March 2016 | Vol 1
OUTLOOK SPLURGE march 2016
Shikhar
VOL 1
dhawan IS GEEK CHIC & ON A WINNING STREAK
The Hottest
GADGETS
JORDAN’S NATURAL WONDERS
splurge edit
Rewiring the
game
Editor-in-Chief Krishna Prasad Executive Director Indranil Roy Associate Publisher Vidya Menon
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echnology has taken over the world – now, more than ever, where it governs almost all aspects of our lives. As connectivity envelopes us everywhere, we never want to be far from it, As Google’s co-founder Sergey Brin dramatically declared in 2010, “We want to make Google the third half of your brain,” there is no doubting the influence of technology, gadgetry, and connectivity, in all of its wizardy and sophistry. The latest to fall for the charms of technology is the ubiquitous wristwatch – we bring you the latest smartwatches that make the latest fashion statement, give health updates, and keep you always connected to your favourite social media outlets. We meet the young guns driving the Internet revolution in India, with their e-commerce companies and apps valued at eyebrow-raising amounts, that are changing the way Indians shop, get fit, or even help one another in a connected world. And it’s not surprising that one of the country’s hottest sportsmen, Team India’s opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan, is himself a big fan of high-tech gadgets. We spent some time with him at The Claridges hotel in the Capital, and came away charmed by his haute fashion sense, dedication to the game, and determination to be number one. Immerse yourself in the world of gizmos, some of which are so new that they will only be available in the summer – you can always pre-book your objects of desire, as there is no greater pleasure than having the latest technological marvel in the palm of your hand, before anyone else has even laid eyes on it. While no one can predict the next big thing, we sure can enjoy the present.
Executive Editor Priya Kumari Rana Managing Editor Riddhima Seal Business Office Vice Presidents Johnson D Silva, Shishir Saxena National Head Kabir Khattar Brand Head Shrutika Dewan Deputy General Manager (Marketing) Jyoti Ahuja Circulation National Head Anindya Banerjee Assistant General Manager G Ramesh (South) Vinod Kumar (North) Production Assistant General Manager Shashank Dixit Senior Manager Shekhar Pandey Deputy Manager Ganesh Shah Assistant Manager Gaurav Shrivas Accounts Senior Manager Diwan Singh Bisht
- Priya Kumari Rana, Executive Editor Head Office AB-10 Safdarjung Enclave, New Delhi 110029, India Tel: 011-33505500 Fax: 011-26191420 Email: outlook@outlookindia.com
contributors
Other Offices Mumbai Tel: 022-33545000 Fax: 022-33545100 Kolkata Tel: 033-33545400 Fax: 033-24650145 Chennai Tel: 044-33506300 Fax: 044-33506327 Bengaluru Tel: 080-45236100; 45236105
Hari Govind Narendra Nair Kumar The editor of FHM India, he’s been writing on automobiles for a decade now; often cornered at parties to resolve which-car-shallI-buy dilemmas.
Ajit Rana
His love for the unusual outdoors The creative director for Amazon and off-road Fashion now, he’s driving saw him start India’s first taught at NIFT, launched his label real 4x4 adventurein 2000; and has driving company, styled PriyanOverlander ka Chopra and India. Akshay Kumar.
6 | Outlook Splurge | March 2016
Hemant Sagar
Amit Sengupta
Co-founder of Indo-French Fashion House Lecoanet Hemant, Paris, he has been associated with Le Bal Crillon des Debutantes since the year 1992,
Founder and editor-in-chief of Kolkata-based travel portal www.travelflat. in, he loves to explore the world of technology. in his free time.
Printed and published by Indranil Roy on behalf of Outlook Publishing (India) Pvt Ltd. Printed at IPP Limited. C4-C11, Phase II, Noida and published from AB-10 Safdarjung Enclave, New Delhi 110029
Cover & Layout design @alarinks
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Contents March 2016
12
22 Covetables
12 | Gizmos and Glam Pick the latest tech toys launched in Las Vegas, or grab a diamanté clutch to shine at night.
Splurge Watch
18 | What to Buy, Where to Go Heritage
22 | A Fairytale Evening Couturier Hemant Sagar presents a sneak view into one of the world’s most glamorous events – the annual Bal des Débutantes in Paris.
36
Collectibles
24 | Box of Treasures Sotheby’s jewellery specialist Catharine Becket on some of the world’s most valuable jewellery collections, and the greatest jewellery maisons.
Cover Story
28 | On the Front Foot In an exclusive chat with Splurge, cricketer Shikhar Dhawan talks about his love for all things technology, fashion and cricket, of course!
Tech Entrepreneurs
46
36 | Sound Technology Splurge catches up with the brains behind some of India’s most successful e-startups.
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28 Fashion
42 | Mission Missoni Missoni CEO Emilio Carbonera Giani’s tells Splurge about the design house’s plans to revive the heritage of its one-of-its-kind machine looms.
