Brunch 28 07 2013

WEEKLY MAGAZINE, JULY 28, 2013 Free with your copy of Hindustan Times

Suneet Varma’s game-changing metal bustier from his first collection in 1992, which later evolved into the mega-popular corset blouse

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VIR SANGHVI

The burger goes gourmet

SEEMA GOSWAMI

Ageing stars, fading stars?

RAJIV MAKHNI

Battle of the new operating systems

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B R E A K FA S T O F C H A M P I O N S ON STANDS NOW! GRAB IT FOR R100 ONLY!

Apples and Oranges

by Zorian Cross

HUGH JACKMAN (THE WOLVERINE) V/S HENRY CAVILL (MAN OF STEEL): THE ULTIMATE SHOWDOWN

Photo: Rafique Sayed. From the Brunch Collector’s Edition

They’re perfect in every which way (that’s mortally possible). Here’s help on how to chose between these fine men!

THE FACE

A face that could launch a thousand ships (and Chiselled masculine perfection that somehow drop a thousand panties). Eyes that glimmer, that naughty seems to have a certain boyish innocence to it. Eyes twinkle and let’s not forget that smile. one can drown in and a smile that can make a girl melt.

Verdict: Tie - They’re both the dictionary definition of the word ‘handsome’.

THE SIGN

Libra – The charmer of the Taurus - Heard the phrase ‘hung zodiac - beauty, grace and charm. like a bull’? Venus’ blessed them plenty.

Verdict: Tie - Even though I’m Capricorn, which makes me perfect for Henry; my moon sign is Aquarius with a Libra Rising – making me perfect for Hugh.

THE BODY

He’s always been the sexy The man has a body athletic type, he’s Superman! sculpted like a Michelangelo!

Verdict: Tie - They both look great in a suit and out of one

The Brunch Bollywood Collector’s Edition is Out!

THE TALENT

Versatile actor, sings and dances too.

Henry can act. And looking good is a talent.

Verdict: Hugh – Any man who can dance, sing and look good, while being a superhero, is surely my kind!

This special issue brings you the top 50 Bollywood stars of today. We also got very interesting people from the film industry to talk about them, and we have exclusive photographs by Mumbai’s best photographers as well! Grab your copy NOW!

Hugh’s been happily married to Deborra-Lee Furness since forever.

Farhan Akhtar

Verdict: Tie – They both have terrible taste in women.

BOYFRIEND/HUSBAND MATERIAL

by SHABANA AZMI

A

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On The Brunch Radar

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AVAILABLE AT LEADING BOOKSTORES AND NEWSSTANDS

To quote Madame Cavalieri from the movie Amadeus, “Looks don’t concern me, maestro. Only talent interests a woman of taste.”

Iftaar parties ■ Discovering sci-fi ■ Couple – the app ■ Books about Delhi (Mirror of Beauty) ■ The rumours that Ranbir and Katrina went out on a date ■

by Saudamini Jain

That Poonam Pandey doesn’t like being compared to Sunny Leone ■ Metal night ■ Struggling to watch every movie out there ■ Terrorists on magazine covers ■ Waiting for your real life to begin ■ Royals, their baby and all that jazz ■

Can’t Wait To Watch

SHOVE IT

bout one-two years into Farhan’s internship with Adi Pocha Films, I remember meeting Adi and asking, “Do you think Farhan will do anything at all?”

“He will write, he will direct, he will act, he will produce, and he will be good at everything that he does,” Adi replied. I asked if he was saying this just to make me happy. He said, “Mark my words. He is just a naturally gifted boy.” Farhan is a sensible boy who has made some brave choices. He has all the right values.

He just split with Ellen Whitaker, and is now dating Kaley Cuoco.

by Tavishi Paitandy Rastogi

FILMS TO LOOK FORWARD TO I’m a movie-o-phile. And I love almost all kinds of movie and make it a point to see them first day, last show. (I never really got the ‘early bird’ saying).

Here’s my list of movies that I can’t wait to hit the screens!

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Chennai Express Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone in a romcom by the 100-crore king, Rohit Shetty.

Crashing cars, hearts!

Cover design: MONICA GUPTA Cover image: PRABUDDHA DASGUPTA

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Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai Again Because part 1 was kick-ass.

Part 2 promises smashing Akshay Kumar and Imran Khan.

EDITORIAL: Poonam Saxena (Editor), Aasheesh Sharma, Rachel Lopez, Tavishi Paitandy Rastogi, Mignonne Dsouza, Veenu Singh, Parul Khanna, Yashica Dutt, Amrah Ashraf, Saudamini Jain, Shreya Sethuraman

JULY 28, 2013

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Bullet Raja Tigmanshu Dhulia’s Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 1 and 2 were brilliant. Paan Singh Tomar rocked. This one has Saif Ali Khan going rustic a la his Omkara role, again.

DESIGN: Ashutosh Sapru (National Editor, Design), Monica Gupta, Swati Chakrabarti, Payal Dighe Karkhanis, Rakesh Kumar, Ashish Singh

Drop us a line at:

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Besharam Abhinav Kashyap’s second venture after Dabangg, I obviously have high hopes from this comic outing. Not to forget, this one has the very talented Kapoor khandaan in full force! Ranbir, Rishi and Neetu are coming together.

brunchletters@ hindustantimes.com or to 18-20 Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi 110001

Ram Leela I have always loved Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s epic grandeur.

Deepika’s 30 kg lehenga with a 50 metre ghera and Ranveer Singh’s rippling muscles in the first look of the film are drawing me in.

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C OV E R STO RY

Introduced by Manish Malhotra in 2000

T

he sari is back in fashion. Not that it ever really went out. But it did get banished to the neglected recesses of women’s closets, only to be aired at weddings or

by Yashica Dutt

Introduced by Suneet Varma in 1992

I

t was the ’90s and India was trending on the global fashion scene. Madonna had discovered mehndi (cue the 1998 video of Frozen); Gwen Stefani, with an Indian boyfriend as her favourite arm accessory (Tony Ashwin Kanal, co-member on the band No Doubt), was taking a go at bindis and saris; and Indo-Western was the cultural scrawl on every wall. It was an opportune

time for Suneet Varma to showcase his metallic breast plate (with a sari) which soon morphed into a corset blouse. “I showcased it in my first collection in 1992, inspired by my corsetry training in France,” recalls Varma. “It really struck a chord at that time because I realised that women like things that celebrate their sexuality, yet contain them perfectly. And that’s exactly what the corset blouse did.”

