RUBINA’S REVIEW | THE ARCHIES

December 8, 2023December 8, 2023Leave a comment

DECEMBER 8, 2023

Netflix India’s most awaited film of 2023, The Archies, directed by Zoya Akhtar, released worldwide on December 7th, 2023 on a screen on your lap, in your hand or on your desk. Starring an ensemble cast of debutants in the headlining roles, The Archies is a musical adaptation of the American comic series, Archie, that traces the life of Archibald Andrews, a ginger-haired teen, and his friends in Riverdale, a town in the United States that is as fictional as its residents. Created by publisher John L. Goldwater and artist Bob Montana in collaboration with writer Vic Bloom in 1941, every character in the Archie comics is beloved around the world since, be it Veronica Lodge, Betty Cooper, Jughead Jones, Big Moose, Dilton Doiley, Reggie Mantle, Mr Weatherbee, Miss Grundy, Midge Klump, Ethel Muggs and of course, Archie himself. For lack of a contemporary reference, Archie and his Riverdale gang are the F.R.I.E.N.D.S of the comic world given anyone who has ever read an Archie comic, single or digest, knows and devours everything about the characters and their quirks, such is the endearing familiarity, yet thrilling simplicity of them all.

Referencing an American comic series with Anglo-Indianised versions of the characters set in India in 1964 seems to be the sole premise of this film, with teen angst roller skating into school, and after-school life, with milkshakes and burgers set to wonderfully choreographed musical interludes in marvellous 60s costumery. The costumes in the film are stars in themselves, never mind who is wearing them. But The Archies also appears to be a low-key environmental warrior film set in a year when climate activism did not exist worldwide, certainly not in India, but climate awareness did, and Earth Day was only recognised in 1970 in the United States. As I understand, the 60s teens didn’t really speak green, they did green.

Mihir Ahuja, Suhana Khan, Yuvraj Menda, Agastya Nanda, Aditi Dot Saigal, Khushi Kapoor and Vedang Raina in The Archies poster ©Netflix

The 143-minute film represents the Hindi film industry’s biggest names – it stars a Khan – Suhana, a Kapoor – Khushi and a Bachchan, Agastya Bachchan Nanda, who have simply joined the family business, ably and admirably. And, all three live up to the cinematic legacies they were born into, and have chosen to take forward of their own accord. They can act. If this film was created and mounted to showcase and launch the talents of the twenty-something progenies of some of India’s biggest superstars like Raj Kapoor, Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan and Sridevi, then it has succeeded as Suhana Khan and Agastya Nanda have it in spades, with Khushi Kapoor a few paces behind.

Suhana Khan is prodigiously expressive in her portrayal as the self-absorbed Veronica Lodge in the film. It takes an intelligent mind to play a clueless, millionaire teen and Khan does so with measured alacrity, her soothing voice adding to the allure of her act. And, she dances and pirouettes on skates, and without them, arched and poised like a ballerina, always in step, a grand jeté away from perfection.

Agastya Nanda’s got the Kapoor dance moves and the Bachchan voice and height, but it his very own Nanda je ne sais quoi that adds to his charismatic performance as Archie Andrews. He enunciates his lines beautifully and fills up the screen with boyish insouciance as Archie, a rhythm guitarist torn between Riverdale and England, and Ronnie and Betty, and every girl in the world. Nanda’s definitely got the rizz and has the girls, and boys, in a tizz! He is, after all, Raj Kapoor’s great-grandson and Amitabh Bachchan’s grandson!

Khushi Kapoor makes a pretty picture as the gamine Betty Cooper in the film. She is as graceful as she is statuesque in her role, but she needs to work on her dialogue delivery that is awkward and a tad mumbly. Yuvraj Menda is achingly vulnerable as he is adorable as the teen nerd finding himself, Dilton Doiley. His lilting ‘Thank you’ warrants an encore every single time! Ethel Muggs is perfectly played by Aditi Dot Saigal, a musician who has also worked on the lyrics and music of the film. Vedang Raina is slick and haute as Reggie Mantle, and he goes from smouldering silences to verbose angst with natural ease. Mihir Ahuja plays Jughead Jones ably, but the character written in the film doesn’t speak to the original essence of the forever-eating, oddball Jughead. All seven of the debutants on the film’s poster have got some serious moves and can dance their legs off. Not like Jungkook though, yet.

I loved that the sets looked unreal, with real people and real emotions swirling through – like an Archie in Toyland atmosphere. I loved Rudra Mahuvarkar’s Big Moose dumb, muscleman act – mistaking philanderer for Phil Anderson was a riot. Jughead should have been ditzier and clumsier, and eaten way more hamburgers and fries. Ronnie didn’t need to act fashionably sustainable in 1964 by repeating that eyesore of a canvas trunk bag everywhere in Riverdale – it was just so off the Lodge brand and entirely unnecessary. It didn’t add to her rich vibe; Khan’s enactment of Ronnie did. And, she does know a thing or two about being rich. Seasoned actors like Suhaas Ahuja, Aly Khan, Vinay Pathak, Delnaaz Irani and Deven Khote enriched the performances of the debutants in the film.

Did I love the film? No. Why did I sit through it? I wanted to see SRK’s daughter, Amitabh Bachchan’s grandson and Sridevi’s daughter act, and they most definitely can. Is the film worth the wait, the worldwide marketing thrust, dollar spend and the hype? Not in the least, but all its debutant actors are! You cannot not love them all!

Disclaimer: Any part of the content on the rubinaakhan.com website cannot be reproduced without prior permission and crediting the website and the author. The © ahead of a name is the copyright of the subject in the photograph and not shot by Rubina A Khan.

©Rubina A Khan 2023

RUBINA’S RADAR | WHO’S YOUR MOMMY?

