Ram's elixir of youth

gtgt And as we had predicted earlier Ram Jethmalanirsquos 90th birthday party at the Taj Chambers on Saturday night was a gathering of the best and brightest the bold and the beautiful the movers and shakers and every other clicheacute in the book Hosted by his loving children sons Mahesh with his wife Haseena and Janak and his daughter Shobha with husband Suresh Gehani it drew the likes of ministers Sushil Kumar Shinde Praful Patel industrialists Adi Godrej Shashikant Ruia and Nusli Wadia film stars Dabboo Rishi Neetu Babita and Karisma Kapoor along with a delicious slice of Mumbai society And what about the birthday boy himself He was clearly pleased as punch with all the attention and love coming his way Incidentally when we asked Jethmalani the secret of his youth and vitality he said ldquoI follow King Solomonrsquos words on combating age You should always surround yourself with younger companyrdquo said the nonagenarian who still plays badminton on most mornings We reminded him that the other two individuals who embodied the same vitality Khushwant Singh and MF Husain also professed to prefer young company Female company we added to make our point Jethmalani winked charmingly ldquoSunday it will be Delhirsquos turnrdquo we overheard him telling longtime friend Pranay Gupte the author about a similar bash planned in the capital Letrsquos see who shows uprdquo In view of Ramrsquos long record in the capital itrsquos a safe bet that putting party politics aside all roads must have led to Number Two Akbar Road last evening Nusli Wadia spotting gtgt Nusli Wadia spotting is a particular art form in Mumbai The reclusive industrialist keeps his social appearances to the minimum The last time we spotted him was at Ishaat Hussainrsquos daughterrsquos wedding at Colaba when he made a quiet entrance with his son Jeh This time was no different Nusli Wadia PicsPranay Gupte The industrialist who came in with wife Maureen two sons Jeh and Ness and attractive daughterinlaw largely maintained a low profile But given the resurgent interest in his grandfather Mohammed Ali Jinnah ndash Pakistanrsquos founding father ndash a friend was tempted to ask if he was considering a family history The Wadias have been a witness to some of Indiarsquos most epochal and contentious moments not excluding the great battle with Dhirubhai Ambani which almost divided the nation What a story that will be if Nusli chooses to tell it Adirsquos story gtgt Adi and Parmeshwar Godrej were headed to London but decided to stop by at the Jethmalani soiree Meeting Parmesh after long we found ourselves chatting about our children ldquoOf all the jobs that we undertake bringing up good kids is the most importantrdquo said the glam diva Meanwhile therersquos considerable buzz in publishing circles about a biography of Adi that Penguin had commissioned under the imprint of Shobhaa De Books Adi and Parmeshwar Godrej The book had been scheduled for publication in December 2012 and Nandini Bhaskaran the Mumbaibased journalist penned a draft Penguin sources say that the book chronicles Adirsquos growingup years and his university days at Boston and MIT However the sources also say that some members of the Godrej family felt that the initial draft did not fully capture Adirsquos personality and skills Itrsquos unclear when the biography will be released Adi who joined a traditional but conservative family business at 21 and then made it one of the fastest growing and most nimble companies in the country has another great story to tell So many great books When will we get to read lsquoem A hug for Dabboo gtgt Nothing escapes our eye of course Not the good the bad or the ugly And this anecdote pertains to the former thank God Waiting for our vehicle on the Taj steps we were witness to a touching family scene a lean and dapper Randhir lsquoDabboorsquo Kapoor escorting Babita and daughter Karisma to their car before getting into his own but not before receiving a great big hug from his daughter We found the scene as dignified as it was poignant Salaam Mumbaiu00a0The art of making small talk You know that thing about long distances phone calls Trunk calls we used to call them in the bad old days How everything one said on them sounded either too profound or too trivial Irsquom like that with small talk at big parties Small talk at big parties according to me is what separates the wheat from the chaff it is the mark of the savant at its feet lie the vestiges of human enterprise I am hopeless at small talk What do people say to each other every evening all evening I often wonder Itrsquos the same wonder which I experience when I see those photo ops at international summits Reagan with Mrs Thatcher Clinton with Tony Blair Angela Merkel and Dr Manmohan Singh What are they whispering to each other while their photographs are being taken Are they talking about their vision for the world Their pet poodlesrsquo latest antics Their painful haemorrhoids And why are they smiling so much Isnrsquot it weird Me I tend to hem and haw and say the most trivial or most profound things at parties Usually together Luckily for me no onersquos actually listening to a word any one else is saying at these occasions You can talk about the weather the state of the nation the price of onions your neighbourrsquos lousy hygiene level or the mating habits of fleas at Mumbai parties No one really cares Just as long as you do it with a big smile and remember to end your exchange with ldquoYoursquore looking lovely yoursquove lost so much weight We must meet soonrdquo But donrsquot take my word for it I need to go into small talk rehab u00a0