Amidst a storm of banjara skirts, tie-and-dye shirts and jackets with bells, the corset blouse stood out like a beacon.

An entire generation wore it with saris, lehengas, skirts, jeans and shorts. (It’s still around).

But its biggest success lay in the wedding market, where it became the blouse-that-wasn’t-ablouse. Every actress wore it. And it spawned numerous clones, generating websites like corsetdeal.com (which deals exclusively in delivering custom-made corsets).

RDERS CROSSING BO took his Suneet Varma Rome for to se ou bl et cors uture Co a m Ro the Alta 07 Show in 20 JULY 28, 2013

This Victorian undergarment, originally viewed as a form of bondage, turned into a trend that altered the Indian wedding costume forever.

Twenty five years later, Varma still includes at least one corset in every show even though the material has changed from metal and satin to polyester taffeta and stretch lace (the latter’s lycra-esque properties effectively eliminate the stiffness and discomfort associated with a corset). “There are so many badly made copies floating around in the market that I often feel bad for the women wearing them.

They end up flattening the bosom as opposed to enhancing it like corsets should,” says Varma.

It really struck a chord at that time because I realised that women like things that celebrate their sexuality, yet contain them perfectly SUNEET VARMA

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Introduced by Ritu Kumar in 1973

formal functions. And then it came out, in a slinky, glamorous reincarnation as the sexy sari – worn with deep-cut, cleavage-baring blouses – in fabrics like net, satin, chiffon and lace. The man responsible for its rebirth was Manish Malhotra, who, after giving Cinderalla-esque makeovers to Urmila Matondkar in Rangeela (1995) and Karisma Kapoor in Raja Hindustani (1996), showcased his sexy saris on the runway in 2000 and gave India its hottest party outfit. “I was really inspired by the delicate saris of the ’60s and the chiffon saris in Yash Chopra movies,” says Malhotra. “So when I started doing clothes, I removed the clutter of embellishments that we saw in saris of the ’80s, made them sensuous by using fabrics like chiffon, satin and net and brought in pastel colours, tangerine and icy blue. It changed the way people looked at a sari.”

That Malhotra’s biggest endorsement came from Kareena Kapoor, who is often seen EER wearing slinky THE SARI’S SH cocktail saris, MAKEOVER ss acro Copied heavily helped too. Today, e th one of India, this was a sexy sari doesat d se ca ow sexy saris sh Show n’t necessarily the IIFA Fashion 05 come from his way back in 20 brand anymore.

With net, chiffon and satin gaining immense popularity on their own, armies of women are getting customised saris, with Malhotra’s designs (that are all over the Internet) providing the requisite mood-board.

I made saris sensuous by using chiffon, satin and net and brought in pastel colours and shades like tangerine and icy blue. It changed the way people looked at a sari MANISH MALHOTRA

I

f it wasn’t for Ritu Kumar, our elaborate, lavish, ethnic costumes would be embroidered in plastic thread on cheap base fabric.

Because that’s how zardozi looked in the early ’70s, when Kumar chanced upon the original technique in miniature Mughal paintings.

Zardozi was actually fine embroidery in gold and silver thread on fabrics like satin and silk, favoured by the kings, queens and the aristocracy of the Mughal era.

By the time Kumar stumbled upon it, karigars had resorted to using plastic thread for the embroidery and zardozi was on its way to becoming a dying art. “At that time, there was no ready-to-wear bridal range of clothes,” says Kumar.

“People went to Benaras to source saris or to Rajasthan to get lehengas. Back then, there were almost

no garments for ZY us to refer to, WEDDING FREN s apart from a few By the time this shot wa s, 90 19 idm e th museum pieces or taken in eady a zardozi was alr clothes that t the bridal marke in e az cr people had inherited. So we were like barefoot doctors, venturing into the interiors of the country, looking for craftsmen and experimenting with techniques. But we didn’t know where we would sell. There were no set parameters.”

Little did Kumar know that this style of embellishment would eventually become one of the biggest fashion exports of the country, launch industries and become the source of livelihood for thousands of karigars. Zardozi might be synonymous with wedding finery, but it has now made its way to every swathe of fabric you can imagine, from home accessories, bags and shoes to even furniture.

We were like barefoot doctors, venturing into the interiors of the country, looking for craftsmen and experimenting with techniques. We didn’t know where we would sell RITU KUMAR

Introduced by Manish Arora in 1997

I

t was so bad that it was cool. When Manish Arora burst on the Indian fashion universe with various saturated prints of technicolour Indian gods and wild street art in 1997, everyone was taken aback. “They would say, ‘This is all good but who’s going to wear it?’” says Arora of the initial reactions to his controversial T-shirts, the Big Bang moment for Indian kitsch. It is a movement that has since exploded to overcome almost every area of design in the country, from restaurant interiors to theme weddings and home furnishings. Brands like Happily Unmarried (beer mugs, coasters with catchphrases in Devnagari script), Purple Jungle (bags, accessories with vintage educational posters), clothing stores like Bombay Electric (which gave us faux vintage, ‘maharaja punk’ and ‘disco shanti’) and designers like Nida Mahmood (who mixes classic with the street in collections

called Must!

GOD IN THE DE TA Qalandar) have Showcased at his ILS collection since translated the for Sp ring/ everyday around us the LondonSummer 2007 at Fashion into kitsch art.

Arora’s prints we Week, re a hit Arora recalls that it all started with a trip to Kinari Bazar in Delhi. “It was so colourful with god statues and their big eyes, groom garlands made out of rupee notes, synthetic materials and bright fabrics.

I put all of that on the ramp. It was a big risk, no one had done it before.”

The Indian streets were so colourful with god statues and groom garlands. I put all of that on the ramp. And people said, “This is all good but who’s going to wear it?”

MANISH ARORA

JULY 28, 2013

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C OV E R STO RY

hindustantimes.com/brunch

Introduced by Abu Jani-Sandeep Khosla in 1988

I

f, a few years ago, someone had mentioned the word ‘Anarkali’ to you, your mind would have conjured up images of a beautiful Mughal courtesan. But today, what comes to mind is an inverted pomegranate-shaped silhouette that is ostensibly the Indian version of a ball gown.

