Street Side madness leading to a Greener Future

What a night to end a perfect day!

This is what every Mumbaikar will tell you when you ask them how  their Sunday went!

"Mumbai's Car Free Day" surely was something not a soul in this city was going to miss.
It has been a tradition since 2010, an initiative by the KBS Foundation but was even BIGGER and better than ever this year, I'm told!

It was indeed quite a well spent Sunday for many and a very enjoyable one too.
If you love your street, then you sure would be out on a day like this. And that was exactly the scene for all the proud Bandraites.
Street love was something that brought about a different look to Mumbai's Carter Road. Everyone left their "Lazy Sunday" mantras and got out on the streets, spending the entire day appreciating all that was in store for them. Everywhere you turned, there was fun and frolic and all the residents seemed to have had a swell time!
For once, reality was out of sight and they were saved from all the honking and squealing of terribly noisy cars and two wheelers.
The day began at the crack of dawn with the much anticipated cyclothon. People from all ages were seen coming together to compete and help on building social awareness about protecting the environment and lowering pollution levels.
The kids went berzerk as for the first time in their lives, they had the streets all to themselves. So, along with them came out their skateboards and roller blades.
They were all geared up to make the best of the day while promoting the whole Green Revolution Campaign.
Thanks to the Priya Dutt and Baba Sidique, it turned out to be a great success.
There was something for everyone. Whether you're that typical Bombay street foodie, a street hopper, a passionate music lover or just a peaceful observer, you wouldn't be left out of anything.
At the "Kids Zone", the kids had a lot on their hands too. There were various stalls organized only for them which had face painting, tattoos and all the usual stuff that bring smiles to their faces.
On the other hand, the oldies were seen with even bigger smiles as they could go for their evening strolls with not a care in the world as there was no chance of any of those monstrous cars running into them except maybe the faces of a few innocent kids.
There were parades taking place on the street, various dance acts and the highlight of the evening was the "LFTC Street Side" which had free gigs on the promenade.
All music enthusiasts were spotted there. It began with "Siddharth Basrur's band" as the first act, which tried really hard to liven up the crowd but didn't quite succeed in doing so. The "Mumbai Drummers" then took over before the next act and I must say they did quite a good job in getting a responsive attitude among crowd or I'm not sure if it was just the effect of the Spuds cause when they took the stage, there was a great vibe out there. "Spud in the Box" were just awe-inspiring, playing some fabulous tunes and managing to get everyone on their feet. So much energy was extracted out of them which I think gave people all the more reason to enjoy them better.
And you can tell that the Guitarist-Vocalist, Ankit Dayal was the hot favourite among the younger generations as they were running after him like mad hatters to sign their CD's. There was also this talented bunch of kids who called themselves "Dharavi Rocks" that fascinated the promenade. And finally the night ended with "Shaa'ir + Func", the act everyone were so patiently waiting for. But by then, I think all were into the groove and it wasn't very hard for them to get things spiced up.
Although there were a few party poopers who were not too thrilled with the whole event as it caused quite a lot of inconvenience to them not being able to take out their cars, the others who saw this day as one to just let go of themselves and didn't want to go back to the real world at all. They just wanted to enjoy the last bits of the day that they don't expect to see again in a while.

It was a one of a kind experience along the sea, away from the rush and madness of everyday life.
Therefore, the beautiful, sunny day was definitely One Very Very Happy Sunday!

Where's your selfie?

Think of the times when you feel so good about the way you look and want it to become breaking-news.. So you take your phone out, look into the front camera and Voila! There's your selfie! And was that hard at all?
That's how the world revolves around today and all thanks to technology!!!
It is not a very recent phenomenon as it goes back to 1900 with the debut of the portable Kodak Brownte box but has suddenly taken the front and yet again, Technology is to be blamed.

