Mumbai Diary: Sunday Dossier

Daredevil dauberWe may hold our breath as onlookers but for this man painting the walls of Saraswati School in Mahim itrsquos all in a dayrsquos workDrivinrsquo into the record booksWell done PicIG brightnewsThese youngsters are being steered the right way The Western India Automobile Association WIAA headquartered at Churchgate in South Mumbai has created a record The WIAA in collaboration with the Singhania Group of Schools has earned a place in the India Book of Records for holding the largest student gathering for a drawingcumslogan competition during the 36th National Road Safety Month in January At the event 11082 brighteyed bushytailed students participated from the Singhania Group of Schools The Regional Transport Mumbai Traffic Police and the school came together for the event organised by WIAA with guidance from WIAA executive chairman Nitin DossaDossa said ldquoThe robust numbers and the creativity tells us that we will have a Gen Next which is extremely alive to the concept of responsible road usage by those on four wheels drivers and those on two heels pedestriansrdquoWe say yeah WIAA and no brakes on learning about road safety right from schoolA sincere young talentSoumya Jinaga alongside Aparna Piramal Raje at the bookrsquos launchAt just 17 Soumya Jinaga is already two books deep into her writing journey and her latest novel Sincerely is proof that age is no barrier to telling powerful stories Unveiled by author Aparna Piramal Raje at Crossword Kemps Corner on 5th July Sincerely explores the fragile bond between two strangers mdash Reign heir to a family company fighting her inner battles and Ezra who shuts himself away as illness overtakes himThis moving narrative tackles grief love and the quiet strength that comes from shared pain ldquoThe inspiration came after a few close family members were diagnosed with cancer Watching their journey opened me up to the reality of loss and grief and how fragile life really isrdquo Jinaga sharesAs Piramal Raje put it ldquoItrsquos truly remarkable that she has delved deep into these issues at such a young agerdquo If yoursquore looking for your next heartfelt read pick up Sincerely mdash a story written by a teenager but wise beyond her yearsAble and more with medals tooMohammad Kashif Khana and Sumit YadavOn July 7 the city saw the final day of the West Zone Regional Abilympics 2025 concluded with resounding success at the World Trade Centre which had 67 participants with disabilities competing across 15 plus vocational skill categories Mohammad Kashif Khana chef at the St Regis Mumbai who is 100 per cent Hearing amp Speech Impaired won the Gold Medal West ZoneldquoBaking is how I express myself Though I was born with complete hearing and speech impairment Irsquove never let that silence my spirit My pastries my sugar work mdash they carry my wordsrdquo says Khana who hails from a small town in Maharashtra He adds ldquoIrsquom not done and my ultimate goal is to win Gold for India at the Finland Abilympics in 2027rdquoSumit Yadav 21 won the Silver medal in the Engineering Design ICT Category The B Tech Civil Engineering student of IIT Bombay who was born with locomotor disability says ldquoMy design learnings gave me the confidence to participate and the silver was an emotional momentrdquoCapella and calmNavya Goenka in a session with children at a BMC school in PrabhadeviIn an age of constant notifications and digital distractions 14yearold Navya Goenka is carving out a different kind of space one filled with harmony and human connectionGoenka founder of the Headstrong Foundation is teaming up with Pehlay Akshar Foundation to explore music as a powerful coping mechanism for mental health and emotional wellbeing among teenagers The collaboration is currently being implemented in Pehlay Aksharrsquos English Room at the Prabhadevi municipal school where Navya conducts a cappella sessions with studentsldquoIn a world where teens are constantly online music creates a moment of stillness and connectionrdquo says GoenkaPehlay Aksharrsquos head Kripa Shankarnarayan says ldquoPartnering with Navya and Headstrong brings a fresh and deeply empathetic perspective to our workrdquoItrsquos Taylormade for Wiann MulderWiann Mulder and Mark TaylorTheres no shortage of heroes in the ongoing India vs England cricket Test at Lordrsquos But before Jasprit Bumrah bowled the first ball at the iconic London venue world cricket was hailing a batsman from South AfricaThe Rainbow Nationrsquos captain Wiann Mulder declared his first innings when he reached 367 against Zimbabwe in BulawayoAnother eight runs would have put him at par with Brian Lararsquos first world record score of 375 in 199394 Lara broke his own record by smashing 400 not against England in 200304The declaration according to Mulder was done as a mark of respect for the West Indian great Way back in 1998 at Peshawar Australia captain Mark Taylor decided not to resume on his overnight score of 334 which was Sir Don Bradmanrsquos Test bestOur correspondent Bipin Dani got in touch with Taylor in New South Wales for a reaction to Mulderrsquos call Taylor obliged and also said this which provides an indication of how Mulder will be remembered ldquoI am glad that I declared overnight on Day 2 to share the Australian record with him Bradman at that time The fact that people still ask me today about my innings in Peshawar in 1998 tells me that I made the right decisionrdquoIf at all Mulder is wondering whether he made the right decision he has got a Taylormade answer