What: Zakir Hussain - Live In Concert at Jamshed Bhabha Auditorium, NCPA, Nariman Point, donor passes available at the NCPA (66223737) and Rhythm House (43222727), Rs 3,000, Rs 2,000 or Rs 1,000.

Why: Drum roll! This weekend, Ustad Zakir Hussain will be closing the 11-day long celebration of the 60th year of the Jehnagir Art Gallery, with a live classical concert. The tabla maestro will play new compositions and will be accompanied by Ganesh Rajgopalan on violin, Sridhar Parthasarthy on mridangam, Navin Sharma on dholak and Rakesh Chaurasia on flute.

When: You want to meet the knight of the round tabla on Saturday, October 27 at 7 pm.

October 26 – 28: Art Weekend featuring the works of artist Tarini Dixit and Julius Macwan, and launch of Amor Fati and The Last Ship Film Series at Last Ship, 50-A Huma Bungalow, opposite Hanuman Temple, Chuim Village Road, Bandra (W), 65346906, 9833066276, 7 pm onwards, more details here.

October 26: Jazz Utsav – Froy Aagre Quartet at Blue Frog, Mathuradas Mill Compound, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel, 61586158, 9  pm, Rs 500 (after 5 pm).

October 26: Tapan Bordoloi at Clark House, ground floor, c/o RBT Group, 8 Nathalal Parekh Marg (Old Wodehouse Road), next to Woodside Inn, 9820213816, 5.30 pm.

October 26:  DJ Tom Buster Live at F Lounge.Diner.Bar, One India Bulls Centre, third floor, Senapati Bapat Marg, Elphinstone Road, 66505820, 10 pm, Rs 1,500 per head (after 9 pm).

October 27: Sapan More’s Treasures From Tibet at Artisans’ Gallery, 52-56 Dr V B Gandhi Marg, Rhythm House Lane, Kala Ghoda, 22673040, 11 am.

October 27: Where Did I Leave My Purdah (drama) at Tata Theatre, NCPA, Nariman Point, 22824567, 7 pm, Rs 260 onwards, book your tickets here. 

October 27: Bazaar and Bling at Candies, Mac Ronells, 5AA Pali Hill, St. Andrews Road, Pali Hill, Bandra (W), 26424124, 11 am to 8 pm more details here.

October 27: A solo show by Lisa Scadron at The Fine Art Company Studio (next to ICICI bank) 2, Evergreen Society, Waterfield Road, Bandra (W), 26424897, 11 am, more details here.

October 28: Mumbai International Beer Festival at D Monte Park Recreation Centre, Perry Road, Bandra (W), 11.30 am, Rs 500 onwards, book your tickets here, more details here.

October 28: Julian Opie at Sakshi Gallery, Tanna House, 11A Nathalal Parekh Marg, Colaba, 66103424, 11 am.

October 28: Cinema Paradiso film festival at Russian Centre of Science and Culture, near Jaslok Hospital, Peddar Road, 12 pm onwards, Rs 500 per head, book your tickets here.

November 3: The Styling Avenue at Temperance, St. Xaverian Court, Sherly Rajan Road, near Rizvi College of Hotel Management, Bandra (W), to sign up now call Pooja on 9004060766, on November 3 from 2 pm to 6 pm, Rs 2,500.

October 19: Special vegetarian menu at Neel at Tote On The Turf, Mahalaxmi Racecourse, Gate 4 & 5, Keshva Rao, Mahalaxmi, 61577777, 12 pm onwards.

October 19: Bay Beat Collective’s EP launch party at Bonobo, second floor, Kenilworth Mall, phase 2, off Linking Road, Bandra (W), 26055050, 8.30 pm.

October 19: Carbon Based Life Forms at Blue Frog, Mathuradas Mill Compound, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel, 61586158, 10.30 pm, Rs 500 (after 9 pm).

October 19: Unsettling Stone (drama in Mandarin) at National Gallery for Modern Art, Sir Cowasji Jehangir Public Hall, M G Road, Fort, 22881971, 7.30 pm, Rs 200, book your tickets here.

October 20: Divine Moments by Raghu Rai at ICIA Gallery, ICIA House, 22/26K Dubhash Marg, Kala Ghoda, 22048318, 11 am.
 
October 20: Beer Fest 2012 at Lagerbay, 183, Waterfield Road, Bandra (W), 67369900, approximately Rs 1,000 for the domestic beer bucket.

October 20: Comic Con 2012 at World Trade Centre, Arcade Building, ground floor, Cuffe Parade, visit www.comicconmumbai.com, free entry, more details here.

October 20: Bandit Queen’s Books & Bloomers sale at  Ravi Vazirani Design Studio, Cottage no 13/1073, Dr Peter Dias Road, near Mount Mary Ground, Bandra (W), 7738341423, 11 am to 7 pm, more details here.

October 20: Live from the Console with Tejas Menon, The Fringe Pop and Spook at Stage 5, Mehboob Studio, Bandra (W), 6.30 pm, Rs 250, book your tickets here, visit the Facebook page here.