Popularised by Hindi television shows, worn by every socialite on carpets of varied colours, hawked on fashion e-commerce websites as the fastest-selling item of the day, the Anarkali has moved into India’s wardrobes as a resident staple, at least for now. Abu Jani-Sandeep Khosla showcased the contemporary

THE BOOK DESIGNED BY odelled m h Amrita Sing in 1999for this picture book 2000 for their yle Celebration of St

Anarkali at their first show in 1988. It was constructed by cutting three gold-bordered Kerala cotton saris and was 52 inches long. “We were hugely inspired by Meena Kumari’s costumes in Pakeezah and created floor-length Anarkalis which were worn by Jaya Bachchan and then later by Shweta (Nanda),” says one half of the duo, Sandeep Khosla.

“They were an instant hit because of the grand statement they made and the ease of movement they allowed.

Then magazines and newspapers picked it up and the trend took on a life of its own.” The trend has seen variations by almost every designer, most notably by Manish Malhotra, whose red-carpet Anarkali appearances by Bollywood actresses created a new level of frenzy for the garment.

We were hugely inspired by Meena Kumari’s costumes in Pakeezah and created floor-length Anarkalis SANDEEP KHOSLA OF ABU JANI SANDEEP KHOSLA

Introduced by Monisha Jaising in 1998

N

o matter how often they deny it, all Indian designers want to go international. But when they do, their collections differ wildly from what they show at home.

Lengths, shapes and silhouettes are never the same, because what works locally usually doesn’t work in an international market.

Except when it comes to the kurti. Adapted as beach wear, a barbeque party staple and termed as the ‘Indian embroidered tunic’, the kurti, which was reinvented by Monisha Jaising, has been fashion’s greatest hit not just in India but all over the world.

ERYTHING THEY TRIED EV mer season m Su The Spring/ the kurti ed of 2002 featur be paired en ev uld co ich wh s! nt pa ck with tra

Liz Hurley wore it, so did Karan Johar (he reportedly had 30 of them), as did about every Indian woman who wanted to wear something modern yet modest. “In 1998, I was sitting at my drawing board trying to come up with something that women could wear with jeans to a temple,” says Jaising. “And then I came up with a kurta-like silhouette which had the same embroidery as you would see on a kurta but was shorter in length and cut closer to the body. The first kurti was in mul fabric.”

Once she started retailing her kurti at a store called Scoop in New York, the figure-forgiving silhouette was picked up everywhere. It has since evolved into kurti dresses, kaftans with belts and was one of the biggest trends of early 2000s. “It became like a classic white shirt or a little black dress. Everyone had their own version,” grins Jaising.

It became like a classic white shirt or a little black dress. Everyone had their own version MONISHA JAISING

Introduced by Rajesh Pratap Singh in 1997

B

rocades had taken over, embroidery was creeping into every wardrobe and clothes were swimming in a mad swirl of colour.

Then in 1997, the quiet, powerful minimalism of Rajesh Pratap Singh’s pintucks took over.

Inspired by the classic banker’s stripes, he created a series of shirts and kurtas for men and women with 3D strips of pintucks (narrow folds of fabric sewn in place) running

I think people were looking for a cleaner, calmer texture which was an alternative to embroidery RAJESH PRATAP SINGH

along their length. It soon became the uniform of the working woman in India. “People were looking for a cleaner texture, an alternative to embroidery that worked well as daywear (cotton) and evening wear (silk). Pintucked kurtas filled that space,” says Singh.

Popularised by Fabindia, pintucked kurtas also surfaced as the no-fuss choice for students in Delhi and Mumbai, worn-down versions of which hung proudly alongside college sweatshirts in undergrad cupboards, including this writer’s.

It’s no surprise that all the hits we picked were ethnic garments. It simply confirms what everyone has suspected all along: Indian fashion’s quarter life crisis has only just begun. The industry might be trying hard to break out of the traditional costume mode with edgy designs and silhouettes, but it’s clearly not ready yet. What works best are trends that are Indian in design, origin or form. And maybe that’s not such a bad thing. yashica.dutt@hindustantimes.com, follow @YashicaDutt on Twitter

JULY 28, 2013

Tashkent Memories

Soviet and Islamic influences with a dash of Bollywood – Uzbekistan surprises you in so many ways

by Raji Chacko

I

NDIANS LOOKING for an ego boost should travel to Uzbekistan. Especially if you have been on the receiving end of the condescension reserved for Indian travellers.

Imagine people stopping you on a street to take a photo of you because you are Indian.

In Uzbekistan, the Soviet influence mingles with the Islamic one to create a liberal result. Still a young country (it gained independence only in 1991), there is fresh optimism in the structures and symbols of the nation’s modern architecture and life. Foreign vehicles still retain their awe-inspiring novelty but traffic jams are not unheard of and while most of Tashkent’s roads are wide and wellmaintained, the road from Samarkand to Bukhara is vertebrae-rattling. The history has its phases – from the lovely bakedbrick structures dating back to the 9th and 10th century in Bukhara, to the beautiful blue-green mosaic tombs and mosques of the 17th and 18th century in Samarkand.

IF YOU’RE PLANNING TO VISIT

■ Prepare to be dazzled and I mean that literally. If it isn’t the brilliance of the Uzbeki traditional costume, it will be the mandatory gold tooth that will blind you. You might also have to close your eyes in delicious appreciation of their melons. The surfeit of sun means your watermelon and muskmelon taste otherworldly! And vegetarians can rejoice. Enjoy their bread with pickled carrots.

■ Brush up on your make up, especially if you are an Indian woman. Chances are random Uzbekis will stop you in the street and ask for a photograph.

Older Uzbekis might not bother to ask and just drag you into a frame the rest of the family is posing for.

They love all things Indian, as evidenced by the Uzbeki girls who followed us asking for bindis which they had seen in movies.

■ Learn the lines of Jimmy jimmy aaja aaja, from 1982’s Disco Dancer. It is one of the most popular songs in the country for some reason. If you mention

The Uzbekis consider a gold tooth a status symbol

Photos: SHUTTERSTOCK

that you are Indian, rest assured someone will expect you to sing it.

