Roving eye

Sparkling showHemant Trevedi had conjured up a dazzling show for De Beers on Tuesday night at the Oberoi. But then the occasion was a spe...

Sparkling show

Hemant Trevedi had conjured up a dazzling show for De Beers on Tuesday night at the Oberoi. But then the occasion was a special one 8212; the diamond company had brought down the 25 winning designs from their annual international design competition. Incidentally, this contest is regarded as the Oscars of the jewellery world. And this year, India had the rare honour of bagging four out of the 25 awards. In tribute to that hit rate, the whole show had an aura of mystique and magic, what with smoke machines seductively cloaking the models. And most of the city8217;s top bods from Sheetal Malhar, Malaika Arora, Rajalakshmi Khanvilkar to Bipasha Basu walked the ramp in elegant black gowns designed by Hemant. Adding to the entertainment was Imam Siddique who looked quite at home on the ramp even while he was dancing up a storm. But the real show stealer was Noyonika Chatterjee when she sashayed down the ramp in a black wedding gown and a stunning, stiff, diamond ruff necklace. On her arm was herfiancee Gurpreet. They were glowing almost as much as the sparklers. And though the show was full of the city8217;s most beautiful people 8212; Anuradha Mahindra, Rasna Behl, Poonam Soni and Suresh Bhojwani 8212; the night really belonged to the four Indian winners. Priya Sewani, Swati Saitavdekar, Shibani Kapur and Raja Roy wore their winning crowns with pride. Only one thing was wrong with this superb show 8212; at times, the gown8217;s necklines literally covered up the exquisite pieces of jewellery. Perhaps simple tube tops would8217;ve worked better.

After party

After the De Beers show most of the models along with Hemant, hit the Fashion Bar to shake a leg. Hemant looked very pleased with himself as the show was a rip-roaring success. And keeping him company was Sheetal, Anu Ahuja, Marc Robinson, Sumeet Chopra, Bipasha, ELLE8217;s Nirja Shah and Rajalakshmi. Apparently, the light-eyed Maharashtrian was bringing in her birthday and yes, good friend Rahul Roy was there to ring in the celebrations.

Diwalifashion

In keeping with the festive mood, the Fashion Bar amp; Bistro held a Diwali fashion show for its members on Thursday. And the ultra-modern, severely chic bar was transformed into a festive pandal what with flowers, garlands and diyas. Just the perfect setting for Sangeeta Chopra8217;s show 8212; inspired by classical dance movements. The designers chosen were Muzzafir Ali his Kotwara collection was full of intricate embroidery, Shaina NC, Calcutta8217;s Mona-Pali, and Delhi8217;s Ritu Beri. It seems that designers are aware that ethnic sells during the festive season.

Pallavi8217;s preview

Just before Diwali, the low-key designer Pallavi Jaikishan held an annual preview for her clients. A regular feature on the fashion calendar, this year lending her a helping hand were designer daughter Bhairavi and elegant daughter-in-law Roohi Oomberbhoy-Jaikishan. Her designs, though very similar to last year8217;s collection, sold like hot cakes. By lunch time most of her outfits had quot;soldquot; tags on them. We guess thereason her previews are so understated is that Pallavi doesn8217;t need to advertise. Her name sells her clothes almost before the last stitch has been put in.

Canada8217;s bit last week, Canada8217;s Vice Consul Sanjeev Chowdhury announced that he was putting together a special event to raise money for the Cancer Research Institute at the Tata Memorial Hospital. And he has promised to put together a star-studded event. So far, he has roped in Canada8217;s most favourite Indian, Ruby Bhatia, to compere the evening. Model Achla Sachdev will wear a Manish Malhotra outfit that will be auctioned to raise funds.

Arjun Khanna and Cory Walia will take care of the clothes and make-up. And the chief guest will be none other than Sunil Dutt. But the highlight of the evening promises to be Shiamak Davar incidentally, that afternoon he will also do a special show for cancer patients and their families, gratis of course. Sanjeev is amazed at the response he has received and promises, in turn, that it will be a night toremember.

Bollywood times

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The real highlight of the weekend was the Bombay Times party. Just about the whole city wanted to be there and depending on the invite you got, your pecking order in the city8217;s social register was being judged. For instance, really important people got six invitations, others two and some just one.

If you weren8217;t invited then you no longer registered on the social scale. Anyway, judging by the crush of people that was packed into the Regal Room at the Oberoi, it seemed that more people belonged to the with-it crowd than the with-out. And a rocking time was had by all till well past dawn. The dress code said filmi and Usha Uthup put everyone in the mood by singing well-known Bollywood hits. The film world was well represented and adding glamour to the already dressed-to-the-hilt gathering were Shilpa Shetty, Poonam Dhillon and Urmila Matondkar who came with buddy and designer Manish Malhotra. But the cynosure of all eyes was Manisha Koirala resplendent in black.None of the men, including her boyfriend Hussain dressed in all white, could take their eyes off her.

And finally8230;

Obviously one Bollywood family that was missing from the BT party was Salim Khan8217;s. Given the rough weather the family is facing, their absence is well explained. But you have to hand it to the Khans they seem to have a secret mantra when it comes to dealing with stress. Arbaaz Khan was spotted at the Bombay Gymkhana Club, on Friday, looking very cool and relaxed. He had accompanied fiancee Malaika who was working that night. That evening he seemed to be playing the role of a protective parent. He watched Malaika like a hawk. Given how gorgeous his wife-to-be is, we understand his possessive stand.