Another Dental Visit for Dad and an Interview in a Drama School

Friday, March 29, 2019
Bombay

Another Dental Visit for Dad and an Interview in a Drama School 
   
     Namaste from Bombay!
     The day flew by and wasn't very productive as I am dealing with an intermittent gripe in my tummy that comes and goes inexplicably. Thinking it is merely gas, I tried to have a drink made by a company called Rogers--called Ginger. But it has not done the trick. At Dad and Llew's suggestion, I will see a doctor tomorrow. When the gripe grips me, it is deeply uncomfortable and it ends up sapping one's energy and mood. So, off to the doctor tomorrow.
     That said, I awoke and began blogging, reviewed Twitter, ate my breakfast of muesli with coffee and left by rick to accompany Dad to the dentist for his denture fitting follow-up. It did not take too long and since he saw the same one who had done my dental work last week, Sudha Shenoy, I asked her to look at some filling work she had done for me that needed some smoothing out--it was done in a few minutes and I was satisfied with my 'mouth feel".
     Back home by rick, I visited with Dad and Russel for a bit and then went back home. Dad is in the thick of the IPL cricket matches and was describing to me how exciting the last one was. This resulted in me calling my friend Kamal to find out what she thought about it.
     Back home, I sat down immediately and finished the transcribing of my interview with Louiz Banks which took much more time than usual as it was a very long interview and he was a magnificent interviewee. I finished it in time to get a quick shower and leave for my next appointment--an interview with Jeff Goldberg of the Jeff Goldberg Acting Studio off Linking Road which was actually right by where I had been with Dad in the morning.

An Interview with Jeff Goldberg:
     Jeff Goldberg is an American actor (a New Yorker) and sometime academic who used to teach Acting in New York and France before he married an East Indian Catholic and made him home and life in Bombay. His is now one of the many Acting Schools that have mushroomed in the city to teach the craft to budding thespians who seek opportunities in the competitive world of show biz. HIs Studio is a beautiful space on one floor of a very conveniently located building in Bandra. The corridors are plastered with framed posters of the many dramatic productions in which he or his students have performed and staged.
     I met him for about 45 minutes during which he gave me a lot of information in anticipation of the kind of questions I might ask.  He told me about his own training and his own background, his stints in Los Angeles and France, his opinion on the current state of Bollywood film production, the aspirations and hopes of his students and the kind of opportunities available to them (apparently a whole lot--he said that 70% of his grads find work in the entertainment industry which is burgeoning in India with the growth of web entertainment).
     I enjoyed our conversation and learned a good deal from it. It is amazing really how much Bombay has to offer actors today--while there are still aspiring actors who (provided they can afford it) go off to New York to study Acting, others can study the craft right here in Bombay--again, provided they have the bucks because his classes are not cheap. Still, at least they are available. He was kind enough to invite me to two of his upcoming shows--both at the Royal Opera House: A Streetcar Named Desire this weekend and next week, a show on the Bombay terrorist attacks starring Headley (the man who masterminded them), played by Goldberg himself. He seems to have found a gig that truly works because he is doing what he loves: he writes original material, he directs, he acts, he teaches Drama in what might be called repertory theater and he has a ready supply of income. He also has personal connections with the city that keeps him here for a while. Go Him!

A Varied Sort of Evening:
     Back home in a rickshaw, following our interview, I had a late lunch and completely forgot I was supposed to stay off meat today--it being a Friday in Lent. I had chicken curry, mixed vegetables and dal while watching Mary Berry go to Morocco and teach us how to make a lamb tagine. I am truly grateful for You Tube and all the material that it lays bare at my fingertips. Really thrilling.
     I took a short nap and then intended to transcribe one more interview but I was feeling really out of sorts. Instead I dressed and went off to Dad's to find him feeling out of sorts too. He elected to stay home as the pain in his lower gums had sapped him of all his energy too. I chatted with him and Russel for a while and then left for the Stations of the Cross followed by Mass--but I was feeling quite ill-at-ease too and had to sit down through most of it.

Dinner With New Friends:
     Earlier in the evening, I had heard from Radhika, my friend who lives close by telling me that her husband Vivek is now in town--he has joined her after nine months from San Francisco: it made me realize how much I miss Llew and how long we have been apart. I am looking forward very much now to seeing him soon in South America--although we still have to wait for 2 months for that to happen. I then invited Radhika and Vivek to join me for dinner at the Bandra Gym at 8.00 and she was free and game.
     So right after Mass, I found a rick that took me to the gym where she joined me just a bit later. We had a lovely meal--this time I remember that I was not supposed to eat meat today and all we did was feast on prawns and fish! We ordered Fried Peri Peri Prawns with Achari Paneer as starters with drinks. Our meal was Goan Fish Curry with steamed rice and Tawa-Fried Rawas with Red Reschad Masala--truly truly good. For dessert, the three of us shared Malai Kulfi. It was all absolutely delicious and Vivek turned out to be a really nice chap, very easy to get to know and to get along with and the three of us struck up a really nice new friendship that I hope will stand the test of time. It was almost 11.00 pm when we left the restaurant to walk home--both they and I live just a stone's throw from the Gymkhana and I was in bed and chatting to Llew before I called it a night.
     Until tomorrow...