Malavika’s Mumbaistan: A Candle For Parrikar

Whatever one’s political beliefs, one cannot but mourn the death of a bright and young politician in the prime of his career. Goa CM Manohar Parrikar, who lost his

Whatever one’s political beliefs, one cannot but mourn the death of a bright and young politician in the prime of his career. Goa CM Manohar Parrikar, who lost his battle to cancer, at 63, might not have represented an ideology one subscribed to, but no one can deny that he was one of the few well-educated (he was an alumnus of IIT-Bombay) leaders who had won the respect of many for the dignity and fortitude with which he faced his illness. His death evoked widespread sadness and social media was awash with posts featuring his actions or words. One such post that caught our attention was put up by photographer Atul Kasbekar, who shared a story, in Parrikar’s own words, of growing up in a small village in Goa. Parrikar narrated how, as a young boy, he would accompany his parents each year to his village, which was famous for its watermelon crop. The village had an annual watermelon-eating competition organised by a local farmer. “When the farmer gave us watermelons to eat, he would ask us to spit out the seeds into a bowl. We were told not to bite into the seeds. He was collecting the seeds for his next crop. We were unpaid child labourers, actually,” Parrikar recalled, adding, “He kept his best watermelons for the contest and got the best seeds which would yield even bigger watermelons the next year.” But years later, after graduating from IIT, the young Parrikar had returned to the village only to be dismayed. “I went to the market looking for watermelons. They were all gone. The ones that were there were so small.” The reason? Apparently, the farmer’s son had inherited the business and in a penny wise, pound foolish, mercenary way, had whittled down his USP by selling off the best watermelons and keeping the most unimpressive yield to give away for the competition. “In seven years, (his) best watermelons were finished,” Parrikar said. But of course, the lesson he wanted to impart was not about watermelons. “In humans, generations change after 25 years. It will take us 200 years to figure what we were doing wrong while educating our children. Unless we employ our best to train the next generation, this is what can happen to us. We must attract the best into the teaching profession,” he had said, making a strong case for educational reform. Going by the far-sighted vision and native intelligence of these words, it’s not hard to see why Parrikar’s passing was mourned by people across the ideological spectrum.

The late Manohar Parrikar (HT File)

Groundbreaking Political Theatre

(From left) Jane Fonda, Dolly Thakore and Eve Ensler in Mumbai. (HT Photo)

In many ways we’ve had a long-standing involvement with Eve Ensler’s groundbreaking mid-1990s play The Vagina Monologues, which the NYT’s theatre critic had termed “probably the most important piece of political theatre of the last decade”. And that’s because, 17 years ago, when it debuted in India, we had written the first article heralding its arrival to the shores after being invited by its director/producer, the thespian Mahabanoo Mody Kotwal, for one if its initial rehearsals. The connection hadn’t ended there. When Ensler, accompanied by Hollywood legend Jane Fonda and Oscar-winning actress Marisa Tomei, had visited Mumbai for an anniversary performance at the NCPA, Kotwal had included us in the occasion’s agenda, even inviting us to dinner at the CCI Club with the visiting icons (the other diners had barely noticed the international celebrities in their midst that evening!). A few years after this, while visiting San Francisco, we had chanced upon an announcement that Ensler was premiering a new play, The Good Body. On contacting her, we had been invited to watch it and meet with her and the cast backstage, which we had done. The serendipitous connections don’t end there. A few years later, browsing at a bookstore in Brooklyn’s DUMBO, we had found an author- signed copy of the play, as if it had been waiting for us. But of course, it’s not for this that the play has our interest and attention. Since its debut in India, it has become a veritable phenomenon with hundreds of shows across the country and in many languages and milieus, spawning a revolution. Which is why, when we heard that Kotwal is planning a bonanza of seven shows over two days at the Prithvi Theatre in April, and that after each show a special invitee has been asked to read out a specially-written piece by Eve Ensler for the occasion, we were thrilled. “Would you take on one evening’s reading?” Kotwal had called to enquire over the weekend. With pleasure, we had responded. Given the many past connections and our belief in the project and its message, how could we have said no?

Now Opening: Hotel Mumbai?

Vikas Khanna (left) and Anupam Kher in New York.

Sunday evening saw the premiere of ‘Hotel Mumbai’ held at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. The film is based on the terrorist attack of 2008 at the Taj Mahal Hotel, Mumbai, and stars Dev Patel in a pivotal role, alongside Anupam Kher who portrays chef Hemant Oberoi, the legendary former executive chef of the Taj Group, whose team, according to eyewitnesses, acted as heroes during the attacks, while risking their own life and limb, and created a human barricade to protect the guests present that night. Spotted at the premiere was fellow chef Vikas Khanna who was moved by Kher’s performance. “Chef Hemant Oberoi, you are a legend. Thanks Anupam Kher for playing the part so perfectly,” he posted on social media, adding, “The movie took me back to working in the kitchens of Sea Rock Sheraton during the riots of 1992.” Incidentally, after the recent reports of the film being pulled out of New Zealand theatres, and with Netflix dropping it from its platform and no theatrical release date announced, we might have to take Khanna’s word for its worth.

WTSWTM

What They Say:
“Snake bites model’s bust, dies of silicone poisoning.”
- Newspaper headline yesterday

What They Mean:
“And with it, the greatest tabloid headline of all time: ‘Headless Body Found In Topless Bar’ has finally been outdone”.