December 5, 2023December 6, 2023Leave a comment

DECEMBER 5, 2023

Daddy’s l’il girl who? It’s Mommy’s big girl season in fashion, with model Lila Moss recreating her mother’s iconic naked dress in London on Monday night and Khushi Kapoor wearing one of her late mother’s gowns for her big night out at The Archies premiere in Mumbai on Tuesday evening. 2024’s going to be all about ‘Who’s your mommy’ and how you play it in fashion.

LONDON: A moment in fashion’s history was created in 1993 when British supermodel Kate Moss arrived at an Elite Model Agency party for the Look of the Year contest at the Hilton Hotel in London, wearing a sheer silver dress by Liza Bruce, sans a bra, with just a pair of black underwear. With that outing, Moss turned owning a naked dress into a wardrobe must-have for every fashion forward around the world. The Liza Bruce dress was a part of Undressed: A Brief History of Underwear, an exhibit at the Victoria and Albert museum in London in 2016. According to Moss, the naked dress happened quite by chance, as the dress was not see-through in her Soho flat before she stepped outside. Interestingly, It also started Moss’ paparazzi trail as it was the first time she had really got papped, self-admittedly, by the photographers.

Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell in London in September 1993.

This memorable look was recreated by the supermodel’s daughter, Lila Moss at The Fashion Awards 2023 for the British Fashion Council held at the Royal Albert Hall in London on December 4th, 2023. Moss wore a sheer silver gown by Albanian designer, Nensi Dojaka, with a black pair of underwear, referencing her mother’s iconic naked dress from 30 years ago. Lila recreated the dress with honourable sentiment, but failed to create a historic fashion moment like her mother. British photographer, Dave Benett photographed both Moss women in their respective naked dresses in London, in 1993 and 2023.

Lila Moss at The Fashion Awards in London in December 2023.

MUMBAI: Khushi Kapoor did not source an outfit nor buy one for her first red carpet moment as a debutant actor at The Archies premiere in Mumbai. She simply shopped at home, from her legendary mother, Sridevi’s wardrobe – a touching and sensitive start to her innings as a fashion forward actor. She chose a champagne-hued gown by designer duo, Ken Kaufman and Isaac Franco of Kaufman Franco, that her late mother had worn 10 years ago to the 14th International Indian Film Academy Awards (IFFA) in Macau in 2013. Kapoor looked resplendent and poised in the gown, and the ice around her neck, also her mother’s, lent her extra sparkle on her big night out. She honoured the memory of her mother admirably, and with grace. Kapoor not only broke the predictable fashion sourcing trend with her choice, but also kept up with the pro climate call to the fashion industry to reuse, repurpose and recycle. With her lithe frame, Kapoor’s already a fashion favourite and an ‘it-girl’ in the making.

©Khushi Kapoor

Sridevi with Janhvi and Khushi Kapoor in Macau in 2013.

The Archies streams on Netflix on December 7, 2023 and has an ensemble cast of film debutants, aside from Kapoor – Suhana Khan, Agastya Nanda, Vedang Raina, Mihir Ahuja, Aditi Saigal and Yuvraj Menda.

Disclaimer: Any part of the content on the r ubinaakhan.com website cannot be reproduced without prior permission and crediting the website and the author. The © ahead of a name is the copyright of the subject in the photograph and not shot by Rubina A Khan.

©Rubina A Khan 2023

RUBINA’S RADAR | WESTLIFE IS COMING EAST

November 21, 2023November 21, 2023Leave a comment

NOVEMBER 21, 2023

The most famous Irish boy band in the world is U2 formed by Bono (Paul Hewson), The Edge (David Evans), Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. in 1976 whilst they were all still attending Mount Temple Comprehensive School in Dublin, Ireland. The global music landscape has seen very successful boy bands coming out of Ireland ever since, especially in the 90s, one of them being Boyzone (very imaginatively named) that was formed in 1993, followed by Westlife in 1998. Interestingly, Louis Walsh managed both Boyzone and Westlife. Straight off their shows in South Africa, Taiwan, Macau and Vietnam, Westlife is coming to India to perform live for the very first time in November 2023 with their Wild Dreams Tour 2023 and 2024.

MUMBAI: Irish pop band, Westlife, will be performing live for the first time in India in three cities – at the Mahalaxmi Race Course in Mumbai on November 24th, at the Embassy Riding School in Bangalore on November 25th and at the Jawahar Lal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi on November 26th. Westlife was formed in 1998 in Dublin, Ireland, with Shane Filan, Mark Feehily, Kian Egan and Nicky Byrne. Brian McFadden was a member before leaving the group in 2004. They will be performing their pop chart historical numbers – Uptown Girl, Swear It Again, If I Let You Go, Flying Without Wings, You Raise Me Up, I Have A Dream, When You’re Looking Like That, along with the latest tracks from their twelfth studio album Wild Dreams, that was released on November 26th, 2021 by East West Records.

**Westlife performs as part of the ‘Festival Machaca 2023’ at Parque Fundidora on June 24, 2023 in Monterrey, Mexico.**

Kian, Mark and Shane performed in their school musical Grease together in the early 90s, and after their success on stage, they decided to form a band. Westlife has gone through many name changes since the band’s formation from 6 AS 1, I.O.YOU, Westside to finally Westlife named thus as Kian, Mark and Shane are from Sligo in west Ireland, with only Nicky being a Dubliner. Westlife recently announced their very first headline North American tour in 2024, starting with Canada in March 2024 to USA, Mexico and Brazil.

©Rubina A Khan 2023

RUBINA’S RADAR | A JUMMA AND A CHUMMA IN MUMBAI

November 17, 2023November 18, 2023Leave a comment

NOVEMBER 17, 2023

Attention is a heady elixir in Mumbai, and rather addictive at that. With the world blowing kisses at Virat Kohli for breaking and making new cricket records at the Wankhede Stadium and football’s invincible goliath himself, David Beckham on a walkabout of the very same stadium with none other than the revered lord of cricket, Sachin Tendulkar, with Kohli as an assist, it’s been a very celebratory November so far. And with India playing Australia in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 on November 19th in Ahmedabad, the attention on cricket is only going to escalate, particularly if India wins the cup.