October 21: Kelebec outdoor furniture pop-up shop at Rotary Service Centre, Juhu Tara Road, near the Skoda Car Showroom, 11 am to 8 pm.

October 21: Nimbu Mirch garage sale at The Little Door, plot B-31, ground floor, Shri Siddhivanayak Plaza, opposite Fame Adlabs, behind Maruti Suzuki Showroom, Andheri (W), 9920983833, 11 am to 6 pm, view the Facebook page here.

October 21: New Sunday brunch at F Lounge.Diner.Bar, One India Bulls Centre, third floor, Senapati Bapat Marg, Elphinstone Road, Rs 1,999 with alcohol (excludes taxes), 12 pm to 4 pm.

October 21: The Nation Wants to Know by Anuvab Pal at The Comedy Store, third floor, Palladium Mall, High Street Phoenix, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel, 43485000, 6 pm, Rs 400 per head, book your tickets here.

October 21: Head To Head, group art exhibition, at Coomaraswamy Hall, Kala Ghoda, 26489522, visit www.samsaraart.com, 11 am. 

Sure, people like you the way you are. But they’ll like you even better in something tight. With a cape attached.

Comic Con Mumbai returns to our fair city this weekend, which means it’s time to put together a new costume, one that you can use again for Halloween. Two birds (or is it a plane?) with one stone!

Arcade Fire

Held at the Arcade Building (World Trade Center) two stories below the bpb office – superheroes, say hi if you’re flying past our window – this free film and comic convention will feature workshops, graphic novel launches, interactive sessions and gifts for those who dress up. Highlights include meet-and-greet with Indian manga artists;   the launch of Sudarshan (Chimpanzee) by Hachette India, a dark tale about a chimp in Bollywood; and how to put together a comic for children, moderated by Tinkle’s new editor Neel Debdutt Paul

We’ll see you then!

Getting there: Arcade Building, World Trade Center, Cuffe Parade on October 20 and 21, visit http://www.comicconmumbai.com,  free entry.

Highway Blues

Here's why you should make the many-miled drive to Vikhroli for the screening of a film about jazz on Thursday: it's free, there will be delish snacks, and Parmesh Shahani who heads up the Godrej Culture Lab, will almost certainly be in a bow tie. Those of you who need more convincing, consider that few documentaries delineate the evolution of jazz better than Susheel J. Kurien's "Finding Carlton"; the director will be on hand and answering questions; and there might even be an appearance by Louis Banks *fingers crossed*. Satisfied now? 

Horn OK Please

Appetite whetted, move on to the first edition of Simply The Blues festival next week, held at the mercifully closer St Andrews Auditorium, headlined by Blues Conscience from Chennai and also featuring Mumbai's Overdrive Trio. The Festival, which plans on bringing jazz bands from all over the country to Mumbai for a string of concerts, is directed by Luke Kenny.  

Getting there: Finding Carlton, part of the Godrej Film Club, Auditorium, Gate 2, Godrej Industries, Vikhroli (E), at 6 pm on October 18, free; Simply The Blues, St Andrews Auditorium, Bandra, October 26 at 8 pm, visit the Facebook page here, tickets available at www.bookmyshow.com.

What: Katha Cues Storytelling Workshop with Tarun Durga, Comet Media Foundation, 301 Meher House,15 Cawasji Patel Street, Fort, call 9820855056 or visit the Facebook page here, Rs 1,200 per person. 

Why: If you’re going to insist on telling tales, you might as well learn how to do it right: page Tarun Durga, stage performer, head of Cornerstone Digital and organizer of flash mobs, who’ll teach you how to craft, plan and tell a story during his workshop this weekend.

When: Plots of fun on Saturday, October 13.

October 12: Screening of Goan documentary A Picture Of You at Alliance Francaise, Theosophy Hall, Vithaldas Thackersey Marg, New Marine Lines, 22085137, 7 pm.

October 12: Social Fabric at Bhau Daji Lad Museum, Veermata Jijabai Bhonsle Udyan, Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Marg, Byculla (E), 65560394, 10 am.

October 12: DJ Shaan at Aer, Four Seasons Hotel Mumbai, Worli, 24818000, 8 pm, Rs 2,000 (full cover).

October 12: Screening of Casablanca at Bhavan’s Cultural Centre, Bhavan’s College, Munshinagar, Dadabhai Road, Andheri (W), 66970066, 6.30 pm.

October 13: Cocktails special at Busaba, Mathuradas Mill Compound, NM Joshi Marg, Lower Parel, 67478974, Rs 750. 

October 13: 50 % off sale at Vinegar, Kirabo Apartments, behind Shree Khatwari Darbar Trust, 13th Road, off Linking Road, Khar (W), 26482787, 10 am till 12 am.

October 13: NSPA street performances at Bandra Railway Station, 9.30 to 11 am and 5.30 to 7 pm, more details here.

October 13: New Prix Fixe Lunch menu at Indigo, 4 Mandlik Road, Colaba, 66368999, 12 pm onwards, Rs 1,320.

October 13: Giuseppe Ottaviani (EDM) at Blue Frog, Mathuradas Mills Compound, Lower Parel, 61586158, 10.30 pm onwards, Rs 500 (post 9 pm).

