Must Visit BandStand at Bandra in Mumbai

BandStand in Bandra is a great place to enjoy the sea breeze. You can go at any time of the day and still feel good. The sound of the waves splashing on the rocks creates a soothing music to the ears. All my guest who come to visit me, I love to take them by this sea shore.

Walking on the promenade is a pleasure. During Bandra festival, there are different live shows and short films organized at amphitheater, that stands in the center of the promenade.

I have not been to the rocks but I often see adventurous people walk up to sink their feet in water, sometimes its dangerous especially when there is high tide.

During my last visit, I was surprised to see the new addition. A small patch of promenade has been renovated with beautiful street lights, a steel fence and ‘Walk the Stars’ patch.

There were hand prints and signature prints of famous Bollywood stars over that patch, A watchman was posted to prevent people from walking over the name-slabs.

There are also two Bollywood stars sitting there, do you recognize them?

People who visit this patch are amused by this and many sit on their lap and get a picture

If you visit this place during rainy season, you are sure to enjoy the freshly roasted corn, sprinkled with salt, red chilies and lime...Yum

Hanging Gardens & Kamala Nehru Park

Last week my nephew visited me. 


Sitting at home and just eating and napping is not a good idea especially if there are so many interesting places to see. The weather is warm, I agree, and there is much too much humidity too. Normally people would prefer to spend a day at AC mall and shop till they drop dead, but is that a good idea for the person who is visiting you from Spain? Especially when there is so much to see in the city of Mumbai, where there are lots of open spaces and many picnic spots.


I decided to take him for a South Mumbai tour.

One of the places that he liked during this tour was Kamala Nehru Park and Hanging gardens.

Nestled close to each other, this is a delightful  place to visit, mainly for its spectacular view of Chowpatty beach and Queen’s Necklace (Marine Drive). The sea breeze from Arabian sea can blow your thoughts away as you breathe in the scent in the air and enjoy the scenic view of Mumbai sky-scrapers against the blue sky with golden beach below touching the waters. 

Kamala Nehru Park is located at the top of Mumbai’s Malabar Hills and it is named after Kamala Nehru, the wife of India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

A structure shaped like a shoe is the main attraction at this park which is inspired by the nursery rhyme “There was an old woman who lived in a shoe”. Remember that? Not only were the children enthralled by this shoe, I even saw few adults walk up the dingy steps inside the shoe to click their photograph from the tiny window. Some brave children walked up the top of the boots to enjoy a slide down the sloppy sides.

On the other side of Kamala Nehru park, across the street are the steps leading to Hanging Gardens. The steps are low, evenly spaced and not tiring at all. There are several gates leading to this park, which also have slope paths for wheel chairs.

If you go across and climb the step leading to ‘Hanging Garden’, you are in for a visual delight. The park is manicured in the shape of animals. This park was laid out in 1881 over Mumbai’s main reservoir to cover the water from contamination.

Outside these parks is a street market selling odd things like artificial jewelry and handbags, and for people who love the street food there are many hawkers too. In the weather like these these black Jamun sprinkled with salt and red pepper was a big treat....

This Sunday, you can play with colors with Tata Housing at The Mumbai Wallbook

Some time ago, on September 2009, small group of special children and their well wishers had gathered at SBP School at Belapur,CBD to paint the building. They were not aware of what they were to paint but as soon as the paint boxes were opened and paint brushes given into their hands, their imagination ran wild and in four hours the school building donned an artistic look. There was much laughter in the building as children proudly pointed out at their colorful creations on the walls of the building.

Over the time, the wall project has taken place in many parts of Mumbai and each time it has been successful.

The first time I saw this wall project was in August2009, when I drove down the street of Tulsi pipe road and people had gathered there with paint and brushes in their hands, randomly painting the walls, what they created at the end of the day was spectacular. There was a freedom to express themselves in vibrant colors.

Here once again

Tata Housing Splashes Colour with the Mumbai Wallbook!

I am sure it will a fun event, what with excitement of creating  something picturesque out of nothing, that is the power of paint and imaginations…sounds good?

Want to be part of this event?

Register at https://www.facebook.com/MumbaiWallbook       

 Artists can participate individually or in groups, and if you don’t like painting but are very interested in photography? Well you have a muse….all you will do is click, click and click…….

How often do you get to record the event, which changes colorful strokes by a minute?

Be there at Tulsi Pipe Road between Mahim and Dadar to see the graphics unfold

Wake up early on Sunday morning, on 20^th May, the event starts at 7am.

 The Mumbai WallBook is an attempt by Tata Housing & Brand Promotions India Pvt. Ltd. to bring professional, amateur and budding artists on the same platform to showcase their skills and create a record for the longest wall painting.

 To know more about the event and for registrations please log on to www.facebook.com/tatahousing   or contact08652675485, 08652674816

Twitter Hash Tag: #Mumbaiwallbook

Asthika Samaj Mandir at Matunga, Mumbai

Matunga is the suburb famous for its south Indian cuisine.


Many years ago, my neighbor used to make early morning regular visit to this suburb and get huge idlis for me for breakfast. Idli came  with delicious coconut chutney and I would relish it. Soon I began to associate south Indian cuisine to Matunga. Many times I would request him to take me and once I did go to have idli sambar to a restaurant in one of those narrow lanes which was famous for its idlis.  The demography of this place was middle class South Indians and I had seen many women with long skirts, short blouses, and a transparent half saree wrapped over hips and chest. It was not as much developed as other parts of Mumbai like south Mumbai or western suburbs.

I have not visited Matunga for many years therefore I was not aware of the vast development that has occurred over the years.