MUMBAI: India’s colossus of cricket, Virat Kohli became the first batter in ODI history to score 50 centuries, breaking the record for most hundreds in ODIs during the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023. Kohli broke Sachin Tendulkar’s landmark record for most ODI centuries when he hit his 50th ODI hundred in the semifinal game against New Zealand on November 15th at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, India. Kohli made his ODI debut in 2008 and has played 279 innings in 291 matches to score 13,794 runs at an average of 58.69 and a strike rate of 93.62 to date. He has scored 50 centuries and 71 half-centuries in the 279 innings to date. After the 2011 World Cup win, Kohli had carried his idol, Sachin Tendulkar on his shoulders on the Wankhede grounds, and after hitting his milestone, he saluted towards the stands in the direction of his wife Anushka Sharma, and then to Tendulkar. “It’s the stuff of dreams, Anushka was sitting right there, Sachin was there in the stands. It’s very difficult for me to explain this, but if I could paint a perfect picture, I would want this to be the picture. My life partner, the person I love the most, she’s sitting there. My hero, he’s sitting there. And I was able to get there in front of all of them and all these fans in Wankhede as well, such a historic venue. It was amazing,” said Kohli of his historic moment and India’s win.

Virat Kohli at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, India on November 15th, 2023.

Of course there was another sporting goliath, David Beckham, watching the semi-final game and Kohli’s record innings from the stands. Beckham was on his first visit to India as a UNICEF goodwill ambassador, and caught up with the revered god of cricket and ICC Global Ambassador, Sachin Tendulkar in Mumbai, ahead of India’s semi-final match against New Zealand. People went wild seeing Beckham, Tendulkar and Kohli together, and the three legends of sport were met with thunderous applause and excitement by the fans at Wankhede, especially when Kohli played assist for Beckham’s legendary kick. India plays Australia at the Narendra Modi stadium in Ahmedabad on November 19th and it remains to be seen what records the boys in blue will make and break on the day.

David Beckham with Sachin Tendulkar, Akash Ambani, Kiara Advani, Siddharth Malhotra at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, India

MUMBAI: The first edition of Himalayan Knot, a project exploring the textiles, weaves and crafts of the Himalayan region, namely Ladakh, orchestrated and nurtured by Royal Enfield’s (Eicher Motors Ltd) social mission, was held on November 17th at a Mukesh Mills in Mumbai. The Timeless Spirit of The Himalayas, a conversation between designer Prabal Gurung and sustainable activist and journalist, Bandana Tewari, both of Nepalese descent and heritage, spoke of their combined familiarity with the Himalayan region, and the pressing need for its rightful cultural identity on the global landscape. After all, conversations like these that stem from personal experiences, are the first drivers that action change, be it cultural, ethnic, political or climactic. The Himalayan region traverses India, Nepal, China, Pakistan and Bhutan, and is often othered and smothered by talks of the highest mountain peak in the world, Mount Everest, and not its indigenous people, their culture, their histories and the adverse effects of global warming on all aspects of their life. Tewari also moderated a panel on Empowering Communities Through Craft and Culture and Shaping Contemporary Fashion With Heritage Textiles during the course of the evening. Talking about the plurality in the singularity of our roots and our heritage is the only way forward in a world consumed with selective recognition. The Himalayan kitchen experience was crafted by culinary virtuoso, Chef Prateek Sadhu’s new restaurant NAAR (fire in Kashmiri) in Solan, and led by Chef Kamlesh Negi and a 10-member team, alongside Ladakhi home chefs in Mumbai. The Baqarkhaani, Yak Cheese Askaloo and Gucchi Pulao were incredibly flavourful and delicious. The affable Chef Negi lives in Dehradun, but he belongs to the Paudi Garhwal region of Uttarakhand, and his culinary talent for regional dishes is beyond compare. I am yet to eat something made by him that’s not wildly amazing and memorable.

©Prabal Gurung at Mukesh Mills, Mumbai, India | Photographed by Rubina A Khan

Strategically positioned on the banks of the Arabian Sea, Mukesh Mills, a favoured spot for film shootings, came alive for the night from its dilapidated, withered, barren and abandoned state of existence. Prior to this Jumma night, I had only ever seen Mukesh Mills playing shape-shifting characters in Amitabh Bachchan’s films, namely the Jumma Chumma track from Hum (1991), Khuda Gawah (1992), Agneepath (1990), all directed by the late Mukul Anand. I reckon Bachchan’s Tiger in Hum led to the spawning of many tigers in the film industry since, but Bachchan’s Tiger is an indomitably original and beloved character. I was deliciously excited to be at Mukesh Mills, a place I had wanted to visit for a long time, imagining Bachchan’s 90s era and the films he shot at the abandoned and obsolete mill. I shall go back to Mukesh Mills soon to see the jetty and the docks in all their geographical and historical glory under the warmth of the winter sun.

