant fall of wickets around him. Tendulkar has been a destroyer of bowling which has made him a folk hero.

He had topped the aggregates in Test cricket and the 50-over game. He is nearing the mark of 100 international and firstclass centuries which no Indian has come near. One thing missing in his book was highest scores Brian Lara passing him in this respect with first-class and Test highs.

Sachin made the correction when notching the highest score in a 50 over men’s game 200 not out in February. The other marks beckon.

And Sachin could draw inspiration from the world’s greatest cricketer Sir Garfield Sobers saying that if anyone could break Everton Weekes’ mark of five Test hundreds in a row, it would be Sachin. That and a second cricket World Cup triumph for India are the goals Sachin could well set for himself as he enters the third decade of his international career.

The Shiv Sena Announcement Now that the Shiv Sena has announced that only Maharashtrians will be allowed to stay in Bombay, all citizens will have to undergo a test to prove their bona fides. A small group of Shiv Sainiks will conduct the tests and they will run as follows: Shiv Sainik: What is your language?

You: Marathi, Jai Maharashtra.

Sainik: Very good. Now tell me, who is your leader?

You: Mr. Bal Thackeray.

Sainik: Not Bal.... Balasaheb. Remember that, unless you want to go and stay in Hyderabad.

Next question: What does Shiv Sena stand for?

You: The Shiv Sena stands for Maharashtrians for Bombay, which is how it should be.

Sainik: Excellent. Can you tell me who is Mr. Chhagan Bhujbal?

You: Yes, I think so. Mr. Bhujbal is going to be the mayor of Bombay.

Sainik: That is only half correct. The correct answer is Mr. Bhujbal has been nominated by Balasaheb Thackeray to be the mayor of Bombay.

Now, then, what is Mr. Bhujbal going to do as mayor of Bombay?

You: He is going to plant 10 lakh trees in Bombay and make Bombay green.

Sainik: Now tell me, why is the Sena against big builders?

You: Because they are

friends of Mr. Antulay.

Sainik: That is not the answer. The Sena is against big builders because they build houses only for non-Maharashtrians. We are going to change all that. And that is two questions that you have not answered correctly. One more mistake and your application to stay here will have to be turned down. Answer this: How long will it take the Send to clean up the 100-year legacy of rot that is left behind by the Congress?

You: A lot of people

Mammi ne garmagaram jilebi banayee hai..

SHIV SENA BHAVAN As time passes, the offices of political parties are transforming from shabby out-houses to the latest in swank. Sena Bhavan had an early advantage over most – its own building in Dadar. But it was a sorry-looking structure.

No more, however. The new Sena Bhavan reflects Mumbai’s post-2000 identity as a worldclass city and a premiere corporate destination.

The party has to keep pace with changing times, and still safeguards Marathi asmita (pride) as well as the spirit of Hindutva. For selecting party candidates for the 1985 closely fought BMC elections and the 1990 state Assembly polls, or choosing the first Chief Minister of the Shiv Sena in January 1999, the old building saw a lot of action. Pity its upgraded avatar has come at a time when the party seems to be suffering one political setback after another. Notwithstanding its call centre to respond to public appeals for help, something no other party in Mumbai has bothered to do. think it will take five years, but actually it will take only six months.

Sainik: Good. What are the Sena's plans for the chief justice of Bombay high court?

You: According to latest information, the chief justice will be taken on a guided tour of the city to show him how conditions were deteriorating and to impress upon him the futility of readily granting injunctions.

Sainik: I see you have attended the Shivaji Park rally. That should go in your favour. Do you al-

ways attend Shivaji Park rallies?

You: Only when Balasaheb Thackeray is addressing them. Jai Maharashtra.

Sainik: One last question. Why do you want to stay here?

You: Because I love Bombay.

Sainik: I am afraid you better start packing your bags. It is not Bombay, it is Mumbai.

......................................BUSYBEE MAY 6, 1985

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SEEPZ SKYWALKS SLUMS SALT PANS SIDDHI VINAYAK ST MICHAEL’S CHURCH STRAND BOOK STALL SAARVI STERLING STRAND SATYAM SHIVAM SUNDARAM SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE SAAS -BAHU SAGAS STREAKING SHIV SENA SARVA SHIK-

lks skywa

WALKWAY? NO WAY

AL, DR. SWATI PIRAMAMIC N Y BEAUTIFULLY D

The first one, completed in June 2008, from Bandra Station to Kalanagar Junction, a distance of 1.3 km, has been a spectacular under achiever. It cost around Rs 10 crore to build and is a steel structure, fairly swiftly put up. You’d think someone would learn from this.

The MMRDA has planned another 50 and they are in various stages of construction in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. They are solid concrete structures, complete with pre-fab spans, are taking ages to build, have fouled up traffic and tempers in equal measure, provide no guarantees tat they will be used by pedestrians – and are costing the city Rs 600 crore. Cost over-run extra.

Meanwhilwe, a city NGO says around 100 people use the Bandra sky-walk every hour.

Director of Piramal amal Life Sciences and . She became the Vice Chairperson of Pir has a first to her credit al am Pir AS ati Sw Dr re, Healthca y of the industry body, d in the 87-year histor r dyhe l cal s nd frie r first woman to be electe he d on. She is beautiful an SOCHAM, as chairpers in India grew under namic. g pharmaceutical player din lea a al, am Pir las Nicho enue of the company inPiramal, the annual rev ’s to over $250 milher. Thanks to Dr. Swati 80 million in the late 19 $4 n tha s les m fro d crease went on to pursue lion today. iversity of Bombay, she Un the m fro r cto do al A medic Public Health, Boston, the Harvard School of a master’s degree from l’Ordre National du de eived the Chevalier rec s ent ha al am Pir Dr. USA. from the French Presid der of Merit) in 2006, w kno Luc , IIM Merite (Knight of the Or iaan d the Lakshmipat Singh Mr. Jacques Chirac an Young Leader in ard, in the category of Aw ip rsh National Leade m the Prime Minfro d Technology for 2006 the field of Science an ister of India.

SUBASH CHANDRA : ZEE BOSS Subhash Chandra is a one time rice exporterturned media baron and Chairman of Essel Group, that launched India’s satellite television revolution. The Zee chairman dropped out after standard 12. His pioneering channel Zee TV competes with, among others, Sony Entertainment Television and STAR Plus.

He has recently started the Indian Cricket League, a domestic Twenty20 cricket league in-

tended as a challenge to the Board of Control for Cricket in India, the nation’s governing body in the sport. In November 2009, he took over the management responsibility of the newspaper DNA, which features among the top 8 English dailies in India.

Bet you didn’t know that he’s also the President of the Global Vipassana Foundation in his capacity as a Vipassana meditator.

SBI -BANKER TO EVERY INDIAN Its ancestry can be traced from British India, through the Imperial Bank of India, to the founding in 1806 of the Bank of Calcutta, making it the oldest commercial bank in the Indian Subcontinent. The Government of India nationalised the Imperial Bank of India in 1955, with the Reserve Bank of India taking a 60 percent stake, and renamed it the State Bank of India. In 2008, the Government took over the stake held by the Reserve Bank of India.

Its head office is an impressive building in Mumbai, with over 16,000 branches, making it has the largest branch network in India. With an asset base of $250 billion and $195 billion in deposits, it is a regional banking behemoth. It has a market share among Indian commercial banks of about 20 percent in deposits and advances, and accounts for almost one-fifth of the nation’s loans. It is ranked as the 29th most reputable company in the world by Forbes and has 141 overseas offices spread over 32 countries. You could say it’s trustworthy!

65 STRAND BOOKSTALL Founded by the iconic bookseller, the late Padmashri T. N. Shanbhag, Strand Book Stall is Bombayana at is best. Everyone waits for the annual sale, when you can get treasures for as little as 20 per cent of the original price. Mr Shanbhag, God rest his soul, believed that books were meant to be read, and if you couldn’t afford the price, he was more than willing to give you an additional discount over and above the one that everyone got as a matter of course.. In 1951, he was one of the few booksellers in the country to order 1,000 copies of Boris Pasternak’s Dr Zhivago. Courageous, committed and generous, his spirit continues to imbue the establishment.

