<h2>An equal canvas</h2>
On World Disability Day (December 3), differently-abled artist Nadeem Shaikh paints with his foot at a mall in Goregaon
<h2>Tango with the Argentine GOAT</h2>
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/dec/Kruti-MTM_e.jpg" alt="Kruti Gandhi performs stage tango" width="1280" height="720" /> Kruti Gandhi performs stage tango
The last time <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/lifestyle/health-and-fitness/article/kolkata-doctors-give-elderly-mizoram-man-new-lease-of-life-with-rare-minimally-invasive-procedure-23606054" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Kolkata</a> was in such a frenzy, a certain Diego &lsquo;La Mano de Dios&rsquo; Maradona was in town. Now, it is time for the late footballing icon&rsquo;s heir, Lionel Messi, to make his visit to the Salt Lake Stadium on December 13. While there are close to 70,000 people vying for a chance to get close to the Argentinian &lsquo;GOAT&rsquo;, Kruti Gandhi might have it better than most when she will join her team from the Mumbai-based Abrazo Tango School for the opening ceremony.
&ldquo;It will be a choreographed performance of Argentinian tango and Rabindra Nritya that will later blend into a duet. It is a beautiful amalgamation of the two cultures. It was the organisers in Kolkata, who reached out to ask if we`d like to perform at the ceremony," explained the tango exponent.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/dec/Messi-a_e.jpg" alt="Lionel Messi with the Golden Ball trophy after the 2022 FIFA World Cup final. Pic/Getty Images" width="1280" height="720" />Lionel Messi with the Golden Ball trophy after the 2022 FIFA World Cup final. Pic/Getty Images
With a preparation time of only 15 days, the 10-member troupe plans to choreograph a stage tango performance. &ldquo;It is a creatively challenging process to weave a story between Argentina &mdash; home to both <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/sports/football/article/sachin-tendulkar-lionel-messi-might-just-play-cricket-together-mca-source-23605838" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Messi </a>and the tango &mdash; and Kolkata. So, we opted for stage tango because unlike the social form, it has bigger and dramatic movements,&rdquo; Gandhi said.
<h2>Jussawalla goes to Kochi</h2>
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/dec/Adil-Father_e.jpg" alt="Adil with Father, 1940. Pic Courtesy/Artist, and The Guild" width="1280" height="720" />Adil with Father, 1940. Pic Courtesy/Artist, and The Guild
After its showcase at The Guild in June, Enlightenment from an Unlikely Envelope: Archives of Adil Jussawalla will open at the Kerala Museum-MNF Gallery of Contemporary Art in <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/news/india-news/article/singapore-vessel-catches-fire-off-kerala-coast-rescue-ops-on-23564089" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Kochi </a>on December 7. &ldquo;It explores the links between his [Adil Jussawalla] photographic practice, his life in writing, and the milieu he inhabited. Intimately bound to Bombay/Mumbai, many of these works can be read as a reflection on the city&rsquo;s literary and artistic landscape,&rdquo; shared curators Deeptha S Achar and Chithra KS.
<h2>Big win for mid-day&rsquo;s Mohar Basu</h2>
At the 19th Crossword Book Awards held on Wednesday night on the lawns of an Andheri five-star, a toast was raised to India&rsquo;s literary talent as well as its icons. In the Popular Choice Awards category, mid-day&rsquo;s chief correspondent, Mohar Basu bagged the award (Shah Rukh Khan-Non-Fiction) for her refreshing take on fandom around the Bollywood superstar. Other winners in this category included Prajakta Koli (Too Good To Be True-Fiction) and Thomas Mathew (Ratan Tata: A Life-Business and Management).
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/dec/Shanta-Gokhale_e.jpg" alt="Bachi Karkaria with Shanta Gokhale (right) Anupama Chopra with Mohar Basu" width="1280" height="720" />Bachi Karkaria with Shanta Gokhale (right) Anupama Chopra with Mohar Basu
