<h2>We are the Champions</h2>
<p>Spirited fans flock to Marine Drive to celebrate India&rsquo;s victory over New Zealand in the ICC Champions Trophy final last Sunday.</p>
<h2>When hitman turned handyman</h2>
<p><img title="(From left) Satyajit Padhye; Rohit Sharma" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/mar/dos-eleven-march-b_e.jpg" alt="(From left) Satyajit Padhye; Rohit Sharma" width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>(From left) Satyajit Padhye; Rohit Sharma</em></strong></p>
<p>Rohit Sharma&rsquo;s stellar innings in the ICC Champions Trophy final last Sunday is not exactly the first time the skipper&rsquo;s hand did the talking. Recalling an advertisement shoot from 2021 where he helped Sharma learn the art of hand puppetry, ventriloquist Satyajit Padhye shared, &ldquo;As many might have guessed from his easy-going demeanour, Rohit is an absolute delight to be around. During the shoot, he developed a deep interest in puppetry and asked me questions about the art form. Needless to say, it was interspersed with his humorous comments.&rdquo; After this timely throwback, Padhye now looks forward to performing in Leicester for the first time at the European Marathi Sammelan on March 31.</p>
<h2>Colour &rsquo;em bright</h2>
<p><img title="A moment from the celebrations" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/mar/dos-eleven-march-c_e.jpg" alt="A moment from the celebrations" width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>A moment from the celebrations</em></strong></p>
<p>Holi arrived early for the seniors in Bandra last Sunday. Led by senior citizen welfare organisation Goodfellows, nearly 150 seniors were joined by just as many youngsters as they celebrated the festival in its traditional form at a five-star establishment in Bandra. &ldquo;Community celebrations have been on the decline, especially after Covid-19. Senior citizens will recall how they&rsquo;d play Holi with colours, flowers and water. We wanted to bring that experience back,&rdquo; shared co-founder Niki Thakur. With an eye on keeping the festivities eco-friendly, the group used natural colours from recycled flowers to brighten up the day. Thakur revealed, &ldquo;Some of the seniors were hesitant when they walked in, but soon joined in the celebrations. We used colours but they were all natural. A few seniors even picked up water guns; I must admit I was one of the victims.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p>
<h2>Lolla 2025&rsquo;s lucky stars</h2>
<p><img title="(From left) Shawn Mendes interacts with children a day before his performance. Pic Courtesy/Sound Space; Billie Joe Armstrong gifts his guitar to the fan" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/mar/dos-eleven-march-d_e.jpg" alt="(From left) Shawn Mendes interacts with children a day before his performance. Pic Courtesy/Sound Space; Billie Joe Armstrong gifts his guitar to the fan" width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>(From left) Shawn Mendes interacts with children a day before his performance. Pic Courtesy/Sound Space; Billie Joe Armstrong gifts his guitar to the fan</em></strong></p>
<p>While fans like this diarist are slowly recovering from last weekend&rsquo;s Lollapalooza mania in the city, a few might take a tad longer to get over it. At American punk rock band Green Day&rsquo;s India debut on Sunday, frontman Billie Joe Armstrong drew collective cheers from the crowds when he invited a fan to play the 2024 hit Dilemma onstage. &ldquo;You know what, you can keep the guitar,&rdquo; the 53-year-old rockstar said to the fan who immediately fell to his knees in disbelief. Elsewhere, in Cuffe Parade, it was pop star Shawn Mendes who spent his Friday giving back to children from music education initiative Sound Space. &ldquo;Shawn was extremely warm and answered the children&rsquo;s curious questions patiently. We bid him adieu with renditions of Bum Bum Bole from 3 Idiots (2009) and Lata Mangeshkar&rsquo;s evergreen song, Ae Mere Watan Ke Logo,&rdquo; revealed co-founder Kamakshi Khurana. &nbsp;</p>
<h2>A German groove</h2>
<p><img title="The all-female crew onstage in  Germany. Pic Courtesy/Instagram" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/mar/dos-eleven-march-e_e.jpg" alt="The all-female crew onstage in  Germany. Pic Courtesy/Instagram" width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>The all-female crew onstage in &nbsp;Germany. Pic Courtesy/Instagram</em></strong></p>
<p>As international acts flocked to Mumbai last week, city-based all-female hip-hop crew Wild Wild Women (WWW) were on their own journey, jetting off to Germany to perform at the Jenseits von Nelken und Pralinen festival in Hamburg and Berlin on March 7. Multilingual tracks like Game Flip and Mulinchi Toli set the crowd grooving at the festival that is centred on feminist art and culture. &ldquo;This gig will remain close to our hearts forever because it marked our Germany debut. It&rsquo;s a pivotal moment not only for us, but for budding talent in India who dare to dream big,&rdquo; said Ashwini Hiremath, rapper and founding member of WWW.</p>
<h2>Water in focus</h2>
<p><img title="A Raigad local accesses clean water" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/mar/dos-eleven-march-f_e.jpg" alt="A Raigad local accesses clean water" width="1280" height="720" /><strong><em>A Raigad local accesses clean water</em></strong></p>
<p>City-based Swades Foundation will assess the work of its three-year-long initiative Swajal, with a special competition, Swajal Spardha among villages in Raigad district in June. &ldquo;In many villages of Raigad, water scarcity is a severe challenge. We have facilitated peer learning and water management training to the villages. The communities have been able to restore water bodies and enhance conservation practices through community participation and sweat equity. The competition will assess and recognise the sustainability actions and water management of the 813 villages in the district, which helps them fight harsh summers in the region,&rdquo; Bejoy Chiramel, senior director, shared with this diarist.</p><p>
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