Style and panache

gtgt And even while the British tabloid press is in a tizzy about her speculated reunion with the newly constructed and weirdly bionic cricketer Shane Warne after they were photographed together at her home last Saturday in London actress Elizabeth Hurley is back in the land of her former lsquomaikarsquo Mumbai this week and was spotted lunching with exhusband Arun Nayarrsquos brother and his wife at their favourite club on Tuesday and then at Wasabi for dinner that nightParmeshwar GodrejAnd as reported the ever so stylish Hurley the face of Esteacutee Lauder and businesswoman with her own eponymous swimwear label had for her dining companion Mumbairsquos ever so stylish Parmeshwar GodrejElizabeth HurleyNeedless to say lots of ever so stylish sushi was orderedNandinii Sen and Tasha BerryVrooming to Mastramgtgt Things have been looking up for her ever since the estate of her father the late great Gautam Berryrsquos had been satisfactorily settled And with her first Hindi feature film Mastramrsquos trailer released last week on Valentinersquos Day going viral and trending on Twitter ldquoWersquoll reach a million views on YouTube by eveningrdquo it was time for Tasha Berry to kick up her heels a littleAnd the opportunity arose on Tuesday on her mother former model Nandinii Senrsquos birthday when the debuting actress gifted her a white Duster carldquoGod has been very kindrdquo said the proud mother And last heard mother and lsquovroom vroomrsquo were doing very nicely awaiting the moviersquos releaseThis city never sleepsgtgt We met the sultry songstress Shweta Johnny Joker Shetty who now lives in Hamburg Germany after her marriage In town to pursue her interest in yoga Shweta is staying at her SoBo apartment when she isnrsquot meeting old friends like Nawaz Mody Sanjay Patel and Aarti Surendranath Recently she participated in the Terry Fox Charity dinner where she sung ldquoI thought all my pals would be there But when I looked in to the audience I couldnrsquot recognise a single facerdquo she laughed over pani puris at a friendrsquos lunch ldquoBut thatrsquos because Irsquom told that there are four or five major competing events held in Mumbai every dayrdquo she said ldquoNothing beats the vibe of MumbairdquoFoodies in a picklegtgt ldquoThis Sindhi winter vegetable pickle is an annual tradition for my ma and merdquo says the lovely Roshni Bajaj Sanghvi no relation but coincidentally a neighbour the food columnist for Mumbai Boss restaurant reviewer for the Hindustan Times and a graduate of the French Culinary Institute in New York CityldquoSometimes she makes it by herselfrdquo she says about her mother also we gather a foodie in her own right ldquoAnd sometimes I help her out Itrsquos one of my favourite pickles because itrsquos tangy spicy sweet and crunchy and healthy all those veggies canrsquot be bad I miss winter a little less because I have this pickle to look forward to for the next couple of monthsrdquoAnd going by the response her pickle has received when she posted the picture on Facebook shersquos not the only picklecrazed foodie in the city ldquoMan that looks good Send some over to tasterdquo Rahul Akerkar posted And to that we say yes Roshni how about being kind to your neighboursOn board histrionicsgtgt Oh dear This veteran actress much renowned for her acting skills appears to have inadvertently displayed more than a share of histrionics her copassengers on a Kolkata bound flight might have reckoned for On a wheel chair for unknown reasons she is supposed to have demanded that she alight before all other passengers did which meant that all of them had to stand aside and wait until the chair was lifted in and out making many miss important appointments and work ldquoWe had no objection that she was on a chair and required special handling but to expect a full planeload of us to wait until she descended seemed a bit much and there was enough grumbling and teeth gnashing through out the aislesrdquo said a passenger Not her finest performance obviouslyA man for every cigar gtgt With some men we discuss art with others poetry but for some reason when we meet dapper investment banker Tarun Kataria we always begin and end by discussing humidorsAnd the reason could be that we both prefer the aroma of a rich Cuban while juggling a St Emillon in our hands indeed as we found ourselves doing last Friday at our dear friends Asha and Dipi Khilnanirsquos well appointed Mumbai home on a leafy cul de sac off Napean Sea Road The Khilnanis live in London in a sumptuous pile in Notting Hill west Londonrsquos posh residential neighbourhood but spend time in Mumbai where their son Aditya currently worksTarun KatariaLike their home in London their Mumbai pad is filled with exquisite art mostly collected by Asha on her frequent trips to India Their guests that evening comprised of many of their friends from London and Lagos all in Mumbai before catching flights to Udaipur to attend yet another big fat NRI wedding But back to the subject of humidors Jewel encrusted and exquisite to observe mine still has not had its insides connected which makes for great aesthetic appeal but pretty soggy Cohibas all roundAsha and Dipi KhilnaniWhich is why when we bumped into Kataria at the Willingdon Club yesterday instead of enquiring after his health and that of his wife the lovely Priti Devi now spending more time at their Singapore home we embarked on the subject of cigars and a date has been plotted when they and their accruements will be addressed But till then as they say close but no cigarhellip As for the Khilnanis after bringing a slice of delicious London life to Mumbai they are we learn winging their way back home as we speak