In ‘Indian’ restaurants, the newer numbers cannot keep Jimmy down.

We visited an Uzbeki restaurant that offered belly dancing with dinner. The prelude, however, was an Uzbeki girl coming up on stage to sing Jimmy jimmy before launching into her Uzbeki repertoire.

■ Consider carrying a notecounting machine. One US dollar is roughly 2,000 Uzbek som.

However, don’t let that trick you into thinking that it’s a cheap destination. A decent meal for two may well cost 25-28,000 soms. I remember one meal where the total came to a few lakhs (in soms). The bundles of cash assembled on the table top made us feel like debauched thekedars.

There’s lots to purchase with your bundles – dry fruit, local wines, ceramics and carpets.

■ Revise your history.

Babur, who founded the Mughal dynasty in India, was born in the Fergana Valley in Uzbekistan and is a descendant of Temur, who holds a special place in Uzbeki hearts. Also, artists from Samarkand were brought to Agra to build the Taj Mahal. So, you will find something familiar about the buildings in

PREPARE TO BE DAZZLED

Visit the Koulkedach Madrasah at Tashkent; buy these ceramic dolls (below) Samarkand. Tashkent is where former Indian Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri lost his life. There were rumours he was poisoned which Uzbekis deny.

■ Look for the unexpected.

Tashkent has Central Asia’s tallest TV tower that also houses a restaurant many feet above the ground.

Some of the ceiling artwork in the mosques, madrasas, and other structures in Samarkand probably required as much labour as the Sistine Chapel. History, shopping or belly dancing, whatever your motivation, Uzbekistan is worth a visit. brunchletters@hindustantimes.com

WAY TO GO

When to visit: April to June and from late August to November. Carry your suntan lotion and woollens. The weather is a little unpredictable.

Flights: An online search will not yield Uzbekistan Airline flights, so ask your travel agent for help.

Visa requirement: Again, rope in a travel agent. A passport, photos, a letter from employer and a filled visa form are mandatory. All these might have to be physically submitted to the embassy in Delhi.

Currency: It’s best to exchange your Indian rupees for dollars in India and then change your dollars for Uzbeki soms in Uzbekistan.

MORE ON THE WEB

STANDING TALL

Visit Shahrisabz, the birth place of Temur JULY 28, 2013

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Photo: GETTY IMAGES

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THE BIG BITE

The hamburger is such a global craze at the moment that it is only a matter of time before somebody opens a great burger place in India Photo: THINKSTOCK

Vir Sanghvi

rude food I

DON’T KNOW where you are or what you are doing as you read this. But I can tell you where I am and what I am doing.

I write this in the transit lounge of an Asian airport, waiting for a connection. Like nearly everybody else, I have a snack in front of me. And, in common with most other people in the lounge, I am staring at a hamburger. Earlier, I queued up at a McDonald’s outlet and bought myself a Big Mac. It has been years since I last ate a Big Mac and the taste is pretty much as I remember it: lots of starchy maida (from the rolls), a brief flash of a meaty flavour, and then, all kinds of wet squishiness from the toppings and sauces between the buns. I can see why so many other people have ordered the Big Mac. It gives you the illusion of eating a proper meal – meat, bread, and potatoes in the form of fries – at a relatively low cost and without the inconvenience of having to hire somebody who actually NEW YORK SUCCESS

When burgers became a craze, restaurateur Danny Meyer recognised the scope for expansion and introduced it on the Shake Shack menu.

Today, there are nearly 30 Shake Shacks all over the world JULY 28, 2013

A PATTY IN PARIS

The Thoumieux Brasserie is among Paris’s toughest places to get into and its signature dish is the burger as reinvented by Jean-François Piège knows how to cook to make it.

Take apart the constituents and there is not much to recommend them. The bread is ordinary and characterless and the patties have little or no beef flavour. Only the fries taste good, but their preparation has long been the subject of controversy.

Has the company added beef tallow to the oil? (It used to, apparently, in some countries once upon a time, but never in India.)

And where does the flavour come from? According to the best-selling Fast Food Nation, McDonald’s adds synthetic flavour molecules during the frying process.

But the success of the Big Mac, such criticism notwithstanding, tells us how much the world loves hamburgers. And the criticisms may explain why more and more people are looking beyond fast-food hamburgers for a quality burger.

This is a global trend. The hottest places in London are upmarket hamburger joints that accept no reservations and force customers to queue up – places like Burger & Lobster and Meat Liquor. Quality mini-chains like Gourmet Burger Kitchen and Byron have become a craze. In Paris, gourmets may turn up their noses at McDonald’s but when they go to upmarket bistros and brasseries, they ignore the traditional steak frites and opt for the cheaper hamburger option.

The Thoumieux Brasserie run by Jean-François Piège, in collaboration with the Costes brothers, is among Paris’ toughest places to get into and its signature dish is the burger as reinvented by Piege, who puts the tomato, gherkins, etc into the patty itself.

The conventional wisdom has it that the upmarket burger was launched in 1975 by New York’s 21 Club, which offered it as an expensive off-menu item for insiders. The theatrical mini-chain Joe Allen tried the same stunt. Once these places made the burger a symbol of inverse snobbery, it was only a matter of time before the famous chefs got in on the act. Daniel Boulud launched his casual D B Bistro Moderne in New York with a hyper-expensive beef and foie gras burger. In London, Gordon Ramsay did his own variation on the

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FOR THE TASTE OF IT

The hottest places in London like Burger & Lobster (above) and Meat Liquor are upmarket hamburger joints that accept no reservations

In London, quality mini-chains like Gourmet Burger Kitchen (above) and Byron have become a craze

same sort of foie gras-rich burger at the Boxwood Café. American chefs worked out that burger lovers were not foie gras fans and started making their hamburgers with outrageously priced wagyu beef. In 2005, Miami’s Prime 112 restaurant introduced a Kobe burger and now, the hamburger that is made from Japanese beef is pretty much a staple of pretentious cafés in the States.

Boulud struck back with an even more expensive burger. This time he added a black truffle topping. The trendy Zuma restaurant in London did its own variation on the Kobe burger. Joël Robuchon did a mini foie-gras burger at his L’Atelier restaurants.

And now, every chef – most recently Jason Atherton, London’s chef of the moment – tries to present his own take on the burger.

