Roving Eye

Ladies lunch

Aadarsh Gill was another Delhi-based dsigner to hold a showing this week. She teamed up with Anuradha Mahindra and Verve to hold a champagne lunch on Friday at her posh Colaba store. And though her designs were exquisite and colourful 8212; just perfect for the festive season 8212; they were somewhat over-shadowed by the well-dressed women congregated at the store. Busy sipping on Moet amp; Chandon were some of the city8217;s most beuatiful women 8212; Ramona Garware, Aarti Surendranath, Queenie Dhody, Poonam Bhagat, Rasna Behl, Geeta Rao, Rita Dhody, Sheetal Bhagat, Tina Tahiliani-Parikh, Laila Lamba and Gauri Poohumall to name a few. These ladies even managed to over shadow the models wearing the Gill originals.

Home grown

Then earlier in the evening was a gathering for the truly high brow. An event for which even Ratan Tata took time out from his busy schedule to attend. The release of Charles Correa8217;s book Housing and Urbanisation at the Max Mueller Bhavan. But in some ways Tata8217;spresence was almost mandatory. First, he is the chairman of Urban Development Research Institute UDRI, of which Correa is a trustee. Secondly, because of the corporate moghul8217;s interest in architecture and his friendship of many years with the architect. In his short speech, Tata recalled his growing up in a much more charming Bombay and that today it has given way to ugly development and uncontrolled slums. Present at the book release were architects Deepak Parekh and Rahul Mehrotra, corporate head Keshab Mahindra and Bombay First8217;s Gerson da Cunha 8212; with everyone, including Tata, sitting through Correa8217;s one-hour lecture on low-cost housing and urbanisation.

Friday fury

Friday evening was an even more busy time for the city8217;s movers and shakers with several must-be-seen-at events scheduled for that night. It started with Sotheby8217;s annual awards at an elegant dinner co-hosted with the Oberoi. Attended by some of the city8217;s most respected artists like Laxman Shreshta and Jehangir Sabavala, thisyear8217;s winner, Atul Dodiya, seemed genuinely surpised to be walking away with this coveted prize. The event was compered by Ranjit Hoskote, who did a better job than most professional MCs. Also spotted there was Sotheby8217;s representative Savita Apte, who may live in Poland, but is a serious driving force in India8217;s art world.

For those with a limited understading of art 8212; and no invitation 8212; the Star Movies fifth anniversary bash was the hot spot. Held at the Ballroom of the Taj, it was attended by media bigwigs from Shobha De to Alyque Padamsee. As well as Star8217;s very own Rathikant Basu. Adding to an already starry ambience were a smattering of male models 8212; Kelly Dorji who is a host for the channel, Marc Robinson, Diwakar Pundir and Inder Sudan. But all the colour faded to nothingness with the announcement that Star Movies will premiere Titanic on this New Year8217;s Eve. So, if you have nothing to do on the eve of the millennium 8212; and your cablewallah has not already shown it 8212; then watch theOscar award-winning James Cameron flick.

Clap board

Sunday saw the city go back to its frenetic pace what with the Showman Subhash Ghai8217;s annual bash. While Ghai8217;s fetish for the alphabet M is well known, the film-maker8217;s superstition about his wedding anniversary October 24, which he considers lucky for himself and for his stars, always warrants a party and several mega8217; announcements. This year, the date also marked the 21st anniversary of his production house, Mukta Arts, which has delivered hits like Karz, Hero, Ram Lakhan, Pardes and Taal. The celebration of the event, which took place at Ghai8217;s Andheri studio, Audeus, had all the glitz and glamour of a Bollywood do. Shabana Azmi, Javed Akhtar, Anil Kapoor, Aamir Khan, Jackie Shroff, Dilip Kumar, Amrish Puri, Sridevi, Boney Kapoor, Anupam Kher, Prakash Mehra and Yash Chopra were among those present to felicitate Ghai. Visibly in his element, the showman chose the occasion to announce the launch of his new banner, Mukta ArtsInternational, to mark his foray into motion pictures, stage shows, English films, regional Indian films and music albums. The first two films of the new banner are already in the pipeline. Another highlight of the event was the release of the novel Woh Mera Chand by Pratibha Davar, Ghai8217;s London-based aunt. Ghai plans to make a film based on the book in the near future. Incidentally, the showman with the Midas touch, who is basking in the success of his latest blockbuster, Taal, has still more reason to smile. Inspired by the music of Taal, legendary musical composer Andrew Lloyd Weber 8212; of Evita and Phantom of the Opera fame 8212; is currently working on an Indian dance musical project titled Bombay Dream with Bollywood8217;s music wizard A R Rahman. A Taal-i of applause, we say!

Show jumping

Wendell Rodricks may have moved out of the city six years ago, but he makes sure that his name is never out of the news. This time by holding a fashion show in mid-air. Yes, GravityZone, a new bungee jumping site that opened in Goa8217;s Anjuna beach, was the venue last Tuesday for Wendell8217;s fall collection. And to make sure the show started with a bang, Wendell, dressed in a bright blue shirt and black trousers, took the first plunge himself. But that was not the only shock in store for the audience. Wendell, who is known for his use of muted colours, introduced bright pinks, reds and even purples in his latest collection. Though his designs were still minimalist and his cuts brilliant, Wendell8217;s emphasis was on length. Skirts were long and the tops had full-length sleeves. With 40 outfits shown, there were some designs that dazzled and others that disappointed. But there was no way you could forget his finale 8212; Madhu Sapre, dressed in an outfit aptly called The Angel8217;, went the Wendell way and took the plunge!

And finally8230;

This year8217;s fashion season has been marred by the absence of the city8217;s most important designers 8212; Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla. But not because theyhave forsaken Mumbai. No, the designer duo are in New York, holding a show of their work in the Big Apple. When they get back their next project is a book on their work. Good news, at last! You can finally have an Abu-Sandeep original on your shelf 8212; so what if it is your bookshelf!