RAKHI SAWANT Rakhi Sawant could not have made it big anywhere else but in Mumbai. Whether this is a matter of pride or chagrin for the city is difficult to tell, but we’re afraid we’ll have to lay claim to this plastic-reinforced motormouth, whose biggest claim to fame is, well, very little, really. A spot of dancing, a flash of cleavage, an engagement that wasn’t. But then, what Rakhi Sawant also has is typical Mumbai gumption, bindaas speak and er, individuality. She may be a horror at (most) times, but she’s a home-grown horror, so let the lady be.

give us a kiss

SIDDHIVINAYAK TEMPLE The temple’s history dates back to early nineteenth century. The sanctum houses a small mandapam enshrining Siddhivinayak. The inner roof of the sanctum is plated with gold, and the wooden doors to the sanctum are carved with images of Ashta Vinayak. While most icons of Ganapati depict the elephant faced God with his trunk curled towards his left, the Siddhivinayak in Mumbai is depicted with a trunk pointing to the right.

Amitabh Bachchan’s walks to Siddhivinayak and donations to the temple keep the place in the news as do the phenomenal security arrangements in and around the mandir.

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AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

SHA ABHIYAN SENSEX STOCKS AND SHARES STAMP PAPER SCAM SHAH RUKH KHAN SACHIN TENDULKAR SHIAMAK DAVAR SHAHAB DURAZI SMITA PATIL, SUNJAY DUTT, SANJEEV KUMAR, SHABANA AZMI SUBURBS

SALT PANS We’re talking 2,167 hectares of salt pan land scattered over parts of the Island city and it’s far-flung suburbs. Now they are being mde available for development.

You’d think this would have an effect on the unreal prices of real estate. Check out what’s happening in the fancy townships of Wadala. A High Court order asking the Union Government. not to create any legal obstructions for the developers has given them a breather, but everyone knows there’s no such thing as a free lunch. If you want an apartment in Mumbai, you pay. The only ones who don’t are encroachers, pavement and slum dwellers.

SENSEX IS ALSO 25 - LIKE ADC It’s 25 and shares its Silver Jubilee with the Afternoon. Coined with a combination of two words” Sensitive and Index” resulting in “Sensex”, it gyrates like a belly dancer and, may we say, has great sex appeal. Market punters drink in joy when it rises and drink in sorrow when it falls. It is considered the barometer of the Indian economy.

Composed of the 30 largest and most actively traded stocks, representing various sectors, it accounts for around fifty per cent of the market capitalization on the BSE. The base value of the Sensex is 100, and the base year is 1978-79. At regular intervals, the exchange reviews and modifies its composition to make sure it reflects current market conditions. The index is calculated based on a free-float capitalization method; a variation of the market cap method. Instead of using a company’s outstanding shares it uses its float, or shares that are readily available for trading. The free-float method, therefore, does not include restricted stocks, such as those held by promoters, government and strategic investors.

The index has increased by over ten times from June 1990 to the present.

S FOR SPIRITUALITY!!

Our grandparents had nothing but they had everything. We have everything but we have nothing. We’ve progressed. Everyone is social-climbing to arrive but everyone tries to arrive at the same time, same place, causing chaos! Today’s Mumbaikar is stressed-out, depressed and unhappy in spite of luxurious “toys” like big cars, bigger homes and foreign holidays so people are turning to spirituality like it were a soul-pill!!

Proof? Newspaper columns, entire magazines and newspapers devoted to new-age living, T.V. channels, a plethora of yoga-classes, meditationcamps, lecture-series, workshops, alternate therapies like reiki, su-jok, vastu, feng-shui, tai-chi, crystals, aura-reading and the art of living (like you don’t know how to live)!!

So All Is Well? You must be one of those three idiots if you think that your external spiritual-search will result in happiness and peace of mind with family, friends and at workplace. Honey! You’re looking in the wrong drawer! Look within and be happy, no matter what your outward circumstances are. Enjoy the journey of your soul on planet Earth which is a mere transit-lounge between incarnations and you already have the Hotline to God!

SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRES When Danny Boyle’s breathless, anal-fixation film released, there were all manner of objections — to his glorification of our poverty, of Dharavi, our entrenched beggary, to the very word ‘slumdog’. But all objections vanished the moment the film became a hit abroad; when it started sweeping up the Oscars and Baftas and Grammys, Mumbai reveled in its shit-encrusted glory, its Jai Ho energy and Anil Kapoor’s entry into Hollywood. Say whatever you want of us, Danny; just make sure the dollars roll in.

ba ba

SHABANA AZMI She was once the face of parallel cinema; today Shabana Azmi — and let’s applaud her for this and let’s not be squeamish or politically correct about it — is the face of the honest, inward-looking, bravely vocal Muslim who will fight for the community and, if required, fight it too. Heaven knows we need more of her kind these days. Ms Admirable Azmi, may your power increase, may your tribe be heard.

SANJAY DUTT If truth be told, Sanjay Dutt has muddled through much of his life. School, much of his early film career, drugs, marriages, guns, underworld connections, jail, the legal system, and most recently, politics. That’s quite a list.

So why does Mumbai still indulge Sanju Baba?

Perhaps because they recognise that he is an accidental offender, that he is a terrible symbol of how real crooks can manipulate, vilify or lionise the smaller fry. It’s how political business is conducted, Baba.

Saara sheher mujhe ‘loin’ ke naam se jaanta hai!

tons single

SINGLE IN THE CITY do envy my friends who stay in nice homes, eat nice, live nice, drink nice and do everything that is nice. Nothing is nice in my dingy apartment yet my friends envy me because I live alone (that is like a wow factor especially in Mumbai).

So what makes my single life worth envy? For those living in the city with parents or relatives, staying alone means more fun than responsibility.

Clubbing, drinking, movies, short trips to nearby hill stations without pleading for permission, spending the entire Sunday out with friends and not sitting bored at home just to spend “quality time” with family. No deadlines, no one to ask questions and no one to answer to. That’s the fun of staying single.

While the privilege of staying at home has its own charm, yet, during our youthful days, staying alone is more than just a fortune cookie. It’s a road to self discovery, a time when you decide to take responsibility. It’s an emotional high even though at most times of the day you have no one to share your emotions with. The feeling of managing yourself in this “big bad world” makes you feel stronger, in fact leaves you stronger. It creates survival instincts, something which is hard to achieve when you have a support.

Staying alone requires you to have an eye for detail. Right from selecting the kind of accommodation, to who your friends are, to who your neighbour is, to how your landlord is trying to extract more money from you, checking and balancing your finances and making them work for you in the best possible manner. Ask the elders and they would rate these qualities as essential, before anything else.

Being single in a city like Mumbai has its own charm. Those night outs with the girls (or boys), pajama parties, gossip sessions and being able to judge the “field” sans any guilt. This city offers us singles fun, security, peace of mind, the freedom to do what we want to do and gives us the space we need to grow.

Those in love might feel that have the short end of the stick. The truth is, in Mumbai, there are silver linings everywhere!

TATA - TERRIFIC TARAPOREVALA AQUARIUM TULSI LAKE TRAFFIC ISLAND TIDE LEVELS– HIGHEST OF THE DECADE HAD EVERYBODY ON THE WATERFRONT TISS TUITION CLASSES 26/11 -TERRORISM, MUMBAI BECAME A FREQUENT TARGET-

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TAJ PALACE TRULY OF THE CITY Everyone who is anyone has stayed here - including the Beatles, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Bill Clinton, Jacques Chirac, the King and Queen of Norway, the Duke and Duchess of Kent, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Prince of Wales, Roger Moore, Joan Collins, Mick Jagger, Deep Purple, Michael Palin, Hillary Clinton… as well as professional cricket teams on tour.

For the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower is counted among the city’s best known addresses.

Neighbor to the iconic Gateway of India, the hotel was commissioned in Indo-Saracenic style by the Tata’s and first opened its doors to guests on 16 December 1903. It cost around a quarter of a million Pounds Sterling to build (now valued at £127 million.

During World War I, the hotel was converted into a 600-bed hospital.

The dome of the hotel is made from the same steel as was used in the Eiffel Tower..

After the horrific 26/11 attack, it has served as the face of Mumbai’s resilience, pictures all over the world of its burning dome as recognizable today as the World Trade Centre on its moment of impact by terrorist-laden planes on 9/11. A Pheonix, it rose of the ashes so swiftly as to stun the world.

The Taj Palaces I have been thinking that the Taj Palace in Delhi has scored over all the other hotels by holding the world billiards championships in its premises.

