Sourav Ganguly, on a Mini World Cup promotion campaign, signs Indian cricket team jerseys at Cams Corner, LG Lifestyle Shoppe on Saturday, to appease little fans

At Madhuwan, a club with 2000 member-families, the biggest festival is perhaps not Holi or Diwali but the annual function of the club that sees hundreds of members from the age group of three to 63 practising for days on end to put up a colourful and entertaining programme on the big day. This year, too, the story was similar as the club members put up Kaleidoscope, an interesting skit with performances of various dance forms culled from across the world.

With Koi... Mil Gaya still high on popularity ratings, the skit had the alien Jadoo globetrotting accompanied by two characters Swami and Pintu. The trio went on to meet various characters from across the world including Michael Jackson and David Beckham, getting entertained by dancers in the process.

The list of dance forms included everything from hip-hop, tap dancing, Cancan dancers, Salsa steps right on to Bollywood numbers.

The show, choreographed by Soujit Das of Padatik, which also had an imaginary sequence of a Martian jiving, was a winner by all means. More so for the spirit and commitment of the dancers who visibly gave the event their best shot. From little Hawaiian dancers dressed in floral prints to a group of talented teenagers trying to do a Moulin Rouge, the show stole many hearts.

Petal power

Flower power ruled the Crystal Room at Taj Bengal on Tuesday evening as Yasuko Homma, celebrity Ikebana artist from Tokyo shared her expertise with a select audience. Yasuko claims to have arranged flowers on the Queen of England’s birthday and on Prime Minister Tony Blair’s visit to Japan, apart from bagging many other prestigious assignments. She was both “surprised and happy” to be in Calcutta for the first time.

Yasuko Homma with an Ikebana creation at Taj Bengal.

The hour-long lecture-demonstration on flower arrangements took a select gathering through a routine of getting a simple yet elegant look with the help of flowers and greens at home. Yasuko demonstrated her skills by creating a variety of arrangements, some complex and some simple. “You can use even fruits and vegetables to go into the arrangements along with flowers,” said Yasuko, who believes that no matter how expensive the flowers or the accessories, what’s important is a strong aesthetic sense combining simplicity and style.

Roses remain her favourite flowers for arrangements, as she feels that the flowers lend a rich look whenever they are used.

The Japanese expert, who has been practising the art from the age of six, doesn’t think much of the plush flower shops in the city though. “I find their work rather tacky and tasteless,” cribbed Yasuko. Reason why she decided to undo a whole bouquet of flowers that she bought from a flower shop on Rowdon Street on Tuesday for a friend admitted in a hospital, and make her own little thing with the flowers.

As far as the audience was concerned, they took home only the bouquets.

Day break

The most important meal of the day finally gets the deserved attention with Sonargaon at the Taj Bengal launching its unlimited breakfast offer starting August 15.

The menu is a mish-mash of Bengali, Rajasthani and Punjabi cuisine. You can start off with lassi (sweet, salty or sugar free), butter milk (plain, jeera or masala) or meetha doodh (sweet or plain).

Monsoon platter at Trincas

Moving on to main course, there’s Luchis (served with Chholar Dal), Sooji Poori (served with Aloo Chhechki) or Poha Pulao (served with tomato chutney) for the Bengali palate. You can choose to go the Rajasthani way with Belma Kachori (served with Aloo Tamatar), Club Kachori (served with Aloo Kali Mirch) or Moong Dal Chilla (served with garlic and tomato chutney). But if you’d rather power your day with some Punjabi fare, there’s a choice between Aloo Paratha (you can opt for an alternative stuffing of gobi, mooli or even cheese), Tawa Paratha (served with scrambled eggs), Amritsari Chhole (served with Bhatura or Kulcha ) or Poori (served with Aloo Bhaji ).

Those who prefer to end it on a sweet note can pick from steaming jalebis, mishti doi and sandesh. Cap off in true desi style or the railway way with endless cups of masala dhaba chai served in a kulhar.

You can hog till you drop for Rs 300.

Beguni binge

Roll over roadside aloor chop and beguni as Monsoon Munchies make their debut at a Park Street address from August 23.

Trincas, the cosy and quaint restaurant that still holds the old-world charm on this fun street is all set to introduce a monsoon menu with a host of crunchies to much on. Sip on a cup of masala chai along with a mix of Indian and Chinese snacks, or stick to a beer with the tit-bits if you will.

In keeping with the tradition of Calcutta, things like beguni and egg chop have not been ruled out of this innovative menu. Improvisations are evident in jumbo-sized begunis and French fries spiced with chillies. The Devilled Drums of Heaven are a must try for those with a thing for chicken. The tasty batter seasoned with herbs and chillies gives way to a soft chicken inner, which is relatively bland. Spicy Shrimp Balls are great for a snacky peck and promise to be the perfect thing to hit on after a drench in the rains. Hot Cocktail Samosas with a keema or vegetable filling brings in the flavour of the Indian evening snack. Grilled sandwiches lend a Continental twist to things.

Children perform a Hawaiian dance at Madhuwan annual fest

While anytime is snack time, if it’s something more substantial you have in mind, the Fillers on the menu are a mouthful. Essentially rice or noodles based, the dishes range from Pan Fried Noodles with Spicy Chinese Vegetables, Shrimp Manchurian with Hong Kong Flat Noodles, to Burnt Garlic and Chicken Fried Rice and Chicken Pulao.

Whole meal options are available both in the Indian as well as the Chinese section with Saslik Chelo and Egg Foo Yong being the flavour of the season.

Those in the mood to experiment will find Egg Foo Yong easy to start off with. A cover of egg stuffed with vegetables, chicken or shrimps and seasoned with a generous dose of chilli garlic sauce, the dish is not as hot to handle as you may think. Accompanied with French fries, the package is enough to see you through lunch without any other side dish. While Chicken Pulao is priced at Rs 115, Chelo comes for Rs 130 and Egg Foo Yong is priced at Rs 95. The snacks are priced between Rs 50 and Rs 95.