44 | Hi-tech Fashion Designer Narendra Kumar reveals how the fashion industry is using new-age technology to transform itself.
Watches
46 | Smart Move Splurge presents a round-up of the smart watches you should be looking out for this year, from fashionable and sporty, to an Indian classic.
48 | Dazzling Designs Chopard’s artistic director for jewellery and watchmaking, Caroline Scheufele, reveals all about her passion for creating jewelled beauties.
Shikhar Dhawan, photographed by Rohan Pingle at The Claridges, New Delhi. Jacket: Canali; T-shirt: Ermenegildo Zegna; Trousers: Vivienne Westwood; Watch: Ulysse Nardin; Smartphone: Vertu
Tee off in Winston Churchill’s favourite club in Marrakesh, hop over to Harrods for furniture...
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March 2016
Contents
52 Décor
50 | Slice of Italy Splurge takes a sneak peek into the Royal Suite Collection from Stefano Ricci.
52 | Sleep in Style
56 Wanderlust
Find out what makes UK’s Savoir Beds, literally, the best in the world.
60 | In the Land of Christ
Wellness
Our writer captures stunning vistas of Jordan’s stony beauty, and visits the birthplace of Christ.
56 | Thai High From Chiang Mai’s resort set in a rice paddy field, to glorious authentic massages, we are already planning our next trip to the land of Siam.
63 | Smart Travel
Spirits
Gastronomy
Learn the latest in gadgets you should be taking with you, next time you pack for your next trip.
58 | Malt to Taste The newly-appointed creative advisor of Royal Salute, Parisian Barnabé Fillion, takes us through tasting five extraordinary single malts.
64 | A Cheesy Affair We meet up with award-winning French cheese master Xavier Thuret, in the Capital.
58
66 | Belgian Marvel A historical farm near Bruges gets a makeover for a three Michelin-star restaurant, Hertog Jan.
Wheels
68 | Tech on Wheels
63 68
Splurge takes a look at some seriously aweinspiring technical concepts that will shape the future of mobility.
TÊte-À-TÊte
70 | The Fine Art of Change We catch up with human rights activist Kerry Kennedy, daughter of Sen. Robert F Kennedy, on her India visit, as she tell us about creating change.
parting shot
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72 | The Stars Shone Bright We caught a glimpse of stunning gowns and jewels on Academy-worthy actors at the Oscars.
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Covetables
Glamour adgets&
This spring, discover some of the latest gizmos launched recently in Las Vegas. Cover yourself in auric eye candy, tee off in style, make your better half sparkle, and make your pet adore you even more.
MUSIC
On Your Mind
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sing unique, patented Contextual Music Engine technology, Prizm is a music player that turns any speaker (connected via Bluetooth) into a thinking music player, by understanding the mood of the room (via wifi signals from smartphones). Each time you interact with it, Prizm remembers your preferences, to play music you love. You can also control it via the app (to be launched). Price on request (after requesting an invite).
TECHNOLOGY Meets Art
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igital prowess ‘Made in Germany’ meets Italian fashion label Moncler. The leather trim in blue, white, and red of the Leica X ‘Edition Moncler’ is reminiscent of the French flag, the origins of Moncler. The Leica X has a professional APS-Cformat CMOS sensor with over 16.5 megapixels, video in full HD, and a large, high-resolution display for easy use, even in sunlight. Limited to 1,500 pieces, it comes in a down case. Price on request.
LIGHT UP
The Smart Way
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ow that’s bright. The Nanoleaf Smart Ivy is the world’s smartest, most energy-efficient light bulb, controlled wirelessly by voice commands via Apple’s Siri (you connect it to Apple’s HomeKit app), and comes in the Nanoleaf Smarter Kit, with its own Smart Hub. Now you can dim or brighten any light at home simply by barking a command. Price: $100 (approx.).
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SPORTY
Sophistication
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his year at the mecca of the world’s finest haute horlogerie, SIHH in Geneva, Parmagiani Fleurier presented the all-gold, drop-shape Bugatti Sport Sapphire, part of its Super Sport line. The gold dial matches the 19 movement components, like bridges and plates,made of red gold, visible underneath the skeletonized structure. The hour display sits at 90° to the movement. Price: `3,7 crore (approx.)
CLOCKING Robot
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or its 10th anniversary last year, Maximilian Büsser of MB&F dreamed up this steel and brass armoured kinetic robot, the Melchior, with designer Xin Wang, using L’Epée 1839, a Swiss high-end clock manufacture. Besides having animated brains and articulated arms, it’s also a 480-component table clock, with ‘slow’ jumping hours, sweeping minutes, and a 40-day power reserve, a tribute to refined watchmaking. Limited to 100 pieces. Price on request.
CUSTOM
iPhone
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GET SET Go!
