Abhishek's Cape Caper

The crowd just went wild when they saw him said our friend director Farah Khan newly returned from the Marrakech film festival where she along with her Happy New Year team had been honoured and where shersquod rubbed shoulders with Jeremy Irons who she says asked if he could be in her next movieIt was her HNY star Abhishek Bachchan and his effect on the audience that Khan had been referring to Wersquod remarked about Junior Brsquos pillarbox red cape which appeared just the right shade of fabulousness ldquoHaha You got to hear what happenedrdquo guffawed KhanJeremy Irons with Farah KhanldquoThe airline lost Abhishekrsquos suitcases So last minute he had to shop for formal wear for the award ceremonyrdquo said FarahBoman Irani Farah Khan and Abhishek Bachchan on the red carpet of Marrakech film festivalldquoAnd of course because hersquos anything but your average size the designer suit he bought didnrsquot fit too well To cover it up the organisers gave him the red cape Little did we realise that it was something of a national dressrdquo said Farah ldquoSo when he made his entrance the audience went wild and roared in approvalrdquoNiceThe Ustads and the QueenBy now everyone knows what a success the trio of sarod maestros Amjad Ali Khan and his two sons Ayaan and Amaan were in Oslo In fact it was these pages to which they had spoken from the venue of their sense of honour to be invited to play at the prestigious Nobel ceremonyFrom left Ayaan Ali Khan Amjad Ali Khan Queen Latifah and Amaan Ali KhanAnd to our mind this picture of the three extraordinarily handsome musicians with the vivacious and equally attractive rapper songwriter singer and actress Queen Latifah is certainly one for the archivesHow about some jugalbandi back home guysWellattended nuptialsThe standing joke in ace hospitality wiz Rishi Acharyarsquos life had been lsquoletrsquos see how many people you host at your own weddingrsquoAfter all the desi Flavio Briatore has built a formidable reputation of attracting the best and brightest to his clubs Tryst and ExoAdar and Natasha PoonawallaAnd living up to expectations last weekend the Acharya nuptials held at the Palladium saw a host of movers and shakers beating a path to greet Acharya and his bride SumanRishi AcharyaldquoThere was a traffic jam all the way to Haji Alirdquo says a guest ldquoFrom Akash Ambani to the Mallyas both father and son to the Adanis of Ahmedabad and the Poonawallas they were all thererdquoAnd to add to the festivities we hear that the after party in Goa went swimmingly well tooHappy New YearMove over Goa itrsquos Dubai now which is the New Year Party place of preferenceAnd whereas Vijay Mallyarsquos sprawling beachfront Baliinspired Kingfisher villa had until quite recently been the place where the countryrsquos top industrialists socialites and film folk party would gather Dubai appears to be the new goto place to bring in the New Year with the Ruias Sandesaras and Allanas heading thereAnd according to sources one of the bigticket parties will be hosted by the Vaswanis at their mansion at Emirates Hills replete with a private night club casino and 100car parking space for around 300 guests And lastly SRK is also rumoured to be bringing in the New Year at his home at the Palms in DubaiMaybe itrsquos the lsquoHappy New Yearrsquo effect at workArt AttackOften we have wondered about what the artist or his family actually feels in the midst of some of the more highfalutin fatuous flattery he receives after he becomes successful and his work starts selling for millionsTyeb Mehtarsquos painting lsquoFalling Figurersquo used as a backdrop during the performance by flautist Hariprasad Chaurasia at Christiersquos auctionRemember these are people who have often spent their whole lives wrestling with their inner demons alone in front of a canvas Their success has often been hard won and in many cases they are aware that it is for the wrong reasons or has come too lateMany times they have to watch as the swirling crowds of bright shiny people at their exhibitions are more concerned about the price of the painting or social oneupmanship than about itrsquos meaning or what it stands forWell this cryptic message sent by Delhibased photographer and artist Ram Rahman whose family has been profoundly steeped in the arts for decades kind of sums it upSent on Facebook to his friend Yusuf son of the late Tyeb Mehta who had spent his life far from the madding crowds dedicated to his art it refers to a photograph from a promotional event of the recent Christiersquos auction where Mehtarsquos iconic lsquoFalling Figurersquo was used as a backdrop for a performance by flautist Hariprasad ChaurasialsquoYusuf Mehta you know of thisrsquo wrote Rahman lsquoLooks like a digital print Looks like a Christies event From Shivaji Parkrsquos lsquoArtists Against Communalismrsquo to this SadrsquoA reminder to art lovers to never forget that when they judge the value of a painting the painting is judging their value tooPretty girls in a rowAnd looking like an ad for shampoo is this bevy of beauties who gathered at the Dodhy Worli residence on Wednesday night to bring in jewellery designer Queeniersquos birthdayFrom left Suchitra Pillai Queenie Dodhy Sharmilla Khanna and Kaykasshan PatelldquoIt was a chilled out fun evening with lots of Queeniersquos closest friends like Suchitra Pillai Kaykasshan Patel Madhoo Anand and Tanaz Doshi amongst othersrdquo says Sharmilla Khanna one of the birthday girlrsquos oldest friendsldquoThere was an awesome dinner spread with mutton roast salmon amazing salads yummy desserts like chocolate and peanut butter cake and Queeniersquos famous apple crumblerdquo she says ldquoIt was more like a girlrsquos night out than a formal partyrdquo she addsYou know how the song goes lsquoGirls just wanna have funrsquo