Category Archives: nightout

The Balvenie Guild

Malt enthusiasts were welcomed in by Ms Stella David – Group CEO for The Balvenie’s trademark bespoke sit down dinner, as she unveiled the brand identity of this innovative program. The four course dinner was paired with the 12, 15, and 18 year old variants of The Balvenie.

The program is a unique step towards felicitating craftsmen and artisans across the length and breadth of the country and will move city to city over the next few months identifying groups of crafts people who maintain a dedication to the practice and preservation of traditional crafts.  These individual’s pre-eminence in the field of craft will be celebrated at the end of this remarkable journey as they bring to life the key underlying message of The Balvenie, the world’s most hand crafted single malt Scotch whisky.

Miss Sujata Assomull Sippy, was announced as the ‘Project Lead’ of The Balvenie Guild and will be responsible for mentoring the program along with 4 other, carefully selected “Connoisseurs of Craft”(C0C) – leading personalities who will identify and mentor individual bodies of craftsmen to compete in a grand finale early next year.

The evening witnessed Marut & Anusuiya Sikka, Navin Ansal & Raseel Gujral, Bindu Vadera, Sanjeev & Shelly Batra with son Samegh Batra, Vikrum Baidyanath, Amol Vadhera, Suhel Seth, Ameeta Seth and Vibhor Sharma, Anita Bajaj, Deepak Bedi, Jaideep Sippy, Karishma Bedi, Deepshikha & Rahul Khanna, Gauri Karan, Pia Pauro, Radhika Chanana, Ayesha Grewal of The Altitude Store, designers Suneet Varma, Gaurav Gupta, Rakesh Thakore with Kevin Negli, Ranna Gill, Mayank Mansingh Kaul with Anupam Poddar, Rohit Gandhi, Varun Bahl, Harmeet Bajaj, Gautam Seth & Prateek Jain of Klove Designs, Mahesh Mathai of Blue Frog, Sam & Karishma Bedi, Arun and Amrita Thapar, Jaisal Singh, Anmol and Nayantara Sehgal amongst others. 
 

Fuel Fashion Soiree

Fuel Fashion SoireeThe multi-designer fashion store, Fuel lately turned out to be a picture perfect fashion soiree as designers Sonaakshi Raaj, Shruti Sancheti and Chhaya Merhotra presented their latest collections.

The fashionable evening hosted by Sushil & Falguni Jhaveri – owners of the Fuel, at its Khar, Mumbai store, witnessed a host of exquisite designs on display proving the mettle of the young brigade of Indian designers.

The event was well-attended by who’s who of the tinsel town who thronged at the venue all dressed to the nines to support their favourite designer. The attendees included Neene Gupta, Masaba Gupta, Shaina NC, Nishka Lulla, Amy Billimoria, Suchitra Pillai, Preeti Jhangiani, Evelyn Sharma, Karishma Tanna, Siddharth Kannan, Roshni Chopra, Geeta Hinduja, Neelam Roy and Rashmi Shetty amongst others.
 

Tara Jewellers Store Launch

Tara Jewellers Store LaunchTara Jewellers launched its 30th retail store in Greater Kailash-I in South Delhi. To celebrate the occasion, an evening with exclusive preview of dazzling jewellery was hosted at the store by Mr. Vikram Raizada, Executive Director and CEO (Retail)-Tara Jewels Ltd.

Like every other Tara Jewellers store, this store too has been designed by international design consultancy, Fitch, with an inviting decor in shades of purple that makes the store warm and welcoming. The store showcases an assortment of elegantly crafted designs, keeping today’s Indian woman in mind.

The event was attended by the crème de la crème of Delhi. Adding to the glam factor of the jewels on display were Vikram Raizada, Sunil Sethi, Anju Modi, Sunayana Vohra(National Sales Head Tara Jewellers), Archana Pillai, Nainika Karan, Priyanka Modi, Vikrum Baidyanath, Caroline Young, Anand Bhushan, Liza Varma, Bharti Bhalla to name a few.

Surily Goel

Surily Goel’s RevivalSurily Goel, marked her resurgence with an exclusive showcasing of her much awaited collection, Revival, at Two One Two bar and Grill, Mumbai.

The collection draws a bohemian, feminine inspiration with detailing in wooden beads, stones, and metal fringes, with fabric surfacing on the florals, enhanced with a combination of silk pop-up 3D flowers, hexagonal & other geometrics. 