There is something about billiards that is classy and five-star, with all the dress-suits and black ties. Also, the expenses are low, since there are just so many players and the arrangements are limited to pro-

BEST TATA’S - INDIA’S would need a Writing about the Tatas ms to know volume! Everybody see Everybody m. the t everything abou val Tata, Na a, Tat JRD t ou ab knows uished ting dis its all d Ratan Tata an knows y od family members. Everyb st ge lar s ia’ that they are Ind largest number group…they have the y the largest plo em d an of companies have the y number of people…the y large pa y the … largest turnover philanare y the d an tax of nts amou e. cor thropists’ to the much admired But few know that this tain values cer s ha zen corporate citi s on which the ple nci pri the m for t tha g the list is incompanies run. Toppin abhorrence tegrity and an absolute n. Despite it tio rup cor of for any form every occaon being a disadvantage offer any ver ne l wil sion, the Tatas’

viding not more than a table-space.

I have not been to the Taj Palace, but I am sure it must be a decent hotel. The other Taj in Delhi is all marble descending into a dewfresh garden in the capital's frosty morning light. At least that is my impression of the Taj, gathered when I once called on a friend there early one winter morning.

Later, we had a break-

fast of Parsi akuri at a restaurant called Machan. Rather pretentious, the decor, I thought, but nevertheless the kind of place that the Punjabis of Delhi would like to take their friends to. And Delhi is very much a Punjabi city.

But the Delhi Taj has another lovely restaurant called The House of Ming and looking like an illustration of a Chinese garden. My friend, Tony Lok, who has started all the Taj's Chinese restaurants - the brightest jew-

Rukawat ke liye khed hai...

tral authority, bribe to any local or cen te scrapple even if it means the com t. jec pro or n pla ping of any greased and ver ne are s lm pa re He nse is obevery permission or lice ance with son tained in absolute con ce, in a tax on t, tha d sai is the laws. It ed to pay ask re dispute the Tata’s we . An offires cro 0 1.9 Rs of an amount ached pro ap t cial of the departmen d proman rs ge na ma s ny’ the compa d enan m ble ised to resolve the pro s, if he ltie na pe no id pa y sure that the The h. cas in hs was given Rs 10 lak the d an a Tat tan Ra to nt matter we explained to consequence of it was an g ttin ba ut him. Witho eye lid, he instructed them to pay the tax. In all an hour, a meeting of his of s ad financial he

els in their crown - runs it. An entire Chinese hand-painted dinner plate is inserted in the cover of each menu.

The prettiest hotel of the Taj, of course, is the Lake Palace in Udaipur, sitting in the middle of the lake like a lotus. It occupies the entire islet, with a row of rooms that the waters lap up to, a suite with a mirror in the ceiling, a staff uniformed as in Rajasthani 75 miniature paintings, a bar that stocks the potent and scented Rajasthani

and an instruccompanies was called to come to him r tion given, never, eve . sal po pro a with such angle. ProfesThen there is the other nals are resio fes pro re He . sionalism to d we spected and are allo If it fails, as. ide w ne h wit nt experime ds, due cee suc it If no-one is blamed. o initiwh n rso pe the to en credit is giv ated it. such stories India’s Best has a lot of t.The Goverou d waiting to be winkle icial residence off a’s htr ras ha nor of Ma es of prime acr 50 is at Walkeshwar is sides by the ee thr on ed nd rou land sur mbai, an Mu in nt sea in Malabar Poi think can to like we ace pe of isthmus r by ove en tak Or never be altered, k of tal is re the , ver we Ho builders. building a highrise to accommodate staff. Thin edge of the wedge perhaps!

liqueurs, courtyards with fountains playing and miniature trees in which the birds from the lake come and sit and sing.

The Ranas of Udaipur were evidently an indulgent lot.

I have also been to Bailey's, the Taj's hotel in London. Apart from the now all-England famous Bombay Brasserie, the Indian food speciality restaurant, it has an oldfashiond tea-room serving mint tea and bhajias.

One morning, I shared a table with Mr. S.K.

Wankhede, having a second cup of tea. Then the car from the MCC arrived and Mr. Wankhede was driven off to Lord's.

The Taj in Bombay, I visit at least once a week. Because once a week some friend of mine is getting married in its Crystal Room, Central.

......................................BUSYBEE JULY 31, 1985

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1993, 2003, 2006, 2008/TRAIN BLASTS TRAFFIC SCENARIO (USE OF TECHNOLOGY, AMENDMENTS IN SEVERAL TRAFFIC RULES, CCTV, SPEED GUNS) TELECOMMUNICATION (INCREASING NUMBER OF CONNECTIONS, MOBILE PHONES AND

IT S SI L

TIDE LEVEL The country’s economic capital last monsoon faced its highest tide in the last 100 years.

The tides measured upto 5.05 metres along Mumbai’s waterfront along Marine Drive, Mahim Beach and Worli Seaface at noon one Thursday in July. The BMC had even placed a comprehensive ssdisaster management

plan to meet a possible flood situation. During the rains, people talk about high tide and low tide as if they are discussing the weather – and they are. They also compute the possibility of floods with a mathematician’s obsession with laws of probability. We’re scared we’ll drown

69 SOCIETY’S FAVE SEAFOOD JOINT Pick up any travel guide, visit and travel site and you’ll find a mention of Trishna and its butter pepper garlic king crab. The hard to find coastal seafood restaurant in the backlanes of Kala Ghoda is the playground of the international rich and famous. From Hollywod stars to Bollywood stars, rich businessman to CEO’s of MNCs everyone who’s anyone has visited Trishna at least once in their life to gorge on the enormous king crabs. No one really cares that it doesn’t look terribly classy or that the waiters can be curt and impatient, the seafood is so good that everything else just melts away. And it’s not just the crabs; they do a fantastic tandoori pomfret hariyali and squid butter pepper garlic.

OURSPECIALITIES o, Pork Vindalo uti Chicken Xac o, alo Mutton Vind Fish Curry, he Pomfret Rac Visitusat

CITYKITCHEN 301,S.B.R oad,F ortMark et,

Mumbai:4000002.T el:226 10002

TCS: DRIVING IMPROVEMENT All good business practitioners inherently drive improvement and through it: success. That has been proved by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). Counted amongst the largest Information Technology companies in the world, it established the first software research center in India as the Tata Research Development and Design Center, in Pune in 1981. It undertakes research in Software Engineering, Process Engineering and Systems Research.

It is also considered one of the largest private sector employers in India with a core strength in excess of 160,000 individuals, but has one of the lowest attrition rates in the Indian industry.

It was established in the year 1968 and is a pioneer in the Indian IT industry.

It began as the “Tata Computer Centre”, a division of the Tata Group, whose main business was to provide computer services to other group companies. F C Kohli was the first general manager. JRD Tata was the first chairman, followed by Nani Palkhivala. Today, it is by far the best and most respected IT company in the world.

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E-PHONES, TELEPHONE BOOTHS (LOCAL, STD) TAJ GROUP TRISHNA THEOBROMA TRIBHOVANDAS BHIMJI (JEWELLERS) TIMES OF INDIA 24 HOUR TELEVISION THEATRE TRAINS – LONG DISTANCE TOLL NAKAS TREE AUTHORITY

THEOBROMA Mumbai’s most well known dessert destination, has been a truly divine blessing for devotees of the minor deity Sweet Tooth. They’re famous for their brownies, of course, but equally so for their chocolates and the amazing range of pastries. The bacon chip butty which combines two of the most calorific foods, bacon and fries, in one carbohydraterich packet is unbelievably amazing.

Notwithstanding the surly waiters and cramped sitting space, everyone returns for more.

JRD - A HIGER BENCHMARK THAN EVER JRD or Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata died on November 29, 1993.

Or did he? The way his legacy has infused the Tata group, it is as if he is still a living breathing presence, even 17 years after he passed away in Geneva. The consummate pioneer, he was the father of Indian aviation. Air India was his, before Morarji Desai nationalized it – a move that many feel led to its ruin.

At the age of 34, he became Chairman of Tata Sons, the holding Company of the Tata Group. For decades, J R D directed the huge Tata Group of companies. He was famous for succeeding in business while maintaining high ethical standards: refusing to bribe politicians or use the black market. Under J R D’s Chairmanship, the number of companies in the Tata Group grew from 15 to over 100. Monetarily, the assets of Tata group grew from Rs 620 Million to over Rs 100 Billion.

