Mumbai Diary: Ranji match at Brabourne, Tyson's Dharavi visit recalled, Govandi children play football

A Ranji Trophy match between Mumbai and Railways is under way at the Brabourne Stadium. During the game, a photographer found himself a good spot from which to capture the scene.

Boxing great Mike Tyson's recent Netflix series and his comedy special on the same platform are drawing widespread praise, online and offline. Sports Editor Ashwin Ferro wrote a column on October 31 in which he said that Tyson's angry demeanour as an adult was the result of a difficult childhood spent in extreme poverty.

After the column, Salman Khan's bodyguard Gurmeet Singh, known as Shera, wrote a letter saying it had brought back memories of Tyson's 2018 visit to Mumbai. Shera led Tyson's security team on that visit. He particularly remembers that Tyson had a very good time with children from a Dharavi slum.

Shera wrote that he stayed with Tyson through his entire 2018 India tour, for an MMA event and other programmes. Tyson was especially excited about meeting the children of Dharavi and enjoyed talking to them. Tyson told Shera that he felt at home there. According to Shera, Tyson also has a good sense of humour, and the two had a lot of fun together. Shera said he was saddened to read about Tyson's hard childhood, but happy that a true champion has been brought to the fore.

Singer Sunidhi Chauhan was in Shillong for her I Am Home India tour. There she held an impromptu jam session at the home of the Shillong Chamber Choir. Choir singer William Richmond said it was a way of thanking her for coming. She sang "Yeh Dosti Hum Nahin Todenge" and then "Kaisi Paheli Zindagani". According to Richmond, Sunidhi proved to be very warm and came forward to sing along with them.

What happens when nature lovers gather in the Sahyadri hills? Jumping off rocks, swimming in natural pools, rock balancing and an exchange of home-made vegan food. On November 1, The Infinite Playground held its annual community hike at Karjat on World Vegan Day. The tradition began in 2018.

Vegan mountaineer Kuntal Joisher, who has summited Everest twice, and a team of volunteers led the free outing. Students, families and outdoor enthusiasts took part. Along the way the group also watched for birds, butterflies, frogs and other creatures. To protect the area, the exact location was shared only with participants. People arrived by local train and shared taxi, brought vegan food to share and carried their own waste back. Joisher said, "For me this is service, my way of giving something back to the mountains that have given me everything."

Govandi is an area struggling with drugs, violence and crime. There, football is giving 340 children a different strategy for the game of life. In the 18th Rotary Foxpassers Football League, organised by the Rotary Club of Deonar and The Next Page, young students, including girls, are given leadership roles. Anoop Parikh, founder of The Next Page, said, "When young people take responsibility, they begin to realise their own potential."