One happy family

This photograph of Mukesh Ambani with his entire family wife Nita kids Akash Isha and Anant with brotherinlaw Raj Salgaocar nephew Vikram and leading Bolly star Ranbir Kapoor shot in Marseilles during the Euro last week is significant on so many levels To begin with it underlines the fact that after the hiccup in AmbaniSalgaocar relations following a messy incident during the ISL final last year which resulted in Salgaocarrsquos FC Goa football team being reprimanded by the ISL governing bodies headed by IMGReliance things are back to normal and the issue seems to have been put to restMukesh and Nita Ambani with kids Akash Isha and Anant brotherinlaw Raj Salgaocar nephew Vikram and Ranbir Kapoor It also is testimony to the growing closeness between Ranbir and Akash both football crazy young men in their prime who just happen to be one of Indiarsquos biggest stars and its most powerful business head in waitingldquoThe significance of the easy camaraderie between the two who flew in together and are known to hang out in their spare time cannot be underestimatedrdquo says a source adding ldquoItrsquos akin to if Dilip Kumar had been JRD Tatarsquos closest bud back in the day or SRK hung out with Kumar Birla in his spare timerdquo ldquoThis synergy between Bollywood and business is unprecedentedrdquo he saysThe stork visits the DeorasTheir wedding in Mumbai saw a swathe of some of the countryrsquos best and brightest gather at the Tote on the TurfNitasha Thapar Mukul Deora Murli Deora and Hema DeoraAfter all the marriage of Mukul Deora poet media entrepreneur and Murli and Hema Deorarsquos elder son and former IT Minister Milind Deorarsquos brother to Nitasha Thapar daughter of the Thaparsrsquo one of the countryrsquos leading business clans was a significant engagement between two of Delhi and Mumbairsquos prominent clansAnd last week with the birth of Mukul and Nitasharsquos daughter there was cheer and jubilation not only for the Deoras and Thapars but also for their legion of friends across both cities As the proud grandmother interior designer and champion bridge player Hema Deora says ldquoMurli a man of great warmth and childlike exuberance would have been delighted too I miss him so muchrdquoAn allnew night dawnsIt hasnrsquot even been a full year since the Starwood Group took over the management of Atul and Gayatri Ruiarsquos Palladium hotel in Lower Parel and rebranded it as Indiarsquos first St Regis hotel but changes have been significant and well appreciated No surprises then that many wondered what would happen to the hotelrsquos very popular nightclub and bars namely Exo and Libai that were a super hit with the young and restless and huge money spinnersAnurag Bhatnagar Atul and Gayatri RuiaThe downside was that every weekend the hotelrsquos entrance would be lined up with highspirited young revelers desperately trying to get in and creating chaos for regular hotel guests Now word comes in that the St Regis has taken a bold call to rebrand its existing nightlife offeringsldquoThe St Regis Mumbairsquos newest venues will acknowledge Jazz as an extension of the St Regis brand experience Come September Li Bai will relaunch as Luna Nudo a cutting edge venue which will maintain the popular musical elements of the former bar in addition to hosting dedicated Jazz evenings and performancesrdquo says St Regis General Manager Anurag Bhatnagar when we spoke to him over the weekendldquoSeptember will also see a fine dining restaurant Luna Gusto set to be the newest addition to our Penthouse floors serving a combination of eclectic European and French Foodrdquo he explains Bhatnagar did let slip that EXO too would be recast shortly as a grown up club and lounge with retro music Perhaps the days of teenyboppers thronging around the hotelsrsquo entrance are behind us NiceWill he wonrsquot heAll hell had broken lose when Subramaniam Swamy has tweeted about the alleged imminent marriage of Rahul Gandhi Congress VP who after Salman Khan is the countryrsquos oldest and most famous bachelorRahul Gandhi PicAFP and Subramaniam Swamy PicPTISaid to be tying the knot with a Brahmin girl from UP according to Swamy whatrsquos interesting is that despite the Congressrsquo swift debunking of the rumour as one more instance of Swamyrsquos malignant obsession with the Gandhis sources in the know indicated over the weekend that there is or was indeed some truth to the story that the 46yearold is or was in fact seeing someone of those descriptionsWhatrsquos even more interesting is that Congress insiders are blaming the leaking of the story to a wellknown media person someone in fact seen as closer to the UPA than the BJP who would in fact be in the know if such a thing was true So will Rahul actually take the plunge with such a person And why are Congress insiders and a wellrespected female journo ndash and of course Swamy agreeing for once on something We wondaCelebrating BittuYou donrsquot need Bollywood tigresses to tell you what a legend environmentalist and nature activist Bittu Sahgal is After all the entire impassioned Punjabi munda has spent the last few decades tirelessly working towards sensitising as many generations and stakeholders as he can on the wonders of the natural world and the importance of being environmentally responsibleBittu Sahgal Dia Mirza and Shabana AzmiNature warriors he calls them But yesterday when news of Sahgal being named as True Legend by Nature In Focus Asiarsquos premier wildlife photography festival came in both Dia Mirza and Shabana Azmi tweeted their congratulations and delight As did many other felines not necessarily of the twolegged kindWell done Bittu and may your tribe increaseTo see the QueenThis picture of Lara Dutta and Mahesh Bhupathi with a friend shot at the trendy Arts Club in London is just one more instance of Indiarsquos ongoing love affair with the British capital and the communityrsquos current highprofile in lsquoOl BlightyrsquoManesh Bhupathi and Lara Dutta with a friend at the Arts ClubEveryone knows that the worst kept secret amongst Indians in London is the list of restaurants and clubs which they patronise during their frequent visits ldquoItrsquos the same old same oldrdquo says a lady of considerable food knowledgeldquoZuma Le Petite Maison Koya the Arts Club all the ones with some Indian connect where even the most selfstyled of international sophisticates flock believing theyrsquore the best because of their comfort factorrdquo she sneered ldquoBut ask any British foodie for their list of the best London eateries and yoursquoll hear some very different namesrdquo she says ldquoItrsquos like two parallel universes that of rich India and rich London mdash which never meetrdquo