This article has been sponsored by Blue Frog

Event Bulletin

If you already have a bar you go to on Wednesdays to meet new people, let blueFROG be where you go on Thursdays to meet new bands.

As part of its fusion band talent hunt, leapFROG to Coke Studio @MTV, the restaurant, bar and music venue hosts fresh bands every Thursday, who fight for a seat on Coke Studio @ MTV, Season 3. Performing tomorrow night is Hindi soft rock band Rang; sufi ethnic rock band Highway 61; and Dilpreet Bhatia and Friends. The best part? Entry is free!

Track this for the next two Thursdays and then make it for the grand finale on June 6. Hey, if one of these bands becomes super famous, you can always say you knew their music from a Thursday night a long time ago.

Getting there: At Blue Frog, Mathuradas Mill Compound, Lower Parel, call 61586158, 10 pm to 11.30 pm, more information here, free entry.

ImageThis article has been sponsored by Blue Frog

What: Second edition of Music in the Great Outdoors with Sky Rabbit organised by The Blueberry Trails at Kihim, Rs 3,300 - Rs 3,900 per person for travel, stay and meals, call Sudeepta on 9820925721, email  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Why: Book now and here’s what next weekend will look like: Anti-Coke Ganpati on a hill top overlooking the beach. What are we smoking? Nothing yet. Music in the Great Outdoors series kicks of its second edition with indie-electronic foursome Sky Rabbit at the LetsCampOut campsite (www.letscampout.com/) located on a Kihim beach front hillock. Under the stars, around a bonfire with DIY barbeque food, you can listen to an acoustic set by Sky Rabbit featuring tracks like Anti-Coke Ganpati and Hilltop. Campers will also get a chance to go on a fishing ride in Kashid.

When: You want a night out with your grill-friends. On May 4 and 5

What: Pluck, Cook & Eat monthly excursion organised by Saha Astitva’s organic farmland in Ganeshpuri, two hours from Mumbai. To book an event for a group, or to enquire about their next public one, email  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with details regarding preferred dates and number of people. The group size is limited to 20 people, visit www.thankindia.org/events, Rs 2,000 per head.

Why: To know Insia Lacewalla is to know many different ways to be excited about food. A khaana curator at festivals, this Bandra girl, quite delicious herself, and bpb’s new food friend recently stumbled into Saha Astitva’s organic movement – a farmland that gives you a farm-to-table cooking experience, hands-on class in organic farming and a lesson on how to go green in the big brown city. She returned with a bunch of photos, fresh loot and lots of trivia (did you know that toor dal grows on trees?). To read about Insia’s full experience and see photos, visit her blog here.

When: You want to increase your weed-ership.

What: Mudra Dance Week at NCPA, NCPA Marg, Nariman Point, view the schedule here.

Why: People in Bombay don’t dance anymore, is something a friend says to us almost every weekend. If you’re that friend, slot some time for Mudra Dance Week that begins on Wednesday. Here, “everything is broken up into dances” - photography exhibits, films screenings, poetry readings and discussions are centered around dance. Also, five dancers have been invited to interpret classic Indian poetry. Twist!

When: Step-by-step guide from April 24-28.

Can you walk through a Mumbai neighbourhood on a weekend without bumping into a group that’s pointing at Gothic architecture or passing by a cycling club whose ride will culminate in breakfast?

Now Mumbai really doesn’t need any more mobs, but here’s a crowd that you should pledge to. The Jane Jacobs community walks are coming to India next month, and you can sign up for free now. Named after urban studies expert, journalist and activist Jane Jacobs, these community walks are held in cities all over the world in May, to celebrate her birthday.

Jane Campaign

Hosted in India – Mumbai, Chennai and Pondicherry – by The Urban Design Collective (UDC), these walks are supposed to focus on one neighbourhood and its community. In Mumbai, the May 12 walk will lead you to Mazgaon, an area that the UDC says is “one of the few remaining European remnants of Mumbai and a hotbed of continuous metamorphosis.” Influenced by so many different communities - Maharashtrians, East Indians, Anglo-Indians, Catholic Konkanies, Khoja Muslims, Bori Muslims – Mazgaon seems like an interesting pick for the Jane Jacobs walk.  On the agenda is its past, present and spooky urban legends.

Sure, the walk will take place during the peak of summer, but the re-assuring bit is that it starts at 7.30 am. Still, we’re going to be carrying a cold thermos of pomegranate juice, and no, we’re not sharing. Okay, maybe we’ll bring some for you, but just you okay?

