The promenades have ruined Bandra

I’ve lived in Bandra 10 years. It has become unwalkable in this time. It wasn’t always so.

In the year of our lord 2000, you fought your way down Hill Road, but then you ducked into St Andrew’s. You pretended, to the people at the Virgin’s statue, to be a worshipper, went past the church looking right, at the faces of people praying for or against, or you took that little path on the left and looked at the names on the gravestones. Same.

Having read the notice board (weddings – none, funerals – one, baptisms – two, choir), you exited from the back gate a little before Salman’s house, responded to the old Muslim’s weighing-scale if you had been good that week, or, more likely, walked on.

And you could actually walk on.

The promenade hadn’t been completed then (I’m not entirely sure whether it had been begun). There were no spectators, and nobody had broadcast their children into open space. Shah Rukh hadn’t bought Mannat, there was no Barista, no Cafe Coffee Day. Land’s End wasn’t yet a Taj property, and you didn’t get X-rayed if you went into it, or if you moved on to inhale at the Fort.

Today the hordes are forever on the promenade in their battle formations; don’t they have barracks to return to?

The outnumbered sounded retreat.

Carter Road and Pali Hill fell soon after to members of the middling-class, their infants squirting about your ankles, aunties in churidar-sneaker sitting on benches, vested girls who walked fastly by you preferring iPod to iContact. Wraiths in polyester burqa, narielwallah mounding his trash, hand-clasping Hindi men, noise.

Turner Road ships them here, and then back. Unending crack of car-horn: alarms sounded by sentries alert to nobody around them.

It’s all worse.

We used to like the promenades, but they attracted the wrong people. We’re convinced they’re a mistake. Bandra was made beautiful by these strips of rock. The mobs, unable to civilise themselves, their neighbourhoods, have taken our share.

– Aakar Patel

Parade Around

As the summer vacations come to an end it time to get in as much fun as possible before the rains. Rather than watching football or cricket break away from mundane sports and enjoy some fun telegames. As a finale to their summer sports carnival St. Andrews Church is organizing an evening of telegames for one and all. The evening will be complete with cheerleaders and funny mascots to entertain you while a canteen will stock food and cold drinks. “The telegames were a lot of fun last year and should be even better this year. It brings a lot of people together that you haven’t seen in a years and everyone has a great time”, says participant Nicole Pereira. There will also be spot prizes for the audiences and so far South East zone is leading with 350 points.

Where: St. Andrews School Quadrangle, When: Sunday, 30th 4:30pm, Entry: Free

Classical dance on Carter Road

The names might be difficult to pronounce but since dance is the universal language it’s easy to enjoy the grace and fluidity of Nrityanidhi. The dancers bring you a beautiful blen of old and new this weekend. The classical dancers will dance to Sufi music, Quwalli as well as songs from Bollywood. The show’s going to be wild, director Soma Kaikini says. She adds, “This show will prove the versatility and supremacy of Indian Classical Dance!  Nrityanidhi isn’t a two hour slot in the routine of a dancer’s life. It isn’t an institution which just teaches movement, it’s much more. It aims to open up the world of dance on a complete holistic, larger than life level, capturing dance, life, nature beauty and existence.”

When: 31st May 2009, 6.45 pm, Where: Carter Road Amphitheatre; Entry: Free

Crab Fest at Cafe Goa

Seafood lovers are in for a treat today as Cafe Goa is celebrating a ‘Crab festival’. Carl Sequeira, manager at Café Goa says, “When the monsoons come you stop getting good deep sea crabs and so we thought of spoiling our customers by indulging them with some great  deep sea crabs.” The crab festival will have 5 to 6 different types of crabs and dishes such as crab cafreal, crab butter garlic and a lot more. The best part about the festival is this a great offer where for Rs. 395(plus taxes), you get one whole crab and a complimentary drink like a glass of 9 hills wine, a foster dark beer or a mocktail. But if you want to indulge in this feast of seafood, better hurry as the festival is only this weekend.

