All wired up

Walltowall glamour marked the seventh anniversary of GQ India this Saturday which saw the likes of Akshay Kumar Deepika Padukone Leander Paes Rahul Bose Rajkumar Hirani Rohit Sharma Sabyasachi Mukherjee and Shahid Kapoor receive awards in the various Men of The Year categoriesThe starstudded awards presentation stayed true to the futuristic Wired theme highlighting the online digitally connected world we live in was it falling in line with youknowwhos big night out in Silicon Valley which was underway across the globe at that very momentShahid Kapoor at GQ Indias 7th anniversary celebrations during the Men of the Year Awards 2015In fact Global Indian of the Year Vivek Ranadiveacute mentioned that hed passed up a seat at Modis dinner with Silicon heavyweights to be present at the ceremony because he never missed an opportunity to visit the city of his growing yearsAkshay KumarAs for the best acceptance speech winners of the Agent of Social Change Madhav Chavan the man behind Pratham dedicated to empowerment through education for the disfranchised and Philanthropist of The Year Rahul Bose hit the right notes bringing just the right amount of gravitas to what would other wise be an evening of unmitigated eye candyTea for TwoMembers of a SoBo club were surprised to see Peter Mukerjea and his son Rahul drop in for a cup of tea on the lawns of their favourite urban retreatRahul Mukerjea and Peter MukerjeaThe father and son duo seemed quite at ease and none would have guessed that they had been the subjects of such intense scrutiny not even a month agoHowever when they noticed that they had become the cynosure of discreet but curious attention the duo chose to relocate themselves to the relatively quieter bar areaSo after chai pe charchas with the Khar police good to know that Peter is now bonding with his son As they say life goes onShowman KapoorsYesterday marked the birthday of not one but two members of the flamboyant Kapoor clan mdash that of Bollywoods Rockstar Ranbir Kapoor and his aunt Raj Kapoors youngest daughter Rima JainRanbir Kapoor with the birthday cakes and Ranbir Rima Jain with Neetu KapoorAnd while Ranbir brought in his big day on the sets of Karan Johars latest directional outing Ae Dil Hai Mushkil in London Rima chose a quieter celebration amongst family and friends After all her birthday followed on the heels of her celebrated Ganpati Visarjan she keeps the Ganpati for the full period with daily pujasOn a visit to partake in the puja this year we had spotted a slew of famous industry faces like Krishna Kapoor Neelam Kapoor Gauri Khan and Mana Shetty And though we could not make it for the actual immersion the likes of NCPs Supriya with husband businessman Sadanand Sule lawyer Mahesh Jethmalani with fashionista wife Haseena along with friends of Rimas elder son actor Armaan Jain who is looking very dashing indeed after some serious hours at the gymWinding its way through the thronging crowds and traffic this group ended up as usual at Chowpatty replete with clashing cymbals and hearty singing Not for nothing are the Kapoors known as the original showbiz clanA paean to ParsisLast Friday we made our way to BKCs newest foodie gem AD and Sabina Singhs tribute to Parsis mdash the SodaBottleOpenerWalaRules of the restaurant Sodabottleopenerwala and AD SinghThough we had missed the big hundredpeople launch party the night before the smaller preview for ADs friends and family more than made up for it Located in a smallish space overlooking the swish buildings that now make up BandraKurla the restaurant is a contemporary take on the celebrated Irani cafeThe design is quirky an AV features Cyrus Broacha and other famous Parsis neatly chalked are the eaterys rules of the restaurant no asking recipe no talking to cashier no combing hair and our favourite no flirting and there is also a functioning jukebox the only one of three in Mumbai filled with hits by Freddy Mercury a famously reluctant Parsi and his ilk but for all its brilliant ambience the creation of Sabina Singhs Sodas triumph is its food Goan Sausage pav eggs Kejriwal and Berry Pulav the food is absolutely scrumptious and will ensure customers keep coming back long after the novelty of the delightful interior wears offWe waited until we got the food down to perfection says AD when we enquired why he had taken so long to bring Soda to Mumbai after its success in Delhi and Bangalore Its here where customers know what the real thing should taste like having eaten at Brittania and Jimmy Boys all their life said the serial restaurateur who has had almost halfadozen launches in the past month alone Sodas real test is to be successful in Mumbai he said And with cozy atmo the delish food and the prices low mdash this ones got legs dikraIn a league of his ownHes always known as a perfectionist and the title of worlds best hotelier sits easily on Bikki Oberois sturdy shoulders so when word comes in that the ultimate hospitality czar has decreed that his prestigious Oberoi hotel in Delhi will be closed for business for almost eighteen long months next year for its long overdue renovation industry insiders were aghast at the thought of the revenue losses this would incurNot Bikki I would never allow my guests to reside in what will be more or less a building site during the renovations he is alleged to have said Thats unthinkable at the Oberoi and highly disrespectful to your patrons Wish more hoteliers thought with as much consideration The bane of a steady rattattat or a drillers whirr when you check in to a hotel of your choice is a nightmare most travellers are familiar with these days