Mukesh Mills in Colaba, Mumbai, India

An excerpt from ©Amitabh Bachchan’s blog, marked Day 75 reads thus:
“My dear friend and producer of the film, Romesh Sharma and I had been battling for a number for a sequence for a while. On a private visit to Brussels, Belgium I walked past a music store and heard the notes of a song which remained with me. A few months later driving up to Abhishek’s school in Switzerland I heard some attractive notes of another song on the radio and it all came together. ‘Mukhra’ Belgium, ‘antara’ Switzerland and we had the song. Soon after it was recorded, there was Holi at Prateeksha and in the madness of the revelry of the festival, we played the song out to the hundreds of guests at an open house. Billu, as I fondly call Romesh, and I knew we had a winner. We sat on the design, we sat on the location, we sat on the choreography and picked Mukesh Mills. Set up a section of the dilapidated factory into a workers entertainment centre and shot the song. I have never witnessed such enthusiasm and energy in all, during the shooting of this catchy number. We had our moments though. A few months before that shooting I had been on a concert tour – Jumma Chumma in London. Wembley Stadium. 65,000 people. A first for any Indian concert. There was just Sridevi and myself and Kalyanji Anandji with Viju and his orchestra. But I wanted more artists. Two young first timers had suddenly erupted on the film firmament and had perhaps just one film to their credit. Aamir Khan and Salman Khan. It was their first stage show ever. I invited them to join us. Along with Anupam and Neelam we had the concert of our time. A film was made of it and it is available on dvd and video. The popularity of the song and the concert visual was now known to all. We had performed it on stage with exquisite Broadway dancers from New York. They had looked stunning. Would the impression of the song in the minds of the audience get disturbed with what they were now about to see on screen? It was a challenge. One that dance director Chinni Prakash came out in flying colors with. The lovely Kimi Katkar, so gorgeous in her red dress and the only lady on set in the song, incredible. In every shot, the crew, the light men, the spot boys the producer, director, the crowds, all screaming and shouting, egging us on to give our best. What an atmosphere.”

©Rubina A Khan 2023

RUBINA’S RADAR | JIO WORLD PLAZA OPENS IN MUMBAI

November 3, 2023November 23, 2023Leave a comment

NOVEMBER 1, 2023

Ahead of its opening on November 1st, 2023, Isha Ambani, Executive Director, Reliance Retail Ventures Limited, alongside her parents, Mukesh and Nita Ambani, hosted an extravagantly appointed preview of the Jio World Plaza at the Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai on October 31st. The Jio World Plaza’s nothing like India has ever seen, and it stands to change the landscape of luxury in India in a manner most indulgent, aspirational and consumeristic. Cartier, Dior, Rolex, Giorgio Armani, Saint Laurent, Gucci, Balenciaga, Valentino, Bottega Veneta, Burberry, Muji and Samsung are just some of the 66 luxury brands housed in the glimmering plaza, vying for your attention and your bucks, but of course. Tiffany & Co, Rimowa, Saint Laurent, Valentino, Versace, Bulgari and Pottery Barn marked their presence at the plaza, and in India, with their very first stores in the country. For culinary indulgences, coffee and sweet conversations, there’s the Parisian Laduree and the Italian Armani Cafe. Looking at the expanse of the space spread over four levels and the signages of brands, you can’t not think, jio luxury jio! Prior to the opening of JWP, luxury brands were compelled to open stores in hotels due to a dearth of quality retail space in the country. But thankfully, the plaza has called in the death of the archaic, hotel-housed luxury store model in India. The raison d’etre for the Jio World Plaza was best expressed by Nita Ambani, at the opening affair, “We want to bring the world to India and take India to the world.”

Jio World Plaza, Mumbai | Photographed by Rubina A Khan

The Cartier store, inaugurated by brand ambassador, Deepika Padukone, has the headlining space of 2500 square feet right at the entrance of the plaza. The rents at JWP are commensurate to the luxuries on offer, and the square footage of space, but naturally. Christian Dior’s Indian arm, Christian Dior Trading India has leased a space of 3317 square feet in the plaza from Reliance Industries for upwards of INR 21 Lakh a month, the rental of which is based on the minimum monthly guaranteed sum or net revenue share, contributions ranging from 4% to 12%, whichever is higher, as reported by Reuters. India’s 1.4 billion population is the largest in the world and real estate consultants, Knight Frank, estimate India will have 1.4 million millionaires by 2026, 77% more than in 2021, as the economy continues to grow. India’s per capita income as of 2023 is INR 1,92,000 ($2,300) and the country has more than 800,000 millionaires. These millionaires, who make up only 0.06% of India’s total population of 1.4 billion, are ready to flash and splash their cash on all things expensive, but not necessarily luxurious. After all, an expensive price tag is a hashtag to immediate Instagram fame and validation for some, and a discreet buy for connoisseurs of luxury.

Shloka and Akash Ambani, Mukesh Ambani and Radhika Merchant, ©Ranveer Singh, ©Isha Ambani and ©Nita Ambani | Photographed by Rubina A Khan

This is the third Reliance extravaganza of 2023 celebrating the international worlds of art, fashion, sports and culture in India. The Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC) multi-day opening gala on April 1st, the 141st International Olympic Committee (IOC) session with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in attendance at the Jio World Centre on October 14th and the Jio World Plaza opening on October 31st has had Indians entranced with the sheer scale of the build, both physical and fiscal, and the glamour power attached to them. The entire Jio complex, including the Jio World Garden, Jio World Drive and the Jio World Convention Centre, took about 13 years to build.

©Karisma Kapoor Jio World Plaza, Manish Malhotra and Rubina A Khan, Nora Fatehi, ©Alia Bhatt and Janhvi Kapoor | Photographed by Rubina A Khan

The JWP opening saw a theatrical fashion show, The New Order of Style, choreographed by Aparna and Anisha Bahl, showcasing eight designers, with 21 showstoppers, 40 performers and 120 models on the second level of the plaza, with an opening address by Isha Ambani, the hostess of the night. Manish Malhotra’s Bombay Bordeaux collection was fire and desire in bold colours and styles, with Karisma Kapoor working a red haute sari suit on her lithe frame, and Janhvi Kapoor, Nora Fatehi and Karan Johar walking the show for him. Abraham & Thakore’s collection was an artistic smorgasbord of delicious monochromatic blacks and whites. The original model mould and butt bold, John Abraham, walked for Satya Paul by Rajesh Pratap Singh. Miss Supranational Asia 2022, Ritika Khatnani walked for Ritu Kumar’s beautiful collection, as did Sara Ali Khan for Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla, and many more beautiful ladies and gents walking for the designers. But can there be a fashion spectacle in Bombay without Ranveer Singh? Evidently not, and his runway appearance elicited roaring cheers from the guests as he walked in a bejewelled black dhoti and blazer at the end of the showing. Singh then went on to turn compere for the evening, bringing in Nita Ambani’s 60th birthday (November 1st) with effusive praise for her beauty, elegance and visionary work. She wore a gold Kanjivaram saree to the opening, made by master artisan, Somadas. Known as a Kanchi Pattu and woven in the korvai style in pure silk zari, from her yet-to-launch Swadesh initiative by the Reliance Foundation, the sari was an ode to India’s master craftsmen. Seated by Kokilaben Ambani, Mukesh and Nita Ambani, Akash and Shloka Ambani, Isha Ambani and Anand Piramal, Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant, were Katrina Kaif, Alia Bhatt, Kareena Kapoor, Pinky and Sanjay Reddy, and many more guests. Everyone looked fabulous and happy with the fashion theatre, culinary delights, late night shopping, open bars and the high ceilings.