He was awarded the Legion d’honneur, by the French Government in 1954. In 1979, Tata was the recipient of the Tony Jannus Award for his distinguished contributions to commercial aviation. He also received the prestigious Guggenheim Medal for aviation in 1988. He was conferred India’s highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna, in 1992 for his service to industry and nation building. In the same year, he was also bestowed with the United Nations Population Award for his crusading endeavors towards initiating and successfully implementing the family planning movement in India, much before it became an official government policy.

TANISHQ – STANDING SUPERIOR It pioneered the concept of branded jewellery and ornaments in India.

Established in 1995, it challenged the traditional family jewellers’ integrity and introduced new rules to the game. That’s Tanishq, which exploded the market with facts about rampant impurity and cheating of

TUITIONS

TITAN: BRANDING TIME Or should we be saying “Watch”, like Robin Williams for HBO! That’s all you need really. It has manufactured the world’s slimmest wrist watch - Titan Edge - a total slimness of just 3.5 mm and a wafer thin movement of 1.15 mm.

Titan Industries is the world’s sixth largest wrist watch manufacturer and India’s leading producer of watches. Titan, Fastrack, Sonata, Nebula, Octane & Xylys, they’re all Titans –a name sysnonymous with Tata, though the Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation, is a joint holder.It exports watches to about 32 countries around the world.

Hum angrejo ke jamane ke jailer hai!

Dreadful term – tuitions.

Everyone has them, ignoring school along the way. The teachers accept them, parents agonise over them, students are burdened with them. It’s Pinge’s or Aggarwals or Chate’s or whatever is the word-of-mouth favourite in your neighbourhood.

Doesn’t matter if you’re smart, whether you need them, whether they fill every waking moment apart from actually going to school or sleeping. You take them. Just in case others have a slight advantage over you as a result.

And you start young – from before you actually join a pre-school which is supposed to prepare you for school. So you are prepping for a prepping for prep school. Make some sense of that if you will.

There are plenty of people who hold these tuition classes.

And there are plenty of idiots who pay. It’s called coaching.

The kids are the mules who pull the coaches along a successful commercial line, being whipped every inch of the way.

customers across India. It introduced a technology-backed challenge in a category completely governed by trust. Tanishq introduced innovations like the Karatmeter, the only non destructive means to check the purity of gold. It replaced the age-old jeweller’s word with the Tata’s guaranteed purity certificate.

Today, it is the fastest growing jewellery brand in India.. The name Tanishq has been formed by combining “Ta” (the first two letters of Tata) and “Nishk or Nishkh” (meaning gold coin or necklace in Sanskrit).

After oo DESPATCH & COURIER

Editor: Carol Andrade Editorial contributions: Gajanan Khergamkar, Shashi Baliga, Suyash Padate, Bonsy Desai, Priyal Dave, Pallavi Smart, Little Yadav, Satish Gurung, Shweta Kannan, Robin Shukla, Renin Wilben, Sagar Joshi, Margaret DaCosta, Stuart DaCosta, Jerry Pinto, Amy Fernandes, James Manickam, Deepak Sahijwala, Mayura Shanbagh, Antoine Lewis,Dr Rajan Bhonsle, Meher Castellino Mayank Gandhi Photographers: Vishwanath Salian, Azad Shrivastava, Sushil Kadam, Vijay, Sameer, Kishore B Jothady, Pradeep Chandra Art Director: Rajan Ranshoor Design team: Sunita Jagtap, Venugopal, Sanjay, Raghu, Ketan, Shashikant Marketing and sales: Abraham Tharakan, Alfred Vaz, Manoj Parmar, Anahita Subedar, Sunder More, Anwar Siddiqui, P R Murthy, Jyot Mistry Pubished by: Afternoon Despatch & Courier Mittal Court, C-81/82, Nariman Point, Mumbai-400 021. Phone: 40768999.

Fax: 40768916 Registered Office: 98 Mittal Chambers, Nariman Point, Mumbai-21 website: www.afternoondc.in

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NSE: BIG BROTHER

the glam kid on the hange (BSE) might be Exc ck Sto ay mb Bo e Th ck Exchange (NSE) th, it is the National Sto trading block, but in tru n if it started operaEve ). ver (pl give figure no tur r ge lar the s ha t tha after the BSE. 94, almosty 120 years tions only recently in 19 ormal collection of inf an E, which began as BS the like un n, the t Bu ck Exchange of India n tree, the National Sto traders under a banya s born of a report by a wa It loftier conception. a of ast bo can ited Lim of New Stock Exoup on Establishment High Powered Study Gr tional Stock ExNa a of nded promotion me om rec t tha es, ng cha ess to investors from all titutions to provide acc change by financial ins E was promoted by fiNS e an equal footing. Th on y ntr cou the oss acr ent of India and was behest of the Governm nancial institutions at the g company, unlike other stock exchanges yin incorporated as a tax-pa y. in the countr financial firsts its ai, the NSE has many mb Mu in d ere art qu ad He credit: traded funds (ETFs), rnet trading, exchange inte of ion uct od intr the launch of curcy derivatives with the stock derivatives, curren ures and the Fut te d INR, Interest Ra rency futures in USD an IX in April 2008. Many more are iaV first volatility index - Ind . ing off the in y arl cle

"No Native Place" Busybee Laments One of the things I have always envied in my South Indian friends is that every summer they have a 'native place' to go to.

The planning begins in late January. Long hours are spent putting together privilege leave with casual leave, sick leave and compensatory offs. Leave applications are made to coincide

with the children's school holidays.

Then the applications are made. Reason for leave: "Children's holidays." (I have always wondered why any employee has to give a reason for taking what is after all, his earned leave).

Then the other preparations begin. Trips to Bori Bunder to reserve the tickets. Applications to various senior railway officials to provide reser-

The concept of a planned city was understood to be only Chandigarh. But now Navi Mumbai is perhaps the world's largest planned city. The government was desperately looking for some alternative to decongest Mumbai and the new city became a haven for the multitudes that throng Mumbai from different parts of India. After the initial hiccups, this Navi, meaning New, Mumbai has now become close competitor to Mumbai in practically every respect.

Stretching all the way from Airoli to Uran, it has become the hub for several specific industries, especially IT, education and printing technology. Check out all the sprawling presses set up by the city’s largest newspapers, all clustered together in Mahape and Airoli. The state government has also set up software parks to cater to the growing demands of this sector.

The beautiful Palm Beach Road and D Y Patil stadium have become the pride of the city. With hospitals, hotels, IT parks, shopping malls, Navi Mumbai today is a bustling city, with a rapidly expanding population and growing infrastructural development to match.

Not a bad record – expensive real estate and a stadium that has seen the beginning of IPL, once famously described by top international cricketers as among “the best in the world”.

vations (in the railways, more than anywhere else, influence helps, in Indian Airlines, a little extra money helps).

Then the letters start arriving from the 'native place'. Reminders to bring home various things from the city text books, cassettes, a three-band radio (not a three-in-one, for that you have to go from Dubai to your 'native place').

As the time approaches, which is now, the talk is generally of the 'native

place'. Of relations to meet and a marriage to arrange and the food to be eaten.

I have never been to anybody's 'native place', but I can imagine it.

The town square with sweetmeat stalls and cloth shops and a terminus for the Tamil Nadu State Transport buses.

And gentlemen fidgeting with white lungis, rolling them up and tucking them in their waist and then rolling them down again, then again up, such energy.

Badal sa garje hum, savan sa barse hum, suraj sa chamke hum, school chale hum...

Equal parts beauty and brains, this Pan Am stewardess became the stuff of legends when in 1986, two days before her 23rd birthday, she died in a hail of bullets at Karachi airport, protecting children and passengers with her young life.

This was a time when the job was invested with enormous glamour and prestige and was practically a ticket to the good life. Maureen Wadia, Parmeshwar Godrej, Zarine Khan, Nina Rajan (biscuit king) Pillai and Sameera.Mallya (Vijay Mallya’s first wife) all started off as hawai sundaris.

But Neerja Bhanot was in a class by herself. We think of her every year on September 5 and remember how the very skies seemed to weep as on a grey day, fit only for mourning, we took her to the Sion crematorium, there to watch her join the legends that have made this city so unique. Two awards instituted in her name by her family, one for an airhostess who goes beyond the call of duty, one for a women achiever, given out eery year, make sure we can never forget her. And of course, there is also the Ashoka Chakra, India’s highest civilian award for bravery. In 2004, the government issued a stamp in her honour.

