13 April,2026 09:31 AM IST | Mumbai | Sonali Velinker Kamat
Pic/Shadab Khan
Landing at a recording studio in Bandra on Sunday, Rakul Preet Singh turned a simple car exit into a triple-threat visual. Between the chrome of her shades and the sleek panels of her ride, the actress didn't just arrive - she multiplied!
Unless you crawled out from under a rock this morning, you've already heard that Anant Ambani turned 31 this past weekend. But don't let the lack of a private Katy Perry concert fool you into thinking this was a quiet family celebration. Low-key in the Ambani family still involves more stars than a Milky Way time-lapse - with everyone from Ram Charan to Shah Rukh Khan (and his dog) flying into Jamnagar for the party.
Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant
Less birthday bash more multi-day cultural festival, the dress code appeared to be devout-but-diamond-encrusted, while the vibe was decidedly âdevotional chic.' It was all about Bhajan Sandhyas and dharmic grounding, with Nita Ambani leading the charge, while Kailash Kher turned the spiritual dial to eleven with an electrifying Bam Lahiri.
Naturally, Ranveer Singh was there to ensure no one actually stayed in their seat - unleashing his next-level energy to dance alongside SRK and wife Gauri Khan. Salman Khan made his presence felt, both physically and on social media, with a tribute message that was more ânation-building prophecy' than a birthday wish (classic Bhai).
Nita Ambani
Janhvi Kapoor, Ananya Panday (who has many reasons to visit Vantara), and Agastya Nanda kept the youth flag flying, but the highlights went well beyond the glossy guest list. Between the animal feasts at Vantara and a book-themed cake heralding the launch of Vantara University, the weekend felt like a soft launch for legacy. It seems that when you already own the Earth, the only thing left to conquer is the heavens - and if this celebration was any indication, the family's spiritual credit is now as bulletproof as their motorcade.
Most people take the phrase âbreak a leg' figuratively, but cake queen Bunty Mahajan apparently prefers a method-acting approach to life. Last month, we spotted the flour powerhouse collecting her latest award with her leg in a literal cast - a souvenir from a misstep in Amritsar.
Bunty Mahajan
While most would use a fractured limb as an excuse to binge-watch noir, Mahajan spent March conquering her commercial kitchen. Between navigating stairs and logging marathon hours on one good foot, she's been on a high-stakes baking spree. She whipped up an anniversary cake for Mukesh and Nita Ambani, a whimsical puppetry-themed creation for Swati Piramal's seventieth, and the centrepiece for the Gaurav Kapur-Kritika Kamra nuptials. To top it off? A staggering nine-tier mountain for Anant Ambani's recent birthday.
Clearly, the Deliciae diva thrives on chaos, though she is delighted by the prospect of her surgical boot coming off this week. Good thing too - lugging around a seventh consecutive âBest Patisserie Mumbai' award is heavy enough without the extra plaster.
While Vantara hogged the limelight last week (for reasons we've already elucidated), another sanctuary of tranquillity took our breath away in a quiet woosh on April 9. Della and Shumeet Banerji's unique home, Haldu Tola, is a well-kept secret in luxe circles. Tucked away in the pristine buffer zone of the Pench Tiger Reserve, it is a rewilding retreat that balances Gond artistry with contemporary vernacular architecture.
Riyad Gandhy
Last week, the sustainably designed property was celebrated in pictures at the launch of a stunning coffee table book, hosted by Saffronart's Minal and Dinesh Vazirani. The book, elegantly penned by Minhazz Majumdar, serves as a soulful narrative to the visual feast provided by photographer Riyad Gandhy.
Riyad, the man of the hour, seems to have inherited his family's legendary eye for framing the sublime. As nephew of Chemould's Shireen Gandhy - and grandson of the iconic Kekoo and Khorshed - he carries a surname synonymous with the very soul of the Indian art world. But while the Gandhy clan has spent decades curating avant-garde masterpieces within gallery walls, Riyad has taken that sophisticated perspective into the wild. His lens treats the Pench wilderness like a curated canvas, proving that in this family, the ability to capture beauty isn't just a skill - it's a legacy.
While Arjun Tendulkar is being hailed as the âmonk of Mumbai' for skipping his honeymoon to grind on the domestic circuit, Prithvi Shaw is facing a storm of digital brickbats for ostensibly choosing a Bangkok swing ride over the Delhi Capitals practice nets recently. For a player whose career has been a rollercoaster of âprodigy' headlines and âdiscipline' warnings, a holiday with his fiancée, Akriti Agarwal, is being framed by critics not as a recharge, but as a retreat.
The irony? The trip happened well before the IPL season began, but in the era of the ill-timed repost, facts rarely stand in the way of a good dragging. In the court of public opinion, Arjun's cricket-first sacrifice - trading Saaniya Chandhok's company for a Lucknow Super Giants training kit - is the ultimate currency. Meanwhile, Shaw's vacation photos, surfacing just as the pressure mounts, are being weaponised as evidence of a âdying hunger.'
It's a classic case of narrative whiplash: one is praised for a relentless hustle, while the other is chided for a lack of focus based on a stale timestamp. In the end, thankfully, the verdict will stem from a scorecard, not a social feed - and good stats will swiftly silence the noise.
