The city — sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce
Pic/Pradeep Dhivar
Western Sarod
Sarod maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan — who stepped aside from textbook Indian Classical music to play with musicians from the West — is keen to create a signature sound for his ensemble titled Samagam.
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“We did six to seven concerts with the orchestra. Earlier, sitar players have collaborated with orchestra but it has never been the same with the sarod,” he said. His first interaction with this form of music was when he played with the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra a few years ago.
“They wanted me to compose a 10-minute piece. I started thinking, singing in my mind and visualised the crescendo,” he added, saying he got hold of a music conductor to write for him. “Otherwise, I am a free bird. I just improvise. I create and I forget,” he laughed.
Combing operations underway
Pic/Ashish Rane
Senior NCP leader Sunil Tatkare (left) readies to address a rally in Malad yesterday, as Ajit Pawar checks his phone. A sore throat, however, made him ditch the idea.
Hajmola chai, anyone?
If you wish for a kick of nostalgia with your cuppa, try ordering Chai Pe Charcha’s latest offering, Hajmola Chai (from over 20 tea varieties; in pic).
Introduced at the opening of its fourth outlet in the city in Andheri (W) recently, the brew is supposed to replicate the popular digestive candy by infusing rock salt and cumin powder in a piping hot black lemon tea. Lassi lovers can get to try the sweetened drink in a baby milk bottle.
If you’re looking for something to munch on, try new offerings like Italian Sev Puri that comes topped with olive, corn and veggies or nachos-style Firangi Khakra besides their signature Amritsari Parathas and pakodas.
For company, you’ll find Amitabh Bachchan and SRK spouting chai-laced puns on the walls of the Bollywood-themed outlet. We also hear the owner Anil Kohli, who believes in empowering differently-abled individuals, has hired hearing and speech impaired youth as staffers. Sweet, no?
Driven by cricket
You can expect a packed house wherever cricket is discussed. That crowd gets doubled if Test captain and the toast of the cricket field (and off it too), Virat Kohli is the focus of the event.
Delhi played host to the launch of Driven: The Virat Kohli Story by Vijay Lokapally on Wednesday, and the who’s who of Indian cricket showed up to back the Indian skipper. The book looks at his mercurial rise from the Under-19 team to his status as the team’s anchor.
The 27-year-old was gracious at the release, “I am humbled that Vijay Sir wrote a book about me and grateful for the support of my family, friends, mentors, teammates and the wider cricketing community who taught me how to believe in myself. This book is as much about them as it is about me.” Kapil Dev, Anil Kumble, Ravi Shastri, Virender Sehwag, Ajay Jadeja, Murali Karthik and Anjum Chopra attended the glitzy affair.
Happy 55th!
It was Shiamak Davar’s birthday yesterday, and to convey her good wishes, actress Kirti Sanon posted this adorable picture on Twitter.
“Shiamak sir...Keep spreading ur magic as always,” she said, and we wish just the same to the guru of contemporary dance, who was not to be seen on Twitter on his special day.
Guess Davar is still in Goa, where he choreographed for the recently concluded BRICS 2016 summit. After all, what could be a better way to bring in one’s 55th!
Ikat on the Eiffel
The fashion capital of the world is all set to watch Ikat-clad showstoppers walk the ramp. For the first edition of the French European Indian Fashion Week that commences tomorrow in Paris, designer Madhu Jain, a hands-on advocate of the country’s indigenous crafts, will be showcasing her collection developed using the traditional weave.
The Ikat weave
One of the six designers from the Indian contingent headed to the Eiffel Tower (that’s the venue for the event!), Jain says, “I will use this fashion week to portray India’s rich cultural roots and hope that my collection will serve an ambassadorial role in sharing our cultural tradition with those of other regions.” Good luck, lady!
Madhu Jain
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