Masquerade Night

Something’s Fishy

Owning and maintaining aquariums are a great hobby and if you are looking at a new set-up or would like to work on you’re existing one, the fish shops opposite Bandra Talao can cater to all your needs.

Basic requirements list:

1)  Tanks/Bowls – The starting point to any aquarium set-up, it’s advisable to plan on the dimensions in advance based on its position within the house as well as the weight bearing capacity of the platform it will be placed on.

Price: Rs 250 onwards (Bandra Fish Aquarium)

2) Fish (small) – Small fish species like (neon tetras, fighters, dollar fish, gold fish, angel) etc are resilient species and need barely any maintenance.

Price: Rs 40 onwards (Bandra Fish Aquarium)

3) Fish (large) – It’s advisable to go in for the larger fish like (flower horn, oscar, discus, parrot fish) only after you’ve learnt the basics of aquarium maintenance as these flamboyant species require special care and are usually aggressive towards smaller fish. Big fish are best kept alone or in a large tank with few other species of the same temperament. Price: Rs 200 onwards (Sweet Home Aquarium)

4) Equipment – Three basic necessities, an air pump, gravel and a bio-filter are required to maintain the ecology within you’re tank/bowl. Other essentials would include dechlorinator (while cycling the water) and fish food. Price: air pump + filter + gravel Rs 250 (Bandra Fish Aquarium & Sweet Home Aquarium)

5) Accessories – Be it the classic scuba diver with a treasure chest, sunken ship, hollow caskets or artificial plants, accessories are a great way to add a personal touch to your aquarium. If your fish are small then these landscaping pieces can also double as hiding spot. Price: Rs50 – Rs300 (Bandra Fish Aquarium)

6) Lighting – The right lighting is one of the most important factors that enhance the show of your aquarium and based on the colours of your fish, you can choose to go in for a partial UV light, plain white tube or a red/blue tinted tube. Price: Rs 150 (Bandra Fish Aquarium)

3) Fish (large) – It’s advisable to go in for the larger fish like (flower horn, oscar, discus, parrot fish) only after you’ve learnt the basics of aquarium maintenance as these flamboyant species require special care and are usually aggressive towards smaller fish. Big fish are best kept alone or in a large tank with few other species of the same temperament. Price: Rs 200 onwards (Sweet Home Aquarium

Dabeli at Pali Naka

Walking past the busy Pali Market, Annabella’s is a blink and miss it kinda place. But, if your nose gets the better of you then you could have found a nice (and super cheap) snack joint. Annabella’s food corner is barely a week old but already has a bunch of enthusiastic regulars. Why? Dabeli, Basket, Chatthe Raj Kachori Chat and strangely the Chinese Noodle Frankie! The Dabeli, for Rs.10, 15 if you want cheese (but obviously!), is stuffed with potato, pomegranate seeds, peanuts and onions in a heavily buttered grilled pav. A must try since this is one of the only places that sells it in Bandra. Basket and Raj Kachori chat adds its own spin on the humble snack. Try the mayonnaise Frankie if you want something sweeter (sorry, we weren’t adventurous). Nothing on the menu is more that Rs.45. Where: Passion Flower, Pali Naka, Contact: 26489936

Bingo, Beer and Barbeque

That’s the 3b’s night for you. The 3b’s night at the Bandra gymkhana is an annual event which most loyal (and BBQ crazy) Bandraites attend religiously. It’s something we try not to miss. Actually, to be honest; the ‘younger crowd’ tend to skip the first B (Bingo). That’s for the older generation and those who like housie. But the night isn’t only about the food and drinks, there’s also entertainment. Make sure you book a table in advance though; otherwise you’ll have to beg the housie playing aunties and uncles for a spare share to plonk in the corner. See you there.

When: 17th May at 6pm, Where: Bandra Gymkhana, St. Andrews road, Entry: Guests Rs.150, members free, Contact: 26428512

– Bryce Desa

Dough Nuts

Mad Over Donuts has opened in Bandra and I already feel three kilos heavier. These soft, fluffy, aromatic, circles of dough seem harmless enough but a warning… they are highly addictive. The donuts are freshly made in front of you and come in sweet and savoury flavours. Some of the best selling are – the Black and White Bavarain, a warm donut filled with vanilla custard and dipped in dark chocolate; Midnight Beauty- dark chocolate laced with white chocolate; Black Forest Beauty, a donut dipped in dark chocolate with whipped cream. Sigh! And the best part is that the flavours keep changing. They’ve also got enough variety for the fruit lovers such as Burstin Orange, Coconut etc. PS: We recommend the Bavarian.

Where: In Gelato, off Carter Road, Cost: Rs. 200 for an assorted 6, Rs.35 per donut.

– Glynda Alves

Love Special

On this day of love (don’t roll your eyes!) Candies will be going all out and ensuring that their patrons have a mix of everything. There is food, fashion and a whole lot of romance at the Valentines Day Bazaar and Bling event. Brands include Creation, Fahrenheit, What the Funk, Zia and many more. And if you find that perfect outfit you can coordinate perfectly with accessories from Aquamarine, Cristalline, Soul Of Silver etc. But what easily has to be the most exciting part of the V-day Bazaar and Bling is their bath and body products and nightwear and lingerie (Lace) being showcased. And if the shopping gets to be too much you and your sweetheart can indulge in a little reflexolgy as the Metta masseurs will be there.

Where: Candies Hall and garden at Mac Ronells, When: Feb 14 from 11 am to 9 pm.

– Glynda Alves

Sneak Peek

East Indians! WTF, Heed Your Sacrament

The one about marriage I mean.

And what follows after marriage – and what you haven’t been doing enough of.

I want more Christians in Bandra: we NEED more Christians in Bandra. The place is being taken over by Gujarati jewellers. Bits of it are now unrecognisable from Ghatkopar (E). Vegetarian restaurants are setting up shop in Bandra. Hummus, on Hill Road, even offers a Jain food option. When did Bandra produce enough Jains to support a Jain food menu?

Soon we will have thali places, shakhapramukhs and that angry aunty in St Xavier’s who wants to ban sleeveless blouses and Mid Day Mate. India already has enough moralism. It has a surplus of it, and it is welcome to it. Bandra is our holdout. It is where we have escaped from

the can’t-drink-this-don’t-eat-that rubbish that India specialises in. And, according to my calculations, Bandra is the way it is because of  its Catholics, and long may they live.

But where are they?

We have moved our office from Turner Road, fast becoming a zone of parked cars and shiny buildings. That is not Bandra. Bandra is receding. Our last stand will be made from Pali Village as we survey the celibate, teetotalling, full-sleeved, vegetarian hordes closing in from all sides, demanding segregation of the sexes and enforcing prohibition. Like in Malabar HIll, they will impose vegetarian-only Domino’s outlets on us.

We shall brandish our bloody steaks and strings of sausage and relish the horror on their faces as they hold their heads screaming and flee back to Kalbadevi.

Look here, Big Mac, if I wanted to be force-fed idli-dosa and khaman- dhokla, I’d go back to Surat.

Give me those Yorkshire ribs. Pass me that undercut. That can only happen if demand goes up. For that to happen we need more little macs.

And who do you think is going to do that? Mr Popley? The Sindhis of 14th Road?

Me?

It’s going to have to be you, my friend.

Now stop reading. Go forth (come forth?) and make some nice-nice. And save us all…

– Aakar Patel