So what exactly does it mean to "take a selfie"???
Isn't it just a self portrait photograph? Yes, it is just that but with the invention of our dear smart phones and social networking sites, it has become much more than just that.
It first started off to be a big boon with one of the very first social networking sites- MySpace where people could express what they felt through it but now it has become even bigger with the latest
techno boosts: Instagram and Snapchat.
Instagram is an online photo-sharing app which enables users to capture their best shots and then use digital filters to make them look even more appealing. It has recorded to have the most selfies posted there. The third most trending tag is #me with over 67 million photos which are all only self portraits and #selfie being the 27th most popular tag with over 20 millions photos. So how absurd can it get?
And with Snapchat which is a picture messaging service being at present one of the most obsessive things on this planet allowing you to keep clicking pictures all day long unless you get fed up which is very unlikely to happen.

The "selfies" took to greater importance when President Obama created an "international incident" by taking a cell phone picture with his seat mates, Denmark's Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt and Britain's David Cameron recently at Mandela's Memorial Service.

The even more astounding fact is that it has now been included in the online version of the Oxford Dictionary and it had been awarded "top 10 buzzwords of 2012" and "word of the year" as of last November.
That just comes to show how times are changing and how well we seem to be adapting to the whole "selfie culture".
Research studies have also proved to what extent it damages one's brain and given an insight to the psychology behind it. It is said that more than half of the world's population, when feeling low, unconsciously picks up their phones, and starts clicking the best shots they can just to feel better again.
It is also more habitual among the female clan but that seems to be changing over time too and it is no more a trend seen just among the the youngsters. Even people in their middle ages are seen very often trying to keep up with the times so they do not get left behind.
They can get quite obsessed too if I must add!

Today, there are so many other words that have derived from the word itself and are highly used such as elfie (selfie in an elevator) , selfoo(selfie in the loo) and so on and I won't be surprised if these hit the dictionary sooner rather than later.

It is yet another addiction, trust me!

But for now, let's just be contented with the fact of being able to strike a pose in the most flattering manner and show the world our selfies!

The BIG IPL Saga

Welcome to the glamorous world of cricket in which the biggest secrets unfortunately could not be hidden anymore and hence everything is out in the open now. That's right! This is what the IPL is all about.
There have been numerous controversies since the very day it all began and I'm quite stunned at how it has still survived. But like they say, how much ever you try to get away with things, eventually the cat has to be let out of the bag. And that is exactly what is happening!
The IPL which started in 2008 is basically a Twenty20 cricket tournament in which cricketers from across the globe are a part of. It is indeed one of the "richest" tournaments worldwide which is clearly witnessed at the auction before the matches.
Apart from the latest updates about the match fixing involving Mr Srinivasan and all the other culprits, there is something of greater importance which brings immense agony to a large section of the society being the fact that Mr Mallya was "very happy" to have bought Yuvraj Singh for a record 14 crores while several of his employees remain unpaid for years to count now.
He has no shame and responsibility letting alone his morals and principles. How does one live that way? Doesn't he have the slightest feeling of guilt inside him? People don't get food on their plates and are ending their lives and so on while he is having the time of his life at the expense of his people.
He is facing several court cases and winding up petitions-appeals to liquidate the company and distribute funds from its employees and several creditors. Kingfisher currently owes more than $1 billion to its banks, employees, fuel suppliers etc yet he still has the guts to continue with his so called "agenda"
After buying Yuvraj this year, he came to learn that he had paid 4 crores extra and was quite upset about it. But does it really matter? I doubt it was out of concern for his people.
It is really sad to see how things have changed over time.The sincerity of the game has completely vanished. It is a game that goes back to when our fore fathers started playing and now is just absolute chaos.
The IPL is part of a new era and with pity I say this that it is too self centered and most definitely only a couch for the rich and famous.

Kala Ghoda Festival 2014

Sorry for posting this late!

