Malavika’s Mumbaistan: Remembering Protima

The 21st death anniversary of noted Odissi dancer Protima Bedi, which fell this Sunday, was marked by a series of events organised by Nrityagram, the dance gurukul

The 21st death anniversary of noted Odissi dancer Protima Bedi, which fell this Sunday, was marked by a series of events organised by Nrityagram, the dance gurukul situated on the outskirts of Bengaluru, which she had founded 29 years ago as the country’s first free dance academy. Bedi’s had been an extraordinary life by any standards. As one of Mumbai’s leading models in the 1970s and wife of actor Kabir Bedi, she epitomised the liberal western oriented youth of the time, creating a sensation with her live-in relationship and her bout of streaking for a popular magazine. And then overnight, at the age of 26, after witnessing an Odissi dance recital, she transformed from the halter-neck and bell-bottom-wearing city-slicker into one of the classical dance form’s most renowned exponents, winning accolades from its peers and critics. Proving that there are no limits to the human spirit’s evolution. After setting up her iconic dance village, once more, Bedi followed her inner calling, this time to give herself to the mountains as a sanyasi. One of the pilgrimages she made was to Kailash Mansarovar and it was here that she disappeared, presumed dead in the Malpa landslide, near Pithoragarh, which had taken many lives. To honour her, members of her family along with dancers and dance exponents from across the country gathered at Bengaluru’s Ambedkar Hall to celebrate her undying firebrand spirit.

(From left) Mamata Mahapatra, dance critic Sunil Kothari and Mona, the late Protima Bedi’s elder sister.

Travelling Light

Lalit Modi (PTI file)

If anyone embodies the word chutzpah, it is Lalit Modi, one of India’s most high-profile economic offenders currently residing in London. Despite the travel restrictions imposed on him and the legal battles he is fighting, Lalit certainly hasn’t allowed his situation to impact his jet-set lifestyle. From appearances on TV shows like Hasan Minaj’s Neflix series, to posting photos from exotic resorts around the world, there is no doubt that unlike his fellow compatriots Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi, the erstwhile IPL head honcho is living it up. “Travelling the world not only makes you learn a lot but gives you a perspective of what life is all about,” he shared on social media recently. “I was just doing my #bucketlist and still have a long way to go. Visited 102 countries so far in life, but the app says only 42% :) :). So, let’s see what more can be accomplished in next the year. Have you made your #bucketlist. If not what you waiting for. Life’s too short. Lots to do and so little time for ourselves, so go for it,” he signed off, obviously unaware of the irony of an economic fugitive boasting about his travel plans. And if any authorities representing the long arm of the law care to know (though somehow, this does not seem likely) Lalit’s future itinerary includes Machu Picchu in Peru, sailing the Amazon river, taking the Orient Express, watching the Northern Lights and walking with Gorillas in Rwanda. Not bad for someone who had his passport impounded only a couple of years ago.

WTSWTM
What They Say
“We need a fresh set of reforms informed by view on what we want India to be and I would love for that view to be articulated at the very top (that) here is the kind of economy that we want. One-off programs here and there don’t amount to a comprehensive reform agenda for the economy.”
-Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan on India’s economic slowdown

What They Mean
“I told you so, didn’t I?”

Tweet Talk
“Real Estate is so expensive in Mumbai that even IKEA had aukaat to open only an online store here.”
Tweeted by comedian Atul Khatri