She may have immigrated to Canada many years ago, but pint-sized music dynamo Jasmine Bharucha is gone, but certainly not forgotten on these shores. A prominent member of Mumbai’s pop rock scene along with Farhad Wadia (the man behind Independence Rock) Shwetta Shetty and Alisha Chinai in the 1990s, the Parsi songstress posted a clip of herself performing this week at a Canada Day concert in Richmond Steveston in British Columbia, where she resides with her husband and young adult kids.
And going by the pizzazz and spunk with which she belted out a mean version of Queen’s Keep Yourself Alive (one of their early tracks released as a single in 1973), she could easily pass for a YA rocker herself. As expected, the applause from back home came in fast and furious. From Dalip Tahil, Nawaz Modi Singhania, Vivienne Pocha and Sanjay Maroo, the accolades poured in for the consummate rock and roller. But it was when Wadia, now himself a citizen of Canada, congratulated Bharucha that Mumbai’s early days of rock concerts at Rang Bhavan were evoked. “I have you to thank for helping me channel the rocker in me 30+ years ago,” Bharucha responded to Wadia’s “ Rocking Jas!” comment.
What, Me Worry?
For those of us growing up in the Mumbai of the 1970s and 1980s, it would not be wrong to say that we were in the thrall of the fictitious Alfred E. Neuman, with his goofy, misaligned eyes, gap-toothed smile, “What, me worry?” motto and Mad magazine, America’s premier satirical bimonthly, which at its peak is said to have enjoyed a two million circulation. In an age of limited foreign travel and no net purchases, it was a wonder how we laid our hands on its much coveted back issues (we got ours for instance, from our friendly neighbourhood ‘circulating’ library’), but somehow we did, and the immense pleasure of chuckling over the clever spoofs, gags, puns, jokes, word plays and cartoons is hard to describe. It was from Mad magazine that we came to acquaint ourselves with artists and writers such as Sergio Aragonés Dave Berg and Dick DeBartolo and their unique take on the popular culture and personalities of their age. Such was its influence that Rolling Stone wrote in 2017 that “operating under the cover of barf jokes, Mad has become America’s best political satire magazine”. Which is why, along with many others, yesterday’s news that the influential magazine will cease to be available on newsstands and will only be available in comic bookshops and to subscribers with no new content except in the year-end issues from later this year, brought on a wave of nostalgia and sadness. Though we had stopped reading it a while ago, the thought of a world without Mad Magazine seems a dismal place. But then again, what role for Mad magazine when the world, starting with Mr Trump at its head appears to have gone Mad itself?
What, Me Worry?
For those of us growing up in the Mumbai of the 1970s and 1980s, it would not be wrong to say that we were in the thrall of the fictitious Alfred E. Neuman, with his goofy, misaligned eyes, gap-toothed smile, “What, me worry?” motto and Mad magazine, America’s premier satirical bimonthly, which at its peak is said to have enjoyed a two million circulation. In an age of limited foreign travel and no net purchases, it was a wonder how we laid our hands on its much coveted back issues (we got ours for instance, from our friendly neighbourhood ‘circulating’ library’), but somehow we did, and the immense pleasure of chuckling over the clever spoofs, gags, puns, jokes, word plays and cartoons is hard to describe. It was from Mad magazine that we came to acquaint ourselves with artists and writers such as Sergio Aragonés Dave Berg and Dick DeBartolo and their unique take on the popular culture and personalities of their age. Such was its influence that Rolling Stone wrote in 2017 that “operating under the cover of barf jokes, Mad has become America’s best political satire magazine”. Which is why, along with many others, yesterday’s news that the influential magazine will cease to be available on newsstands and will only be available in comic bookshops and to subscribers with no new content except in the year-end issues from later this year, brought on a wave of nostalgia and sadness. Though we had stopped reading it a while ago, the thought of a world without Mad Magazine seems a dismal place. But then again, what role for Mad magazine when the world, starting with Mr Trump at its head appears to have gone Mad itself?
Tweet Talk
“Bring Dhoni to Mumbai
Only he can slow down the pace of Mumbai flooding now.”
-Post by Atul Khatri yesterday
Running With A Cause
This Sunday, designer Maheka Mirpuri along with actor Boman Irani, choreographer Sandip Soparkar, songstress Mansi Scott and a grab bag of other talent will be hosting a brunch to acknowledge all those who contributed towards making this year’s Terry Fox Run so successful. According to the designer, Mumbai was the number one city in the world for funds raised towards cancer research through the run held earlier this year. “For the first time ever, the brunch will have eminent women including Consul Generals from various consulates in Mumbai sashay down the ramp in classic saris designed by me,” said Mirpuri about the initiative which she has been close to since 2016. Mirpuri had been inspired to come on board by Gul Kripalani, convener of Terry Fox (India), who, along with the committee members, has been organising the Run for the last 21 years. “Terry Fox was an athletic Canadian teenager who got diagnosed with osteogenic sarcoma and as a result, he had his right leg amputated at the age of 18. To inspire others, he decided to run across Canada to raise funds for cancer research, moved by the plight of his fellow sufferers. And though he died soon after, he left a legacy behind, commonly known as the Terry Fox Run. This is now an annual event held every year in Mumbai and across the world,” she said, adding, “Alone we can do so little; together we can make a change.”
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