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Journalism of Courage
Feast for Eyes
If musicians and dancers were as boring as the press reviews they get, then life would be denied of the rasas that are its due. Even then, for a philistine brought up on bhangra rap and butter chicken, it was somewhat of a surprise to see Sonal Mansingh doing a little Odissi-pop jig, and guess where? At TK8217;s, the city8217;s original teppanyaki grill at the Hyatt though, we think, the one at Turquoise Cottage is giving hot competition.
We were treated to a grandstand view of Mansingh, looking gorgeous in a Manipuri phanek, red apron and the trademark black band of a TK8217;s chef on the forehead, behind the grill usually lorded over by Chef Vivek Huria. She played the perfect assistant, helping Huria put together quite a feast comprising prawn tempura, tuna salad, warm mushroom salad, miso soup and marinated chicken breast stuffed with asparagus. And all along, she gamefully danced to the music, breaking into an impromptu raas using the spatula, fork and knives, with top-cop Ajay Aggarwal, Assamese singer Jyotsna Saran, mud architecture pro Jasleen Dhamija, veteran film journalist Aruna Vasudev, and publisher Jyoti Sabharwal.
Like an ace performer, Mansingh had her audience riveted and revelled in every sweaty minute she spent behind the grill. And she even had a punchline for the occasion. 8220;All sinful things,8221; she said, 8220;are delightful.8221;
8230; and The Ears
Shubha Mudgal, meanwhile, has done an exemplary job of culling out four hours of sheer magic from Hariprasad Chaurasia8217;s 40-year romance with the flute. The result is Krishnadhwani, courtesy Music Today. It8217;s meant to be a 60th-birthday gift to Chaurasia, but the flautist showed he was as quick with his wit as he was with his ragas, despite his age.
Turned out in immaculate dhoti-kurta, his definitive red tika very much in place, regaled his celeb guests with his impish sense of humour at The Oberoi Ballroom. 8220;My wife has done a very bad thing,8221; said the pandit in mock seriousness. 8220;She has announced to the world that I am 60. Now, I am sure the women who used to seek my company thinking I am 40, will give me up for other men. I am sure my wife has done it knowingly.8221; The wife in question is Anuradha Chaurasia, the maestro8217;s soulmate since 1959, when he was an unsung staff artiste at AIR, Cuttack, and she a wide-eyed teenager doing the cultural rounds.
Anuradha Chaurasia, in fact, has teamed up with Shyam Benegal to produce an informative documentary on her husband, which set the mood for Krishnadhwani8217;s release despite not scoring high on production values. Another wife8217;s tribute to watch will be Madhura Pandit8217;s Films Division documentary on Hindustani vocalist Pandit Jasraj. Madhura Pandit, incidentally, is also known as V. Shantaram8217;s daughter. The highlights of the evening were Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt8217;s rendition of Mian Ki Malhar, Guru Birju Maharaj in his avatar as vocalist and poet, and Vasant Sathe insisting on calling Music Today, Music India.
Summer in London
Muzaffar Ali8217;s Zooni may not have seen the light at the end of the Kashmiri tunnel, but it appears to be well on its way to establishing the world record for being the only film in the cans to have been seen by more people than are likely to watch it after completion, if that ever happens. The director best known for Umrao Jaan and his pretty Allahabadi wife, Meera, were in London last month for a glitterati evening featuring rushes from Zooni and New York designer Mary McFadden8217;s India-inspired designs at Chor Bizarre, London yes, it8217;s a classier edition of our own gourmet hotspot and you can check it out the next time you scour Mayfair for Gaylord.
But this London summer belonged to the Mumbaikars, with the really big do8217;s being the preview of Freoze Khan8217;s Mahatma vs Gandhi, which featured, apart from Naseeruddin Shah, High Commissioner Salman Haidar in one of his last official engagements, and the launch of Verve, Anuradha Mahindra8217;s classy hi-society mag, where the big attraction was Shakira Caine and her hennaed hands. Earlier, Shobha De held a writing workshop at Chor Bizarre and read from her books over a couple of dinners attended by basmati magnate G. K. Noon and his new wife, Mohini Kent, besides the regulars, including Karan Kapoor, Ramola Bachchan, Meera Syal and Karan Billimoria.
Another B8217;doIt8217;s on. Ghungro8217;s turning 20, and how! Inder Sunny8217; Sarid, the man who got the disc its fan following, kicked off the birthday countdown with a live performance by Bhupi Chawla, the latest Punjabi Pop da puttar. Of course, not everyone took to Bhupi jiving on the bar counter, but there was enough of the Bhangra Brigade to ensure that Jawahar Wattal8217;s latest find stayed on well beyond the two numbers he was meant to sing.
Rahul Dev, whose debonair good looks seem to have taken a vacation for quite some time now, was spotted with the Fashion Gang 8212; Rajiv Slice of Italy8217; Makhni with wife Ruchi and our friendly neighbourhood columnist Shefali Talwar. Rashmi Virmani was missing in action, but Rohit Bal, who belongs to the Other Fashion Gang, seems to have picked up this weird habit of strolling into discos close to closing time. And then generally letting steam off through happy shrieks and whoops!
More than Bhupi, the darling of the evening, quite obviously, was the redoubtable Monish Makh-ija, a.k.a. Udham Singh of Jatland. And more impressive than anything, or anyone, was the turnout 8212; Ghungroo addicts turned out in strength for the night, so much so that our guy behind the lens could barely find room to shoot!