Laila Lamba, Malaika Arora, Poonam Bhagat and Shalini Hinduja | Photographed by Rubina A Khan

FIVE THINGS I LOVED AT THE JIO WORLD PLAZA OPENING:

The red carpet photo ops are held inside air-conditioned confines, with no one breaking into a sweat literally, with melting makeup, guests and photographers alike.
Isha Ambani in Dior (she changed a few times through the evening – she does own the plaza after all!) Alia Bhatt in Gaurav Gupta and Malaika Arora in Alaia were the black beauties of the night.
The basil and cinnamon ice cream and the Laduree macarons.
Ranveer Singh’s sincere compering skills in a colloquial style that held the attention of the attendees.
The plaza itself and that the evening was orchestrated flawlessly and impeccably with the most genteel and polite staff. I mean, even the security dogs barked politely!

Let the Reliance Return on Investments (RROI’s) begin as Reliance is here to play as you pay!

©Rubina A Khan 2023

RUBINA’S RADAR | LIGHTS, CAMERA, DELHI!

October 19, 20231 Comment

OCTOBER 20, 2023

New Delhi has been courting glamour with the 69th National Film Awards being held at Vigyan Bhawan on October 17th, 2023 and the Netflix series, Fabulous Lives kicking off filming in the capital for its third season next week. The third edition of the series has a new cast from Delhi added to the original cast from Bombay. Haute talk between the Mumbai and Delhi wives? Let the heads roll right into the tea spills!

NEW DELHI: Actors Alia Bhatt and Kriti Sanon won their first National Award for Best Actress – a joint honour for both with separate trophies of course – at the 69th National Film Awards at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi on October 17th, 2023. Bhatt won a very well-deserved award for her portrayal as the self-assured protagonist in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Gangubai Kathiawadi and as did Sanon for her performance in Laxman Utekar’s Mimi. Sanon and Bhatt received their awards from President Droupadi Murmu, the former wearing a custom Manish Malhotra sari at the felicitation, and the latter, her ivory and gold wedding sari. India’s elegant beauty and legendary actor, Waheeda Rehman was conferred with the Dadasaheb Phalke Lifetime Achievement Award at the award ceremony. Interestingly, Allu Arjun made history by becoming the first Telugu actor to receive a National award for Best Actor for his performance in Pushpa: The Rise.

©Alia Bhatt

NEW DELHI: The third season of the Fabulous Lives Of Bollywood Wives started filming in Mumbai this week with its original cast of the Bombay wives. Next week, it’s Delhi’s turn to take to the lights and cameras. This season of the series will see the glamorous and beautiful Riddhima Kapoor-Sahni, daughter of Rishi and Neetu Kapoor, alongside other Delhi wives added to the mix of the original Bollywood wives. The first and second editions of the Fabulous Lives aired on Netflix in November 2020 and September 2022, with actor Neelam, Bhavna Panday, Seema Sajdeh and Maheep Kapoor headlining the series, and Shah Rukh and Gauri Khan making a coupled cameo. Will we see Ranbir Kapoor make an appearance on the show for his sister? Maybe. There is also talk of Netflix renaming the show to just Fabulous Lives this season as the Delhi wives are not Bollywood wives. It could be very well be called Fabulous Lives Of Glamorous Wives, but then again, not everyone is glamorous or a wife in the cast this season. Glam damn! There’s still time to name it as the series is set to air in the second half of 2024.

©Riddhima Kapoor-Sahni

MUMBAI: Malaika Arora, the Khaleesi of sexy, in body and brain, struts a fashion runway like no other in India. She has been walking the walk for years now, carrying off every imaginable kind of garment with styled and poised ease. No season of fashion week, pret or couture, is complete without her panthera walk. And she definitely knows how to make coin, seducing the cameras with her sharp fashion face. A trained ballerina, Arora danced her way into every Indian’s heart with her graceful moves in Chaiyya Chaiyya atop a moving train in Dil Se, 25 years ago, and her ways and sways have been fire since. She does love the F word when it comes to her investment portfolio – Food, Fashion and Fitness. She has since evolved from dance numbers to crunching fiscal numbers in fashion (The Label Life), fitness (Diva Yoga) and food businesses as an investor and owner.

***MUMBAI, INDIA – MAY 06: Malaika Arora attends the Chivas Glassware Alchemy 2023 Event on May 06, 2023 in Mumbai, India. (Photo by Rubina A. Khan/Getty Images)***

She celebrates yet another age-defying birthday on October 23rd, making it a very Malaika Monday. Interestingly, she shares her birthday with British actor, Emilia Clarke who played Khaleesi on the Game Of Thrones.

Disclaimer: Any part of the content on the rubinaakhan.com website cannot be reproduced without prior permission and crediting the website and the author.

©Rubina A Khan 2023

RUBINA’S RADAR | OF BEAUTIES AND BRANDS

October 13, 2023October 13, 20231 Comment

OCTOBER 13, 2023

India is in the throes of a beauty and fashion brand avalanche in the country, with Rare Beauty by Selena Gomez launching during the summer in June 2023, followed by many more that have launched, and are planning to launch since. But the bigger question here is: When will Rihanna’s Fenty Beauty, Kylie Jenner’s Kylie Cosmetics and Kim Kardashian’s SKKN – all three being coveted celebrity owned and fabulous beauty brands – come to India? Beauty is a business to make money in, especially in India!