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he Withings Go fitness tracker is fun and easy to use. It tracks walk, run, swim, and sleep, and the E Ink™ screen displays your activity in real time. It also works as a watch, visible even in bright sunlight. It comes with a long-last battery (eight months, so no need to charge it), is water-resistant to 50m, and syncs with the Health Mate app on your smartphone. Price: $70 (approx.)
innish company Legend is offering bespoke iPhone variants with custom logos, diamond inlays, and laser or hand engravings, among other finishes. Legend’s Classique 24k gold iPhone 6S model features VVS1 grade diamonds studded into the precious metal logo, while the Legend Momentum (12GB memory) has hand-engraved inlays. The 10-micron plating comes in gold, platinum, or rose gold. A pair of plated earpods is included. Price: €3,790 (Momentum); €13,500 (diamond edition).
PARADISE For Your Pet
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our pet dog or cat will never be bored again, even when alone. This just-launched interactive CleverPet Hub engages your pet’s mind with custom lighting, touch, and sound puzzles, paired with food-dispensing rewards. New games update automatically on the Hub via wifi. You can check your pet’s progress via the app with minute-to-minute updates. Here, sensitive touch pads and a stainless steel bowl meet world-class design. Price to be announced.
SKIING Without Fear
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n & Motion, a French startup company based in the Alps and specializing in smart protection systems, has just launched the Smart Ski Airbag Vest (created for pro skiiers), that can detect an unavoidable fall via embedded technology, and inflate in less than 100 milliseconds to protect your most vital areas before impact. It’s been approved by the International Ski Federation. Price to be announced (in July).
March 2016 | Outlook Splurge | 13
Covetables
A STRIPE For Sylvie
GOLFING
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t’s a modern update on a timeless classic. The Sylvie Bag by Gucci is a contemporary piece that epitomizes the Italian brand’s belief of updating its famous codes. Here, the famous web stripe is combined with an ornamental chain and a springbuckle closure; these two elements give a playful touch to this neat structured bag, that comes in calf leather or crocodile, in green, red, white, black, and blue. Price on request.
Pleasures
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ouis Vuitton screams couture, even teeing off on exotic greens. This Monogram canvas, cowhide-trim Golf Bag holds a full set of clubs with six interior compartments, with a number of inside pockets for clothing, umbrella, towels, and balls.It comes with a removable cover and has a padded canvas and cowhide shoulder strap, to lug comfortably between fairways. Price on request.
Shano’s golf markers are crafted from semi-precious metals and stones. Green Tsavorite Clover Ball Marker: $130, Blue Sapphire Celtic Triple Ball Marker: $110, Rope Edge Mother of Pearl Ball Marker: $90
Druh Belts & Buckles Ryder Cup Limited Edition belt with buckle, in textured leather. Price: $80 (approx.)
New York-based E. Vogel on Howard Street makes custom-made handcrafted shoes with exotic hides from Europe. The cost for the initial pair is $1,300 but they store a model of your feet so that subsequent pairs cost $450. Your initials are handwritten on the inside of the tongues.
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FOREVER Thine
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if you liked it, then you should have put a ring on it,” warbled Beyoncé. Seal the deal with a stunning heart-shaped Forevermark diamond that sits within this ring by Chennai’s NAC Jewellers, surrounded by pear-shaped, round, and oval diamonds in a gold setting. Forevermark, the diamond brand from the De Beers Group, recently shone on the Oscars’ red carpet with actors Olivia Munn and Margot Robbie donning its pieces. Price on request.
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Covetables
knot of Love
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elt the heart of that special someone in your life with this ring from Nirav Modi’s Infinity Knot collection. Set in melée diamond lines, with marquise and pear-shaped diamonds, the pattern gives the illusion of infinity. Crafted in white gold, and with its feminine and fluid design, this ring will delight your better half, and is perfect for her jewellery box this spring. Price on request.
ETERNAL Bloom
D GLOW Bright
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rench luxury skincare major Clarins, with the Institut Curie, has discovered the latest breakthrough against hyperpigmentation for Asian skins, the Tri-Intensive Brightening Serum with its precious ‘whitening-in-control’ plant extract: acerola fruit extract, giving skin contrast, clarity, and colour. The fruit extract oxygenates skin, making it translucent. Price to be announced.
esigner Bina Goenka has come together with Gemfields to create this intricate minaudière for the capsule collection, The Flower That Never Wilts. A dense trellis of gold forms an oval clutch, with diagonal diamond striations running across it, and ethically sourced Mozambique rubies and Baroque pearls sitting on the clasp. A rendition of Lord Ganesha appears on the clasp as a special surprise. Price on request.
WRITE LIKE An Egyptian
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Sweet Rockin’
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he latest bag by Christian Louboutin, the Sweety Charity, is gorgeously structured, with the brand’s trademark spikes on the bow and sides, making it an irresistible pick as an evening essential. You can either wear it as a crossbody with the long, slinky chain strap, or double this up to hang from your shoulder. Price: `95,000.
