Downtown : The Delhi-Mumbai Gazette

My verdict on the India Fashion Week held in Mumbai last week. I wouldn’t saywe’ve arrived but the collective effort happened without any snags. Pret lines werehandled superbly by Manoviraj Khosla and Ashish Soni. Rocky S., Anshu Arora Sen, PujaNair, Anamika Khanna and Aparna Jagdhari also showed well. But the show-stoppers were:

Monisha Jaisingh : She fills the void for well-designed westernclothes.

Tarun Tahiliani : He showed men’s line for the first time markedby excellent texturing and innovative styling.

Ritu Kumar : Her collection remains evergreen.

Rajesh Pratap Singh : A very talented designer. Oneonly wishes he weren’t so shy.

Mona Pali : Calcutta’s creative duo showed some fantastic detailwork. The official forecast for 2001 came from Rohit Bal, Rina Dhaka and Manish Malhotra:

Rina Dhaka : Pure kitsch. It is very difficult to pull that one but itwas bang-on. New York’s calling her.

Rohit Bal : New designs, new styling, strong predictions, giantinnovation.

Manish Malhotra : Feminine clothes, very wearable, buyable and subtle.Now to the confusion. The pret (ready-to-wear) lines went into diffusions and fusionstipped into couture. India Fashion Week also needs to promote new designers and includethem in the official category.

Rai Bahadur Mohan Singh Oberoi’s birthday assumed special significance this year, notonly because he turned 103 this August 15, but also because the Jaipur Raj Vilas, run byhis grandson Vikram Oberoi, was named the world’s best by the UK’s prestigious TatlerTravel Guide. Despite his poor health, the frail chairman of the Oberoi Group makesit a point to be informed on his group’s expansion, rides in his tiny golf car to thegarden twice a day and interacts with a few, close friends at his farmhouse outside Delhi.Besides Tatler, Raj Vilas has also been named India’s best by the US-basedZagat Survey that lists hotels across the globe; US-based Gallaventers Guiderated Agra’s Amar Vilas, which hosted Pervez Musharraf, as the best in Asia alongwith the UK-based Conde Nast Traveler which put the property among its globalhotlist.   

It’s a feat to be proud of. Four Indian students won third and fourth places indifferent categories in the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair 2001, to comehome with Rs 5.52 lakh worth of dollars. Yash Joshi modified a bicycle pump to recyclehousehold plastic scrap; Ruchira Bajpai lowered hyperglycemia with custard apple leaves,and Bharat Mhatre with Amit Sowani designed a pollution controller and fuel collector tocontrol oil spills in the high seas. Bharat and Amit have applied for a patent for theirproduct while companies like ongc, Chevron and l&t are evincing interest in developingtheir invention. CM Vilasrao Deshmukh is excited as three out of the four students areMumbaikars. Says Avtar Saini, director, South Asia, Intel: "India’s futuredepends on the next generation’s science, math and technology skills. Intel isefhelps students achieve their potential." Is the Maharashtra textbook board listening?   

Delhi’s night creatures are being lured to "surrender to the temptations of thedark". The latest hotspot to hit the cityscape is a night club suitably named afterNyx, Greek goddess of the night. Designed by Bijon Dasgupta, the high-profile art directorof films like Hum Aapke Hain Kaun, Nyx is located at 32nd Milestone, wherediscotheque Fireball was before. Why Nyx now? "Fireball’s profile was younger,it was a high energy pop disco," says Rajeev Kapool, GM, 32nd Milestone. The newvenue targets the 30-plus and lays equal stress on dining and dancing. "It will offera fine dining experience, the best of international cuisine," promises Kapool.Another highlight will be the live band from South Africa. The 136-cover club is spreadover three levels. The first level comprises a glass dance floor and a DJ console, thesecond has a bar, while the third houses a restaurant. The staff here wears outfitsdesigned by Ritu Beri. The hangout will remain open six days a week with Monday as the dayof rest. The best deal: there’ll be no cover charge.

People used to seeing cobweb wall-hangings and paan-streaked grafitti on platform wallswere in for a surprise at the New Delhi station this August 15. 24 fine and graphicartists, and photograhers from Bihar, UP and Delhi put up their works for Jijivisha(desire to live), a poster art and photo exhibition. The railways said no to sculptures,framed paintings and ‘explicit’ works which meant "they rejected more than50 per cent of our works," says Sanjay Chaturvedi, the man behind the effort,"but the important thing is that they let it happen."

Naghma the ‘item’ rightly lends her gifts for an ‘item song’ inPriyadarshan’s latest film, Yeh Tera Ghar Yeh Mera Ghar, starring SunilShetty, Mahima Choudhary, Paresh Rawal and Saurabh Shukla. "Indian film songs havebeen moving out of the country to the Swiss Alps and other places," saysPriyadarshan. "I wanted a number which was rooted right here, yet verydifferent." And so this song captures the hardcore Maharashtrian custom of breaking adangling pot of butter on Gokulashtami day. The song was shot over five days in Hyderabad.A human pyramid was especially exported from Mumbai. "The pot was hung some 38 ftabove the ground," says the director. Naghma’s dance is "an expression ofthe thought process" of a character played by Mahima. The film itself is aboutmiddle-class tensions in big, bad Mumbai, nothing new.