MUMBAI / JAPAN: Actor Tamannaah Bhatia’s skin is always in, making her the first Indian brand ambassador for the Japanese cosmetics brand, Shiseido. This ambassadorship in India is a collaboration with Shiseido’s Indian distributor, Baccarose Perfumes & Beauty Products Pvt. Ltd. founded by the late Hemansu Kotecha in 1984, in a landscape nascent of luxury beauty in India. “I am absolutely thrilled to be associated with Shiseido, a brand that has consistently set the standard for excellence in beauty for over a century,” says Bhatia. She makes an excellent poster girl for Shiseido in Asia with her flawless skin and personable countenance. Shiseido was founded in 1872 by Arinobu Fukuhara as Japan’s first Western-style pharmacy in Ginza, Tokyo. Fukuhara, the son of an Eastern herbal medicine doctor, was a trained pharmacist, educated in Western medicine, who rose up the ranks to Chief Pharmacist in the Japanese Navy. The name Shiseido comes from Chinese Yi Jing, the Book of Changes from the Four Books and Five Classics of Confucianism meaning, ‘Praise the virtues of the Earth, which nurtures new life and brings forth significant values.’ Translated into English, Do means ‘house of’, and Shi Sei means ‘where everything is born’. The first non-pharmaceutical product Fukuhara created was a cake of toothpaste in 1888 that sold successfully at eight times the price of regular toothpaste. And 151 years on, Shiseido is not just a global leader in the beauty business with its skincare, makeup and fragrance lines today, it is a lasting legacy of the Japanese visionary. Shiseido’s presence in India so far has only been online via Shopper’s Stop, Parcos, Sephora and Nykaa. But the brand is set to open its first brick and mortar store in India on October 18th, 2023 at the Inorbit Mall in Malad, Mumbai, with their skincare trio regime being unveiled by Tamannaah Bhatia.

Tamannaah Bhatia ©Shiseido India

MUMBAI: A fresh-faced beauty from Juhu, Paloma, made her debut as an actor and not a star, in a film called Dono last Friday. And I say this because Paloma can act, and not everyone from the Juhu zip code in Mumbai can! She did not break character for a nano-second with her succinct and able performance in her portrayal of a regular working girl dealing with a red flag of an ex boyfriend in the film. Her zephyr-like body language and her perfectly made-up face (big ups to her makeup artist) express the emotions of her character in a manner most beguiling. Her dialogue delivery is well-timed and she speaks Hindi clearly, without any affected accents and pretentious colloquialisms like some of her ilk. I see Paloma making big strides in acting roles in films and headlining fashion and beauty campaigns in India with her arresting eyes and lithe body. Though what I’d really like to see her in is in a gripping Netflix series because that will make her shine internationally. Daughter of the beauteous actor, Poonam Dhillon and film producer Ashok Thakeria, Paloma has done the work that goes into the making of an actor, and if she keeps honing her innate acting skills, stardom will be hers.

©Paloma

MUMBAI: NARS Cosmetics launched in India on October 10, 2023 with its bestselling Cruella Velvet Matte lips, Tinted Moisturizers, Light Reflecting Collections and so much more just an “Add to cart” away for Indians. “Don’t be so serious, it’s only makeup” said François Nars, the founder and creative director of NARS Cosmetics. But who should know better than Nars, a makeup artist and photographer, that beauty is a serious billion dollar business that’s been making him coin since he founded NARS Cosmetics in 1994. NARS Cosmetics started with twelve lipsticks created by Nars, that were sold at Barneys New York and has gone on to create multi-use beauty and skin products since. Born in Tarbes in the South of France, Nars assisted some of the top makeup artists in Paris, and graduated from the Carita Makeup school in Paris subsequently. He worked with fashion’s very best – the legendary photographer Steven Meisel and hairstylist Oribe Canales when he moved to New York in 1984.

©Nars

NARS Cosmetics is a subsidiary of Shiseido since 2000 after it was sold to the Japanese company, but Nars remains the artistic director, copywriter and in-house photographer for the brand he created.

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RUBINA’S RADAR | YOU’RE DOING AMAZING SWEET AND GREEN MUMBAI!

October 9, 2023October 27, 20231 Comment

OCTOBER 10, 2023

There’s always something new happening in Mumbai. And when it’s sweet and delicious like cupcakes and macarons and green like forests, the only way to describe it is by saying, “You’re doing amazing, sweet and green Mumbai!” like Kris Jenner would. Except Jenner had said “You’re doing amazing sweetie” to her daughter Kim Kardashian posing for a Playboy magazine shoot, circa 2007 – a cult sentence in pop culture since.

MUMBAI: New York’s Magnolia Bakery is finally opening in Bandra, Mumbai on November 1st, 2023, five years after marking its sweet presence in India. Magnolia first opened in Bangalore in November 2019, expanding to four locations in the city since, and opened its fifth outpost in Hyderabad in November 2022. The first Magnolia Bakery was opened by Jennifer Appel and Allysa Torey in New York in 1996, but went on to change a few hands in its ownership over the years. Magnolia Bakery’s delicious cupcakes and frosted desserts became so popular that it started the cupcake craze in the 90s, with starring pop cultural mentions in the hit television series, Sex And The City and the film, The Devil Wears Prada, and many other film and television shows. The mention of the bakery on an episode of Sex And The City gave it immediate fame, so much so that it became a tour bus stop in New York. Magnolia’s first outpost outside the US was opened in Dubai in 2010, followed by one in Abu Dhabi in the UAE and in countries like Qatar, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and of course, India. Since 2021, Magnolia is owned by a private equity firm co-founded by Hudson Yards developer, Stephen Ross. I have only ever had Magnolia in New York, so bring on the deliciousness!