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ade by Montegrappa, the Sophia Silver Fountain Pen features an image of the Rosetta Stone, a famous archaeological discovery, on its cap. Symbols of Egyptian civilization, and classical Greek writing also appear on the cap, as well as the Sphinx and Thot, the god of knowledge to whom ancient Egyptians attributed the invention of writing. The barrel shows Aristotle, Pythagoras, and Plato, engraved on sterling silver. Price: `2,35,995 (silver); `10,31,995 (gold).
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prodigious
Cozy Intimacy Mexican style
PILOT
E
White pervades all spaces with its timelessness
milio Pucci, known for its signature prints, and ‘Made in Italy’ style, unveiled its Pilot Episode Spring Summer 2016 collection, creative director Massimo Giorgetti’s first for this brand. It’s all about modernity and agelessness. There is an energy, and the Pucci colours are reshuffled. The new logo is a rhythmic pattern intertwined with the Florentine lily. n
Award to Watch
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f homespun charm is what you're looking for, look no further than Hotel Semilla in Playa del Carmen, a laidback boutique property, part of Design Hotels™, in a trendy part of town, that reflects Mexican heritage inspired by the Rough Luxe movement. Suites have outdoor baths for the ultimate luxury. The ‘cocina loft’ on the terrace offers home-style cooking. There is no TV. n
Manish Arora, Subodh Gupta, and HE the French Ambassador François Richier
French HONOUR
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ashion designer Manish Arora became the first Indian designer to be conferred with the prestigious Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur by HE Ambassador François Richier at a glittering Delhi do that saw the entire fashion fraternity turn up to celebrate. n
Exclusive Access Private Club
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erman car giant BMW India introduces BMW Privé, an exclusive luxury privilege program for select customers, with four categories – Bespoke Travel, The High Life, Grandstand, and BMW Privileges. Benefits include ‘Out of Africa’, a South African safari hosted by South African ex-cricketers, and the opportunity to meet international players at Wimbledon and Formula 1. n
Japan in italy
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ondon-based, award-winning Japanese restaurant Zuma has just opened its doors at the exclusive, newly refurbished Palazzo Fendi store. Zuma takes its inspiration from relaxed dining Squid with green style, Izakaya, by Chef chilli and lime Rainer Becker. n
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t this year’s SIHH show in Geneva, Swiss watchmaker Breguet picked up the prize for Best Horological Complication for its Tradition Chronographe Independant. An exhibition entitled ‘Breguet, A Story Among the Greats’, launched that day is now touring the Breguet’s 2010 ‘La Musicale’ world, and links Classique watch dedicated to Italian composer Breguet with Gioachino Rossini world figures. n
The all-new BMW 7 Series
KASHMIR CALLING
This property by Sarova Hotels & Resorts is perfect to beat city heat
Asia’S BEST
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orld-famous Chef Nobu Matsuhisa is set to open his eponymous fine-dining restaurant in the Royal Monceau Raffles Paris hotel, serving his signature Japanese-Peruvian fare, such as sashimi with jalapeño peppers. n
M
ake your spring break in Srinagar, at the award-winning retreat RK Sarovar Portico, minutes from Dal Lake. Stay in the Presidential suite with its snow-capped mountain views, and relax in the outdoor pool. n
Chef Nobu has 33 Nobu restaurants in partnership with actor Robert De Niro
AURIC TIMEPIECE
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ne of our favourite launches from the house of Panerai is the Luminor 1950 8 days GMT Oro Rosso, 44mm, which has a hand-wound mechanical P.2002 calibre made entirely by Officine Panerai. The dial has luminous Arabic numerals and hour markers, a date window at 3 o’clock, a 24-hour GMT indicator, and a linear reserve indicator, that, like the crown protector, are Panerai’s hallmarks. n
Enzo’s tome
A Vision OF elegance
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f you’re headed to the cool climes of London this summer, make a stop on the third floor at Harrods. Luxury Italian brand Visionnaire is launching its first 200sq m store in the UK, and will feature some of their best-loved designs. “Now you can design a whole lifestyle around the Visionnaire look,” says Stewart Mancey, Harrods head of Furniture. n
Classic pieces will include the handmade Chatam Dining Table and Versailles Desk
SIGNATURE Style
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n its fifth year of partnering with automaker Bentley, Vertu has launched its third smartphone, the Signature Touch for Bentley, with Beluga and Hotspur Bentley leather, a vibrant display, and Dolby® Digital Plus surround sound, at `11 lakh. n
BRITISH STAR Shines Brightly
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ucci has announced its new ambassador for watches and jewellery, British musician Florence Welch. At an event unveiling their latest timepiece, the G-Timeless Automatic, worn by Florence, she was also seen wearing a bangle and rings from the Marché des Merveilles and Flora lines. n
March 2016 | Outlook Splurge | 19
Florence Welch photograph courtesy of Gucci/Getty Images
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ou must first of all dream about a car,” declared Enzo Ferrari, and no one photographs these dream machines better than automotive photographer Günther Raupp. Get your hands on the 304-page The Ferrari Book with a preface by Piero Ferrari, that fêtes the best of 30 years of the luxury carmaker, and feeds the Ferrari myth. Available at www.theluxecafe.com for `7,950 n
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TEE OFF IN MARRAKESH
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he newly opened Mandarin Oriental, Marrakesh is launching a Golf Journey Package that includes a chauffeur-driven ride to the Golf Al Maaden. Or one can head to Royal Golf, Morocco’s oldest resort, favoured by Winston Churchill. Price per night: €715 (suite); €1,115 (villa). n
