Plane Talk

Its a truth universally acknowledged that one cannot be rich enough Ever Wed once narrated the story of a clique of high rolling Indian businessmen who were overheard showing off about their preferred airlines for firstclass travel One praised the onboard service of his regular carrier the other the vintage champagne served on board his and the third the comfy pajama set that he looked forward to each time he boardedHowever the balloon of their intercontinental swagger was quickly deflated when a fourth gentleman whod been listening patiently waited for all to finish and whispered softly Ahh I havent flown commercial for so long We were reminded of this when our friend the highflying peripatetic Suhel Seth posted a pic of himself looking very dapper in the cabin of a very sleek private jetSuhel SethHis social media friends were naturally agog Seth known to live the high life looked infinitely to the manor born and very comfortable in his surroundings A birthday gift said one Your new jet said a secondShow off teased a third But matters were put to rest when Seth fussed up sportingly I WISH IT WAS MY AIRCRAFT It isnt and dont make me feel miserable he wrote further deglamourising the whole affair with Bumped into a friend at Geneva airport who invited me within the terminal to see the mock up of the new Falcon 5At which another friend piped up Is the jacket yoursFlamboyant in LondonThis week witnesses the opening of Photo London May 2124 the citys response to Frances Paris Photo which is Europes largest photography fair And whereas Photo London is more modest in scope and size housed at Somerset House and featuring the works of more than 70 galleries from around the world it is expected to evolve as the interest in photography is growing rapidlyRam Shergill and Boris JohnsonBe that as it may this picture of celebrated Indiaborn Londonbased fashion photographer the very flamboyant Ram Shergill his catchphrase is said to be glamodrama in his favourite Abu and Sandeep brocade jacket with the equally flamboyant London Mayor Boris Johnson with his own significant India connection delighted usMe and Boris at the opening of Photo London tonight You must go its Incredible With Tasveer Gallery said the glamazon whose catchphrase was so much fun NiceBeauty Comes Full CircleFew corporate narratives come full circle so neatly Following the announcement that Anil Chopra the old Lakmeacute warhorse best known for giving the stately Tata cosmetic company a whole new spin with its association with the Lakme Fashion Week would be fronting StudioWest the cosmetics fragrances and skin care brand for TrentndashWestside we were curious to know how his second innings with the Tatas would pan outAnil Chopra Simone Tata and Noel TataAfter all Chopra had been with the Tataowned Lakmeacute almost from the start and was an important part of its buyout by Hindustan Lever in the midnineties What was he most looking forward to working on with his former chairman the very posh Simone Tata we asked ChopraI was invited about 18 months ago to do the project by Noel Tata who is now Chairman of TrentWestside about said the man who is known as Mr Beauty Business in India Mrs S Tata is now Chairman Emeritus However on account of age she is not involved in the business he saidAccording to Chopra StudioWest is firstly a beauty space designed to house the big brands for cosmetics like Lakmeacute LOreal Maybelline Chambor Revlon amp ColorBar But thats not all it is also the name of a new brand of cosmetics by Westside which will be sold along with other brands something like Sephora which has Sephora amp other brands he said his gaze determinedly set to the future For me its a homecoming But also bringing the cosmetics industry under one roof including LakmeDown and out in Breach CandyWe often think that irony is a wasted quality in Mumbai when so much around us is rife with incongruity and bathos Yet recently when we were informed that after the US Counsel at Breach Candy shifted headquarters to the BandraKurla complex leaving behind an old canine faithful our interest was arousedHe is so sweet almost blind and still waits outside the old consulate door months after they left said a leading Sobo diva known for her love for animals All of us animal lovers take turns feeding him and looking after him when hes unwell she said Would you like to meet him It was late at night after a charming dinner and we were passing that way How could we refuseAnd thats how we found ourselves staring into the foggy eyes of a nearblind street dog whose patches of missing fur could be easily discerned in the street light outside the former precincts of a firstworld super power Whats his name we asked as the dog recognised our friend and attempted to wag its tail feebly at her approachBush I forgot to tell you His name is Bush she said Thats what everyones been calling from the days when the US consulate was herehellip she said as we got into the car while a sleepy watchman patted Bush to sleep As we said irony is a wasted quality in MumbaiGoa Goan GoneOur first encounter was serendipitous Soaked in a sudden downpour and without transport in Goas Calangute we dived in what looked like a tiny hut with a few tables and chairs We had no idea that it was an eveningonly eatery and one of Goas most popular with local residents paean to mind blowingly good Goan home cookingLloyd BraganzaThe pleasant young man behind the stove introduced himself as Lloyd Braganza of Saipem and many of the dishes were from his mothers kitchen By any standards the evening turned out to be a huge success as we ate vindaloo and sorpotel as cars whizzed by not even a few feet awayA few months later when we saw that Braganza had blossomed his momandson enterprise into a fulsome utterly charming cafe in his ancestral family mansion as the House of Lloyds we almost took parental credit Which is why we were thrilled to hear that next weekend Braganza himself will be in Mumbai to serve up his legendary Goan fare at the speakeasy bar Please Dont Tell PDT at Lower Parel and were dreaming clams and chops dreamsThe event has been put together by a company called Trekurious and the event will kick off their series of planned Goan popups in the city some of the other names doing the rounds are Bomra which serves Burmese cuisine in Candolim and LAtelier the fusion IndoFrench joint in Ashwem Surfs up