Mumbai has always been known for that one charm: Bringing people from different backgrounds, societies and regions together. It is the place where every culture vulture finds their soul purpose in life. And the Kala Ghoda Festival is that answer!
It takes place every year and is one of the biggest festivals in the city that captures every bit of Mumbai life and showcases what it's all about!
There is so much to learn and explore that one will never die of boredom.
This year, it was in partnership with the Hindustani Times so it was even more awe-inspiring. It took place from the 1st to 9th of February 2014 and it celebrated its 16th year.
It was quite breathtaking to see that people from all over the world had planned their holidays during the festival as it is something you would rarely get to witness.
From literature.. to music concerts.. art workshops.. food.. theatre.. street plays.. heritage walks.. dance.. visual arts.. urban design and architecture, it had it all!
The thing that struck me the most was the emphasis they put on the children's activities. Little People have curious minds so in order to explore more they had special spaces for them to learn and enjoy at the same time. They had several literature workshops with eminent writers like Jerry Pinto, art workshops which included making toys from things used everyday, creating plastic relief and decorating with ink, robot making and lots more interesting stuff.
For the first time they had an art installation exhibition where many schools like Aditya Birla World Academy and Dhirubhai Ambani International School took part in and it turned out to be a great success.
The crowds that came were so engaging and totally engrossed with everything around which made it even more lively. People exchanged lots of ideas, met some very unusual kind of people which helped them broaden their own perspectives on things and make use of their own talents.
The ideas got from the festival was just simply fantastic and I think it's not something you look forward to everyday so that made all the difference.
Another year gone by and it got some rave reviews too.
So if you missed it this time, you surely will make it a point to be there for the next one!

Will you be my Valentine?

"Love is in air"  All Over Infact!!!

Red hearts.... Cupcakes.... Diamonds.... Candle-lit dinners and what more!
Oh Gosh.. Not again!!! That day has again come back to haunt me
Not that I have an abhorrence of some sort towards it but I just find it to be a little too hyped up.
I often wonder, whether the lengths that people go to making their "loved ones" feel on top of the world is actually genuine or whether it is just to compete with the others in doing something better?!
Whatever it may be, I think this Valentine's Day instead of going by the same old, boring traditional book, why not think of something out of the ordinary?
We all love cakes, don't we???
And when you hear the words "cake" and "V-Day", the first thing we think of is this luscious red velvet cake sitting right in front of our eyes!!
But why not try a black velvet this year? It's really not that hard at all as it more or less takes about the same effort as doing any other cake. But, it's unusual so you are sure to impress that special someone of yours!

Here is Betty Crocker's version of it!

Preparation time: 30 minutes
Total time: 2 hours 5 minutes
Serves: 16

Ingredients:
2 and a half cups of all purpose flour
1 and a half cups of sugar
2 tablespoons of unsweetened regular or dark baking cocoa
1 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of salt
1 and a half cups of vegetable oil
1 cup of buttermilk
2 eggs
1 bottle (1 oz) of black food colour
1 teaspoon of white vinegar
1 teaspoon of vanilla
3 containers (12 oz each) cream cheese whipped frosting
Black string licorice and black jelly beans( to your own requirements)

Method:
Heat the oven to 350°F (325°F for dark or nonstick pans) Grease 3 (8-9 inch) round cake pans with shortening, lightly flour.
In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt. In another large bowl, beat oil, buttermilk, eggs, food colour, vinegar and vanilla with an electric mixer on low speed just until blended. Gradually, add flour mixture, beat for two minutes on a medium speed, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour into pans. Bake for 23-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for ten minutes, remove from pans to cooling racks and cool completely for about an hour. Brush of all loose crumbs from cake layers. Place one cake layer, rounded side down on serving plate spread with one cup of frosting. Top with the second and third cake in the same manner. Spread remaining on sides and top of the cake. Cut the licorice into pieces. Pile licorice on top of the cake. Decorate bottom edge of the cake with jelly beans.

If you are passionate enough, then just go for it!!!

