Lisa Ray Instagram – Jazz is threaded through my memories, from sultry Bombay evenings of wonder and discovery on the rooftop of the Ripon Club for jams organised by @adsingholive to electric Jazz Yatra nights with friends like @farrokhchothia. I wrote in Close to the Bone about how my life in the 90s resembled a jazz score – sometimes harmonious, often times spinning out into discordant notes, but always surprising and revelatory. When @arrahman approached me to play the character of Sheela, the ‘jazz diva of Shillong’, I was thrilled to embody her as a sort of homage to the soundtrack of my life. I hope you all will be able to experience 99 Songs when it’s released on a steaming platform, and once India has weathered through this horrendous crisis. For now, here’s some bts of Sheela. Stay safe. Stay home. Double mask. Play some jazz. As Sheela says: ‘jazz is for the living’ . Science says it’s good for you too: . ‘When you listen to jazz, the music stimulates a calming effect on your body, signalling your central nervous system to lower your respiratory rate and heart rate. According to research, jazz also improves your verbal ability, focus, memory and mood, as was noted in patients that had suffered from a stroke.’ #internationaljazzday