Early in January this year, her killer, Zayd Hassan Abd Al-Latif Masud Al Safarini, died the death of a dog in the badlands of Pakistan, reportedly shot to pieces by a US military drone.

And the paddy fields all around, Thanjavur, the rice bowl, and temples with gopurams darkening the sky, and the river bank, with saris drying.

In my mind, there is no 'native place' without a river bank.

And R.K. Narayan walking down the road, an umbrella over his head.

God bless Narayan and give him strength to create more Malgudis.

And the houses, large, cool, with manyrooms, a great improvement on the tiny tenements in

Matunga and Chembur that they live in the rest of the year.

And rice and dahi on plantain leaves, and pure Coimbatore ghee, butter, oil, and strong black filter coffee. And oil baths every alternative day.

Around this time they all plan to leave for their 'native place'. So much better than the rest of us planning to go to Mahableshwar. ......................................BUSYBEE APRIL 10, 1985

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It lost its reputation, but managed to regain it. Created by the UTI Act in Parliament in 1963 it remained the sole vehicle for investment in the capital market for decades. In the mid – eighties, the government allowed public sector banks to open mutual funds.

Despite that, the Unit Trust of India maintained its pre-eminent place till 2001. Then a massive decline in the market and negative investor senti-

Who's Who In The Underworld One of the sweeping changes that the chief secretary is introducing in the police force is a test for all police officers to find out if they know who's who in the underworld. A typical test, conducted by Commissioner Julio Ribeiro, will run something like this: "All right, class, remove your caps, loosen your gun-belts and take your seats. Assistant Commissioner Alex Fialho, can you enlighten the class on who are the Dholakia

ments, including a number of scams, created doubts about the capacity of UTI to meet its obligations to the investors.

This was further compounded by two factors; namely, its flagship and largest scheme US 64, were sold and re-purchased not at intrinsic NAV, but much below actual prices, and its Assured Return Schemes had also failed to live up to its promises.

Fearing a run on the institu-

Brothers and what crimes have they been involved in, in the past?

"No, no, they are not Congress leaders who used the Raj Bhavan beach for smuggling, you are confusing Arvind Dholakia with Keshav Bhosle. After class, write on the board 500 times that Arvind and Keshav Dholakia are one-time foreign-exchange racketeers.

"Right then. Now which among you bright young officers can tell me who is Jagdish Shetty... Yes, I know he is the owner of Popular Restaurant, I did

coupled with the already packed inner city areas has seen mushrooming of legal and illegal dense housing with little focus on appropriate infrastructure or amenities in the Mumbai suburbs. The suburbs of a decade soon transforms into higher densities than the old city and newer suburbs emerge, to be filled up in turn. The delineation of what really constitutes a suburb changes every decade or so.

The MMRDA’s logic for a overground Metro in Bandra and Juhu as opposed to underground Metro in the city area, is that this is the way its done all over the world.

And this is wrong perception. Suburbs in Chicago or London would mean acres of open land through which the tracks pass. Seen any rolling fields in bandra or Juhu or Santacruz or anywhere else up to Borivli on the one hand, and Mu-

tion and a possible impact on the whole market, the Government came out with a rescue package and changed its management in 2001.Subsequently, it was bifurcated into two parts .UTI Mutual Fund and the Axis Bank.

A new board was constituted and a new management inducted. Now it has again emerged as a serious player in the industry. Both the mutual fund and the bank are doing extremely well. And the reputation and trust that it had lost has been regained.

not want to know that...

Nobody knows! Shame on you. He was arrested two days before the parliamentary elections for provoking potentially serious communal troubles and was mysteriously released by the home department.”

"Next, Deputy Commissioner Khan, can you tell me who is Thapa?... No, I am not referring to the football player... Anybody else knows? No? He is the Shiv Sena pramukh in Bhandup and labour officer in a firm though he has no qualifications for the job. I had no idea I had so

many ill-informed officers on my staff."

"Inspector Joshi, please pay attention. Stand up, face the class and tell them who are the Parmar Brothers... No, they are not the same as Dholakia Brothers. Palji and Valji Parmar are operating with impunity in the Dadar-Byculla area because of their political clout... Did you say how would you know that?

You should make it your job to know that."

"Inspector Gowde, your turn. Distinguish between Chhota Rajan and Bada Rajan... No, they are not a comedy team in Hindi films. Go out

Mai tumhare bacche ki maa banane wali hu...

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lund on the other?

G The urban goverIT S SI L nance of Mumbai suburbs is a matter of great concern.

While Mumbai has been divided into 24 ward offices, the ward wise population is completely skewed against the suburbanites. For example, B ward in the island city has a population of around 1.16 lakh people, while Malad has over 6 lakhs. It is well nigh impossible for one small MCGM ward office to cater satisfactorily to all the municipal needs of so many people. Hence decentralization of administrative wards is critical for good urban development of the so-called suburbs. It is pertinent to note that the suburbs of Mumbai are equally responsible for the economy of this city as the relatively new business districts/ economic hubs BKC, Andheri, Malad BPOs and Film City are in the suburbs.

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URBANIZATION OF SUBURBS Suburbs (Sub-under and urbs-city) is generally understood to be residential areas around a large city with a lower population density than the inner city neighbourhoods. Someone forgot to tell Mumbai that!

The linear, sea-pocketed Mumbai has been growing awkwardly, haphazardly and incrementally in the north west and north east direction, creating dense, congested, poorly planned so-called suburbs. The pressure of the migrant population and the increased economic growth

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URBANISATION OF SUBURBS UNDERWORLD UNIONS UDIPI RESTAURANTS UDDHAV T UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI UJWAL NIKAM UMBRELLAS

UDIPI RESTAURANTS bourhood restauAs in your friendly, neigh medhu vada, dosa, rant selling idli-sabha, uth Indian filter cofSo ng utthappa and stro pear from Mumbai, fee. If they had to disap Udupi for our to ve mo to we would have fix! r regula

and find out for yourself who they are and let me have it in writing by tomorrow."

"All right, I want the whole class to take out your ballpens and notebooks... You there, SubInspector Samant, who gave you that Parker ballpen set? And don't flash it around in public... Now then, notebooks ready? I want all of you to write down a brief bio-data on Kalia Anthony from Santa Cruz, Nandu and Sada Kadam from Borivli, John Marshall Mendonca from the western suburbs, Abdul Hamid from Dongri, Ghan-

shyam Dube from Jogeshwari...

"May I have your notebooks now? Inspector Sardesai, will you go around and collect them.

Thank you... Now then, who is this, who has written here that John Marshall Mendonca is a West Indies fast bowler!"

"All right, class, that will be all today. Now that you know who is who in the underworld, go out and arrest them all".

......................................BUSYBEE APRIL 18, 1985

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VIDHAN BHAVAN VAITARNA LAKE VICTORIA TERMINUS VERSOVA VASAI FORT VILLA THERESA VOTING VIRAR FAST VADA PAV VIJAY MALLYA VIJAY SALES VIDEO LIBRARIES

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Like all good things, this one has passed. But 25 years ago, there was a “video library” or several, in every neighbourhood and everyone rented to see their favourite films on VCRs. Pirated, of course.

That at least hasn’t changed.

VAITARNA LAKE

voting

ONLY IDIOTS DON’T VOTE With EVMs, you’d think that pretty much everyone would come out to vote. But in the last elections, while we yapped and raved and ranted about how voting was not just right but duty, it was South Mumbai and its PYT, Page 3 brigade, the ones who quoted Barrack Hussain Obama at least six times an hour, who were the let downs. Overall, Mumbai voted, but in the end, less than half the electorate actually came out to get their fingers inked. Oh well, next time perhaps.

One of the city’s best sweet water lakes, Vaitarna Dam is the major source of drinking water for Mumbai. But it’s a great picnic spot as well. To reach, you need to go to Virar and head towards village Vada about 40 kms from Virar on the Western line.

The views are incredible and free!

WE LOVE OUR POTATO BALLS IN BREAD vada paav

You boil potato, mash it up roughly, make balls, dip them into besan batter, deep fry, get out your fried chillis and chilli-garlic chutney, or green chutney, or both, cut into a pao, shove the ball inside, sprinkle red, slather green, and voila, you’re ready to go. If this is your first, make sure there’s a toilet close by because those chillis can be killers! Mumbai’s most delicious, egalitarian snack.

We’re lovin’ it!