“I grew up admiring Zegna’s creations, and can’t wait to enter their archives,” says Sartori
new chapter
New Vision
HIGH CALIbre Chronograph
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resh out of SIHH Geneva is the Vacheron Constantin Overseas Chronograph, for world travellers. With its column-wheel calibre 5200 and 42.5mm diameter case, this is the fifth new model in the Overseas collection, that celebrates 20 years.n
Stay for two nights and enjoy two days’ of green fees on a world-class, 18-hole golf course
sky high indulgence
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ext time you fly the Mumbai-Istanbul route on Turkish Airlines, get set for a restaurant-like experience with their Flying Chef service. Business Class passengers get a wide selection of cocktails, Turkish tea and coffee, and multiple cuisines, including Indian. n
E
rmenegildo Zegna has announced the appointment of Alessandro Sartori as the brand’s artistic director, who joins in June 2016. He will report to Guido Zegna, the Group’s CEO, with his first show in Milan set for January 2016. "I can't wait to enter Zegna’s archives," says Sartori of his new role. n
HEROINE!
TRIDENT IN MUMBAI
The Singleton used to create a Speyside Sour
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aserati drove into West Mumbai with its first dealership there, Petal Maserati, near the Taj Hotel, Santacruz. The showroom boasts of the Quattroporte, the Ghibli sports sedan, the Maserati GranTurismo and the GranCabrio. n
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ouis Vuitton continues the visual dialogue started with Series 1 between artists like Bruce Weber, Juergen Teller, and Square-Enix, Japanese manga game designers, in the latest ad campaign by Nicolas Ghesquière. Shown here is Lightning from ‘Final Fantasy’ video game, who pushes the idea of the heroine in the virtual world. n
BATTLE OF the Bottle
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iageo Reserve World Class, the industry’s biggest bartending competition, will see 13 Indian bartenders battle it out. Meanwhile, Diageo brand ambassador Tim Etherington Judge held a masterclass at Delhi’s Farzi Café, with The Singleton. n
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Bojan Jankulovski, head of operations, Maserati India, with Sukhbir Bagga, managing director, Group Planet Petal, at the launch
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HERITAGE
NoPumpkin!
A veritable Cinderalla’s ball. Debs take to the dance floor on opening night.
Couturier Hemant Sagar takes us to one of the world’s most glamorous events, the annual Bal des Débutantes in Paris, that sees a smattering of debs from all over the world – from European aristocracy to business royalty – for a ringside view of a fairytale evening of haute couture and brilliant jewels.
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his is a rare case of something priceless, literally. You cannot buy a ticket to this invitation-only, toast to glamour, held yearly in Paris, France. This is the setting: Every year, 20 young girls between the ages of 16-22 are chosen from handpicked families worldwide to travel to the French capital with their parents to be officially introduced to society, which makes them a débutante or a ‘deb’. This Bal is however a bit different, one could call it a 21st-century interpretation of the age-old English tradition of young ladies clad and gloved in white being presented to Her Majesty the Queen, thus called a débutante. It is on the Saturday after Thanksgiving that Ophélie Renouard organizes the event that is known as Le Bal Crillon, in association with the Hôtel de Crillon, the world-famous, historic property on Place de la Concorde, belonging to
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Rosewood Hotels. The Crillon, however, while undergoing its biggest renovation ever, is not the place where Le Bal happened this year; it is at the Palais de Chaillot opposite the Eiffel Tower, with its cinemascope view on the dazzling and glamorously lit monument towering over the event all evening. This year for the first time, the Official Jeweller and main sponsor of the event was Payal New York, represented by Payal Mehta, the bespoke jewellery designer from India. Preparations begin earlier in the year, when each of the débutantes has made her final choice of dress that will be made especially for her by ‘her’ designer. Payal actually went to the extent of creating a sublime piece of jewellery to match the dress, and of course each deb. Fast forward to the night before the event: the 20 girls now having arrived in Paris, get together for their waltz les-
son given by Marc Reed, for the dance that will open the Ball an evening later. Watching the young couples holding on to each other and trying to watch their own feet to make sure they don’t dance on each other’s toes, or create a faux pas, is absolutely charming. The evening of the Ball is here, and a black chauffeur-driven Renault with the logo of Le Bal drives up in front of the hotel to pick up each débutante to drive her to the Palais de Chaillot. Each deb, bejewelled and fully attired in evening gown, is sashayed backstage. Nervousness and stage-fright accompany the last moments when parents and guests start pouring in, oohing and aahing about this historical and spectacular place with its unique view. At each guest’s nominated seat, with a handwritten card spelling out each name, one finds a printed menu announcing special creations by the Crillon’s Michelin-starred chefs. The table service is exquisite; rosé champagne flows, and a live orchestra tantalizes you into a demi daydream. I was seated at a central table next to Payal Mehta with Rajni Malla, mother of Zara Fistolera, the Nepali-Italian débutante, and her grandmother Maharaj Kumari Rama Malla of Nepal. Stéphane Bern, master of ceremonies, who
Left: New York-based jeweller Payal Mehta with Hemant Sagar; Right: Debs and cavaliers arrive at Le Bal in a chauffeur-driven Renault.