With Angela Jonsson as show stopper the event witnessed crème de la crème from the Bollywood and Fashion fraternity including Suzzane Roshan, Haseena Jetmalani, Seema Khan, Anu Dewan, and Bhavna Pandey amongst many others.
 

Olive’s 4th Anniversary

Marking its scintillating success, Olive opened its Green gates to Mumbai society’s most discerning and loyal patrons for its 4th Anniversary celebration over wine & food in true Olive style .

The Olive Bar & Kitchen dazzled its patrons with 10 different live stations with an oyster bar, raclette station and a tapas bar and a frito misto station among others. To wash down this delectable Mediterranean fare, the restaurant served seasonal, fresh cocktails like tamarind & ginger martinis, roasted chilli martinis, smoked tomato bloody Marys as well as a variety of hot toddies & assorted fresh fruit cocktails.

The event was a vibrant affair with guests like Rahul Bose, Gautam Singhania, Nisha Jamwal, Chetan  & Anusha Bhagat, Atul Kasbekar, Anil & Sabina Chopra, Rahul Dev, Tara Sharma & Roopak Saluja, Alyque & Raelle Padamsee, Divya Palat & Aditya Hitkari, Sameer & Palak Seth,  Rashmi Uday Singh, Rajesh & Zeba Kohli,  Suresh & Devika Bhojwani, Hanif Hilal, Kadambari Lakhani & Karishma Tanna amongst others. 
 

Photographic Preview

Photographic PreviewRitu Kumar presented the new symbols of India’s edgy urban design-space through TEN, a photographic art exhibit of self-portraits by artist Prarthna Singh.  Spearheaded by Amrish Kumar, the label presents 10-a photographic depiction, an ode to the different faces of the Indian woman, where the outward appearance reflects an inner world and a way of life. 
 
A preview of the photo exhibit was hosted by Amrish Kumar and Prarthna Singh at the Ritu Kumar flagship store where Audhna Akhtar (dressed in the label) was the special guest. Other guests seen admiring Prarthna’s self portraits dressed in different avatars of the Indian woman, included Arunoday Singh, Akanksha Nanda, Anushka Manchanda, Cyrus Oshidar, Sheetal Mallar, AD Singh, Rashmi Uday Singh, Payal Khandwala, Vipasha Agarwal, Neerja Shah amongst many others. 
 

Bhabha’s Legacy under Hammer

Bhabha’s Legacy under HammerThe versatile Homi Jahangir Bhabha – a scientist, administrator, painter, classical musician and an opera enthusiast left a legacy of artifacts which are being auctioned by Pundoles, an auction house in Mumbai this week.

The modern equivalent of Leonardo Da Vinci, as Nobel Laureate C.V Raman once called him, created many beautiful paintings during his lifetime, besides collecting many such pieces of art from across the globe, thus curating a priceless collection which adorned his home in Mumbai.

A part of this personal collection of him which now belongs to the National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA) is under hammer, after last year’s successful auction including some 900 objects, ranging from textiles to jewellery. 

India Fantastique

 2012 marks 25 years in Fashion for Abu Jani &Sandeep Khosla too.

To commemorate in a certain  style, something Abu Jani & Sandeep Khosla are more than au fait with. The duos choose to mark this milestone with the publishing of a book INDIA FANTASTIQUE,with support from Reliance Industries.

INDIA FANTASTIQUE is a lush insight into the world of Abu Jani & Sandeep Khosla, India’s most celebrated couturiers. It is a work that showcases their creativity in all its myriad forms, from Fashion to Furniture. Above all it is an Ode to India as Eternal Muse. The first volume of India Fantastique displays dozens of the duo’s impossibly elegant designs, including close-ups of exquisitely crafted details. The second volume focuses on their extensive work in interior design. Their hallmark maximalism run riot in privately commissioned interiors, which incorporate art, artifacts, antiques and vintage textiles.

Published by Thames & Hudson, INDIA FANTASTIQUE is written by Gayatri Sinha, one of India’s most reputed art critics. It features the photography of Ram Shergill (For fashion and fashion detail) and Deidi Von Schaewen (For interiors). The most exquisite locations from across the globe serve as the backdrop to the mesmerizing photography, slated to become the fashion collectible of 2012.

