<h2>The Show must go on</h2>
<p>Haridas Vhatkar (background), who made late Ustad Zakir Hussain&rsquo;s tablas looks on as his son, Kishor crafts a tabla at their Kanjurmarg workshop</p>
<h2>Fuchsia fun</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2024/dec/Fuschia-Kishore_e.jpg" alt="A bowl of prawn achaari gambas" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>A bowl of prawn achaari gambas</em></strong></p>
<p>Those looking for a quiet spot to unwind after a long day would do well to head over to Juhu this weekend. Helmed by Kishore DF (inset), the new haunt of The Fuchsia Loft is located right above the familiar Alfredo&rsquo;s. &ldquo;The name comes from the colour, fuchsia, which is, in my opinion, underused in the city. I wanted to highlight that experience and its vibe,&rdquo; shared co-fouwnder Kishore DF. &ldquo;The core nature of the loft is that it is a chilled out evening space for conversations and relaxing offering a modern take on Indian cuisine. We need a place for that in the city,&rdquo; he told this diarist.</p>
<h2>AI and the Milky Way</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2024/dec/Ganga-ghat_e.jpg" alt="Akashganga, an AI art series by Varun Gupta reimagines Varanasi. Pics courtesy/Varun Gupta" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>Akashganga, an AI art series by Varun Gupta reimagines Varanasi. Pics courtesy/Varun Gupta</em></strong></p>
<p>Earlier this year, after his work was displayed at CSMVS&rsquo;s new Mumbai Gallery, AI artist Varun Gupta, is currently showcasing his new, immersive AI series, Akashganga at Goa&rsquo;s Serendipity Arts Festival. When asked about the theme he shared about his fascination for Varanasi. &ldquo;The name had to capture the essence of Varanasi.</p>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2024/dec/Varun-Gupta_e.jpg" alt="" width="1280" height="720" /></p>
<p>With the visual resemblance to the Milky Way galaxy, Akashganga felt perfect &mdash; &lsquo;Ganga&rsquo; for the river and &lsquo;Akash&rsquo; for the sky,&rdquo; he said. With a blend of ideation, perspective and intent, Gupta agreed that this series brought his creative vision to life. We were curious about his take on AI taking over art consumption. He reasoned, &ldquo;AI is a tool that does not, and cannot be a creator. A camera cannot shoot itself; AI also cannot generate ideas on its own.&rdquo;</p>
<h2>The East Indian toran</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2024/dec/Toran_e.jpg" alt="Torans suspended inside a local train. Pic courtesy/Candida Remedios" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>Torans suspended inside a local train. Pic courtesy/Candida Remedios</em></strong></p>
<p>It was during a random gallery cleanse that Candida Remedios stumbled upon a picture of torans hanging from the entrance of a local train that she had clicked a month ago. Reminded of her grandmother&rsquo;s anecdotes, she told this diarist, &ldquo;I recall my grandmother telling us how festivals like Dussehra and Diwali were significant even for East Indians like us. The East Indians usually owned tracts of farmland where these items were grown along with other produce. Come Dussehra, buyers will want to buy a toran. All one had to do was string the mango leaves, flowers and paddy stalks together and then, they were ready for the market.&rdquo;</p>
<h2>When K-pop met Bollywood</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2024/dec/K-pop_e.jpg" alt="Xiumin interacts with the crowd during a performance at K-Town festival" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>Xiumin interacts with the crowd during a performance at K-Town festival</em></strong></p>
<p>Mumbai&rsquo;s obsession with everything &lsquo;K&rsquo;, from K-pop to Korean cuisine, isn&rsquo;t recent. Last weekend, fans at the K-Town Festival in Goregaon learnt that the admiration is mutual when Xiumin of the popular boy band EXO greeted them with familiar words. &ldquo;Namaste. Main Xiumin hoon. Kasa kai, Mumbai?&rdquo; said the artiste at his debut performance in the city before quoting singer Arijit Singh&rsquo;s popular song, &ldquo;Meri aashiqui ab tum hi ho.&rdquo; Organiser Shital Sikarwar (inset) recalled, &ldquo;The fans were happy yet shocked that their idol took the effort to learn Marathi and greet them.&rdquo; Interestingly, the event marked a confluence of cultures in more ways than one. JStellar, a young Indian solo K-pop performer made her debut to what we are told was a roaring crowd of fans.</p>
<h2>Christmas joy is for everyone</h2>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2024/dec/Gift-sharing_e.jpg" alt="A moment from last year&rsquo;s Christmas celebrations at the shelter home" width="1280" height="720" /><br /><strong><em>A moment from last year&rsquo;s Christmas celebrations at the shelter home</em></strong></p>
<p>Sailor&rsquo;s Caf&eacute; in Belapur is celebrating the festive season with a special Secret Santa by asking patrons to drop gifts at the caf&eacute; for the people at Seal, a shelter home in Panvel before December 23.</p>
<p><img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2024/dec/Jackson-sailors_e.jpg" alt="" width="1280" height="720" /></p>
<p>&ldquo;We have been doing this for the past three years. Christmas is the season of giving and nothing can be better than putting a smile on the faces of people at the shelter home,&rdquo; Jackson Jacob (right), its co-owner, told us.</p><p>
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Mumbai Diary: Wednesday Dossier

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