A printed menu announces creations by Crillon’s Michelin-starred chefs. Rosé champagne flows, and a live orchestra tantalizes.
This year’s talented debs with Stéphane Bern and Payal Mehta, the official jeweller of Le Bal
is himself media aristocracy in France, takes the mike and opens the Ball in French and English. This is when the couples, débutantes and cavaliers, walk through the tables decked in Limoges porcelain and crystal, with Stéphane Bern giving a brief summary on each deb. This is where we hear that Olivia Hallisey, the 17-year-old American débutante was the winner of this year’s Google science fair for having invented an inexpensive Ebola virus identification test apparatus. We also hear that Dominique Cojuangco from the Philippines has over 400,000 followers on Instagram. It is these tidbits that make the event come alive,as the audience goes into a frenzy of applause and enthusiasm to the sounds of the orchestra underlying each walk-through. This is when we start looking at the exquisite hors d’oeuvres in our plates: an all-white composition of palm hearts and gold leaf, a welcome ‘break’ back to ‘reality’ before the debs prepare their solo walk-throughs. This is where you get the essence of the event: a ‘fragile’, young, beautiful girl dressed in haute couture and real jewels, hair done by Alexandre de Paris and wearing Christian Louboutins (official shoe supplier) on her feet, will walk through a grand hall of this stature to be declared a member of society in her own right. As the evening continues, it is time for the ball to start: fathers and daughters line up opposite each other for the first waltz which quite quickly breaks into a raving party that continues until the wee hours of the morning. Walking out of all this grandeur, one would expect a pumpkin next, no less... n
March 2016 | Outlook Splurge | 23
COLLECTIBLES
jewels beyond compare Opal, sapphire, ruby, and diamond pendant necklace, ‘Elephant’, by René Boivin, 1939
A diamond necklace by Van Cleef & Arpels
From Russian royal emeralds to artisanal pieces by the House of Boivin, Sotheby’s sells haute joaillerie to collectors looking for that unique piece. Catharine Becket, jewellery specialist at Sotheby’s, gives us the details.
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f you’re obsessed with baubles, you just may be envious of Catharine Becket, vice-president, Jewellery, Sotheby’s International, who first started out with the auction house in the silver and Russian works of art department, fresh out of university in 1994. “I was transfixed by the translucent enamel, gem-like colour, and guilloché work of Fabergé eggs,” she says, sitting in the 1911 Bar of The Imperial hotel, New Delhi. After a course in gemology from the GIA, London, she relocated to New York City, and has been
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Specialist in jewellery at Sotheby’s since 2005. Sotheby’s has sold record-breaking jewels like the Sunrise Ruby, a 25-plus carat pigeon-blood ruby from Cartier for a cool $30 million, and the 12.03 carat, flawless, vivid Blue Moon, found in South Africa’s Cullinan mines, and sold recently for $48.5 million to Joseph Lau, a Hong Kong-based industry titan who bought it for his daughter. Last year’s jewellery sales at Sotheby’s amounted to an eye-popping $571 million. Part of Catharine’s job entails educating and advising clients, and apprising them of upcoming auctions. “Because of our name, we don’t actively seek out clients, but there are places with affluent people, who have never heard of us,” says Catharine. “I was in Texas, and the sophisticated women there were astounded there was more to us than Real Estate.” She gives lectures around the world on the differences between say, a 1,000 carat sapphire, and one that is 5,000 carats. She’s also educating clients on artisanal and designer jewellery, from the grandes maisons, and on upcoming auctions. A standout collection at Sotheby’s is that of Madame Jeanne Boivin, a young Parisian jewellery designer, who, after becoming a widow, took over her husband René’s firm, and whose art deco jewellery of the 1930s stands out for its originality. It was also an instance where, along with another Boivin designer, Suzanne Belperron, the jewellery designer was female, something unheard of during the early 1900s. And on April 5, the Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite sale in Hong Kong, will feature mystery set jewels by Van Cleef & Arpels, an emerald and
Duchess of Windsor Cartier Panthère bracelet
Gold, platinum, sapphire, and diamond brooch designed by Jean Schlumberger for Tiffany & Co.