Speaking for myself, I find the urge to keep throwing expensive ingredients at the burger, faintly ridiculous. I am not sure Kobe beef is suited to a burger and the notion of topping a patty with black truffles is just plain idiotic. Obviously, there has to be a middle ground between the Big Mac and the foie gras and truffle burger (which is not a burger at all, but a way of putting that old haute cuisine stand-by, Tournedos Rossini, between two buns).

My guess is that Danny Meyer has found the middle ground.

Meyer is probably New York’s most famous restaurateur (Union Square Café, etc). In 2004, he took over a concession stand near Madison Square Garden and started selling ice cream, hot dogs and milk shakes. He did not put a hamburger on the menu till a few years later so the name he chose – Shake Shack – reflects the stand’s original intentions. But when the burger became a craze, Meyer recognised the scope for expansion. Today, there are nearly 30 Shake Shacks all over the world and this month, he opens in London. (Another American burger mini-chain, Five Guys, will also open several outlets in the UK this year.) Within the restaurant business, they reckon that Meyer has made more money from Shake Shack than he has from all his famous restaurants.

Meyer has competition in the US from such operations as Five Napkin Burger. Most minichains follow the same principle. They perfect a distinctive hamburger and then find ways of selling it. For instance, London’s Burger & Lobster has its origins in the menu of Goodman’s Steakhouse. When the owners found that the burger was moving quickly, they spun it off into its own chain.

Meat Liquor started out as a burger served from a food truck. When it became a craze, the food truck’s owners built a mini-chain around the fame of the original burger.

Mini-chains follow their own rules. The first is to try and not look like a chain. Each Byron restaurant in London has décor that is unique and distinct. The second is that all the food must be fresh. The pat-

ties are never frozen. The buns are baked each morning. The fries are hand-cut. The third is that a mini-chain must offer the experience of a real restaurant. There must be chefs in the kitchen and service must be courteous. (The fast-food hamburger, on the other hand, is a chef-less product that is so standardised that even a chimpanzee in a cap could turn out a perfect Big Mac.) But all burgers – fast food or upmarket – fall into two categories.

Either the burger focuses on the quality of the meat in the patty, or more attention is paid to the toppings and the add-ons. Most fast-food burgers are made from poor quality meat so the success of the enterprise lies in masking the taste of the patty with sauces.

Of the chains, only the California cult brand, In-N-Out Burger, prides itself on the quality and freshness of its ingredients.

Some gourmet burgers claim to be about beef quality (Boulud makes a big deal of using only short-rib) but are really about the add-ons. Would we care about the burger as reinvented by Boulud, Robouchon, Gordon Ramsay or Jason Atherton if there was no foie gras, black truffle, etc? (Only Piege makes his own rules – his silky patty includes the add-ons. So, it is hard to say whether his burger is about beef or seasoning.)

Which of the two categories you like is a matter of personal choice.

The Shake Shack burger, for instance, relies on beef quality. The Meat Liquor burger, on the other hand, has a very ordinary patty and depends on the sauces for its popularity.

Indian chefs have traditionally steered clear of the burger. Even McDonald’s failed to make an impression with the Maharaja Mac. The obvious problem is the inability to use beef outside of the big hotels. But even at the hotels, the burger is nearly always an after-thought, something they are forced to put on the coffee-shop menu, but take no interest in. (The exception is the Leela Palace in Delhi, where they are proud of their hamburger.)

But I am not convinced by the we-can’t-use-beef argument. I’ve had perfectly good burgers made from choice cuts of buffalo meat. Yes, it may not be as good as the best Angus, but it is possible to make a delicious patty from buffalo keema. It is just that our chefs can’t be bothered to experiment with buffalo meat. Which is crazy. The hamburger is such a global craze at the moment that it is only a matter of time before somebody beats the hotels and the restaurants and opens a great burger place in India.

Even the fast-food chains have got the message.

After I abandoned my Big Mac half-way through writing this column, I went to the deserted Burger King outlet in the airport food court and ordered an Angus Steakhouse burger. It was more expensive than the Big Mac but it was delicious, easily the equal of some of the burgers turned out by the upmarket mini-chains.

So, if Burger King can do it, why can’t India’s chefs?

The Big Mac burger gives you the illusion of eating a proper meal – meat, bread, and potatoes in the form of fries

JULY 28, 2013

PAY UP

Daniel Boulud launched his casual D B Bistro Moderne in New York with a hyper-expensive beef and foie gras burger

TOUCH OF GRAS

In London, Gordon Ramsay did his own variation on the same sort of foie gras-rich burger at the Boxwood Café

Photo: THINKSTOCK

BESTSELLERS

Photos: GETTY IMAGES

twitter.com/HTBrunch

PRICE RISE

American chefs worked out that burger lovers were not foie gras fans and started making their hamburgers with outrageously priced wagyu beef MORE ON THE WEB

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indulge

But only if you are a hero in Bollywood; heroines come with an expiry date

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HERE’S ONE thing that the three reigning superstars of Bollywood have in common.

And no, it’s not that they all rejoice in the surname Khan, though God knows that has been commented upon a million times. What binds Salman, Shah Rukh and Aamir together is that they are all 48 this year.

Go a little further down the rung of super-stardom and it is pretty much the same story. Saif Ali Khan is 43; Akshay Kumar is 45; Ajay Devgn is 44; hell, even Hrithik Roshan is nudging 40 (he hits that milestone next January). And all of them are doing very well indeed at the box-office, singing and dancing, romancing the ladies, and beating the bad boys to a bloody pulp, thank you very much.

Now, here’s a challenge for you. Can you name a single Bollywood actress who is still a top star past the age of 38? Yes, take your

Seema Goswami

spectator

time. Scroll down the list of all the usual suspects. Use that old search engine thingie. Phone a friend. Found anyone who is still a significant player past that magical figure? No? I thought not.

Something mysterious seems to happen to our actresses as they creep – ever so slowly and oh so unwillingly; but honestly, given what awaits, can you really blame them? – towards their late 30s. One minute they are flying high on the helium balloon of success and the next, they have crash-landed on hard ground. And no amount of botox, Juvéderm or plastic surgery can ever make them whole again. Well, not in the eyes of film producers and directors anyway.

When it comes to female stars, ageing seems to be calculated in dog years where 16 equals 25; 25 equals 30; and 38 equals death (at the box-office, at any rate).