#New this 2014, Mind blowing technology!

For all you vivacious folks out there who do not want to be left out of this ever so fast moving world, I think this is something that will grab all your attention!

"To invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk"

I see this quote to be very relevant as it is not a disillusion that people believed it would be.

Don't we all face times when our kids are ravenous when they come back home or even we as adults crave for something out-of-this-world to munch on but suddenly it strikes us that we should start restricting ourselves to at least watch our grandchildren grow?
Well... You don't have to think twice anymore as Philips has introduced the ultimate Viva Collection HD9 220/20 "Airfryer"

The "cool" factor of this is that by only using rapid air technology, it is able to produce food crispy on the outside and soft and tender in the inside.
It allows one to fry, bake, roast and grill with about -80% less fat. The unique design of the device combines fast circulating superheated air and its starfish designs lets one fry anything except for batter fried foods which makes the process too messy.
When it comes to the cleaning and storage part of it, highly recommendable as it is very compact to store and easy to clean and dishwasher safe too.
It is very convenient for people who multi task as the time and temperature are both adjustable to your own requirements. You can pre-set the cooking times upto 30 minutes and till about 200 degrees high. It also has a large cooking capacity of 0.8 kilograms which makes it all the more easier for these kind of cooks.
It gives out no odour of any kind and is very friendly to the environment.
Most importantly, it is safe and economical for daily use.
It is priced at Rs 14,995 only.

So all you health conscious freaks out there, here is something fresh, classy and innovative to add to your fine kitchens which will simply blow your minds!

Bravo Tendulkar!

 

 

It’s not everyday that one gets a Bharat Ratna let alone in the field of sports. True determination, hardwork and simplicity, I would say leads one towards this. It is not one which can be obtained so easily as it is India’s highest civilian award and given to only those who have achieved the highest order of performance in any field of human endeavour.

With that said, Sachin Tendulkar, the man we worship in the name of cricket every single day has proved himself as a "jewel of India" after collecting his award from the President of India last evening.

It has been one heck of a year for this same guy who once upon a time was a young shy, timid little fellow who had just walked onto the cricket field for the very first time to make his test debut against Pakistan. Since then, so much has changed. He has played lots of matches , broken records and achieved some more national honours. But when it comes to his ethics and principles, nothing has changed!

Even in his early years at school, he was known as a child prodigy so it is not like he has come out of nowhere. He excelled in the sport at both school and college levels and even after accomplishing the best of victories, he kept pushing, always telling himself that he could do so much better.

Today, he is the youngest recipient of the Bharat Ratna award and also beat the legendary hockey wizard, the late Dhyan Chand to it.

Questions keep arising whether he actually deserved it. Could this just be biased because cricket is a little too over hyped here? I bet every household in our country has a television set just to catch the game live itself!

Tendulkar was the greatest batsman of his generation, always surprising his fans with either some great batting strokes or daring bowling moves.

He is the first man to play 200 five-day Test matches, and he played more one-day international games, 463, than anyone else. He is the highest career run scorer - 15,847 in Tests and 1826 in one-days -- in both formats. He has also scored 100 or more runs more often than anyone else in both formats, with 51 in Tests and 49 in one-days, giving him a neat and unprecedented 100 centuries in international cricket.

Last evening, he had dedicated the Bharat Ratna "to all mothers of India."  He was so grateful for what his mother had done for him that he further goes down expressing his feelings to all the mothers in India and would like to share his award with them. Truly admirable on his part, I must say!

 

"I will continue to bat for India even though my cricket has stopped, but I will continue to bat for India and try my best to give people of India a reason to smile," Tendulkar said after being conferred the Bharat Ratna by the President.

There may be a day when some other great star will take over all his innumerable records but none shall ever forget him and this is just another award to show his true dedication to the sport.

Bravo Tendulkar!

You are a true inspiration to all the aspiring, young ones out there. We are ever so proud Indians today.

