<h2>Timeless beauty Priya Banerjee Patil on Smita Patil</h2>
It comes as no surprise that actor Priya Banerjee picks the legendary Smita Patil for our Timeless Beauty honour this week. Born in Canada in the 90s, Priya was exposed to a limited number of films from the 70s and 80s, but even then, she admits, &ldquo;For me, Smita Patil was a famous name. I grew up hearing about how she was immensely loved by the world for her craft, body of work, and her grace.&rdquo;
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/sep/Priya-Banerjee_e.jpg" alt="Priya Banerjee Patil" width="1280" height="720" /> Priya Banerjee Patil
Several decades later, both artistes share a last name. &ldquo;After I met her son, my husband Prateik, I truly got introduced to Smita Patil &mdash; the daughter, the friend, the mother, and now my mother-in-law. I take immense pride in getting to know this woman in ways the world will never understand. She was one of a kind in every possible way.&rdquo;
Beyond the aura of the cinema icon, it is the intimate, personal stories shared within the family that have left the deepest impression on her. As Priya reflects: &ldquo;Her beauty and talent were undeniable on the screen, but I&rsquo;ll forever be grateful to be able to get to know her stories and the way she loved everyone around her. Her presence was truly beautiful inside and out. When it came to her craft, she was unmatchable.&nbsp;
Of her films, &lsquo;Bhumika&rsquo; and &lsquo;Mirch Masala&rsquo; will always be my two favourites, not just because of the way she performed or how stunning she looked, but also because of the subjects she always chose as an actor &mdash; themes that many others may have been apprehensive of in those times. She was a feminist way before feminism was even a thing; a bold woman who made bold choices in her personal and professional life. Her bold personality, values, and what she stood for, will forever be timeless. For me, she is the ultimate &lsquo;timeless beauty&rsquo; and will always remain so, and I am privileged and grateful that I get to call her my mother.&rdquo;
<h2>Arabian Nights</h2>
To the surprise of absolutely no one paying attention, Gymkhana&rsquo;s shiny new Dubai outpost hasn&rsquo;t just arrived &mdash; it has conquered. The tables have been hopelessly booked since September 1, the room hums with ambition, and Mayfair&rsquo;s sharpest culinary export has seamlessly transplanted its swagger to the Gulf.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/sep/Rita-Genovese_e.jpg" alt="Rita Genovese, Elena Perrella, and Faarah Mehta" width="1280" height="720" /> Rita Genovese, Elena Perrella, and Faarah Mehta
The crown jewel, however, remains rather underreported on our shores. The newly unveiled Private Dining Room at Gymkhana DXB made its debut for the birthday of JKS Restaurants&rsquo; eldest scion, Jyotin Sethi, earlier this month. Parents Harash and Meena flew in from London to hold court, anchoring an evening that drew power players from every corner of the circuit.
Delhi&rsquo;s cigar czar Chetan Seth and his artist daughter, Ayesha, rubbed shoulders with Mumbai&rsquo;s media maven Faarah Mehta &mdash; now ensconced in Dubai with husband Sagar Shewakramani. The real whisper among the silverware, though, belonged to Italian fashion royalty: Rita Genovese and mother Elena Perrella, matriarch of Roman maison Emilio Schuberth. The word is that Schuberth has expansion plans with India in mind. Naturally, you heard it here first.
<h2>Devotion to Friendship</h2>
Bollywood&rsquo;s biggest and brightest had one less Ganpati pooja to attend this year, and it seems the unlikely culprit was designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee. Friendship sometimes comes wrapped in six exquisite yards, and across years of drape and design, Sabyasachi and Rani Mukerji have forged a bond far beyond fashion.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/sep/Rani_e.jpg" alt="Sabyasachi and Rani Mukerji" width="1280" height="720" /> Sabyasachi and Rani Mukerji
The couturier considers Rani &ldquo;family&rdquo; and notes that she is the only actor he has ever designed custom clothing for. &ldquo;She attended my first show in New York,&rdquo; he reveals, recalling how he reached out when his latest outing on the American runway took shape: &ldquo;I said to her that I&rsquo;m not going to do the show if you don&rsquo;t come, and she came.&rdquo;
On September 15, Sabyasachi took to the New York Fashion Week stage with a spectacular showcase hailed by critics as &ldquo;opulent,&rdquo; &ldquo;groundbreaking,&rdquo; and a &ldquo;masterclass in cross-cultural couture.&rdquo; The runway delivered an unexpected juxtaposition of textures, pairing Japanese denim and graphic gingham against cascades of high-octane, exquisite jewels that left fashion insiders mesmerised.
In the end, Rani&rsquo;s absence from Mumbai&rsquo;s festive calendar was entirely an act of devotion to friendship &mdash; she traded hosting her customary, star-studded Ganpati pooja to fly halfway across the globe, sitting front row to champion Sabya&rsquo;s triumphant New York &ldquo;homecoming.&rdquo;
<h2>An Arty House Party</h2>
Only last week, yours truly noted that Madhuri Dixit &mdash; immortalised on MF Husain&rsquo;s canvases &mdash; remains Indian contemporary art&rsquo;s most recognisable muse. On September 12, life mirrored art as Madhuri and Dr Shriram Nene threw open the doors of their Worli home alongside artist Raghava KK, proving that the finest salons are still powered by old wine, brilliant minds, and zero pretension.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/sep/Madhuri-Dixit_e.jpg" alt="Shabana Azmi, Dr Shriram Nene, Jackie Shroff, Javed Akhtar, and Madhuri Dixit" width="1280" height="720" /> Shabana Azmi, Dr Shriram Nene, Jackie Shroff, Javed Akhtar, and Madhuri Dixit
This wasn&rsquo;t just high-society posturing; it was an intimate collision of cross-disciplinary heavyweights. Where else would you find Shabana Azmi, Javed Akhtar, and Boney Kapoor swapping notes with Ajay and Swati Piramal, Harsh Goenka, Amitabh Kant, and Manish Malhotra? Add Lekha Washington, Zakir Khan, Shruti Haasan, and Rakesh Roshan to the mix, and the room practically hummed with creative firepower.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2026/sep/Raghava-KK_e.jpg" alt="Rocking with Raghava KK and the Nenes" width="1280" height="720" /> Rocking with Raghava KK and the Nenes
As patrons and friends of Raghava, the Nenes weren&rsquo;t just celebrating his latest body of work. With Madhuri commanding screens on Marathi Kaun Banega Crorepati and Dr Nene readying to release his debut book, the night was a victory lap for creative reinvention. Over warm conversation and soulful singing, the takeaway was clear: work may build the legacy, but it&rsquo;s the warmth of the table that keeps you immortal.

I take immense pride in getting to know this woman in ways the world will never understand

Sonali's Society: Priya Banerjee Patil on Smita Patil's timeless beauty

Timeless beauty Priya Banerjee Patil on Smita Patil

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