The glittering spectacle, hosted by the ever-dependable Hrishikesh Kannan, began in the right spirit by celebrating the contribution of literary and theatre icon, Shanta Gokhale with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Close friend, senior journalist and author, Bachi Karkaria bestowed her with the honour, while warmly reminiscing about their shared love for literature, and their long friendship. Gokhale, was her honest self, reminding all of us, including this diarist, of why discipline and humility go a long way in a long, accomplished literary career such as hers.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/dec/Crossword-Book_e.jpg" alt="(From left) Award-winners Manu S Pillai, Ruchir Joshi, J Devika, Prajakta Koli, Mohar Basu, Thomas Mathew, Shanta Gokhale, Manoj Kuroor, Varsha Seshan, and Denise Antao. Pics Courtesy/Crossword Bookstores" width="1280" height="720" /> (From left) Award-winners Manu S Pillai, Ruchir Joshi, J Devika, Prajakta Koli, Mohar Basu, Thomas Mathew, Shanta Gokhale, Manoj Kuroor, Varsha Seshan, and Denise Antao. Pics Courtesy/Crossword Bookstores
The other chief category was the hotly-contested Jury Awards. Winners included Ruchir Joshi (Great Eastern Hotel-Fiction), Manu S Pillai (Gods, Guns and Missionaries-Non-fiction) and Varsha Seshan, illustrated by Denise Antao (The Wall Friends Club-Children&rsquo;s Books). Seated in the audience were luminaries that panned the cultural and literary universe but it was the authors &ndash; both nominees and winners &ndash; who deservingly were the stars that shone the brightest.&nbsp;
<h2>Second chance for streeties</h2>
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/dec/Dog-adopt_e.jpg" alt="Pic courtesy/@worldforallanimaladoptions" width="1280" height="720" /> Pic courtesy/@worldforallanimaladoptions
World for All Animal Care and Adoptions recently held their 10th Adoptathon for rescued Indian breed puppies and kittens. These dewormed, vaccinated, and healthy street animals, aged between two and six months, are waiting to find loving homes. It turns out these pups will get another chance at adoption at the Adoptathon Hangover to be held on January 11, at Cat Cafe Studio in Versova. Speaking to the diarist, founder Ruchi Nadkarni and co-founder and president Taronish Bulsara (inset) of World for All Animal Care and Adoptions said, &ldquo;We urge people to adopt, and not shop. Adopting, fostering, rescuing, sterilisation, and awareness is the way forward.&rdquo;
<h2>Science, kids, and art</h2>
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/dec/Tower_e.jpg" alt="Students celebrate during the competition. Pic courtesy/ Nehru Science Centre" width="1280" height="720" /> Students celebrate during the competition. Pic courtesy/Nehru Science Centre
The Nehru Science Centre in collaboration with ROSATOM (a Russian state atomic corporation) hosted a two-day <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/lifestyle/culture/article/3-day-isro-space-exhibition-at-rajasthan-technical-university-draws-high-student-turnout-23605891" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">Science Festival </a>on Wednesday and Thursday, featuring multiple events &mdash; from creating a science-themed rangoli to a panel discussion on nuclear energy and its future. The festival also included a fun do-it-yourself session where children built the tallest and most stable tower using only paper and glue. &ldquo;Students from Bai Kabibai English School and Junior College in Fort constructed the most stable paper tower, measuring about 62 centimetres in height,&rdquo; revealed Dr Anindita Mondal, curator, Nehru Science Centre.

As Lionel Messi visits Kolkata’s Salt Lake Stadium, Mumbai dancers will showcase a cultural fusion of tango and Rabindra Nritya during the opening ceremony

Mumbai Diary | Friday Dossier: Lionel Messi to visit Salt Lake Stadium; Abrazo Tango School to perform

Mumbai weather updates: City air quality remains moderate, some areas report high AQI levels

The city - sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce

Mumbai Diary: Friday Dossier

An equal canvas

Tango with the Argentine GOAT

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