No matter how brightly their star may have shone before, it tends to fizzle out around the mid 30s mark.

Sridevi last big release was Judaai in 1997 and she effectively retired from the business at 34. And it is telling that she only put one cautious toe out to test the waters once she was pushing 50 and unambiguously past leading-lady age.

It is no secret that Madhuri Dixit struggled to find a decent role in her last years in the business. Or that Karisma Kapoor never managed a comeback after marriage and kids, even though she has never looked better. Rani Mukerji tries hard

SALMAN

AGE IS JUST A NUMBER…

SHAH RUKH

Photos: GETTY IMAGES

AAMIR

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to stay relevant with releases like No One Killed Jessica, but we can all see that this is a losing battle. And even Aishwarya Rai, delivered her last big movie, Guzaarish , in 2010, at the venerable age of 37 (though if anyone can make a sizzling comeback, it is her).

And these are the stars who have actually been on top of the heap for most of their time in moviedom. Those who were lower down in the pecking order fare even worse. Preity Zinta struggles on gamely at 38, but even she has to produce the movies she stars in (and it doesn’t help when they are like Ishkq in Paris).

And Bipasha Basu seems to have slipped completely off the radar at a youthful 34.

But while the women fall by the wayside like so many dominoes, the men just go on and on. It’s almost as if with male stars, the ageing process has been halted by some ancient alchemical process. Ever since Raj Kapoor and Dilip Kumar canoodled with actresses half their age, Bollywood heroes have seen it as a badge of pride to be paired with heroines who could well be their daughters. In fact, some of the heroines Amitabh Bachchan, Shashi Kapoor, Dharamendra have romanced on-screen could well have been their granddaughters.

And over the years we have become so inured to this DecemberApril pairing that we see nothing incongruous about Salman Khan playing the romantic lead against Sonakshi Sinha who was two years old when he became a star with Maine Pyar Kiya. Or when Shah Rukh Khan sings and dances around the trees with Anushka Sharma, who was five years old when he was stammering K K K K Kiran in Darr (Deepika Padukone was seven years old at that time, in case you are interested).

I wondered about this as I watched Madhuri Dixit (Shah Rukh’s co-star in Dil To Pagal Hai) play judge on the TV dance reality show Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, biding time, no doubt, till she is old enough to play the glamorous yummy mummy or the beatific badi bhabhi (given that her comeback vehicle Aaja Nachle didn’t exactly set the cinema screens on fire). Is this the way the cookie will always crumble for our Bollywood heroines? Or will the film industry change its sexist, ageist ways?

The way I look at it, Kareena Kapoor Khan will be the test case.

At 33, she is veering close to the danger mark. Will she be able to change the rules? Well, I am sure we wish her the very best but if I were you, I wouldn’t hold my breath.

While the women fall by the wayside like so many dominoes, the men just go on and on

AGEING BEAUTIES

Sridevi (left) effectively retired from the business at 34. And Madhuri Dixit (far left) struggled to find a decent role in her last years in the business

JULY 28, 2013

MORE ON THE WEB

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indulge

hindustantimes.com/brunch

WHICH OS CAN BEAT ANDROID AND IOS? None of the new mobile operating systems look like they’ll vanquish the iOS-Droid kingdom, for now

desktops and phones seamlessly.

Chinks: No major backing from the big hardware giants. It had to crowdsource $32 million. The first device – the Ubuntu Edge (nice looking, dual-boots Android) seems expensive ($600 - $830).

Chances to pull off a coup: Slim to none. It will need to get at least RE YOU bored of the fact that almost every phone released two big mobile brands to announce a Ubuntu Touch phone. It must and every buying choice is restricted to either Android or start with a under-$200 phone to gain some momentum. iOS? Are you excited about the news that is flooding in about FIREFOX OS brand new mobile phone operating systems that will take on these What: Robin Hood-like saviour of the poor. It is the all-new econotwo and bring in a breath of fresh air into the fairly mundane my smartphone king. Basically a web browser that runs like a mobile smartphone market? Well, control that growing ebullience for a phone OS. It is the smartphone OS for the rest of us. while and let’s first get our facts right.

Arsenal: It will run on low-end, ultra-cheap hardware. The first More than 90 per cent of smartphones around the world run on phones are all under $100 and one rumoured to be under $40. It Android and iOS. has some great backing by service providers who want to break Android has about 75 per cent of the market share and sells about the duopoly of Android and iOS. It’s got easy-to-build apps, fully 60 million smartphones every month.

HTML5 ready. And the first phone is almost out.

Apple’s iOS has about 18 per cent of the market share and sells Chinks: It looks and feels sucky. Hardware, especially the screen about 13 million smartphones every month. display, looks weak for a smartphone. Taking on Android in the lowAs you can see from these numbers, the dominance of the top end market is not easy. OS is not geared for high-end phones. two is formidable and for a new OS to take on the mighty twins isn’t Chances to pull off a coup: It will happen when pigs fly! They can’t going to be a walk in the park. Here’s a quick report card on the win this on just price. With the constant fall in prices of hardware new OSes on the horizon and the chances each have to pull off a bit and processors, Android finally doesn’t feel like a torture test on of a coup. low-end phones. Apple is also rumoured to be working on cheap versions. Firefox is two years too late.

Rajiv Makhni JOLLA SAILFISH OS What: The jolly giant with an amazing heart-warming story. An OS that will rise from the ashes of the brutally slain MeeGo. It has ex-Nokia employees who revived it as they truly believed in the OS. Arsenal: Powerful interface with well-thought-out features. The most complete OS of the lot. MeeGo has a huge fan base already. It can do HTML5 and is compatible with Android apps. It’s the first TIZEN: smartphone up for pre-order. There’s a passionate What: A towering beast born of incestuous group of people behind it. relationships and strange bedfellows. A full-blown Chinks: It needs a lot of money to reach its potenoperating system that is the bastard child of MeeGo tial. It has no major backers other than the group (the abandoned Nokia-Intel OS), LiMo, Bada and itself. They will be manufacturing their own phones a few other alphabet soup OSes. as of now, so scaling to become a world giant is tough. It Arsenal: Has some serious backing now with Samsung TIZEN announcing a few phones and the Linux association It is HTML5 compliant is slightly similar to Tizen. along with a few more brands making a lot of noise. It and has Intel backing it Chances to pull off a coup: If romantic and endearing stories of passion and perseverance always will run on multiple device categories including tablets paid off, this would be a prime candiand in-car entertainment systems. It will run any app that is HTML5 date. Unfortunately for every one compliant. It has Intel backing it and it has service providers understory of success, there are standably excited.

