Things of importance

Who says things of importance do not occur at parties It is our contention that the most important conversations take place on the margins of life the sauna rooms of elite establishments the elevators of prime buildings the cityrsquos golf courses and lounge barsand of course its partiesAnd when the internationally lauded scientist philanthropist and humanist Dr Yusuf Hamied Chairman of Cipla met Delhi Speinmaster supreme the swashbuckling Suhel Seth now nine kilos lighter after a magic diet on a balmy Mumbai evening recently sparks flewDr Yusuf Hamied with Suhel SethldquoDuring our talks many issues were discussed intellectual property rights access to medicines at affordable pricing etcrdquo says Dr Hamied respected almost as a God in Africa for his unprecedented humanitarian initiative that has saved millions of lives which would have been otherwise lost to AIDSrelated deathsldquoSuhel then said that the North East India which he was familiar with was the richest area of our country and that it had the highest disease level due to many factors He then talked about HIVAIDS and wanted to know whether there was anything useful as a preventive When I said that there was a drug already available his usual exuberance erupted and he wanted to know morerdquo says the good scientist called Yuku by his friendsldquoI told him the true facts Last year the USA FDA approved a single tablet drug containing 2 active ingredients Tenofovir and Emtricitabine taken once a day which prevented a person contracting HIV This is called PreP preexposure propholaxsis and for the past few years CIPLA has been making and marketing this drug TENVIREM here in India and in SubSaharan AfricaIt is readily available and very reasonably pricedrdquo says Dr Hamied adding ldquoSuhel was ecstatic and went on and on as to how he would promote the drug and what a potential this product has particularly in NE India Also as to how this could change the quality of life of the people particularly in the above areas lsquoThink of the lives savedrsquo he saidrdquoAnd given its urgency perhaps Sethrsquos unmatched position on the political business policy pyramid and his persuasive powers might just be able to get the policy wonks in Modirsquos government interested Of course if itrsquos all too altruistic a mission for the State they could always spin it off for the huge advantage it would give the Indian economyWho says matters of importance cannot begin at partiesDivine divas in ParisAlways great to chat with designer Manish Malhotra the man who changed the way Bollywood dressed and possessor of the finest bone structure since NefertitiKangana Ranaut and Manish MalhotraBack from a breezy trip to Paris with Kangana Ranaut which included the Fashion week a Dior outing and the shoot for Vogue in which the two free spirits partook of a storyline of exquisite companionship Malhotra was all affection and praise for the actress ldquoShe is very different So cerebral but also like a childrdquo he saidldquoIrsquom more the type who says letrsquos get on with things Wersquove been friends for a while now doing quiet dinners togetherrdquo he said adding ldquoThe shoot was hilarious because of course I took longer on my hair and makeup And shersquod be accusing me of being a bigger divardquo smiles MalhotraStratospheric coolnessWe often wonder if we are the only people in the world so inordinately fascinated by trivia Not just any trivia mind you people trivia Last week not only did we find ourselves congratulating Neena Gupta on her play lsquoMera Woh Matlab Nahi Tharsquo which opened to good notices at the NCPA over the weekend but also on the engagement of her beautiful daughter designer Masaba Gupta to film producer Madhu MantenaMasaba Gupta and Madhu Mantena PicInstagramBut given our fascination with quirky details of absolutely no importance whatsoever we found ourselves saying to the mother of the tobe bride lsquoMasaba Mantenarsquo will be the coolest namersquo That would have been enough perhaps but adding that her future soninlaw enjoyed the distinction of dating the daughter of a world renowned economist Amartya Sen and the daughter of a world renowned sportsman which made him the coolest of all was perhaps oddNeena GuptaTo her credit Neena realised that it was coming from a deep reservoir of equal affection and fascination for trivia and smiled bemusedlyIn vino veritasldquoSula Vineyards is all set to take part in ProWein taking place in Duumlsseldorf next week 1517 and Irsquom off tonight with a packed schedulerdquo It was Cecilia Oldne Sularsquos Global Brand Ambassador and HeadInternational Business whose exuberance and charm have done as much to promote the vineyard as her marketing punchCecilia OldneldquoThis event is the biggest alcobev show in Europe considered one of the most important in the industry and will be presenting a wide range of wines and spirits from around 50 countries across the globe Sula Vineyardsrsquo premium range of wines including the Dindori Reserve Shiraz which ranked 25 in the lsquoTop 100 Wines of the Yearrsquo list by Wine Enthusiast magazine and our lovely Riesling Indiarsquos first and still only will be showcasedrdquo says Oldne who has a wonderful singing voiceldquoWith Nashik establishing itself as an important wine producing region on the world wine map itrsquos an exciting time for us to show the world what wersquore up tordquo says the globetrotting lady adding ldquoAfter the show Irsquom off to Amsterdam as the Netherlands is one of our most promising markets in Europe where our wines have received an excellent response since their launch one year ago And as Amsterdam is one of my favourite cities I look forward to spreading some Sula love and welcome spring there toordquo