Duchess of Windsor Cartier Panthère bracelet
The Sunrise Ruby
The Blue Moon diamond
Duchess of Windsor Cartier Flamingo clip
“Top jewellers include Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Belperron, Harry Winston, and Tiffany. Few know that Louis Comfort Tiffany was a great artist – he was the American Lalique.”
Emerald and diamond necklace by Harry Winston
diamond brooch from the 19th century, that was part of Queen Amelia of Portugal’s collection. “There is a greater appreciation for provenance today, from even 10 years ago,” says Catharine. She adds that they’ve been “feverishly collecting” for the April 19 sale in New York City, Magnificent Jewels, that will have a mix of the traditional highvalue pink and white diamonds, as well as designand stone-oriented jewels. “If we just had pink and white diamonds, these would be worth a lot of money but would be boring. Our clients come for pieces that stand out, so that when they walk into a room you’re the only woman wearing it.” When asked about the world’s top jewellery maisons in the West, Catharine says: “Traditionally the French are considered the greatest jewellers. Among the top three you have Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, and smaller houses, like Suzanne Belperron.” Among the American designers, there is Harry Winston, but also Tiffany. Few know that Louis Comfort Tiffany, the son of the founder, was a great artist who painted with watercolours and stained glass. “He was the American Lalique, with that craftsmanship, attention to detail. If he worked with stones, they were unusual ones like moonstones and opals,” she says. One of Catharine’s favourite pieces is Indiainfluenced: “An outstanding piece, which became part of Qatari Sheikh Hamad Al Thani’s collection in 2007, is this amazing buckle brooch with an octagonal-cut emerald in the centre, trimmed with lapis lazuli,” says Catharine of this early art deco 1922 piece made by Cartier that mimics Indo-Persian design. Another superb collection is the one that belonged to Wallis Simpson, Duchess of Windsor, sold in 1987, that included Cartier’s Panthère bracelet, and a necklace once worn by Queen Mary. Last May in Geneva, as part of Sotheby’s Noble Jewels sale, were Cartier pieces, and classic pearls and gemstones from the 1930s that belonged to Mary, the Duchess of Roxburghe. Other favourites include a pair of emerald pendant earrings framed by diamonds, part of the collection of the Grand Duchess Vladimir, who had the world’s finest emerald collection. Catharine says that Western collectors are most drawn to Mughal Indian jewellery. Also on her list of current designers to look out for are Viren Bhagat and Nirav Modi. “India has these wonderful Golconda diamonds, and Mughal jewellery may not be that top quality, but it’s carved beautifully,” she says. “It all depends on what you’re looking for.” n
March 2016 | Outlook Splurge | 25
LUXE EVENT
Celebrating
La Dolce Vita Francesco Pensabene, Italian Trade Commissioner to India, tells us how to indulge in life’s sweeter things, at a luxurious weekend at DLF Emporio, that also spearheads a two-year campaign to foster closer trade ties between India and Italy.
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tarting on March 10, a weekend that toasts the ‘sweet’ aspects of Italian luxury living or ‘La Dolce Vita’ kicks off at DLF Emporio, New Delhi. The event is part of a greater campaign by the Italian Embassy and the Italian Trade Agency in New Delhi, entitled ‘Italy: The Extraordinary Commonplace’ that aims to promote Italian luxury living and business. “All over the world, Italy is acknowledged as the world capital of luxury and design,” says Sicily-born Francesco Pensabene, the Italian Trade Commissioner to India. “So we are starting with fashion, luxury, design, and furniture, to present the best of Italy.” Pensabene says that some of the most important luxury brands will be on board for the event, from Ferragamo, Zegna, Armani, Versace, Cavalli, and Tod’s, to Corneliani, Bottega Veneta, and Bulgari. “India is a gorgeous market for Italian brands, and Indian consumers can easily grasp the beauty and elegance of Italian luxury; take a look at the sari – it is the most beautiful thing on earth – we are in the land of fashion and beauty, so here we can find and support great Indian companies as partners.” The luxury event will see a fashion show with the top Italian brands at DLF Emporio, in-store events, and a few “surprises”. There will also be Italian apericena and aperitivo (hot and cold snacks served with apéritifs), and prosecco. “Please don’t call it Italian champagne,” smiles Pensabene. There will also be a special lounge with modern Italian furniture. The idea, according to Pensabene, is to “transfer an image”, and to “change certain stereotypes” by commu-
26 | Outlook Splurge | March 2016
Francesco Pensabene
The idea, according to Pensabene, is to “transfer an image”, and to “change certain stereotypes” by communicating the concept of beauty and elegance vividly personified by the iconic Sophia Loren in Fellini’s masterpiece, La Dolce Vita.