Video Raids These days, visiting friends can be dangerous, because any moment there could be a surprise raid and you could be arrested for watching a pirated film on your friend's video.

So, yesterday, when a Parsi friend invited the wife and me to celebrate his New Year and watch Ramesh Sippy's Saagar on his imported VCR, I was a little nervous.

"If they so much as mention Dimple Kapadia's

name, we walk out," I told the wife, as we rang the bell at the friend's house. "I don't want to spend the night sitting in a police lock-up."

"Don't start fussing," the wife said "If they are going to show a film, they must have made some arrangement with the police to see that they are not raided. All households which hire films from circulating libraries do that."

By this time, my friend had opened the door and was welcoming us

in: "Saal mubarak, saal mubarak. And which film would you like to see first, Saagar or Ram Teri Ganga Maili!"

"Neither," I said'. "I have heard that both the films are not up to much. I would rather we sat and talked."

The wife intervened: "He has heard nothing of the sort. He is just nervous that the police may raid the place and arrest us while we are watching a pirated film."

My friend laughed. His whole household laughed. "They only raid Gujarati houses in

Matunga, don't you know that!" he said. After that, we sat down to watch one of the films. I do not know which, because I was too nervous to really watch. And, in any case, Rishi Kapoor and Rajeev Kapoor look so alike, that it is difficult to distinguish between the two films. When Miss Dimple got on a table and started dancing, I could not keep quiet any longer, so I intervened and said: "I have come to know that the cassette vigilance committee raids a house when the most interest-

Crime master GOGO, aakhen nikalkar gotiyan khelunga, aaooo!

ing part of the film is on.

I think, this is the most interesting part."

The wife said: "If you don't want to see the film, you don't see it, but don't disturb others.

After all, you are not sitting in your own house."

I said: "My house has got nothing to do with it- The new law is that they not only arrest the man of the house, but all the men present in the house. Then they release them on bail of Rs. 5,000 each the next morning, when they are put up before the magistrate." Nobody paid-

much attention to me and the rest of the time I spent preparing a defence for myself in case I was arrested. It was not the most pleasant evening of my life. And just to make up for it and show that I have no criminal intentions, I am going to buy tickets for both the films and going to see them in regular cinemas today.

......................................BUSYBEE AUGUST 26, 1985

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WANKHEDE STADIUM WARDEN ROAD WALKESHWAR WORLI SEAFACE WILLINGDON GYMKHANA WINE CULTURE – FROM HERE TO NARAYANGAON WTC WELLS WELLNESS

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NUSLI WADIA: HABITUAL WINNER Grandson of Pakistan’s founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah, he is an industrialist who needs no introduction. Neither does his flagship company Bombay Dyeing. He is a man who calls a spade a spade and he’s brutally frank. He is Nusli Neville Wadia, Chairman of The Wadia Group. He took over a small family business from his father Neville Wadia and brought Bombay Dyeing to the status of one of the most respected and widely diversified business houses in the country.

He’s got into and out of many controversies, always unscathed. Many a times he had taken on the establishment and was targeted for it. The Central Bureau of Investigation had once arrested Wadia for ‘mis-declaring his citizenship’. The hotel where he was staying had filled in his registration form as an Indian citizen whereas, at the time, Wadia had a British passport. He was targeted during the Congress tenure, seemingly because of his association with opposition leaders, including some from the BJP, and for his close connection with the Indian Express newspaper owner Ramnath Goenka.

The income tax department even instituted tax inquiries going back 16 years and had tied Wadia up in the courts for two years.

They confiscated his passport and in 1989 even issued him with a deportation order.

But he was not cowed down and after 42 court hearings, Wadia won. His fight with Dhirubhai has also become part of India’s business folklore.

But at the end of the day this man holds no grudges. He forgives all and moves on. No wonder ‘winning’ comes to him so easily.

WORLI SEAFACE rine e, bay-shaped like Ma This was a quiet seafac so. ly ing rm cha t bu r, drab, Drive but much smalle ed ng cha ta vis the d an Then came the Sealink rli Seaface became a dramatically as the Wo ng the bridge. The imusi major road for those ed in but ask residents provements have flood t d chances are you’ll ge an ve whether they appro erng da d an ed llut isy, po your head taken off! No criticisms. Oh well, you ous arr the commonest progress! have to pay a price for

Writers In Residence Yesterday, there was a mention in the paper of Mr. Manohar Malgonkar, author of the prizewinning Inside Goa (besides, A Bend In The Ganges, Distant Drums, Princes etc.) He leads an ideal writer's life in a house with long low verandahs and carpets and a well-trained staff supervised by his wife.

And the house is situated in a jungle, that is not

too wild and crawling with animals, on the lip of the Karwar ridge that looks down into the state of Goa. I understand that Mr. Ruskin Bond is one other writer, who lives under similar ideal writing conditions among the hills of Mussoorie. I have not met him, but I have read a lot of his work (Shashi Kapoor's Junoon was based on his short story, Flight of Pigeons). And though I have not

seen much of his writing recently, his output over the years has been prolific.

I mention this because I believe conditions of work and setting do help a writer.

Mr. Khushwant Singh is also a prodigious writer.

New Delhi is not the crowded and noisy city that Bombay is (though, of late, it has definitely become more violent than Bombay, in a public sort of way), and particularly, Mr. Singh's Shujan Singh Park is like a

country estate, with gulmohurs and chestnut trees, under which he parks his car (or cars).

He is a disciplined writer, having set hours for work. He works from a little study, book-lined, but not with review books, which, I think, he must be selling to the kabadiwalia along with his empty scotch bottles.

He does not use a desk or a typewriter, writing with a neat hand on a lined pad, the pad on his knee.

But it would be unfair to

Watch Mumbai wash its dirty linen in public at Dhobi Ghat, the world’s biggest laundromat

conclude that Mr, Singh can only write in the quiet of Shujan Singh Park. When in Bombay, as editor of The Illustrated Weekly, he used to write from a flat on Arthur Bunder Road.

And the Arabs had already arrived in Arthur Bunder Road.

Mr. Singh's successor at the Weekly, Mr, M.V. Kamath, has, unfortunately, not done better for himself than a house near the Khar station. Hence, his recent writings have this suburban flavour,

not genteel suburban, but municipal corporation suburban.

Mr. Kamath's successor, Mr. Pritish Nandy, must also be requiring quiet and solitude to write, especially as he writes poetry and is one of India's most famous poets.

Though these days most of the writing he does is interviews with film stars.

......................................BUSYBEE AUGUST 1, 1985

WATER RIOTS, TANKERS, THEFT, SHORTAGE, WARS, CRISIS

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Brown is slowly, but steadily, being edged out by red and white. Once a bastion of whisky and beer, India is gradually turning into a nation of wine drinkers and Mumbai, which has the highest sales of wine in the country, is leading the way. It’s impossible to go for any serious, or frivolous, event and not be offered a glass of wine. It may not be a very good wine, but the fact that it’s a wine made from wine grapes represents a marked shift from the days of table grapebased Goan Port. Though for many, the categories of wine are still either red, white and, not sparkling, but champagne, the number of drinkers who are aware of wine regions and grape varietals is reasonably large. It’s not uncommon to find people asking for a cabernet sauvignon or a merlot instead of a red, a chardonnay, chenin or sauvignon blanc instead of white and many even know that Indian sparkling wine isn’t the same as champagne. There are enough serious wine drinkers now for most department stores to make sure they stock some wine accessories and you can find at least one model of a wine cooler in the refrigerator section of most electronic stores.

WATER – RIOTS, THEFTS, SCARCITY, TANKERS

WANKHEDE STADIUM Built after disputes between the Cricket Club of India which owns the Brabourne Stadium and the Mumbai Cricket Association over the allocation of tickets for cricket matches, it was at the initiative of S.K.Wankhede that Wankhede Stadium was built near Churchgate station. Completed in six months and opened in time for the final Test between India and the West Indies in 1975, the stadium took over from Brabourne stadium as the main cricketing venue in the city. Currently, it is under renovation for the World Cup. Brabourne is rocking, thanks to the IPL

The recent monsoon crisis has led to the recognition of water as the primary moving force in our lives. It can make or break areas, localities, townships, neighbourhoods, politicians, governments.

Apppended to any other word, like theft, supply, tanker, scarcity, riot, it assumes humungous propertions.

As Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation employs water cuts to tide over the water shortage crisis, the city continues to reel relentlessly. Everyone talks about it all the time.

Mumbai needs 3,400 MLD water per day and never gets enough. It falls short regularly as the BMC barely supplies 3,100 MLD of water. Water thefts by slum dwellers and illegal residents poaching water from common lines; water mafia stocking and selling it at a premium to the affected, corruption in the water department, all are par for the course in Mumbai. Yet some areas have all the water they need – and more. Care to guess which ones and why?

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WORLD TRADE CENTRE (WTC) New York had its own, will have another one in the future. Mumbai’s WTC at Cuffe Parade’s puts all the services associated with global commerce under one roof and its address gives business prime and continuous access to resources essential for success in world trade. Currently the venue for exhibitions, conferences and seminars, as well as meetings with visiting trade delegations, its Centrum Building has seen it all, from handicraft exhibitions to fashion shows, workshops on new education to discussions on travel. The chairman is Kamal Morarka, also the owner of the ADC.

Qayamat se Kalaamat tak!

It rules

THE XAVIER CULTURE X-TRAS IN BOLLYWOOD X RATED FILMS (CINEMAS WHERE WE CAN SEE THEM) X-MAS

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OVERTAKEN BY THE MMS TELL-IT-LIKE-IT-IS CULTURE X-Rated films, a huge hit in the yesteryears in the form of hush-hush video cassettes, have practically fizzled out of existence except in the crowded gullies of slums. Now you’ve got the best (or worst) available online and for free. There are also tvideo clips making the ted x-ram rounds on mobiles. Apparently, lots of people, s l i f while having sex, like to have themselves filmed. At least that’s the impression one gets

XAVIER CULTURE In a country like India, where a degree in the Arts and Humanities is stereotyped as an option for the “stupid”, St Xavier’s has a culture that takes pride in both. And when you consider that its Science faculty is hugely respected, this is rich

praise indeed!

It’s funny how Xavierites are typecast as bold, unconventional and westernized. Because, it is also the only college that has dared to bar sleeveless tops, above

from the regular complaints of MMSes of schoolgirls, collegians and filmstars that crop up all the time. Nowadays, it is Tiger Woods and his exploits that everyone surfs for.

And when you want to watch a horror film, you can search for ND Tiwari on You Tube.

The X'mas Story And, as is my practice, a special X'mas story for all the children of Bombay.

It was the night before X'mas and all the children were being told that Santa Claus was coming to Bombay. Not on X'mas eve or X'mas day, but very soon after that... on December 27.

And all the children said, "Hurrah," and they looked at the sky to see Santa Claus come flying in with his circus.

And some children, those who are always

asking questions and want answers asked their parents where did Santa Claus stay when it was not X'mas and he was not coming to Bombay.

And the parents told them that sometimes he stayed here and sometimes he stayed there and sometimes in New Delhi, but mostly abroad, in Tokyo Hanoi, Moscow, New York, etc.

Meanwhile, Bombay was being prepared to welcome Santa Claus. The airport was being painted and Mahalaxmi railway station was being painted for the

first time in hundred years and they (or rather Akbarally's who have the biggest X'mas sales in Bombay) were putting new road-dividers and Marine Drive was getting a new hedge.

Because, it was said Santa Claus liked everything nice and clean and if anything did not appear to be so, he would get angry. Though this Santa Claus looked such a nice fellow, always smiling, that it was difficult to think he could get angry.

All the godfathers of Bombay were put in charge of arranging things for Santa-Claus.

Chief Minister Shivajirao Patil ilangekar was put in charge of listening to all the emissaries of Santa Claus who were coming from Delhi and telling him what to do, and Dr. Rafiq Zakaria was put in charge of making X'mas cars, and Mr. Jawaharlal (such a nice name!)

Darda, in charge of feeding Santa Claus and all his jolly men (though they said Santa Claus himself ate very little), and Mr. Moti Daryanani of arranging an exhibition of industrialists whose business premises had not been recently raided, and Mr. Murli Deora of issuing state-

Can’t laugh? Sign up at any one of the 87 odd laughter clubs to guffaw – every morning

the knee skirts, overcasual wear for boys and even cellphone use during college hours! Now that’s tough.

What has also been a hallmark of Xavier culture is the way studentship is defined by all-round development. You have to find something you like to do, over and above studying – and swots receive scant respect.

So whether it is putting together its prestigious inter-collegiate festival Malhar, the IMC music

ments to the press.

And Mr. Deora, being Mr. Deora, kept telling all the children not to be afraid and that Santa Claus and his men were not going to come and eat them up. And in fact, he told them all that they should enjoy the visit.

Though how the children could enjoy the visit, when all the parents were insisting on taking them a safe distance out of Bombay was not clear.

But at the Brabourne Stadium, they were digging the ground and sinking structures into it and erecting a shamiana of gunny bags and

society, the debate club, the heritage society or the science or law magazine, students from every stream are expected and encouraged to contribute to the college beyond the classroom.

Perhaps this is why Xavier’s, in over 150 years of its existence, has given the city, and the country, more achievers than you could shake a stick at – their alumnus records read like a Hall of Fame!

transplanting several large X'mas trees, and making arrangements for a gala X'mas party.

Only it was one of those parties where children were not to be allowed.

For that matter, their parents (including young Sohrab's father) were not being allowed at the Mahalaxmi racecourse.

And when people asked why Santa Claus should require the entire racecourse, they were told "To house his reindeers, my dears."

......................................BUSYBEE DECEMBER 24, 1985

JANUARY 2, 1985

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There seems to be some debate on whether the CongressI spent more on its centenary celebrations or my friend, who lives on the 21st floor, on his New Year's eve party.

I was talking to my friend about it this morning, as he was recovering from his extended hangover. He had a glass of tomato juice, laced with the white of an egg and a dash of pepper, then said: "Don't ask me about the amount of money, I have to still make the accounts, but it was quite a good party, very homely and with only close friends invited."

"How many guests were there?"

I asked.

"Well, they say about five lakh, but I would put it at 4,75,000 give or take a few thousands.

So many of them, like yourself, could not come at the last moment," my friend said.

"How did you manage to organise such a big party?"

I asked.

"I wanted to ask Mr. Murli Deora to help organise it, since he has got the experience and since they say he is very helpful to rich people, not that I am anywhere near rich, but then I decided to do it on my own," my friend said.

The butler at this stage brought him, for his hangover, a glass of orange juice, with honey, coconut water and a spoon of condensed milk, topped with soda.

My friend drank it, then continued: "I hired several venues, since they would all not be able to fit in one place; danc-

ing was at the Brabourne Stadium and the racecourse, the drinks bar was put up at the Cooperage, dinner was at the Wankhede Stadium, buffet style, of course."

"You had anything special at mid¬night, when 1985 became 1986 like switching off the lights, etc?" I asked.

"Actually, I wanted to hire the Gateway of India and take all the guests there at mid-night, in luxury buses, but the authorities said the Gateway should be kept open for the public on New Year's eve. Quite fair, I think," my friend said. "So, instead, I hired the whole of the Taj Mahal for the night and, at mid-night, guests stood at the windows and shouted and blew whistles."

The butler brought him black coffee, with lime, salt and chaat masala, arid yellow of egg.

My friend drank it, then continued: "The party continued till the early hours of the morning.

Those who were too tired to go home, spent the next day at the Taj, since I had booked it thrqugh the following day. I forgot to tell-you I had also booked the whole of Oberoi for the foreign guests to stay in."

"What about August Kranti Maidan?" I asked.

"No, I did not book that, I cannot book everything, I don't have so much money to spend like the Congress," my friend said.

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Actually, the Royal Bombay yacht Club, founded in 1846. Still relevant G because as we send this to press, a boat show has just concluded, with IT S SI L vessels in the harbour and also in the dock off Colaba. And there are hoardings in the city announcing the sale of yachts. So people are buying, people are playing in the water, people are running around in skiffs and motor boats and on motor scooters, finally there is hope that in a small way, the sea will come into its own.

And so to the Yacht Club on the Colaba waterfront, and we hark back to the fact that the city’s splendid harbour was the scene of the country's first regatta in 1830 in which cutters, schooners and yawls of all sizes vied for the sweepstake of one Gold Mohur. The present building came up in 1880, the land leased from the Bombay Port Trust.

However, in case you think Mumbai has arrived, nautically speaking, perish the thought.