We are unabashedly Indian in our aesthetics and passionately in love with the rich cultural, historic and design legacy of our Land. Design is our way of paying homage to that Beauty. By taking it into the 21st century, said the duo, at an enchanted evening of celebration at the residence of Nita and Mukesh Ambani, the hosts for the evening.

At this private and exclusive event, there was an original Fashion theatre presentation showcasing the beautiful couture creations of Abu and Sandeep interspersed with dance acts. Sara Ali Khan and Isha Ambani were young debutants on ramp , which saw many senior models show off the new and classic lines .The highlight of the evening was the book launch jointly by Amitabh Bachchan and Nita Ambani with Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla.

The spectacular evening comprised of A listers from Industry, Cinema and the Arts such as Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan,  Sussane Roshan, Gauri Khan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Shweta Bachchan Nanda, Karan Johar,  Kokilaben Ambani, Isha, Aakash and Anant Ambani, Amrita Singh and Sarah Ali Khan,  Anjalie Tendulkar, Kangana Ranaut, Adhuna and Farhan Akhtar, Sonalie Bendre,  Arjun and Meher Rampal, Tabu,  Deepika Padukone,  Kirron Kher,  Dipti and Raj Salgaoncar,  Shobhaa and Dilip De, Simmi Garewal,  Pinky and Sanjay Reddy, Parmeshwar and Adi Godrej, Namrata Dutt, Priya Dutt, Rakesh and Pinky Roshan, Kumaramanglam and Neerja Birla, Yash and Avanti Birla, Natasha and Adar Poonawala, Rukshana Eisa, Rita Dhody,  Tanya and Arvind Dubash, Milind and Pooja Deora, Hema Malini, Madhuri Dikshit , Kapil Sibal,  Kaajal Anand and lots more.
 

Chynna Gold

In the 19th century, Chinese restaurants developed Indian Chinese cuisine when they modified their food for Indian taste. Most Chinese are surprised by what is being served as Chinese food. But Chef Baiyan Zhou appointed Master Chef of Chynna Gold the Sichuan and Cantonese speciality restaurant at Hilton /New Delhi Janakpuri, has a deep understanding of Chinese culinary culture and guarantees about the food being served is authentic.

It was a very interesting experience I had with Chynna Gold… I have had many Indian Chinese food experiences…  I am not saying I hate the food…. but, I can almost categorize Chynna Gold as something non-Chinese and having its own taste!

With a separate tea lounge serving 21 different flavors we headed towards exotic sauces and tangy aromas of Sichuan and Cantonese food. Well after realizing that the items on the menu were totally unfamiliar we decided to leave it to the discretion of the chef. Three items clearly delighted us was Shui Zhu vegetables in main course while fried chicken in dry chilli and Sichuan pepper Chongquin style and Chilli bean Paneer in appetizers. But weirdly stir fried prawns with Chilli Xo sauce were not cooked properly as the batter was half done. There is a nod to the local palate as well with Gang Bao chicken, mushroom and tofu in clay pot and spicy mixed vegetables.

The food here is not very traditional or even Indianized. They call it by typical names as we never really know what we are going to get on our plate until it arrives, other than the basic ingredients listed. Quality is definitely distinguishable from most any other chinese restaurants we’ve been to.
 

Preview at Atosa

Preview at AtosaAparna Badlani and Azmina Rahimtoola of eclectic multidesigner store Atosa at Khar  hosted a relaxed fashion evening to mark the start of the festive season.

Designers showcasing their new lines for the evening were Rahul Misra, Ritika Mirchandani and Suhani Pittie.

Ritika’s designs adorned by Ira Dubey were a picture of the Mughal Era with a Victorian sensibility, and yet a modern touch is given to each garment. The collection included a wide range of anarkalis, tunics, jackets and waistcoats with detailed resham and zardozi embroidery. 

While Suhani Pittie unveiled a new collection of semi precious jewellery, highlighting the Bidri ‘star‘ print; Nature motifs – leaves, vines, ‘stone’ rose; the swan wing, peacock, the hornbill beak; the ‘nostalgia’ spiral and ‘critic’ rivet.

Guests seen enjoying festive shopping and Aparna & Azmina’s warmth and hospitality included Nisha Javeri, Krishika Lulla, Radhika Mukherjee, Lali Dhawan, Sona Mahapatra, Pratichee, Amrita Puri, Payal Khandwala, Troy Costa, Nimish, Nishka Lulla, Dr Rashmi Shetty, Sheilu Lehr, Kiran Datwani and Anita Raaj amongst many more