Where: Café Goa, St. john Baptist road, Contact: 26404115

– Rommel Albuquerque

Green drive on Carter Road

In a bid to raise awareness about the environment, there will be a free film screening on Carter Road. The three films that will be aired all deal with saving the environment. They include ‘Ciclovia’, a film about the capital of Colombia that makes 120 km of road “automobile free” every Sunday for the citizens to come outdoors and enjoy the streets. The next film is ‘New York Summer Streets Program’ which shows how Summer Streets event opened 7 miles of city streets to pedestrians and bike traffic only. These films show the many benefits of cycling-friendly cities and shows how a commitment to designing cities that are people-oriented, not car-oriented, can make urban residents happier, healthier, and more environmentally responsible.
When:  30th May at 6.30-8.30pm, Venue: Carter Rd Amphitheater, Bandra (West)

– Glynda Alves

Happy Feet at St. Andrew’s

If you don’t want to spend Sunday lazing around then head to St. Andrew’s Auditorium for a show that’s bound to wake you up! This Sunday Rahul Saxena who conducts jive, salsa and waltz classes will be putting on a show. Watch as his students display their newly acquired skills and move to the beat. A fan who attends every year says, “His show is very exhilarating, you just can’t sit still. Especially those who love music and love dancing find it difficult to not get off their seats and join the performers on stage”. So if you’re looking for an electrifying evening, you know where to go.

Where: St. Andrews Auditorium, St. Dominic Road

When: Sunday 7.30pm.

Tickets: Available at the booking office at the Auditorium, Contact: 26513224

– Rommel Albuquerque

Dreamsellers

Head to Rangsharda this weekend to catch a relatively new play titled ‘Dreamsellers.’ Writer, Rajat Banerjee, says, “It is a story about how five executives (both men and women) deal with this myriad group of clients, how things get mixed up, and most importantly what happens to their dreams. It’s hilarious, it’s funny and it’s unpredictable!” Rajat says that the audience will be able to identify with the characters and that “it’s the perfect way to spend an enjoyable evening.” Lively background scores and superbly choreographed dance sequences have also been interwoven into this play. The duration of this play is approximately 100 minutes.

Ticket: Rs.500/350/250/150/100, Time of Play : 7.30 to 9.30 pm on Sunday, 31st May, 09 at Rang Sharda, Rating : U with Parental Guidance.

– Glynda Alves

Back to school gear

“How much for that watch?” – “One handbag, please”

In these tight financial times it seems that bartering is a great way to get new stuff and save on money. And now, there’s an organised system where you can do so, it’s called Barter Road.

Sapna Bhavnani says, “I love the concept of barter and I am constantly trading handbags, digital watches etc for haircuts in the past.” So, Sapna and her boyfriend Arijit Datta decided to take the bartering a notch up.

She says, “We started Barter Road to encourage people to barter and it’s really picking up. Soon, we will also be having live swap meets with live music and beer to encourage more people to trade.”

BARTERS: A sound card

Anushka Anand

“This is my first Barter deal and it’s gone amazingly well. I’m already looking for other stuff. The idea is great and the economics involved are really interesting. It’s a great idea considering the current market situation too.”

But what you trade need not be only goods. Sapna says, “You can trade skill too. The process is easy. Post what you have and what you want in return and people get back to you.” Right now Sapna is striking her own barter deal, she says, “A Dj mixer for speakers!”

Sapna was inspired by her other successful online project called Blacklist. She explains, “Blacklist is a bible for people in the industry. It’s a reference point for people to check up on companies that don’t pay either on time or at all. A lot of people have come forward and companies feel the pressure of getting blacklisted. I’m really proud of this one.”

For vocal lessons

Suman Shridhar

“People think it’s a crazy idea but the best part is that it actually works! The concept is fabulous and it just needed a kick in the right direction. If you’re broke and want something, go to Barter Road.”

BARTERS: A sound card BARTERS: A sound car

Bandra boy takes the lead

After hockey legend and Bandra boy Viren Rasquinha became the captain of India’s national field hockey team, it confirmed that Bandra boys were not only good at sports but had what it takes to go all the way.

“I was surprised but extremely happy when I heard the news,” says Calvin Lobo who has been appointed as the captain of India’s Under 13yrs football team. The 13yrs old and a student of Beacon High School, says, “Ever since the 2nd standard I’ve loved playing football, it’s something inside me that draws me to the game.”

Calvin was selected as the captain of the team and was picked amongst 40 other possible candidates. “Having played in Spain 2yrs back, I learnt a lot and got a good feel of how international footballers play. This only helped push me further to improve my skills,” adds Calvin.

His team recently came back from the tournament in Iran and came in second place in the tournament. “It was a great feeling to play there and lead my team, but unfortunately we didn’t win,” says Calvin.

A teacher from the school Calvin’s school said, “When we heard that Calvin
got selected to be the captain of the Indian U-13 team, we were all extremely happy and support his efforts at excelling in sports as well as academics. We feel proud that a student form Beacon High School has achieved so much at such a young age.”