While the number of privately held boats and vessels moored in the harbour seem to be increasing, it’s still the fishermen (tandels) who rule the sea. And the sea itself is still seen largely as seafood source rather than fountainhead of entertainment, by 99 per cent of the peoYOGA – SURYA ple in Mumbai.

NAMASKAR ANYONE? Notwithstanding the Yacht Club.

YASH BIRLA: MYSTERY WRAPPED IN ENIGMA He wears clinging, transparent T-shirts and bears a family name that is the Indian synonym for rich. He is a conservative Marwari, but looks more like a sportsman and could even pass off as a film star. But this scion of the Birla family is an industrialist to the core.

He is Yashovardhan Birla also known as ‘Yash’ and chairs a Rs 3,000 crores conglomerate of over 20 diversified companies which run a gamut of established businesses from auto-components and engineering to power solutions, lifestyle to infrastructure and real estate. His group today has 6 companies publicly listed in India.

Yash has done his masters in commerce and has a degree in law. He took over the reins of the group at an early age of 23 and has been heading the group successfully by setting very high standards of performance in all areas of businesses for the past 16 years. Cheers to the man who is quick to lecture people on non-vegetarianism, drinking and smoking.

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AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

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YASHWANTRAO CHAVAN YAZDANI BAKERY YMCA, YWCA YACHT CLUB YASHRAJ FILMS YOGA, YOGASHRAMS YELLOW PAGES YASH BIRLA

We may have had it for 5,000 years and more, but you can trust the Americans to make a huge successful business of it, leaving us looking more than a little miffed.

According to a study by the Yoga Journal (magazine in th US, natch), in 2005 16.5 million Americans were practicing yoga, and they are spending $3 billion a year on it (special clothes, special mat, special yoga water bottle etc).

In Mumbai, when the ADC started 25 years ago, we had the institutes on Marine Drive and Santacruz, but few people seemed to be doing it on a regular basis at home.

Nowadays, you ask someone if he or she is doing yoga and the answer is usually, “What kind?”

Thanks to Sri Sri Ravishanker and Deepak Chopra, but particularly Baba Ramdev and satellite television, yoga is there is everyone’s living rooms, brought to us in a variety of ways.

Pranayam is givng us a new lease of life, Bikram and hot yoga are no longer merely amusements from the US but available in studios in the city, there is a mudra for everything that you can practice in your spare time in trains and buses and cars on your way to work. And millions are waking up early in the mornings, tuning in to Aastha and just following Baba Ramdev who has perhaps done more to popularize yoga in everyday life than anybody else.

La Boulagerie

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Congratulates Afternoon on its 25th Anniversary Cawasji Patel Street, Fort, Mumbai-400001

ZAFRAN’S TO ZAFFAR BHAI’S (KEBABS AND MUGHLAI CUISINE) ZERO- SIZE ZAVERI BAZAAR ZUNKA BHAKAR KENDRAS ZODIAC GRILL Z CATEGORY SECURITY ZEBRA CROSSING ZOO ZEENAT AMAN ZUBIN MEHTA ZEE TV

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AFTERNOON DESPATCH & COURIER, THURSDAY, MARCH 25, 2010

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ZUBIN MEHTA

Rani Baug as it’s popularly known, has been in the news over the last decade for all the wrong reasons. The death of several animals, particularly deer due to ingesting plastic bottles, caps thrown by visitors; the inability to get a mate for Shiva, the sole Rhinoceros at the zoo, the death of the only tiger in the premises and the sordid state of affairs during the sweltering heat of the summers have only worsened the situation. Oh yes, and four kangaroos, presents from Australia, died here as well. There’s a lot of talk about modernisation and a revamp of sorts that will secure the state of the rare and endangered but it’s far from being actualised. Till then, the animals and birds simplydwindle and developers eye the land, slavering with greed..

sorn in Bombay in 1936, a citizen of the world, still an Indian, award-laden conductor whose name resonated throughout the world, he is still “aapro Zubin” to this city. You cvould describe him as “an Indian born conductor of Western classical music”. But that’s like saying the Rolls Royce Silver Ghost is a car, or a Rolex Oyster chronograph “Daytona” is a watch.

ZAVERI BAZAAR Bhuleshwar’s best is undoubtedly Zaveri Bazaar where scores of jewelry shops sell gems and jewels. Besides being the headquarters of Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri, the nation’s largest jewellery retailer, you will find the latest designs and the oldest, side by side, waiting for every pocket and every taste. This is a legendary jewelry market where most of the stories are true. Have wedding coming up, will shop here is the motto.

ZUNKA BHAKAR KENDRAS The much hyped scheme of the Shiv Sena-BJP government died an untimely death in spite of creating a flutter across the state when it was created. In the late eighties, you got zunka and bhakar for Rs 1 and the poor were particularly happy with the stalls that sprang up all over. Of course it couldn’t last, and venality soon took over, with zunka bhakar reduced to a tiny portion of the fast food on offer, certainly nothing at a buck either!

Now the state government, through a notification, has ordered closure of Zunka Bhakar stalls on the expiry of their lease agreements. The government has also began taking back the small plots allotted for the Zunka Bhakar Kendra by the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance government. The stall operators have approached the High Court, challenging the government decision and the issue is pending with the judiciary. When the government gets them back, it intends handing over most of these reacquired stalls in major cities of the state to its undertaking, Mafco, for sale of its milk products.

Zodiac Shirts The Zodiac people yesterday threw a cocktail party (Scotch-and-soda) to introduce a new range of shirts.

There was one with detachable collars; you could attach (and detach) a shirt of the same material and pattern as the shirt, or a white collar, or, in the evenings, when you wish to put in an informal appearance, you could detach both the collars and go collarless, in a sort of a round neck. All very elegant

and upmarket, I must say, but not my style.

There was another shirt with a gold (it shone tike gold) tie-pin fixed in the collar, through an already stitched hole, I presume. And there was a gold chain dangling from it, the last word in men's fashions in shirts.

I do not know what cost more, the tie-pin or the shirt.

Very nice, very classy, but once again not my thing.

Over the years, my shirt styles have undergone changes, but nothing as drastic as shirts with gold

chains. When I first started wearing shirts, the open-fronts were considered as old style, our grandfathers (those of us whose grandfathers, were still living) used to wear them. We used to go to school in one of those shirts that you had to push your head through.

By the time I went to college, the open-front had returned to fashion, thanks to t shirt manufacturers like Liberty, Excel, Van Heusen, Arrow- (Indian Arrow, of course). They all had long-sleeves and cufflinks with letters to match

Women travel handprint-free, only in Mumbai!

Z CATEGORY SECURITY One way of bringing the recalcitrant to heel is by taking away their Z category security.status. Raj Thackeray’s was downgraded, Udhav Thackeray was threatened with the removal of his, and in a pet, he returned his men (like you give back a toy out of spite), Balasaheb

your name (mine did not have a "B", since at that time my name was not Busybee), and what were known as trubenised collars.

Trubenised collars were permanently stiff collars, made so, I presume, by the insertion of stiff canvas into the collar. For a long time, I insisted on wearing shirts with trubenised collars only, though they were very uncomfortable and gave a crick to my neck. I used to wear Excel trubenised-collar shirts and give them to Garment Cleaners to wash and starch. Then I would

Thackeray has it too.

And that’s just one family whose individual members are surrounded by commandoes armed to the teeth, taken from the police force, paid for by us. Mahender Singh Dhoni was to get security in view of threats, also Sachin Tendulkar, but theirs

suffer through the day in the starched stiff shirts.

I never wore nylon shirts or parachute material shirts, partly because they were see through and I did not think I looked nice in seethrough shirts. For that matter, I do not think any Indian male, except possibly Shashi Kapoor's model son, looks nice in see-through clothes.

I never took to bushshirts also and 1 have not owned or worn a safari suit in my life, but that may be because they are the uniform of the Indian industrialist (first and second rung)

will never be so intrusive as the security employed to keep our beloved netas alive for more – well – loving, by their followers.

Luckily Mumbai doesn’t suffer so much. Delhi has it really bad, poor city. So let us be thankful for living so far from the Centre of things.

and I am not one.

When Mr. Khushwant Singh came to Bombay, he introduced the towel shirt, though introduced may not be quite the correct term, because I was the only person who took to the style. They were the most comfortable shirts I have worn.

Over a period of months, they would look less and less like shirts and more and more like towels.

......................................BUSYBEE FEBRUARY 7, 1986