Lounge Loves: Hits from the 1980s, ‘Dhobi Ghat’ and more

Mumbai Memory

Thanks to Rohan and Prayrak Mehta for curating VHS (Versova Homage Screenings), a space where filmmakers return to their first films, I had the chance to revisit Dhobi Ghat on the big screen earlier this week. Kiran Rao’s debut turns 15 this year—the same number of years I’ve spent in Mumbai. Revisiting it now, the city it portrays feels more familiar, the characters more intimate. Danish Husain, who plays Salim in the movie, observed at the screening: the film captures a Mumbai we’ve lost forever. Yet, as filmmaker Bikas Mishra noted in his conversation with Rao during the Q&A session post-screening, the film has aged remarkably well. Both thoughts resonate with me. Parts of who I was when I first came to Mumbai are gone now, yet others have deepened with time. Cinema, as Rao reminded us, is memory’s vessel.

—Shephali Bhatt

A Feast Fit for Royalty

As a Bengali reared on savoury food with complex tastes, I always found Gujarati cuisine a bit too sweet for my liking—until last week when I had the heritage thali at Agashiye restaurant on the rooftop of the House of MG, a beautiful heritage hotel in Ahmedabad. The course starts with juice and buttermilk, moving on to half-a-dozen vegetable dishes—curried, fried, sauteed—served with parathas, bakhris, khichdi and rice. It’s a riot of textures and tastes. The muthiyas (vegetable dumplings) were some of the best I have ever tasted. The basundi, which I had always found heavily sweetened, was pleasantly tempered. In the end, I had to skip the ice cream. The menu changes every day and uses seasonal ingredients. There is an even more elaborate thali on offer, but I was content with the royal feast I had tasted.

—Somak Ghoshal

Reliving Hits From the 1980s

There are two songs that have overtaken my life these past few weeks—Vaa Vaa Pakkam Vaa from Rajinikanth-starrer Coolie, and Kiliye Kiliye from the Malayalam superhero movie, Lokah. Aside from the fact that these remixed scores came out around the same time, they were composed by music director Ilaiyaraja for films released in 1983—Thangamagan and Aa Rathri, respectively. That two songs from movies over four decades old would become such a rage amuses me, but I am not complaining. The tunes are eminently addictive and I have especially enjoyed watching the viral dance videos of Vaa Vaa Pakkam Vaa. My favourites are the ones that have “boomer” parents dancing with their Gen Z kids to this disco-heavy track.

—Mahalakshmi Prabhakaran

What’s in a Bag?

One of the “it” bags of the 2000s was the shiny Fendi baguette made famous by Sex And The City, and then came its antithesis, the Peekaboo handbag, made for those “quiet” dressers, who preferred to keep their style subtle. I was always Team F baguette, mostly because of the attitude it sold: an unabashed look-at-me. At the recent Milan Fashion Week, a new version of the Peekaboo emerged—one that can peel off its outer layer of tan brown, beige or deep maroon, just a little, to show what’s inside, sparkles, sequins, polka dots and lots of fun colours. And that’s what makes it striking: a bag for those who prefer to keep their sparkle inside but don’t mind flaunting it now and then.

—Pooja Singh