99 that have fallen by Chinks: It’s been brewing for way too long and doesn’t have much the way side. Do the to show for it. It has predominantly Samsung backing it and that math! is a big issue.

So am I saying that Chances to pull off a coup: It brings up the classic question - would not one new OS can take on you kill the goose that lays the golden egg? Would Samsung really JOLLA SAILFISH the awesome twosome? Let me put It has a powerful interface go the whole hog and truly cannibalise its Android phone cash-genit another way. A new OS today has with well-thought-out features erating machine? And Samsung’s track record on any OS other to be able to cover the whole gamut than Android has always been pretty shaky (think Bada, Windows). (economy and top-of-the-line), must be backed by service providers UBUNTU TOUCH and multiple manufacturers and has to have killer differentiator What: The giant slayer and the one generating the most features that get customers and users really excited. excitement. Ubuntu is an excellent Linux-based desktop operatMost of these new OSes can tick mark just one from the critical ing system and has a serious user base and fan following. Think of three. The first one to cover the gap and embrace all three could the Touch as a desktop OS ported to a mobile phone. be the one to take on and vanquish the iOS-Droid kingdom. Don’t Arsenal: Clean interface. It has Edge Magic, which is a button-less hold your breath, yet! gesture and swipe-based way of doing everything on your phone.

Rajiv Makhni is managing editor, Technology, NDTV and the anchor of Gadget Guru, It will have lots of apps right from the start, is HTML5-ready so Cell Guru and Newsnet 3 almost any website can work like an app. It will work on tablets,

A

techilicious

FIREFOX OS

First phones are all under $100 and one is rumoured to be under $40 MORE ON THE WEB

For previous columns

by Rajiv Makhni, log on to hindustantimes.com/ brunch. Follow Rajiv on Twitter at twitter.com/ RajivMakhni

UBUNTU TOUCH

It is HTML5ready so almost any website can work like an app

JULY 28, 2013

HT INITIATIVE

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Now In India, The Jungle Book Jive Live shows from 7th - 11th August 2013 at Siri Fort Auditorium

WHETHER it is Mowgli, Bagheera or Sher Khan, most of us have a favourite character from The Jungle Book.

Now, Rudyard Kipling’s enduring and loveable characters will take the stage from August 7 to August 11, performing live at Delhi’s Siri Fort Auditorium. Jungle Book Jive, the 80-minute international show in English, features the life-like characters of Mowgli and his gang of friends.

ALL THAT JAZZ

has partnered with an Australia-based production house to bring the spectacular production to the Indian audience. The cast from Australia will perform 12 shows over five days. These will include exclusive shows for schoolchildren.

WORLD-CLASS EDUTAINMENT

Commenting on the initiative, Harshad Jain, Business Head, Radio & Entertainment at HT Media, says, “We at Fever Entertainment have always presented the finest entertainment options to our audiences, be it for consumers or for our partners.” He goes on to add that Fever has also believed in doing things differently and the musical production is a step in this direction.

“Jungle Book has been a part of growing up for most of us and is very popular amongst people of all age groups.

Today, India has limited options when it comes to family entertainment and by bringing concepts like these to Delhi, we can provide a platform where families can be a part a world-class experience.”

Fever Entertainment, which ideates and executes large event properties, has already made a mark in the family entertainment space by bringing to India successful international shows like Ben 10 and Noddy in Toyland. A complete family entertainer, Jungle Book Jive is likely to find appreciation from kids and adults alike. It’s time to release the wild side of you.

Tickets for the show can be bought online through www.bookmyshow.com & www.mycity4kids.com. Prices start at R 600.

The event is designed with an Indian audience in mind

An adaptation of Kipling’s much-celebrated stories, the show has been created exclusively to suit the sensibilities of the Indian audience.

The live show – a mix of theatre and music – brings together the worlds of education and entertainment. The musical gala is a visual treat. It aims to highlight values like the importance of friendship, harmony and teamwork. The classic rivalry between Mowgli and Sher Khan and the strong bond between Mowgli and Baloo, will be more than a spectacle, it will be a fun way to learn.

The show will feature the story of The Jungle Book, with catchy music, spectacular sets and loads of audience interaction. Fever Entertainment JULY 28, 2013

20

WELLNESS

hindustantimes.com/brunch

MIND BODY SOUL SHIKHA SHARMA For any worries related to unplanned pregnancy: Write to us at consumercare@piramal.com or call us at 1800-22-0502 (toll free) or sms ICAN to 56070 Website: www.i-canhelp.in Q1. Dear Doctor, my husband does not like to use condom and the doctor has advised me against using birth control pills as I am suffering from thyroid problem.

Please suggest other options that we can use to avoid pregnancy for the time being.

Generally, condom and birth control pills are the most common methods used. Do not worry, you are not alone, many men do not like condoms. Taking into consideration your preferences and health concerns, you have options like Intra-uterine devices, Spermicidal jelly, Vaginal ring etc that can be used. Discuss with your husband about these options and then speak to a gynaecologist to choose the one that suits best to both of you.

Q2. I have a short menstrual cycle. I have heard that the sperm can stay alive in the body for maximum 5 days. So would my chances of pregnancy be high if I have unprotected sex on 3rd day of my cycle?

For a short cycle of 25 days, ovulation can happen very early, th that is around 7-8 day. On an average, the sperm stays alive in the body for approximately 3 days.

However, it is not necessary that ovulation will happen on the exact same day of the cycle in each month. Hence calculating the ‘safe period’ is not a foolproof method of contraception and a woman does run a risk of getting pregnant if the calculation goes wrong or if the ovulation happens earlier or later than assumed. It is therefore strongly recommended that you a d o p t a re g u l a r m e t h o d o f contraception such as condoms or

HERBS TO BEAT THE FLU

contraceptive pills. You can visit a gynaecologist who will be able to guide you properly.

Q3. I got married 6 months back and we both are a working couple.

