The city - sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce
North east in the centre
The ongoing fashion week in the city is known for bringing glam at every show where the Bollywood set almost always hijacks the attention. But a show on day two featuring six designers from six states of the Northeast saw a surprise showstopper. Former captain of the Indian football team Bhaichung Bhutia walked the ramp for designer Karma Sonam from his home state Sikkim. The footballer looked dapper in a contemporary outfit made using the Lepcha weaves from Sikkim. Leading all the designers and models to take the final bow were the upbeat Tetseo Sisters (above) from Nagaland, who looked as good as any of the models on the ramp. All in all, it was a well deserved showcase of talent from the north east.
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Pic/Pradeep Dhivar
Don't leave the frame
Suniel Shetty coaxes fashion designer Vikram Phadnis for a photograph at a charity exhibition in Worli yesterday.
When Kaushiki got Abbaji's blessings
As Homage to Abbaji, the dawn-to-dusk concert commemorating tabla maestro Ustad Allarakha, enters its 18th year tomorrow, the early-morning segment will also see noted artistes pay tribute to legends - Kishori Amonkar, Girija Devi, Rais Khan and Dhruba Ghosh - who passed away in 2017.
Kaushiki Chakraborty
Ahead of her tribute to Girija Devi, vocalist Kaushiki Chakraborty remembered her early days. "Growing up in Sangeet Research Academy [in Kolkata] gave me, a little girl, unbelievable access to the lives of these stalwarts. I was four, and on one of the Holi celebration concerts when everyone was enjoying snacks before the musical performances, I pestered Maa to let me sing as the auditorium was empty, without the knowledge that the sound system was on. After I had started, the legends came inside the auditorium to see who it was. Appaji (as we all called him with great respect and love) too came in and blessed me.
Ustad Allarakha
He gave my mother a Rs 100 note saying, "Iski nazar utaar dena," said Chakraborty. Coincidently, years later, when Girija Devi met the vocalist and her mother after Chakraborty's performance, she said the same thing. "She was graceful, charming and extremely warm," recalls Chakraborty. "I would hear her do riyaz every day, when she was in her 80s and after a bypass surgery. Her commitment to music was incredible."
Tapas goes Asian
Recently, while at a preview of a new food property, restaurateur Ryan Tham of the Tham brothers duo spilled the beans to this diarist about their forthcoming project that will replace a pizza kitchen chain at Phoenix Mills in Lower Parel.
Ryan and Keenan Tham
The untitled project will offer Asian tapas or small plates for shoppers to have drinks and quick bites. And considering it's a Tham property, we are sure that the style quotient will be high, regardless of the plate size.
Feather in Penguin's cap
Here's some heartening news from Penguin Random House India. One of the country's leading publishing houses, the firm has now announced that it will primarily use paper that is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, an organisation that champions the cause of sustainable forestry.
This means that soon, all single-colour books launched by the publisher will consist of paper that's sourced in an environmentally friendly and socially responsible manner. Penguin is the only firm in India to have done this so far, which is a crying shame in our environmentally sensitive times. Now, if only others take a leaf out of its book can we turn a new chapter in the way we consume literature.
Chairman's choice
Khushroo Dhunjibhoy, chairman of the Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) is man of the moment as the Indian Derby to be run this Sunday comes at us with heart-stopping horsepower. Dhunjibhoy picks two horses he would back for the most prestigious prize on the Indian turf: Manifold and Prevalent Force, in no particular order.
Chairman Khushroo Dhunjibhoy (left) and Ram Shroff, head marketing RWITC, have a lot on their plates two days before Derby
He says, "Manifold gave indication of class, winning the Oaks here in Mumbai, while Prevalent Force has been unbeaten in six starts." The chairman though says his horse Zenon, also in the Derby fray, "would be a good bet as an outsider. I was a little upset that his preparation has not gone as expected considering he had lung congestion, but I would
back him." Owner's pride, maybe?
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