Recently when I went, I was surprised to see big roads and broad foot-paths on the either side of the road filled with people carrying shopping bags. Huge, long shiny glass windows lined the street. Every store was crowded as if there were huge discount. I realized that we needed such kind of shopping areas in Bandra and at Versova too. In Bandra, we have too many street vendors who are always running across the street, jumping over dividers with their merchandise trapped in blankets, whenever they see the BMC van approaching, and they come back as soon as the van disappears. Sometimes the police collects their commission and lets them do their business on the street which results in heavy traffic jam on the linking road, with the traffic so slow that walking is the better option.

In Matunga, there were no street vendors outside these huge stores. Maybe the shopkeepers do not allow them to block the entrance to their shop.

It was pleasant walk with lot of breeze in this lane and suddenly I was distracted by huge life size statues of deities on the walls of the temple behind a huge Pipal tree. I was stunned by its beauty and asked the shop keeper about this beautiful building.

This is “Ashika Samaj Mandir” said the shop keeper.

Asthika Samaj was set up in 1923 as the public worship hall where regular offering to different deities are done by Pandas for a fee. The big Banyan tree outside the temple is believed to having fulfilled the desires of the devotees.

The Samaj also has a cultural auditorium inside the temple, where marriages, Upanayanams and other religious events are conducted by general public. Social functions such as marriages and other entertainment events are also held here.

I took few pictures and then continued with my shopping in the branded sari shop which had huge variety of sarees, suits and other clothing.

Balcony View in Mumbai

Summertime Fun in South Mumbai

When the summer holiday begins, it’s time for kids to enjoy. Some children go for long holidays exploring various places and some stay back to join activity class. It is holiday that one likes to spend doing something different. Children love to be with friends and like to get involved in group activities where they can be creative in games, art, craft, dance, theatre and even creative writing.

NCPA creates opportunities for these children creating a fiesta like atmosphere whereby the whole month is dedicated in entertaining them in an informal and non-competitive environment.

NCPA Summer Fiesta 2012will feature 20 workshops, 7 plays and a handful of surprises. Click here forthe schedule

The theatre group will come alive with different plays and it will be fun watching the play performed by children.

Suar Chala Space ko 

 is a hilarious play about a smelly pig and his friends who travel to outer space! Then a sudden encounter with aliens lands them in a big mess. The story touches upon friendship, adventure, owning up to your mistakes, taking responsibility and of course the ‘swine flu’!

Kyun kyun ladki-This play is based on Mahashweta Devi’s well known picture-storybook: Why-Why Girl, and celebrates the thrill of ‘WHY?’ It is the story of Moyna and at the same time the story of so many children who always ask the question ‘Why?’ Performed through dance, movement and live music, the play shows glimpses of their lives and of their minds.

Jungle Book - In this action-packed adaptation of the classic adventure story, precocious Mowgli grows up believing he's a fierce wolf. When he learns he is actually a human, he must discover how to reconcile these very different identities, and decide whether to remain with the pack, or return to the human world, where he was born. What will he choose?

Snowwhite the naughty elves - Based on the fairytale Snow White & The Seven Dwarves, this play is performed with hilarious, unique twists and turns in the storyline. In the classic story the Prince and the princess are our stars. In this version the elves and their antics rule...from performing silly dances to staging a rock concert to kidnapping a reluctant prince, the elves leave the audience wanting more! Comedy for kids at its best!

Laal Pencil- A young school girl is relishing her new found stardom amongst peers and teachers ever since she suddenly, mysteriously started writing beautiful poetry. She wins accolades and respect owing to her new 'talent' not just in her own class but in the whole school. What no one knows is that it is not her, but a magic red pencil that she found in class that's writing the poetry. The constant struggle between truth and falsehood, desires and righteousness, love and hate, and the pain of keeping a secret, lead up to the girl's final decision. Will she or won't she? Based on a Korean novel, 'laal pencil' is a poignant tale of a girl with a secret.

Listen to me Please - in today’s world, parents as well as children are both caught in a dilemma. Parents feel that children spend too much time on the computer & with other electronic gadgets, which are slowly taking them away from reality. On the other hand, children argue that if they are not tech-savvy, they may get “left behind”. The play addresses this problem & tries to bridge the ‘great divide’!  

Zinga Zinga Roses - Zinga's Planet Sesor gets invaded by the evil Yago and his army. The invaders are on the hunt for the immortal Rose of Sesor. Little Zinga manages to escape with the prized rose. Will Yago be able to find Zinga and the rose? Follow Zinga and his friend Pi in a series of adventures where we meet the gardener ha chi, a girl called Gulab, an artist called Manet, politician Rosa Golla and many more characters in this delighful tale of Zinga Zinga Roses.

hmm! hmm! hmm!

Maybe I should go along with the kids.*hello..anybody want to go with me?* This looks quite entertaining and would love to watch those kids perform...will you be going???

lucky you!!

Mumbai Coastline

Mumbai for Me: Our shores filled with sun, sand & strife reports TOI today

The city has an enviable 149-km coastline and nearly 16 km of beaches stretching from Colaba in the south to Madh and Marve up north. Take the ferry further north and you will find the weekend getaways of Gorai and Manori, all within city limits.
"Like most of our coastline, our beaches too have been neglected, abused and misused. There is no plan for their conservation and protection either," says the presentation for Open Mumbai, an exhibition on public spaces currently on at the NGMA. Encroachments by both the rich and poor, garbage and sewage are common banes.

True we have a coastline all over Mumbai and if it were clean, we could have beautiful places to walk and enjoy the walk along the sea side.

The most important thing that we need to have is to educate people. Even when there are ample number of dustbins all over the beach, but if people are not disciplined enough to watch their habits, the dream of living in a clean city will never materialize.