Host with the Most

If the turnout and bonhomie at Aamir Khans recent party is anything to go by,he could well rewrite the rules for winning friends and influencing people.

Not every party,never mind the list of Whos Who in attendance or the number of bouncers they bring along makes the cut as the party of the season.

Truth is that mere high-wattage energy of collective celebrity is not enough to hold an evening together. As party organisers will tell you,it is important to allow guests breathing space so that they can enjoy themselves. Unfortunately most parties in general and filmi dos in particular do anything but. Lets face it,whether it is a 25th wedding anniversary celebration or a film premiere,the socialising is little more than a photo-op occasion. Or a networking platform.

On several occasions when I have protested a guests unceremonious early exit the response is,Hey,I have done the photo thing8230; There is evidence that I was there!

The who-was-there factor seems to be the biggest component of parties,partly a function of the fact that there are way too many sponsored parties,with nothing real to celebrate and no connect with invitees. Being a part of the media,more often than not,one is invited to birthday parties,weddings and such-like from complete strangers with the hope that it would ensure a photograph or two in the publication. And of course,one is knocked off as swiftly from the guest-list if the aforementioned photos dont make it to the pages. Yes,scribes live with their own set of heartbreaks.

The most talked about do Imran-Avantikas reception hosted by Aamir Khan and wife Kiran was earmarked to be different from those affairs. The guest-list for one,was delightfully hatke with several friends and acquaintances from different walks of life. It was a reminder of the good old days when parties were about making guests feel comfortable,afford them the luxury of conversations or that pause to nurse a drink without having to worry about camera flashes that would blind you. Or run the risk of being rudely brushed aside in a stampede of people chasing the VIP guests!

Besides the diversity of people present for the occasion be it Mukesh and Nita Ambani,Yash Chopra,veterans Dilip Kumar,Shammi Kapoor,Dev Anand,Rishi Kapoor,the present heartthrobs Ranbir Kapoor,Katrina Kaif and Deepika Padukone,artists Jitish and Reena Kallat,cop Ahmed Javed,politico Supriya Sule or master- blaster Sachin Tendulkar; the impeccable hospitality to people regardless of their station in life,is a rarity in the contemporary party hip-hop scenario. The old-world hospitality on display the bride and groom along with family met guests while hosts Aamir and Kiran were busy greeting friends around the poolside venue was a pleasant sight.

That Shah Rukh Khan made an appearance even if a tad late,signals that any misgivings of the past may well be on the road to recovery. Early days yet to comment on whether the Khan trio will follow in the footsteps of the big three Dev Anand,Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor but keeping the current bonhomie in mind,nothing can be ruled out.

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Speaking of friendships and cheerful camaraderie the young brigade is not doing badly either. Considering Imran and Ranbir compete in the professional space Kapoors presence came as a pleasant surprise.

This congregation of different faiths and disciplines is a good sign. With Aamir taking the lead,it may well convince the industry to go back to good old days when the film industry was known as film fraternity.