October 14: New Sunday brunch at Poco Loco, shop no. 5, Lourdes Heaven, Pali Naka, next to Toto's Garage Pub, Bandra (W), 12 pm to 4 pm, Rs 999 with unlimited food, sangria and wine.

October 14: The Last Lecture with photographer Swapan Mukherjee and Prasad Godbole at Art Loft, Valentino Rest first floor (above Patel Store), Mehboob Studios, Bandra (W), 9930483966, visit the Facebook page here.

October 14: Salt n Pepper (drama) at St Andrews Auditorium, St Dominic Road, Bandra (W), 26513224, 7.30 pm, starts at Rs 500, book your tickets here.

October 14: Game for Theatre with Quasar Thakore Padamsee at Temperance, St. Xavierian Court, next to Rizvi Hotel Management College, Sherly Rajan Road, Bandra (W), 9833833270, 10 am to 4 pm, Rs 1,500 per head.

October 14: Belvedere Love Sunday with M.Mat, Spacejams and Rahul Chabz at The Dome – InterContinental, 135, Marine Lines, 39879999, 5 pm.

There are a couple of reasons, mostly musical, to book a ticket to Delhi and hang out there this month.

In a concert-ed effort by event companies to bring interesting international artists – legends and new acts – to India before the year ends, there's a great line-up of musicians who will be playing in the Capital. Next Tuesday (October 16), head to the Purana Qila, where Grammy- nominated Aboriginal singer Geoffery Gurumul Yunupingu and sitar player Anoushka Shankar, with Mark Atkins on the digeridoo, will play as part of the five month-long Oz Fest. Even better than the line-up, is the fact that the concert is free!

And while you have your music calendar out, also mark October 28 as legendary. Guitar hero Carlos Santana will be performing in Noida at F1 Rocks, the live music event that accompanies the Formula 1 races. Tickets, starting at Rs 3,500, have finally gone on sale, but won’t be around forever so we suggest you book fast. But then again, we don’t think you’ll need too much Persuasion.

Getting there: Oz Fest opening night, Purana Qila, Mathura Road, October 16, 8 pm, entry free upon pre-registry here; Santana concert, #1 Knowledge Park, Phase II, Greater Noida,  October 28, 5 pm tickets start at Rs 3,500 and are available here.

Adding to the cacophony of Churchgate Station this Monday morning, amidst umbrella sellers and train announcements, harried cops and hurried passengers, were a sitar player and a table maestro, too decently dressed to be buskers, drawing a crowd of suspicious onlookers. "Flash mob," a college student whispered to her friend. But instead, this was the first gig sponsored by the NSPA (National Streets for Performing Arts), a new NGO that aims to convert public spaces like amphitheatres, promenades, and, in this case, railway stations into temporary culture hubs. 

Track Record

For this month and November, the NSPA will work with the Railways department to set up acoustic gigs on specific corners of three Mumbai stations—Churchgate, Bandra and Borivali—where classical, western, fusion musicians will play to in morning and evening two-hour slots.

“The idea was to host a performance that can be absorbed even in packed places with mobile crowds,” says Anisha George, co-ordinator of this project. “To see a play or watch an artist paint on a large canvas, you have to stay for the entire act to absorb it completely. With music, you can walk in and out of a song or between songs.”

Hindustani classical musicians KK Singh and Smit Dharia, folk rock guitarist Neeraj Arya, new-age blues guitarist Imli Imchen (see image) and brass trio Brass àChaar played the first station gig at Churchgate station on Monday—and the reaction was better than expected. “In the morning slot, we managed to build a lot of curiosity, despite the usual office rush,” recalls Anisha. “In the evening, we had close 100 to 200 people gathered around the artists and some even stayed for the entire set!”

If You’d Like To Busk a Move

If you are a musician and interested in getting involved, send a music clip to Anisha at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or give her a call at 982017109 to set up an audition. If they’re happy with what they hear, you’ll sign a 3-month contract. A solo artist can get paid up to up to Rs 6,000 a month and a band (of not more than three members) Rs 9,000 a month.

The next gig is today, October 10, at Borivali station, with performances by KK Singh, Suresh Kala and folk rock guitarist Pratyul Joshi. And on Sunday, head to Bandra station where Kabir rock artist Neeraj Arya and Carnatic musicians Vishwanath Ramaswamy and K Dakshinamurthy will perform. 

Getting there: The gigs will take place in the morning (9 to 11 am) and evening (5.30 to 7 pm), every Monday at Churchgate station, Wednesdays at Borivali station and Saturdays at Bandra station, see the entire schedule here.

What: Open-air Mr India screening, sign up at www.trabblr.com, in the lane opposite Out of the Blue, Union Park, Khar West, free.

Why: Because Mr India was our favorite movie growing up, and it should have been yours too. Organized by Visual Disobedience and BAP, we expect the screening to get pretty crowded, so make sure you get there early; or you can come hang out on this Scouter’s balcony, which overlooks the screen – we’ll have cookies and beer!

When: See-devi on Sunday, October 7 at 7 pm.