27 March,2025 07:13 AM IST | Mumbai | Team mid-day
Pic/Nimesh Dave
A worker is dwarfed by the grand façade of the Gateway of India that is undergoing repairs in Colaba.
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The Bboying community might be small, but they certainly stand up for one another. The past weekend was one tinged with sadness for the city's performers as they heard of the passing of Sohail Khan. "He was at a Bboying competition with us on Saturday. He had performed, and was fine. Later on, we received a call from his family that he had collapsed at home. The doctors said it was a heart attack," shared Ramesh Yadav aka Bboy Tornado. To help the family, the community has come together to host a fundraiser at Andheri this Sunday. "The funds raised will be donated to his family," Yadav added. Those willing to offer help can reach out to the crew @tornado.ramesh on Instagram.
If you spot a crowd of intense looking people watching the skies over the weekend, do not be alarmed. "The period of time post the spring equinox [March 20] is when it is time for the skies to clear a little," shared amateur astronomer, Milind Desai. On Saturday, Desai will join 50 other amateur astronomers to attempt a Messier marathon stargazing session. "Charles Messier was an 18th Century astronomer French who published an astronomical catalogue of 110 nebulae and objects witnessed in the sky. The marathon is an attempt to find as many of these nebulae and star clusters that we can in one night. We will start on Saturday evening, and go on till the early light of Sunday. Since we need utmost darkness, the event is being held at Naneghat," he revealed. With over five telescopes and close to 50 people in attendance, Desai added, "Since there are quite a few clusters, we will also explain to participants as we conduct the session."
The city is set to get a dose of classic cinema straight from The Big Apple. Richard Peña, director emeritus, New York Film Festival and professor emeritus of film and media studies, Columbia University, will be in town for a four-day film and lecture series, Altered Visions: The American Avant-Garde, 1943-1968, at the Dr Bhau Daji Lad Museum starting today. The lecture will revolve around the intellectual and artistic roots of the avant garde movement "The Museum encourages engagement with different forms of artistic media including experimental film and photography and we are delighted to invite Richard Peña again for a film lecture series. Peña had previously conducted a successful film lecture series on Latin American cinema at the Museum. We are responding to a public demand for more such film screenings and film lectures at the Museum," shared Tasneem Zakaria Mehta, managing trustee and director of the Museum.
After eight years of holding sessions across Mumbai, and the country, The Blind Book Date is heading home, so to speak. The Dombivli-based community-initiative will team up with SnickerDoodle Coffee Works to hold their first session in Kalyan this Sunday. "We have been careful with our choices, and this felt like the right moment to tap into the growing interest among the community. Even as there are talks about growing digital dependence, we noticed an increasing interest in literary events in the suburban participants, particularly regional literature," shared co-founder Laxmi Krishnan.
The city's K-Pop fans have been keeping busy with pop-ups and events all month. But not enough to forget the annual combined birthday celebrations dedicated to J-Hope and Suga, members of popular boy band, BTS. Ahead of a fandom meeting in Malad on March 29, Ayushree Tari, co-founder of Mumbai BTS revealed to us, "We dub the combined celebrations Sope Day, a portmanteau of their names. We're slightly late this year, but the sing-alongs, screenings, and games will be better than ever." Those keen to know more about the celebration can log on to @mumbai.bts.
