Mumbai Masala: Traffic Heroine Loses Her Halo

What a letdown! We thought she was the heroine of Mumbai — the woman who articulated the anger of millions of Mumbaikars suffering at the hands of the political class. But Tina Chowdhury has turned out to have feet of clay. The other day, when she got out of her Merc in yellow shorts and angrily asked politicians blocking an arterial road in Worli to “get out”, the city applauded her. For far too long, Mumbaikars had put up with the arrogance of “netas”, and here was this woman from nowhere showing the “pudaris” their place. But in a highly disappointing anti-climax, she later told a news channel that the politician at the centre of it all had actually got the buses blocking traffic removed! Overnight, she fell in the esteem of Mumbai.

A Maharashtrian meal with mixed feelings

Had this strong urge to eat authentic Maharashtrian food. We were in Kalyan and headed to Purna Brahma, an all-women enterprise with several branches. The ambience was pleasantly inviting and the young woman at the cash counter, dressed in an orangish “nav vari”, greeted us with a smile, setting the mood for the meal. The waitress, also in a charming “nav vari” sari, handed over the heavy menu card. We ordered in Marathi: “thalis” and “solkadhis”. She replied in Hindi, “Thali nahi hai.” Slightly disappointed, we settled for “varan bhaat”, “puri combo”, “kothimbir wadi” and “solkadhi”. The “varan”, a watery Maharashtrian dal, was superb, though the quantity was rather less. The “solkadhi”, with lemon squeezed into it, was heavenly.

Through children, Ramu continues to live on

Forty-two years ago, S Ramachandran, an employee of L&T, founded Our Children. The aim was to educate poor children and give them a brighter future. Many have gone on to become doctors and engineers. Ramachandran is no more, but his wife Meena and her family continue the extraordinary work begun by Ramu, as he was fondly called. Every May 1, Our Children hold a cultural programme at Shanmukhananda Hall. This year was no different. The hall was packed with children from several orphanages. The chief guest, as usual, was a child. The gathering thoroughly enjoyed the dances and musical performances, repeatedly cheering the little performers. Ramu continues to live in the hearts of thousands of children.

TAILPIECE

A wife asked her hubby where she could’ve misplaced her car keys. The man replied “Must be in your jeans.” The woman shot back “Why are you dragging my family into this”! (Compiled by S Balakrishnan)

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Published on: Monday, May 04, 2026, 08:34 AM IST