Desolation Row

I am lusting after Brussels-based photographer Vincent Fournier’s ‘Space Project’ images that give a whole new meaning to the word desolation! These other-worldly, spectacular landscapes are all thanks to Fournier having gained access to some of the most controlled environments on earth - including desert observatories and cosmonaut training grounds.

via: www.sci-fi-o-rama.com

Not without my brother...

BFFs Forever. Came across these two in a Colaba bylane. They wouldn't pose without the other. I love that they're so natural in front of the camera.

Words so True

PS- I write for a newspaper

The Sleeper Part I

A conscious slumber seems to take,
And would not, for the world, awake.

Whoever said Mumbai is a city that never sleeps?

Churchill Chambers

Why we need to protect our architectural heritage
Reason #35: Because sometimes all it takes is a lick of paint!

What's in a name?

How's this for aggressive branding?

Afghan Carpet House. 35, Shop No 11, Abbas Building, Mere Weather Road, Mumbai

To the Moon and Back

I've seen enough to know I've seen enough...

Meet Moon baba (seen above with unidentified flunkie). Colaba's most likeable tout. Drugs, girls, boys, a bed to sleep in or just a chat... your wish is Moon baba's command. In case you're wondering, he hangs out around the Salvation Army. But of course!

Imagine

Mumbai's past needs a future...

On Apollo Bunder, with upscale restaurants like Indigo Deli and Moshe and stores like House of Raro for company, lies this marvellous ruin. I call it Kalimpong House, owing to the tottering signboard hanging off one end. Its facade, is all that remains, but what a facade it is! Victorian-Gothic in provenance, the facade opens up into a gorgeous little courtyard, perfect for an outdoor cafe. Makes you wonder why some canny restaurateur doesn't spot the potential and snap it up. Someone please breathe life into this one!

Meanwhile...

... Right next door something's afoot. Someone mentioned Le Pain Quotidien, the Belgian, and now global, boulangerie. I love the promise of new beginnings for Mumbai's heritage spaces.

The Survivor

There's a crack in everything

That's how the light gets in

Did you know we had a 16th century church in our midst? Slap bang on Aksa beach is the Church of St Bonaventure, a Portuguese relic that dates back to 1575. Granted what remains of the original structure is mainly just the rugged facade but there's something about the solidness of this church that fills you with a sense of awe, as fancy-free as it is. I know a couple that chose to get married here. I think it's a brilliant idea. There's even a pretty courtyard that'd be perfect for the after party.
Now if only these walls could talk...

Village People

The more things change
The more they stay the same...

Just beyond Malad, along Aksa beach, is a little village called Erangal. It still feels like a village. Although each time I visit, some of that character has given way to urbanism.

Can it!

Does this qualify as an innovative dustbin where there are none?
To me it still seems like littering!

Happy Diwali

On second thoughts, every day is Diwali when you live in a city of blinding lights

Dream on Dreamer

"I don't know where the artificial stops and the real starts." — Andy Warhol

I sometimes feel like a character in a Dhruvi Acharya painting. For those of you who aren't acquainted with her, Acharya's work is highly graphic in style and rich in narrative and her characters seem to live their lives in a weird dream like state. She approaches her work like quick sketches in a daily journal. Now why don't our daily journals look like this?

Photo courtesy: www.gallerychemould.com