Roving Eye

Lively discussions and heated arguments accompanied Yeshwant Sinha’s budget and once again Mecklai’s bash was declared a success. A yearly event, Mecklai works at doing something different each time. Regulars remember a bhelpuri and beer bash and one time, Mecklai, apparently, even dressed up a former finance minister, Manmohan Singh. The head of India’s oldest trading house, Mecklai’s colourful personality is only matched by his colourful shirts.

Not worth a look

A sneak preview of the Loreal-FeminaElite Look of the Year contestants showed a lot more than a bunch of scantily-clad coltish girls to the crowd gathered at the 1900’s, last week.

The most prominent feature of the evening was the repeated reminders to the mostly inebreated audience – "This is a Sauza night, and Tequila is now Sauza". Fine. There was a lot of it flowing freely.

But the real reason to brag was the fantastic gathering that the event had drawn in. Ashok Kurien shook a leg with Nina Pillai, till another long-legged lady decided to throw herself between them. Anu Malik came with a wide-eyed classical type and proceeded to try and dance, much to the amusement of watchers.

Regulars Devika and Suresh Bhojwani spent the evening making small talk, while Shweta Shetty announced loudly, to everyone who cared to hear, how she had "just landed from Madras". She was also constantly asked by everyone where her "deewanas" were.

Noyonika Chatterjee boogeyed the night away, while Coleen Khan sat in one place for a respectable amount oftime before rushing off.

Surprisingly, there were very few people on behalf of the organisers, which made the 1900’s DJ Akhtar take charge of the show. And as for the contestants, all the attention they received was a kiss on the cheek and a small gift from a bigwig at Sauza. No-one else bothered to even look.

Dream lover

Alisha Chinai has gone back to her `Made in India‘ co-star Milind Soman. Her third video from Aum, has Kunal Kohli instead of ex-husband Rajesh Jhaveri directing a romantic number called `Tu jo mila‘. "The story line shows a very happy, made-for-each-other couple. There is no conflict like there was in my earlier video `Tere bin jeena nahin‘," says Kunal. And while the actual length of the song in the record is over five minutes, the video has been cut down to a three-and-a-half minute version.

"We are trying to show that when a couple is understanding, they can be happy despite the possibility of a conflict," he says. And this time Kunal he haschosen to shoot in a bungalow in Alibagh, rather than the exotic foreign locales which are fast becoming video-directors’ obssession.

"If you see the video, it will look like we have shot in Beverly Hills. But it is really a dream house closer home," says Kumal.

The video should be on air by the end of June and then Kohli goes back to direct the second video for the Rajshri album Yeh Hai Prem.

Model fun

Anupama Verma really seems to be a model on the move. She has been chosen by Famous Grouse whiskey to do some promotions for them. Part of the deal meant flying her down to Scotland so that she could learn more about the product. Business turned into pleasure as soon as her stint in Scotland was over.

Anupama is now partying in London and has been seen in all the hotspots really letting her hair down. So what if her film career has not taken off. She is still popular for the fashionable crowd.

Fashion folio

Looking for more fashion? Then pencil in this event. On June 15, theFashion Bistro will present The Lakme Crystal Kaleidoscope, a fashion show featuring the collections of the Delhi designers Ritu Beri and Aparana Chandra. Mumbai designer Bhairavi Jaikishen and Goan designer Savio Jon, will also keep them company. The models to watch out for are Noyonika Chatterjee, Anu Ahuja, Shyla Lopez, Karminder Kaur, Namrata Barua and others. To be a part of the evening you will have to shell out Rs 500 which will be redeemable against food and drinks. Also make the booking well in advance as the seats are bound to go soon.

And finally …

Next week, London will see a war fought on the grounds of Indian art. On June 15, both Sotheby’s and Christie’s are exhibiting their collection of Indian paintings. And hosting the shows will be Sotheby’s Savita Apte and Christie’s Amrita Jhaveri. Both Mumbai girls, Apte prefers to be low-key while Jhaveri is more high-profile. Who draws in the maximum numbers — now, that is the question everyone is asking, at home and abroad.