Scene and Heard

Marcellus Baptista

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

Women on top

Vidya Malavade, Munisha Khatwani, Sakshi Tanwar, Gautami Kapoor, Shaina NC and Manasi Joshi Roy at the Hobby Ideas Women Achievers Show at the Leela

The ballroom of the Leela was the happy venue for the Hobby Ideas Women Achievers Show, conceptualised by Shaina NC in aid of the Cancer Patients Aid Association. Besides a sprinkling of models the show belonged to women of all walks of life who took that long walk on the ramp, loudly applauded by the packed house. It turned out to be a super-charged show, choreographed by Hemant Trevedi, compered by Hugo D'Souza and hosted by Aditi Govitrikar who introduced chief guest Waheeda Rehman and other well-known personalities like Nana Chudsama and Rashmi Thackeray. On the catwalk was Hobby Ideas brand ambassador Perizaad Zorabian and familiar faces like Sakshi Tanwar, Manasi Joshi Roy, Gautami Kapoor, Sandhya Shetty, Nisha Javeri, Bina Aziz, Farah Siddiqui, Shonali Nagrani, Leena Mogre and Priyanka Shah. And on view were some splendid saris in shades of red, orange, brown, pink, blue and black - all not just very fashionable but also very wearable.

Nine lives

Rahul Akerkar and Pooja Bedi at the ninth anniversary of Indigo

The stylish standalone restaurant and bar Indigo celebrated its ninth anniversary with a sunshiny Sunday brunch. Hosts Rahul Akerkar and wife Malini were there to personally meet and greet each and every guest. Inside, the buzz was on at the bar and there was jazz in the air. Martinis seemed to be the drink of the moment while the starters included kaffir lime and ginger marinated prawns, and bacon and prune wraps with parmesan fondue. Of course, there was a bountiful buffet spread with yellow fin tuna, homemade duck terrine, soba noodle salad, buffalo mozzarella in tomato chilli broth, and also a barbecue corner with king prawns and spare ribs. It looked like a brunch laid out for the couples around town with the presence of Zeba and Rajesh Kohli, Esther and Raju Daswani, Sabina and A D Singh, Arti and Kailash Surendranath, Sabira and Chottu Merchant, Sameena and Azeem Khan, Maheka and Amrit Mirpuri, Joanne and Vinod Nayar, Pooja Bedi and Hanif Hilal. Also making their presence felt was Sushama Reddy, model sisters Shamita and Mashoom Singha, Asif Adil, Rajeev Samant, Sangita Kathiwada Sinh, Narendra Kumar, Ashwin Deo, Fahad Samar and Arjun Khanna

French connection

Shonal Rawat at the French Chic show at ITC Grand Central

French couture on the catwalk - that's what it was at ITC Grand Central as Gitanjali Lifestyle teamed up with Galeries Lafayette to present French Chic over two days. Besides the French designers and brands, showcased were the stuff by three top Indian couturiers, Neeta Lulla, Vikram Phadnis and Archana Kochhar. The stylish shows saw creations from the famed Christian Lacroix, Nina Ricci, Kenzo, Ungaro, Cymbeline, Barbara Bui, Francois Girbaud, Adolfo Dominquez, Jean Charles de Castelbajac, Paule Ka, Catherine Melandrino and Tara Jarmon. It was also a good opportunity for Gitanjali to showcase jewellery from its portfolio of Stephen Hafner, Rossato, Calgaro and Facco. Guests had a good look at the creations modelled by French as well as Indian models like Shonal Rawat and Alecia Raut. And post-show it was time to move up to the garden for cocktails and dinner.

Beer cheer

Vivek Chhabra at the Tiger beer launch at the Taj

The summer cheer was on at the Taj with the launch of Tiger beer from Asia Pacific Breweries Aurangabad (APBAL), a subsidiary of Asia Pacific Breweries (APB). Joining the ranks of Singapore, Malaysia, China and Thailand is India, the tenth country in the Asia Pacific region to brew the award-winning beer launched way back in 1932 in Singapore. You learnt that Tiger is APB's flagship brand, enjoyed by millions of beer drinkers in more than 60 countries. Now, in Mumbai it would be made available in wine shops, pubs and restaurant, besides the five-star hotel circuit. Vivek Chhabra, regional director, South Asia & Director, Group Business Development, APB was there along with other personnel from the parent group, sharing the knowledge that Tiger is prepared from only the finest ingredients - malt from Australia, the choicest hops from Europe, and a unique strain of yeast cultured in Holland. Brewed under the supervision of Heineken N.V. technical experts, they believe in stringent quality control management, conducting as many as 200 quality checks during the brewing process.