If there's one place in Mumbai that I could visit again and again.... it would undoubtedly be Bandra. Such a intriguing place it is! Consider its myriad attractions - it has some of the most chic neighbourhoods & is centrally located - not too crowded though. It is also home to some of the best restaurants, pubs, bakeries & salons, nestled in the most unheard of bylanes (I have been through some very tapering lanes & was surprised to discover some very reputable hangouts there!) & is the undisputed shopper's paradise (two words - Linking Road!). For the star-struck, Bandra also boasts of addresses of most Bollywood stars, heritage-rich buildings, the famed Jogger's Park, heavenly churches and of course, the long, beautiful (ok ok.. slightly messy) promenades of Carter Road & Bandstand. I never tire of this quaint lil' neighbourhood :) So it was only inevitable that I visit the Bandra festival, if not to participate, yet only just to celebrate the place....
We (including Deepz... who has wonderfully described our night-out) started our soiree in Bandra by visiting the famed Mount Mary church..... it is so serene here, you can actually hear people breathing..... the altar looks more beautiful everytime I visit!
Everyone has seen this! The view from Mount Mary.... that building jutting out into the sky and the calm sea beyond..... beautiful view, if you ignore that stupid wire running across!
Tough on Tobacco, a band that I instantly liked..... with the talented Sid Coutto at the vocals & someone spectacular on the violins.... dunno his name (or number!)
Behold my surprise when I saw the kids of Ashray (where I go to teach) performing a dance!! I was delighted to watch them & cheered them on (apart from donating my water bottle to them - it was empty when it came back to me!). Strange as it may sound, I felt so proud of them, as if my own kids were on stage! :) I was beaming, full of pride throughout their performance & clapped the loudest at the end!

This is Monica, from
Shair 'n Funk.... an emerging, exciting new band. Her eccentric ways took a little while to getting used to (more because she had a shock-to-impress style about her, what with
bindis- yes, plural - dotting her face & her wild hair flying in the air), but nonetheless, the music was spellbinding....

Monica again, bathed in psychedelic colors
Pentagram came and conquered! The crowd which was until now just swaying to the music, suddenly became boisterous! Here's
Vishal Dadlani of Pentagram (he was so close!).... they rocked the crowd with a cool rendition of 'Smack my B#
tch Up' by Prodigy, amongst many other hits of theirs.
Vishal came across as a talented crooner & an engaging entertainer, however he needs to tone down the foul language, please! Not cool!
I like this pic (took an effort to take pictures, what with the head-banging crowd thoroughly outta control!),
Vishal here looks like he's eclipsed! An awesome night of good music & fun!