Girl with the blue scarf

The Grand Finale presented by Rohit Bal , designer par excellence and the ultimate Master of Craft and Creative Design, was a mind blowing collection inspired by Lakmé Absolute Fast & Fabulous woman to end the Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2012. Akin to Rohit Bal’s inimitable style, Lakmé for the first time hosted the Grand Finale at the lawns of the Grand Hyatt, Mumbai . Pristine ivory pillars served as a backdrop for stunning models that walked down the ramp. Five carved life-size white cones lined the ramp (with models standing inside) while numerous hung from the branches of the trees surrounding the lawns. True to its legacy, Lakmé launched its Fast & Fabulous collection of 30 fashion forward nail colours that speed dry in 40 seconds. (They are already available in stores). The show opened with Silver Strings - a spirited trio of beautiful ladies, who enthralled the audience with their virtuosity on the violins. As the lights came on, the five cones rose to rev...

Bollywood stylist and leading designer Manish Malhotra will not showcase at Lakme Fashion Week Summer Resort 2012 on March 2, 2012. Instead James Ferriera will. The organisers of Lakme Fashion Week were in for a shock when designer Manish Malhotra cited date issues due to extreme work load in films and dropped out of showcasing at the LFW, in the prime slot of 9.30 pm on Day 1(March 2). Instead of Manish, veteran designer James Ferriera will return to his Mumbai roots after 6 long years and showcase in that slot now. Incidentally, the off-site show (Rohit Bal has done an off-site show last season) plan, which was to take place on March 1 and then followed by a 'By-invitation-only' party for fashionistas, models and designers did not take off. This time, only the party is happening and that has left some stylistas thinking 'What's up'? Now, the news of Manish pulling out also has turned out to be a dampener of sorts but James has filled in. Waiting for some youn...

Model Freddy Daruwala meets with grave bike accident, hospitalised Sunday evening (Feb 12, 2012) was a nightmare for leading male model Freddy Daruwala, who met with a major bike accident on the Mumbai-Nashik highway. He was immediately hospitalised at Kokilaben Hospital in Mumbai and was diagnosed with a crack in the spinal cord, broken collar bone and damaged index finger. Out of danger now, every time the doctor induces anaesthesia to him, he keeps saying, "I should've been more responsible."  Freddy, former Mr India, was to take off to Delhi for the ongoing Wills India Fashion Week there. All his plans to walk the ramp for established designers now stay altered. He was also selected to walk the ramp at the upcoming Lakme Fashion Week for designers Rohit Bal and Manish Malhotra amongst others in March, now that too will be put on hold. Being a self-confessed biking enthusiast, he often took off to weekend getaways from Mumbai with his biking gang. His friends f...

Genelia D'Souza's beautiful bride It wasn't too long back when I met Bollywood actress Genelia D'Souza for an interview and picture shoot in Bandra, Mumbai for Christmas. Exuding with energy, she spoke of how muych the festival means to her because it brings her family together. She was a tomboyish girl in school, playing football, basket ball and more. One of the stylishly turned out actress we have in B-Town, I've liked her style of dressing her age. It's the effortlessness which stands out as the winning point. On February 3, Genelia tied the knot in a typical Mahashtrian wedding with co-star Riteish Deshmukh , son of politico Vilasrao Deshmukh . And while I'm not too big on what marriage offers in the long run, especially ones which are arranged by parents and not by the girl and the boy themselves, I am often keen to see what look the bride wore... Not for the clothes and jewellery but also because of the healthy diet and regime the couple starts...

Be it the Coco Cola advertisement with kids singing 'Sunshine Wali Dhoop, Ummeidon wali asha' , AR Rahman's 'Tum Mein Hai Hero' sung lyric by lyric by children, kids seems to holding our attention rather raptly. What set me thinking was: Are we done with the mush and skin show all around us and finally getting back to basics. Are we using kids to restore that last bit of innocence in us, that was threatened by sidewalk hoardings peering down at us in sensual poses... And then recently, my convictions were further strengthened at the maiden run of India Kids Fashion Week in Mumbai, held between January 17-19. Boys and girls, aged between 4-14, in ponytails and schoolboy shots made a beeline to walk the ramp and have fun sashaying some designer wear. I feared the worst, 'What if a kid walks off the ramp and breaks his teeth. What if a child gets lost amidst all the hullabaloo of multiple shows. What if kids go hungry and are made to wait endlessly backstage with f...

OH KATE: The world’s newest fashion icon and royal, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, was photographed shopping at affordable chain stores. Designers talked directly to fans on TV and Twitter, and sold cheap chic collections on eBay, and at H&M, Target and Macy’s. It was the royal wedding of the century (April 29, 2011, to be exact), and Catherine wore Alexander McQueen . The bad boy British designer died last year, but his fashion label has never been more popular thanks to the designs of artistic director Sarah Burton, who is carrying on his legacy. More than half a million people went to see “Savage Beauty,” the retrospective exhibition of his work, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, kicking off a frenzy among museum curators the world over to come up with more fashion programming. CURVES ARE BACK: Will give it to Bollywood actress Kareena Kapoor for flaunting her full figure in RA.One , something that most Indian women already have. May be, Indian men need to ...

RIP Mario Miranda, Shammi Kapoor and Jagjit Singh It's eery the way this year (2011) has ended with some of my most inspiring men, going away, forever. Mario Miranda, cartoonist, Shammi Kapoor, actor and Jagjit Singh, singer. These men moulded my thoughts and my aspirations, kept me wacky and humoured. I shall miss them, forever. A salute to the kings - Mario, Shammi and Jagjit. Mario Miranda : Acclaimed cartoonist Mario Miranda, who made Goan landscapes and people come alive on canvas, died at his ancestral home in Loutolim on December 11, after a long illness, family sources said. He was 85. “He had been ailing for long and he passed away peacefully in his sleep,” his grieving widow Habiba told. Miranda is survived by his wife and two sons. Lautolim is 35 km from Panaji, Goa. Mario had been ill with multiple complications for few years and had not been very active on the art scene though he occasionally made sketches for some publications . Shammi Kapoor : Tributes have been paid...