Sonali's Society

Reflective propertyLanding at a recording studio in Bandra on Sunday Rakul Preet Singh turned a simple car exit into a triplethreat visual Between the chrome of her shades and the sleek panels of her ride the actress didnrsquot just arrive mdash she multipliedBillionaire BhaktiUnless you crawled out from under a rock this morning yoursquove already heard that Anant Ambani turned 31 this past weekend But donrsquot let the lack of a private Katy Perry concert fool you into thinking this was a quiet family celebration Lowkey in the Ambani family still involves more stars than a Milky Way timelapse mdash with everyone from Ram Charan to Shah Rukh Khan and his dog flying into Jamnagar for the partyAnant Ambani and Radhika MerchantLess birthday bash more multiday cultural festival the dress code appeared to be devoutbutdiamondencrusted while the vibe was decidedly lsquodevotional chicrsquo 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 LahiriNaturally Ranveer Singh was there to ensure no one actually stayed in their seat mdash unleashing his nextlevel 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 lsquonationbuilding prophecyrsquo than a birthday wish classic BhaiNita AmbaniJanhvi 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 bookthemed 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 mdash and if this celebration was any indication the familyrsquos spiritual credit is now as bulletproof as their motorcadeHardly a piece of cakeMost people take the phrase lsquobreak a legrsquo figuratively but cake queen Bunty Mahajan apparently prefers a methodacting approach to life Last month we spotted the flour powerhouse collecting her latest award with her leg in a literal cast mdash a souvenir from a misstep in AmritsarBunty MahajanWhile most would use a fractured limb as an excuse to bingewatch noir Mahajan spent March conquering her commercial kitchen Between navigating stairs and logging marathon hours on one good foot shersquos been on a highstakes baking spree She whipped up an anniversary cake for Mukesh and Nita Ambani a whimsical puppetrythemed creation for Swati Piramalrsquos seventieth and the centrepiece for the Gaurav KapurKritika Kamra nuptials To top it off A staggering ninetier mountain for Anant Ambanirsquos recent birthdayClearly the Deliciae diva thrives on chaos though she is delighted by the prospect of her surgical boot coming off this week Good thing too mdash lugging around a seventh consecutive lsquoBest Patisserie Mumbairsquo award is heavy enough without the extra plasterInto the wildWhile Vantara hogged the limelight last week for reasons wersquove already elucidated another sanctuary of tranquillity took our breath away in a quiet woosh on April 9 Della and Shumeet Banerjirsquos unique home Haldu Tola is a wellkept 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 architectureRiyad GandhyLast week the sustainably designed property was celebrated in pictures at the launch of a stunning coffee table book hosted by Saffronartrsquos Minal and Dinesh Vazirani The book elegantly penned by Minhazz Majumdar serves as a soulful narrative to the visual feast provided by photographer Riyad GandhyRiyad the man of the hour seems to have inherited his familyrsquos legendary eye for framing the sublime As nephew of Chemouldrsquos Shireen Gandhy mdash and grandson of the iconic Kekoo and Khorshed mdash he carries a surname synonymous with the very soul of the Indian art world But while the Gandhy clan has spent decades curating avantgarde 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 isnrsquot just a skill mdash itrsquos a legacyTimestamp troubleWhile Arjun Tendulkar is being hailed as the lsquomonk of Mumbairsquo 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 lsquoprodigyrsquo headlines and lsquodisciplinersquo warnings a holiday with his fianceacutee Akriti Agarwal is being framed by critics not as a recharge but as a retreatThe irony The trip happened well before the IPL season began but in the era of the illtimed repost facts rarely stand in the way of a good dragging In the court of public opinion Arjunrsquos cricketfirst sacrifice mdash trading Saaniya Chandhokrsquos company for a Lucknow Super Giants training kit mdash is the ultimate currency Meanwhile Shawrsquos vacation photos surfacing just as the pressure mounts are being weaponised as evidence of a lsquodying hungerrsquoItrsquos 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 mdash and good stats will swiftly silence the noise