JJ School of Walks

No matter what city you live in, you can apply to host a Jane Jacobs Walk in your community, so long as they approve your idea. Also, the fun bit is that the Jane Jacobs walks don’t have to be walks. Past community events in cities across the world have included bicycle rides, wheelchair rolls and transit tours. We’re thinking Segways  through Bandra? This is no standing joke!

Getting there: RSVP for Mazgaon Metamorphosis here or check out the Facebook page, free of cost.

The hardest part about writing a book is that first sentence, our Delhi editor and author Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan tells us. "But by far, the only reason writers do it — they all do it — is for the very fun book parties that we get to throw for our friends," she says.

And now, you’re invited. The lovely Meenakshi, also author of You Are Here and Confessions Of A Listmaniac (published by Penguin India), will be in Mumbai to launch her third book, Cold Feet, the story of five young women in Bandra, their interconnecting lives and how they deal with love and relationships. Perks of the launch include lots of drinks (and no scurvy) at the The Last Ship venue, plus a discussion the author will have with film critic Raja Sen, and a chance to get a signed copy.

See you then!

Getting there: On Friday, March 15 from 7.30 pm to 10.30 pm at The Last Ship, Chuim Village, Bandra (W), view the Facebook invite and map here.

Event Bulletin

If the Swedish House Mafia-caused traffic that this Scouter encountered on her Cuffe Parade-Bandra route is anything to go by, she’s working from home on March 29.

Sunburn Arena is bringing EDM superstar Tiesto to Mumbai on this day as part of a three city tour (Bangalore and Delhi on March 30 and 31) in India. The Dutch DJ has collaborated with a bunch cool musicians and bands in the past, including Kanye West, Coldplay, Katy Perry, Nelly Furtado and Yeah Yeah Yeahs. While the venues in these cities haven’t been decided yet (are you the wolf who cried “last minute gig cancellation”), the tickets are on sale, ranging from Rs 2,950 to Rs 6, 250.

Dance, dance, dance.

Getting there: Tiesto live in Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore, schedule and tickets here.

What: City neighbourhood tours for Mumbai Design Week by India Design Forum, free entry.

Why: To go with our days of the week underwear recommendation, here’s a neighbourhood to explore daily this week, as part of the India Design Forum. This cool calendar lets you tour Mumbai locales – Colaba, Fort, Bandra/Juhu, Lower Parel/Mahalaxmi, Vikhroli -  through interesting design talks, walks, workshops and shopping experiences, all for free. Our picks: discover “humorous light installations” at Obataimu’s private studio, the link between design and dining at Le Mill and permaculture in a box at The Flyover Farm. See full schedule here.

When: Get design drafted from March 8 – 13

What: The Symphony Orchestra of India, Jamshed Bhabha Theatre, NCPA, Nariman Point, for tickets call 22824567 / 66548135, priced at Rs 2,000, 1,600, 1,200 and Rs 800.

Why: If you thought your Friday night whisky-sugarcane juice-kafir lime cocktail was going to be an interesting collaboration, think again. Catch the Symphony Orchestra of India show this evening for a meeting of many maestros and instruments. There's Marat Bisengaliev on the violin, 14-time Grammy winner Bela Fleck on the banjo, bassist Edgar Meyer who has collaborated with musicians like Yo-Yo Ma, and our very own Ustad  Zakir Hussain on the tabla. Should we add a drum roll? 

When: Today, February 22 at 7 pm.

Ever wondered what it would be like to watch a violent In Bruges-like scene live on stage? The bit in the film where Collin Farrell karate chops the racist midget after stealing some blow for the road, should give you a glimpse of what to expect at the forthcoming play ‘Behanding in Spokane’. From the guys behind Hayavadana, this play to be staged today and tomorrow at Prithvi, promises dry wit, dark comedy and deliciously gore.

Originally written by Academy Award winner Martin McDonagh, who directed In Bruges and more recently, Seven Psychopaths, this script is already packing some serious pedigree. The play is directed by local Bombay boy Kashin Shetty, with a cast comprising new generation theatre and film actors. Set in an obscure town in the US, the play revolves around the main character Carmichael, and the quest for his missing hand. We warned you. Enter two bickering lovebirds and a curious hotel clerk, and the plot begins to twist and turn along with your stomach.

Watch it!

Getting there: Prithvi Theatre, Janki Kutir, Juhu on February 21 and 22,  7 pm & 9.30 pm shows, call 26149546 or buy on www.bookmyshow.com, tickets priced at Rs 200.