Globetrotter | Sara Jane Dias

Want the skinny on what?s hot and what?s not in Mumbai? We asked actress and ex Miss India  Sara Jane Dias to share her favorite neighborhood haunts.

Age: I?d rather not say

Occupation: Actor/entrepreneur

Neighbourhood: Bandra bugger

Best way to spend a weekend in Mumbai
Early morning cycle ride to town, breakfast at City Bakery, lunch at Britannia and as many art galleries in between.

The non-touristy places you?d show out-of-towners
The nunneries down my road. Both heritage properties and both breathtakingly beautiful.

Favourite Mumbaikar, living or dead
Vishal Dadlani. Speaks his mind freely. Knows the city inside out. Knows the best places to eat. And is an all-round bad ass. Everything every Mumbaikar should be.

Favourite Mumbai sound
The siren from the railway station that I can only hear in winter time and the only way I actually know that winter has set in.

Favourite Mumbai movie
Bombay?nuff said?

To get away from the city you?
Drive to someplace outside Mumbai or stay home with music, movies, friends, a home-cooked meal or all of the above. I?m blessed with a flat that?s on the quietest road in Bandra.

Favourite view of the city
The view from the suite in the Oberoi on the highest floor. I love the Mumbai skyline. I?ve seen it at 5am from that suite, right before a shoot and it just looked so strong.

Favourite neighbourhood watering hole?
For the name, the familiar faces, the overtly cheesy pizza and comments passed by the occasional Uncle party that shows up?I heart The Elbo Room.

What is Mumbai style?
Free-spirited and colourful.

Favourite Mumbai beauty queen
Sushmita Sen. I?ve had the pleasure of meeting her and the woman is like a force of nature. I was awestruck by her humility and her capacity to hold everyone?s attention when she spoke.

Best place to get a quick beauty fix
Jean Claude Biguine and b:blunt Bandra. Super-efficient staff and super-effective treatments. I always leave feeling pampered.

Where do you shop in Mumbai?
I only shop for food in Mumbai and that has to be either at Pali market or Nature?s Basket.

What do you think of Bal Thackeray?
I?d rather not answer this cause I really don?t know enough to make an informed retort.

What do you hate most about the city?
The noise and the filth. We?re a smart lot, if only we?d stop littering.

What do you love most about the city?
The ocean. Makes me feel warm and tingly every time I look at it. Also the fact that you can get anything you want at anytime of the day or night?especially fooooood!

Vada pav or bhel puri?
Bhel puri! Jeez! That?s not even a question!

In 10 words or less, who is Shivaji?
Shivaji was a great leader and like all great leaders, he was both criticised and loved.

Mumbai isn?t like any other city because?
It?s so green but so grey too, it?s Wasabi and Haji Ali Juice Center too, it?s traffic jams but No Car Day at Carter Road too?it?s Chimbai and Malabar Hill too?and it?s harsh but it?s beautiful too?

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