The thing about 1991

Anand Mahindra Piyush Goyal Chanda Kochchar Viral Acharya and others at the launch of Rakesh Mohans bookIf such a term could be used for an event this wellheeled there was a virtual stampede last evening at Asia Society India Centre and Brookings Indias launch of India Transformed 25 Years of Economic Reforms by distinguished economist and civil servant Rakesh Mohan Earlier this month the book had been released by former PM Dr Manmohan Singh followed by a keynote address by Fin Min Arun Jaitley with a panel discussion between Arvind Subramanian Pratap Bhanu Mehta and Uday Kotak moderated by TN NinanThe panel discussion PicsSneha KharabeMumbai had not done too badly either with Minister of State with Independent Charge for Power Coal New and Renewable Energy and Mines Piyush Goyal delivering the keynote address followed by a panel discussion with Chanda Kochhar Anand Mahindra Viral Acharya and Mohan himselfAs is known the former Deputy Governor of the Reserve Bank had played a significant part in Indian economic reforms in the 1990s and the book marketed as a ultimate compendium on the 1991 reforms with contributions from the likes of Montek Singh Ahluwalia Mukesh Ambani Sanjaya Baru and R Gopalakrishnan had been described as lowdecibel and deeply analyticalNo surprises then that last evening for a certain kind of Mumbaikar all roads had led to a Colaba fivestar where according to insiders 400 people had earlier RSVPd their attendance confirmations Spotted on the occasion were the likes of Rajiv Lall Nadir Godrej Hemendra Kothari Sunil Alagh Mihir Doshi Camellia Panjabi and a host of Mumbais money men and womenAccording to attendees the highlight of the evening was when Mohan a Senior Fellow at Yale quoted Manmohan Singh citing Victor Hugos famous No one can stop an idea whose time has come to describe the events of 1991The next big ticket gathering of this nature of course will be at the launch of the book that everyone has been waiting for Former Governor RBI Raghuram G Rajans I Do What I Do on his stint at the RBI and will be published exactly one year to the day he exited his highprofile position on September 5 Meanwhile the best takeaway line from last evenings event The RBI panelist arrived late like the reformsUpwardly mobile humourSelfstyled humorists often forget the cardinal rule of the game mdash that it ceases to be humour if it is selfserving Nowhere is this more apparent than on social media often a platform for selfpromotionOne is reminded of this socialite who while commenting on a friends travel pictures included her entire itinerary of future travel unasked As in Next week I go to Zurich then Budapest then Milan then Rome then Venice then fly to LAhellip A bit like the down and out but upwardly mobile film hack whod once posted that he was on the verge of flying by plane to Chennai for an interviewMuch in the same vein are the attempts at humour by the selfstyled humourist whose every gag quite pointedly makes sure to promote an idea of his exalted status and status symbol as someone whos arrived Tch TchThe travelling chefWe endorse anyone who has the confidence and ability to get out of the rat race and take a sabbatical pursuing education travel and new ideas And chef Vicky Ratnani appears to be doing exactly thisVicky Ratnani with Rocky and Mayur along with Ranveer Brar and Saransh GoilaThe winner of a best Indian Chef award in 2015 whose cooking show was delightfully called Vickypedia is currently involved with providing nutrilicious food healthy salads power pack meals etc for a popular app and also fronting a boutique tea cafe with light vegetarian food in Ahmedabad and Mumbai having launched the highend menu at an upscale multiplex chain And of course there is travel for his popular webbased food showsCurrently the cuisine of Peru is on and I was in Australia researching it and the next halt is the US and the Caribbean Islands he said This picture of a slew of chefs at a recent tourism event in Mumbai includes TV anchors Rocky and Mayur and chefs Ranveer Brar and Saransh GoilaHave a ladle will travelAs he lived so he diesThis is not necessarily relevant but news that brilliant and socially responsible entrepreneur and socialite David Tang who has been given a month to live by his doctors has invited his friends to the Dorchester hotel for a farewell party has moved us no endDavid TangThe 63yearold billionaire who once taught philosophy at Peking University and who set up a series of clubs restaurants under the label Shanghai Tang and had been fighting cancer and other health problems recently promised his guests jolly merriment and a lot of embraces I thought the best way to go would be to give a party where we can see each other at least one more time rather than at a memorial service where I shall be dead as a dodo he saidDavid Beckham Nelson Mandela Kevin Spacey and Sienna Miller PicsAFPWe cannot think of a more graceful way to bow out Incidentally Tangs highly evolved nature has been evident through his sterling acts of philanthropy and kindness throughout his life and has raised large amounts of money for a diverse number of charities He is also said to have employed a vast number of differentlyabled people in his businesses With friends like Nelson Mandela the Beatles Jude Law Sienna Miller Kevin Spacey and David Beckham it could be said that Tang died as he lived In grace and style