MUMBAI: The 161-year-old French patisserie, Ladurée Paris is also opening in Mumbai at the Jio World Plaza Mall in November, around Diwali, to make the festivities in the city even sweeter. Headquartered in Paris, France, Ladurée is an ambassador of Parisian macarons with their exquisite pastry art. Ladurée Paris first opened in India about two years ago in New Delhi’s Khan Market in September 2021. In 1862, Louis-Ernest Ladurée opened a bakery called Maison Ladurée in La Madeleine, but had to reinvent it as a pastry shop following a fire in the Paris Commune uprising in 1871. The Parisian macaron, as we know it today, was created by Parisian pastry chef, Pierre Desfontaines, second cousin of the creator of Maison Ladurée, who had the ingenious idea of assembling two macaron shells, with a tasty ganache. And voila, the beloved double decker macaron came into existence. It is said that 15000 Ladurée macarons are sold everyday around the world, and the sales in Mumbai will definitely add to that count. 2023 is the year Ladurée celebrates and honours Empress Eugénie, wife of Napoleon III, also known as Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, with a macaron called Eugénie. Can’t wait to try the Eugénie macaron with a crunchy biscuit and a melting centre coated in chocolate, and my forever favourite, the Barre Chocolat.

Laduree’s Barre Chocolat photographed by Rubina A Khan

MUMBAI: The Indian Hotels Company Limited opened a new hotel in Mumbai, Taj The Trees, in Pirojshanagar, Vikhroli on September 19th, 2023. Spread over eight acres in the eastern suburb of Vikhroli along the Eastern Express Highway, Taj The Trees has views of the Mangrove Forest on one end and a Sculpture Park on the other. The hotel has 140 rooms and 11 suites, a spa and wellness centre with an infinity pool and 3 restaurants – Shamiana, Nonya and a rooftop bar on the 12th floor, The Mangrove Bar. Taj The Trees is the coming together of two of India’s greatest business legacies for the first time – the Tata Group and the Godrej Group. The hotel is owned by Godrej Properties and is managed by the Indian Hotel Companies as a luxury Taj hotel. Pirojsha Godrej, Executive Chairperson at Godrej Properties said, “We are happy to open our first hotel, Taj The Trees, in partnership with the Tata Group, as we aim to deliver quality and sustainable luxury in a green, connected, and vibrant neighbourhood.” The green mangrove trees and the languid shoreline make for great visuals in a city where the skyline is dominated with concrete towers and buildings. It remains to be seen what kind of efforts and policies have been adopted and adapted by IHCL towards making this a green forward hotel, aside from glass water bottles and linen changes that are the bare minimum in every luxury hotel worldwide. Taj The Trees is quite a tongue-twister, so T3 is what I think it will soon be called, not to be mistaken as a new airport terminal in Mumbai though. Along with the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower, Wellington Mews, Taj Land’s End and Taj Santacruz, Taj The Trees is the fifth hotel under the Taj brand to open in Mumbai.

It is rather unimaginable to think of Mumbai as green, where grey concrete is a defining colour, but the idea of waking up to verdant forest views feels calming and energising.

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RUBINA’S RADAR | OCTOBER HIGHS

October 6, 2023October 27, 20231 Comment

OCTOBER 6, 2023

In India, October heralds the celebratory season of shimmer and shine, with odes to the divine. October is Bachchan month for me, as the superstar turns 81 on October 11th this year. The Indian SS24 fashion week starts on October 11th to October 15th 2023 in Delhi’s Pragati Maidan even as Paris Fashion Week closed the international season of the Big Four on October 3rd, 2023.

LONDON: Artist Ambika Hinduja-Macker and businesswoman Sangita Jindal, two Indian women will take centre stage at the Victoria and Albert museum in London with the unveiling of Harmony Of Nature – A Concerto Of Art, come October 18th. Hinduja-Macker has envisioned and created a piano in glistening shades of champagne and gold, made of bronze, privately commissioned by Jindal. This is her first independent work of art to be exhibited and that too at the V&A. It is to be seen and heard, live! This evening sounds like it will be music to one’s ears and an artistic sight to behold. Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office will be gracing the cocktail evening, alongside London’s minted and intelligentsia.

Ambika Hinduja-Macker photographed by Rubina A Khan

PARIS / MUMBAI: Christian Louboutin unveiled his Spring Summer 2024 collection at the Grand Amphitheatre of La Sorbonne in Paris during Paris Fashion Week SS24 on September 28th, with The Loubi Show. The show was an amalgamation of human artistry and technological wizardry, with Belgian–Moroccan artist Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui choreographing the live performances. Cherkaoui is known for his collaborations with some of the best theatres in the world, including the Paris Opera Ballet, and global artists like Lady Gaga and Beyoncé. The world’s first bionic pop star, Viktoria Modesta, wearing custom Louboutins, opened the show alongside sixteen talented performers that moved through a series of contemporary dances on a musical interpretation of an Arabic love poem, celebrating the designer’s Egyptian heritage. The Loubi Show was red haute with a lot of heart and fiery soles! Hot off the heels of The Loubi Show, Louboutin will be showcasing a special India Wedding Edit on October 20th, 2023 with 18 pieces at the flagship store in Fort in Mumbai with a collection that speaks to bold gold dominance.

Louboutin’s Astrilarge boots (L) and Christian Louboutin (R) photographed by Rubina A Khan

MUMBAI: Nita Ambani, Director of Reliance Industries Limited, is hosting a fashion show on Tuesday, October 31st, showcasing the works of multiple Indian designers at the launch of the new Jio World Plaza luxury mall. Situated within RIL’s extensive $1 billion business and cultural core, the Jio World Centre in the Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) in Mumbai, Jio World Plaza will house luxury brands like Dior, Hermes, Cartier, Gucci, Balenciaga, Tiffany, Bottega Veneta, Versace, Burberry and Rimowa. The fashion show is slated to exhibit the designs of India’s finest designers that Reliance Brands Limited has a stake in, to over 2000 guests in attendance at the gala. Given it is also Halloween on the day, there might be some sightings of Halloween costumery on the red carpet. The first fashion show ever held at the Jio World Centre was Manish Malhotra’s bridal showing on July 29th, 2022 with two of Bollywood’s most popular actors, Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh, walking the show with the best struts and poise.

Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone and Manish Malhotra photographed by Rubina A Khan

And, there’s more to come!

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RUBINA’S RADAR | INDIAN COUTURE IS BEING SERVED HAUTE, WORLDWIDE!

October 3, 2023November 10, 20234 Comments

OCTOBER 3, 2023

2023 is the year of fashion for India and the growing presence of Indian designers and models at Paris Fashion Week only confirms that Indian high fashion is being served haute, worldwide! Paris Fashion Week is a powerful and dominant player in the haute couture stakes that determines and forecasts fashion industry trends. Fashion shows have been taking place in Paris since 1945, but Paris Fashion Week was only launched in October 1973 by the French Fashion Federation.

2023 commenced with The Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode Paris (FHCM) inviting Indian designer, Gaurav Gupta to the Paris haute couture calendar, where he showcased Shunya, his SS23 debut showing at Paris Haute Couture Week at the Palais de Tokyo on India’s Republic Day. The collection, with the deep indigo blues and stark blacks, whites and grey, had the world lauding his genius that’s intrinsically Indian, yet imaginatively international in style and spirit. And he followed it up with his AW24 showing, Hiranyagarbha with a fresh, popping green in Paris in July.

Dior marched into India with a majestic Pre Fall 2023 show, an ode to the exquisite hand artistries and the rich textiles and colours of India by Dior’s Creative Director, Maria Grazia Chiuri, at the Gateway of India on March 30. The show’s scale, grandeur and execution in India were unparalleled, and in step with Dior’s new landmark energy, with FRF flying in for one of the biggest shows to be held in India, including Delphine Arnault, who made her first appearance in Mumbai after being appointed Dior’s Chairwoman and CEO in February, 2023.

The launch of the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC) on the first day of April in Mumbai was a veritable runway, showcasing the best of Indian fashion and Indian designers for three straight days. Almost everyone at the launch wore an Indian designer, but it was Gigi Hadid in an Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla sari who was the cynosure of all eyes with her ‘Golden Goddess in India’ energy.

August has got to be the most important month this year for Indian design with Beyonce wearing Gaurav Gupta thrice on her highest grossing Renaissance tour. She wore a bespoke Infinity Crystal Bodysuit in North Carolina, the Athena Sari gown in Atlanta and the Moondust Crystal Orbit gown in Atlanta again on August 15th, both of which were from his AW 24 Hiranyagarbha collection. Beyonce is releasing a film, Renaissance World Tour, that hits theatres on December 1st, documenting her ‘very liberating’ tour from its beginnings in Stockholm, Sweden on May 10th, 2023 to its conclusion on October 1st, 2023 in Kansas City, Missouri. It goes without saying that Gupta’s designs will be watched on the big screen by another pool of Beyonce fans, making fashion history not just for himself, but for the Indian design and craftsmanship fraternity. He is the only Indian designer that has been accepted by the world for his modern Indian and Western silhouettes. Who’d have thought Beyonce would wear a Gaurav Gupta sari gown on tour? No one, yet she did. Indian representation at its finest!

Beyoncé (wearing Gaurav Gupta) performs onstage during the “RENAISSANCE WORLD TOUR” at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on August 11, 2023 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/WireImage for Parkwood)

Indian designers have been expanding their businesses with prominent Indian investors like Reliance Brands Limited (RBL) and Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited (ABFRL) and opening more stores across the country and overseas. And those that are not opening internationally are retailing through department stores around the world. The first quarter of the year saw Anita Dongre opening her largest store in Mumbai in Kala Ghoda on February 4th, followed by Gaurav Gupta on March 3rd, Shantanu and Nikhil on March 17th and Sabyasachi on April 16th – all in the Kala Ghoda district. Anita Dongre was the first Indian designer to open a flagship store in New York in May 2018, which was followed by her first store in Dubai this March and a second one on West Broadway in New York in May. Manish Malhotra is set to open his first international store in Dubai in December. The Middle East can’t get enough of him after Rekha’s fire and desire Vogue Arabia cover, a first for an Indian, looking resplendent and ethereal wearing his designs and jewellery. It’s a historical Indian cover and a collectible at that, given she did one after 15 years. Never has an Indian actor on the cover of a foreign fashion magazine created such a blitzkrieg around the world with the clothes, the quintessential Kanjeevarams, styling and jewellery. And, her flawless face! You can’t read her even if you know every language in the world because Rekha only speaks Rekha, but you could see the Rekha you wanted to in the majestic Indian clothes, as could the world.

And as Indian designers seek foreign presence, international luxury brands are reciprocating the fervour by vying for real estate to mark their presence in India, with Parisian department store, Galeries Lafayette, scoring a great location in Fort, Mumbai. Lafayette is being brought to Mumbai by the Aditya Birla group and hopes to open in the city 2024. The Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited (ABFRL) has also incorporated a new company in partnership with Christian Louboutin SAS (CL) in India, making it a fantastic addition to their fashion portfolio in the country.

From the days of Gandhi giving us khadi, Indian designers have moved into the haute couture era of Indian fashion around the world with exquisite and incomparable Indian craftsmanship and handiwork. Every luxury brand is handmade in India, but Made In India is never mentioned on the labels. Well, the time has come when Indians do not need the validation of a mere label because Indian designers are telling the world what Made In India stands for in design, vision, aesthetic and craftsmanship. And they are are being worn around the globe.

All the talk of millennials and zillennials will come to nought if they are not bought, but I see Indian designers turning their millions into billions very soon.

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