28 April,2025 06:38 AM IST | Mumbai | Team mid-day
Pic/Dweep Bane
A swimmer takes respite from the soaring temperatures by attempting a few tricks in the sea off Girgaon Chowpatty.
On the occasion of World Penguin Day (April 25), biologists at the Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan and Zoo in Byculla reported a total of 21 Humboldt penguins - with the birth of three little penguin chicks last month. "In 2016, we brought eight penguins into the zoo. Over the years, we have made sure that their habitat is taken care of so that they can live properly and breed as well. We also created rocky crevices in their habitat where the penguins could build their nest and lay eggs. Though we did not have any new hatchlings last year, three chicks joined the family in March. All of them are healthy, and will start swimming as well in about three months," Dr Abhishek Satam, zoo biologist told this diarist.
Chai for Cancer is raising a toast to its 12th edition of fundraising events for cancer patients on May 11. The initiative has served over five lakh cups of chai and raised over R6 crore in the last 11 years. "We organise Chai for Cancer on the second Sunday of May every year. Usually there is fear and stigma attached to cancer and chai is a calming and soothing drink. The idea behind the adda is to bring people together and offer them a fun and informal platform to engage and donate to the cause," Vijayalakshmi Venkatesh, organiser, revealed to us. To know more about the event, log on to chaiforcancer.org or
@chaiforcancer on Instagram.
Spinning the decks with passion and panache at 51 years, Prabhadevi-based garment trader Navin Bhat is proving how age is indeed just a number. Enrolled at the DJ Institute in Kandivli, Bhat is pursuing a long harboured love for music. "I have been interested in music since I was in school where I used to play the side drums. During college I was introduced to rock music and rap. So, the love and sense for rhythm was always there. Then, I was tied up for almost two to three decades, handling the family business before I thought of reviving this passion. While I am still learning, it has been a fun experience working with everyone," Bhat shared with this diarist.
City-based acapella ensemble Aflatunes recently teamed up with sitar maestro Purbayan Chatterjee for an electrifying rendition of Garaj Garaj, a track from the webseries Bandish Bandits season two. "We met during a concert in Khandala and that is when the idea of a possible collaboration was discussed. The song is quite trendy these days, and we had great fun vibing to the track," Chatterjee shared with us. Devashri Manohar, vocalist of the band added, "This was the first time we worked with an actual instrument as we have always identified as a no-instrument band. The process was filled with fun and learning."
Bookstores get all sorts of readers these days; a big chunk are the distracted variety; then, there are those who prefer instant literature, while others need to be wowed by a magical something to pick up a book from an aisle. This diarist, the proverbial fly on the wall at the release of Sonali Bendre Behl's newest title, A Book of Books, at a SoBo bookstore, noticed that all the above reader types were in attendance as Bendre Behl doled out simple gems, encouraging the audience about why reading matters. "It's the cheapest way to travel," she answered a young geeky fan's question, during the Q&A session, adding, "You get to understand another country while being in your own home." Another gem was about the impact of her family, and how reading was part of their ecosystem. While Gen Alpha and Gen Z-ers seemed intrigued by the âphysical book' as they gave their tablets and phones a break, it was reassuring to note that most, including older generations of readers, were holding on to every bit of relatable advice. Her book offers 13 reasons on why everyone should read, and is an easy-breezy guide, particularly with suggestions for unsure, wannabe readers on how to take baby steps into the universe of the written word. Going by the number of young people queuing up for signed copies later, here's hoping her peppy gyaan makes them hang out in bookstores, albeit in a less-distracted avatar.
