Scene and Heard

Marcellus Baptista

What's happening in Mumbai’s hotels? A peek into the party circuit and events in the city...

Racy fashion

President of Bostswana Festus Mogae, Diandra Soares and Vijay Jain at the Orra show

A day at the races can also be a day for good food, wine fine and a dash of fashion thrown in for good measure. This was the case at the Orra Million Sparkle at Mahalaxmi racecourse. An extensive lounge was created in the first enclosure of the Royal Western India Turf Club with Sharmilla and her band in attendance along with two bars offering champagne and the choicest spirits, and a buffet spread with cheese, pasta and more. Though guests looked at the horses racing across the finish line, they seemed more keen to view the models showcasing Orra jewellery and collections called Colours of Africa by South African couturier Gavin Rajah, Belgian Mystique by Belgian designer Ann Demeulemeester and a bridal line by Gaurav Gupta. The show, choreographed by Marc Robinson, saw models Diandra Soares, Gauhar Khan, Candice Pinto, Dipti Gujral, Sucheta Sharma, Shamita and Mashoom Singh walking up and down the steps and across a long red carpet area. Enjoying the experience were the likes of President of Bostwana, Festus Mogae, Nicky Oppenheimer, chairman, De Beers group, Dilip Mehta, CEO, Rosyblue and Vijay Jain, CEO, Orra. And making his very own style statement in a flashy red-and-white shirt and diamond earrings was Bollywood's Anil Kapoor.

Maha party

Ananya Dutt and Deepa Awchat at Diva Maharashtracha

People at the party cheered for Dr Suhas Awchat and wife Deepa as they launched their third restaurant in town, Diva Maharashtracha, after giving the city the popular Goa Portuguesa and Culture Curry. In keeping with the theme and cuisine, the Awchats dressed up in traditional Maharashtrian attire. Quite a few of the guests, too, decided to dress accordingly, getting into a merry Maharashtrian mood. Ministers Anil Deshmukh, Vijay Singh, Mohite Patel and Dilip Valse Patil were there along with filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar, ghazal duo Sonali and Roopkumar Rahod, theatre personality Bharat Dhabolkar with Ananya Dutt, actress Ishaaa Koppikar, actor Shreyas Talpade with wife Deepti, former Sheriff Kiran Shantaram, Dr. Sandesh Mayekar, Dr Jamuna Pai, Kiron Juneja and Ramesh Sippy, Vikas Bhalla, Bijon Das Gupta, Viren Shah, Ashok Salian, Milind Gunaji, celebrated chef Sanjeev Kapoor and wife Aloyna, Vikas Kalantri, theatre personalities Tanaaz Lal and Bhaktyar Irani. Everyone appreciated the new restaurant that offered regional cuisine from all across the state and also encouraged Maharashtrian culture and music.

Sands of time

Channel [V] VJs Sarah-Jane, Juhi, Pia, Tina and Archana at Salt Water Grill

The chosen venue, Salt Water Grill, was very appropriate for the launch of the Channel [V] calendar. With sand under your feet and hammocks around, it seemed just the right place to showcase a calendar that was shot on the beaches of Goa. The calendar was unveiled, there was music in the air, you saw flashes of the shoots on plasma screens all around and, of course, the celebration included champagne and beer as you watched the sunset. Channel [V]'s head honcho Amar K Deb and Sameer Nair, CEO, Star Entertainment India were the happy hosts. Present were the calendar girls, the music channel's VJs Sarah-Jane, Juhi, Pia, Tina and Archana. Called Dance with [V], you learnt that it was shot on five beautiful beaches in Goa by Sudhir Ramchandran, with 20 mashaals, 18 mirror balls, 16 speaker stacks, 15 weathered chairs and 12 boom boxes.

A touch of gold

Asif Adil and Amrita Arora at the Johnnie Walker Race Day

The gleam of the horses blended with the smooth taste of Scotch at the Johnnie Walker Race Day at the Mahalaxmi racecourse. Also shining was the Byliner speedboat given away as a prize to lucky consumer Nitin Kotak. Equally impressive was the sight of the McLaren MP4-21 racing car, marking the beginning of the Johnnie Walker-McLaren Mercedes India Tour. Musicians and dancers from Scotland added to the action while the many bars offered you Red Label and also Smirnoff cocktails concocted by Shatbhi Basu. The fun at the races included a prize to the best-dressed lady in the Johnnie Walker colours of black and gold. The winner was Farah Bayramji Shah who went home with a gold bar. The contest was judged by actress Amrita Arora who also donned a golden ensemble. Actresses Tanisha and Masumeh, ghazal singer Jagjit Singh and salsa and belly dancer Veronica were spotted at the races. And the previous night saw the Johnnie Walker Gold Label dinner at the Turf Club with guests like Vinod Khanna and wife Kavita, Shiney Ahuja, Soni Razdan, Neena Gupta, Priya Dutt and husband Owen Roncon, Bindu and Arjun Khanna.