The snooty French are coming! The gregarious Italians are here! India is the new China for all things luxury! The timing! Diwali dhamakas are no longer desi. The accent has changed from Chhatrapur posh to Champs-Élysées chic. Mumbai’s chattering classes are agog with the Galeries Lafayette news. Horniman Circle will soon replace Place Vendome as the ultimate district for uber luxe, as Mumbai’s Mahjong Madames glide into the precinct in gleaming Rolls.
Just last week, two iconic Italian brands hosted grand events that reset the OTT meter for the festive season. The Bvlgari “saap” slithered through “The Art House”, as invitees draped (and undraped) in haute clone couture waited for the arrival of the brand’s ambassador, Priyanka Chopra (43). The wait was well worth it. “PeeCee” has got to be one of the smartest, most successful women in global showbiz. Professional, prepared and on point, Priyanka owns any room she walks into. As she did that night, despite the presence of many other, far younger Bollywood beauties. Her accent and attitude stayed Indian, even if her swag was Roman. Namaste ruled, not Ciao.
It’s interesting to note that while Priyanka was back in town, Aishwarya Rai (51) was being feted in Paris, as she walked the ramp for L’Oreal, at Paris Fashion Week, along with other international L’Oreal ambassadors like 87-year-old Jane Fonda in a shimmering sheath.
Priyanka and Aishwarya. Here are two amazing Indian celebrities who have held their own with poise, high intelligence and total professionalism in an environment where careers collapse faster than bouffants. There are so many interesting parallels in the remarkable individual stories of ‘PeeCee’ and ‘Ash’. Both came into the spotlight wearing crowns on their heads, as Miss World — Aishwarya in 1994 and Priyanka in 2000.
The comparisons carry on. Both aced their Bollywood careers and reigned as female superstars… while dating male superstars. Their respective tempestuous love stories didn’t end well. Allegedly, the men weren’t ready! Salman Khan still isn’t ready. While Shah Rukh Khan picked who he picked. Both men continued with their uninterrupted careers, with billionaire SRK becoming one of the richest actors on earth, beating the likes of Tom Cruise. Salman Khan stubbornly stayed single.
The ladies made sensible choices and married fellow artists. Aishwarya became a Bachchan bahu. Priyanka joined the Jonas clan. Both are raising daughters. And much water has flowed down the Ganga as the two self-made women continue to stride across the globe as powerful icons, admired and feted for being themselves.
I spoke to Priyanka briefly at the Bvlgari event, observing how effortlessly she engaged with everyone who approached her. Jean-Christophe Babin, CEO Bvlgari, paid her a rich tribute as he acknowledged her creative contribution to the brand – the Bvlgari mangalsutra and kadas are flying off the shelves. By “Indianising” the trademark Bvlgari jewellery design, the brand has taken a bold stride into what may turn out to be its biggest market, given their rollout plan to open stores in Bengaluru, Kolkata, Hyderabad and other cities.
The lolly is here. Brands will flock.
While there were strenuous attempts to convert the Bvlgari “saap” (serpent) into an Indian “naag”, nobody cribbed or minded. Call it by whichever name, it will always be the “Serpenti infinito”. Pity none of the well-behaved guests attempted India’s favourite “Nagin dance” without which no “sangeet” is complete.
Wait for this: The Red Soles walla (mon ami Christian Louboutin) is unveiling his latest “‘La Vie en Inde” (Bharat ka Jeevan) collection featuring his version of ‘navratna’ grandeur. Jewelled jootas. Quelle horreur!
Also read: Mumbai-Delhi fashion weeks need a revamp. Not Dharavi and Girgaon
Zubeen Garg tragedy
The second edition of the Assam LitArt Fest was scheduled for the third week of November in Guwahati. I had accepted the invitation last year and was most excited, since the organisers had thrown in a post-festival trip to Kaziranga. Just as the tickets were to be issued and all the sessions frozen, came the monumental tragedy in Singapore. Assam shut down in grief and shock, mourning the untimely death of their beloved Zubeen Garg.
My host in Guwahati was numb with sorrow as she explained her decision to cancel the lit fest, given her closeness to the singer, whom she described as the “emotion of Assam”. News about the drowning was just coming in, and our messages were filled with disbelief and anger. She had a pretty good inkling that the version being put out initially was distorted, malicious and false. It’s only now that sordid details are emerging, implicating a murderous manager, who is under arrest and will face charges of “criminal conspiracy, murder, and culpable homicide not amounting to murder,” following statements of a key witness who alleged that the singer was “poisoned”. Zubeen’s funeral was said to be the fourth largest in the world.
Zubeen is gone. Assam is staggering. People are still to come to terms with his passing. Rumours of political manipulation are doing the rounds. Another youth uprising like the one in Nepal is worrying authorities, unable to effectively quell the growing restlessness of Zubeen’s devastated fans who are vociferously demanding justice and answers.
I started listening to Zubeen’s music only after the tragedy. How very sad to think an avaricious, cold-blooded, sadistic manager (along with other conspirators) could have deliberately led his benefactor to such a terrible death. At the moment, Zubeen’s wife is busy pointing fingers. Married for 22 years, sure. But were they even living together? Assam is unlikely to accept pat, convenient theories behind the murder of its adored son. CM Himanta Biswa Sarma is aggressively pursuing the case.
Meanwhile, a newborn baby elephant in Kaziranga has been named Mayabini (Magical), as a tribute to the music icon. Mayabini (Zubeen’s plaintive song) has become a requiem across Assam. Its echoes will reach the heavens as angels chorus in unison, honouring the memory of a man seen as an angel himself.
Shobhaa De is an author, columnist, social commentator, and opinion-shaper. She has written 20 books. She tweets @DeShobhaa. Views are personal.
(Edited by Prashant)