Mumbai's Pride!

 

All the various setbacks have finally been put aside and today we welcome the country’s first monorail in Mumbai- the city of dreams.  And yet another dream has been successfully accomplished!

It was inaugurated by the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Prithviraj Chavan last afternoon and is said to be open to the public between 7am and 3pm today.

It is said to take off the burden the people face every single day with the lack of access to public transport with the rate of the increasing population growth in the city.

It is 20km long and approximately Rs 3,000 crore which runs on air and corners on rails. Riding six and a half metres above the road on a 800mm-wide cement rail it doesn’t seem to interfere with anyone. The monorail will have a top speed of 80 kilometres per hour (50 mph), an average speed of 65 kilometres per hour (40 mph) and the overall speed including dwell time at stations would be around 31 kilometres per hour (19 mph)

The Line 1 which opened today is about is 8.93 km long. It runs between Wadala and Chembur in the eastern fringes of Mumbai.The monorail produces between 65 – 85 decibels of noise, significantly lower than the 95 decibel noise level of a BEST Bus.

The monorail will be linked to major local train stations. So the station at Chembur is connected with a skywalk to the monorail station near it.

In the beginning, the monorail will run every 15 minutes between 7 am and 3 pm and once the entire project is complete, it will be 20 km long and connect Jacob Circle in south Mumbai to Chembur in eastern Mumbai to connect the public to one of the most busiest areas in the city.

It is the most comfortable mode of travel as all coaches of the monorail trains are air-conditioned with each train carrying 560 passengers.

It is quite economical and therefore all strata of society will be able to travel in them. The tickets are priced between Rs. 5 and Rs. 11 with six stations on the way.

 

The good part is that there will be no monthly passes like the ones on the local train as it will be replaced with a system of smart cards. This way there would be no need for ticket checkers and less hassle for the people who use the train too.

On the contrary , it is said to not have proper networking of the routes and even getting to the starting point of the line 1 phase it is quite far away from the station so it causes quite a lot of inconvenience for people travelling to further distances. Another drawback is that it cannot accommodate even quarter the amount of people a suburban train can.

But it is still too early to judge the capabilities of the train.

It has its pros and cons but the Mumbaikars seem to be all excited and proud for it’s city has yet again done something magnificent for them.

Creativity galore : Cakes in jars!

When you hear these 3 letters:  L S D there is only one thing that comes to your mind. Apologies! That’s not what I’m talking about. This is an unusual  kind which is even better. Something that will keep making you crave for more all the time and you’d be surprised how high it could get you too!

Love Sugar and Dough™- It is the place where you can just be yourself and let your hair down where no one will dare to invade your space.

It first started off on one of the lanes going towards Carter Road and I’m guessing that is how it got it’s fame. But now, it has quite a few outlets all over Mumbai.

It has been around for a while now but is still the best in town!  There’s nothing like going down there  and chilling with a couple of friends even on a lazy Sunday afternoon.The whole ambience of the place is so cozy and comfortable and it has this retro touch to it which just relaxes your mind and soul. It makes you feel like you’re in paradise and at the same time it is so colourful and vibrant which helps to bring the place alive.

Although they have a variety of things to choose from their menu like most other bakeries around, it is their cakes in jars which are something to die for. They are absolutely luscious and divine!!! People from all over the country on their visit here, have to take back a jar with them as they are very convenient to carry and also well packed.

 

 

 

They come in two different sizes and have quite a few flavours too. Some of the favourites among the youth is the Red Velvet with cream cheese and the Ferrero Rocher . They can be eaten any time of the day and are quite reasonable. The bigger ones are priced at 300 and the smaller ones for 200.

It’s also such a unique way of gifting someone, a cake in a jar.  Making them feel special and appreciated!

One of LSD’s main policies is to live for taste where greed is holy and not a sin.  This cannot be more true as one can’t get any less addicted to it by just holding one of those jars in one's hands.