Although we do not have any specific family planning, I have not conceived until now. This has made my in-laws to think that I am infertile and they are forcing me to undergo tests and treatments to have a baby. Is there something to really worry or my inlaws are unnecessarily freaking out?

Please do not worry; this is a common thing that is seen with today’s young couples. Since your in-laws belong to a generation, where conceiving soon after marriage was the norm, they may feel concerned for you. I suggest you and your husband have an open discussion and decide when do you want to have a child. It is best to be mentally and financially ready before you take up the responsibility of a bringing up a child. In case if you do not feel ready for a child now, consult your gynaecologist and find a method which would be best suited to both of you.

If you do feel you are ready to have a child, then think back and see how many times in the last 6 months did you have proper sex on your 2 most fertile days? Many a times, owing to stress and lack of time couples get with each other, the opportunity for intercourse is also limited. Hence, the reason for you to conceive could be lack of intercourse at right time and not necessarily any medical condition. Give it a little more attention for sometime and then consult a gynaecologist if required.

Queries answered by Dr Nirmala Rao MBBS, MD, DPM; a well known psychiatrist who heads Mumbai based Aavishkar - a multifaceted team of expert doctors and health professionals. Aavishkar has a comprehensive approach to mental and physical health, with an emphasis on counselling and psychotherapy.

Supported by:

You don’t have to fall prey to viral fever this monsoon.

Just include these herbs in your diet and stay fit

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the sinuses. Mullein and horehound HIS MONSOON, it’s raining tend to clear up the lungs, so you bacterial and viral infections. can breathe better. Anise works on Such ailments are tricky to cure the central neuronal pathways and because standard antibiotics fail to decreases cough. Natural herbal treat them. So what do you do if you aspirins such as willow bark reduce catch a cold or come down with viral fever and body ache. fever? One of the remedies is to be patient and let your body’s defense GINGER AND TULSI DECOCTION system destroy the virus. However, Take five tulsi leaves and add the best course of treatment is to crushed ginger to it. Boil it in wause herbs to shorten the ter till the water reduces to course of the illness. half. This decoction is an The early symptoms of effective way of viral infections are mild reducing body ache and to high fever, sore soothing a sore throat. throat, headache, body ECHINACEA ache and fatigue.

ROOT TO WELLNESS Ginger and tulsi decoc- It is one of the most Include the following tion reduces body ache popular immunity-enherbs in your diet and and sore throat hancing herbs. Several fight the monsoon’s studies show that peoviruses. ple who take echinacea come down GUDUCHI with fever less often than others.

This herb is an excellent adaptogen The herb acts on most viral sympand is very effective in treating viral toms like weakness, chills, sweating, fever. It boosts the immune system sore throat, muscle and joint pain, and prepares the body to tackle viral and headaches. Echinacea also infections. Interestingly, the herb reduces the frequency of cough and manages to grow leaves without any cold throughout the year. The herb contact with soil or water. works by strengthening your cell’s EUCALYPTUS AND protective membrane, making it less PEPPERMINT OILS vulnerable to viral attacks and become more resistant to infection.

Aromatherapy is another way to reduce viral infections directly in the LICORICE (MULETHI) affected area. Most Take licorice with nasal inhalers conginger to improve tain these essential your overall immunity. oils. Eucalyptus and Studies show that peppermint control licorice slows down viral nasal inflammation replication by increasing and swelling in the the production of killer immune sinus tracts and throat. cells (white blood Peppermint helps settle an HERBAL HEALING cells) that attack Rosemary reduces upset stomach. viruses. congestion, particularly Rosemary reduces ask@drshikha.com congestion, particularly in in the sinuses Photos: THINKSTOCK, SHUTTERSTOCK

MORE ON THE WEB

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JULY 28, 2013

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PERSONAL AGENDA

twitter.com/HTBrunch

Actor

Tusshar

Kapoor

BIRTHDAY

November 20

SUN SIGN Scorpio

PLACE OF BIRTH Mumbai

HIGH POINT OF YOUR LIFE Release of my first film

LOW POINT OF YOUR LIFE

YOUR ALL-TIME FAVOURITE HINDI MOVIE.

Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam

The Dirty Dozen, Jaws, Ghost.

THE MOST PAISA-VASOOL FILM?

The Hunger Games.

JULY 28, 2013

FIRST BREAK

Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai (2001)

Acting in Bajatey Raho

One piece of advice you wish someone had given you 10 years ago.

To be as fit as I am today.

What is the difference between Ekta, the sister and Ekta, the producer?

As a sister, she’s very protective and emotional. As a producer, she has calmed down.

How difficult was it to play your character in the Golmaal series?

For the first film, it was difficult.

I sat through a workshop to perfect it. But for the second and third films, I got used to it and just rehearsed on the sets.

You have three minutes to pack. What do you take with you?

My iPad, phone and clothes.

Your fitness funda.

Only 25 per cent of the battle is won in the gym. The remaining 75 per cent is in the kitchen.

Your strategy in a crisis.

To be calm and take one thing at a time.

Your mantra for success.

To never give up. Success is not in your hands, only your efforts are. So keep trying.

The last line of your autobiography would read…

“I’ll be back.”

— Interviewed by Veenu Singh

THE MOST OVERRATED FILM.

Baz Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby.

my movies

THE FILMS YOU HAVE WATCHED MORE THAN FIVE TIMES?

University of Michigan

CURRENTLY DOING

The day I was leaving my family for the first time to go abroad. I felt really lonely

A classic film you’d have liked to be a part of.

Caravan (1971).

The best thing about your father, Jeetendra.

He is a very patient and very positive person.

Your favourite Jeetendra film.

Farz (1967).

What is interesting about Bajatey Raho?

It’s got people from different genres acting together. Some from commercial cinema and others from off-beat films.

If you weren’t an actor, you would have been...

Either a producer or a distributor. I’m also interested in the business of Bollywood.

The song that explains your current state of mind.

Everybody Wants To Rule The World by Tears For Fears.

The one thing you’d like to unlearn?

The art of analysing and criticising a film, so I can watch a movie as a member of the audience and not an actor.

The biggest risk you have ever taken.

I’m producing a film soon.

COLLEGE

THE FIRST MOVIE YOU WATCHED ON THE BIG SCREEN?

I think it was Naseeb.