nicating the concept of beauty and elegance that was so vividly personified by the iconic Sophia Loren in Fellini’s eponymous masterpiece, La Dolce Vita. It is also to build upon an already strong trade partnership with India – Italy is the fourth largest trade partner to India from the European Union – and trade exports amounted to €3.2 billion last year alone. The focus is not only to build on existing trade such as luxury cars (Italy exported €16 million worth of luxury cars to India in 2015, a market share of 17.6 percent in the luxury auto market in India), but for this country to forge newer partnerships with India in pharmaceuticals, chemicals, food processing, information technology, furniture, food and wine, telecom, infrastructure, and bio-nano technology. But back to our indulgent weekend of “sweet” Italian living, where there is fashion and more to look forward to. “It’s how you enjoy your life, the way you dress, furnish your house, meet people,” says Pensabene. “That is the true meaning of La Dolce Vita.n
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Cover Story
Blue Jacket: Canali T-shirt: Ermenegildo Zegna Trousers: Vivienne Westwood Studded shoes: Christian Lboutin Watch: Ulysse Nardin Headphones: Bang and Olufsen
Smooth operator Shikhar Dhawan
When he’s not amassing runs for his country and breaking cricketing records, Team India’s über-hip opening batsman uses technology to reach peak physical fitness, relax on the road, play with his children, and reach out to fans. He also tells Splurge about how he never lets the numbers game affect him, and how he found true love on Facebook.
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here’s a palpable excitement at the Claridges Hotel, New Delhi, when Shikhar Dhawan pull up in his Mercedes GL, with his posse of managers. The security guards can’t hide their smiles. Instantly recognizable with his buzz cut and trademark handlebar moustache, despite his wraparound shades, the lean, six-foot left-handed star opening batsman for Team India quickly greets me with a warm handshake. And upstairs, in his stunning suite, he’s affable and polite and the picture of patience with our crew as we take him through numerous changes. A man of great taste, as I am to discover, he’s particularly charmed by the studded Christian Louboutin shoes he’s donned for our first shot, as well as the Ulysse Nardin on his wrist. As I hunker down on the comfy
text by Priya Kumari Rana photographed by Rohan Pingle styled by Ranjunee Chakma makeup by Kangna Kochhar location courtesy The Claridges, New Delhi
couch for our chat, Shikhar has also kicked off his shoes, and made himself comfortable, as he tells me about his unwavering focus on cricket, his family in Australia, and all the tech marvels he’s surrounded by daily (plus a few more he’d love to own). The boy wonder who grew up in West Delhi and attended St Mark’s Senior Secondary School, started playing cricket in his neighbourhood when he was nine years old and graduated to playing at a cricket club called Sonnet. “My cousin took me there, and for a year I just practiced, not playing a single match,” says Shikhar. “After a year, I got my first break — a friendly match.”Once in his early teens, he says he went “step by step” — “I first dreamt about playing under 16 at the state level, then once I achieved that, I made a goal for myself to play
March 2016 | Outlook Splurge | 29
Cover Story for Delhi Under-19,” he says. It is in this same category that he got the chance to play in the World Cup in 2004, where he was Man of the Tournament. “God has been kind to me, as I’ve achieved all I dreamt of,” he says. And now, with the mind-boggling stats stacked in his favour – quickest Indian to reach 1,000 ODI runs, 2,000 ODI runs, and just recently 3,000 ODI runs (from 72 innings, just three short of teammate Virat Kohli’s feat), Shikhar Dhawan is on a roll, and shines the brightest blue on the horizon. “Earlier, I used to dream of breaking records, but now, I’m more relaxed,” he says. “I just reached 3,000 runs and didn’t even know it; I felt good about it, and then I moved on.” He also tries not to let the numbers affect him. “I feel good when things are going well, but if there’s a rough period, and things are low, this affects me. Plus, those sitting on TV have their own opinion and if I didn’t play well, they say I didn’t do good; I try not to listen to them, because I know what I have to do,” he says.
Blazer, shirt, and trousers: David Beckham for H&M Belt: Canali Shoes: Christian Louboutin Watch: Ulysse Nardin Logitech X100 speaker at Amazon.in
30 | Outlook Splurge | March 2016
“I feel good when things are going well, but if there’s a rough period, this affects me. Plus, those sitting on TV have their own opinion and if I didn’t play well, they say I didn’t do good; I try not to listen to them, because I know what I have to do.”
It’s this incredible sense of positivity that holds Shikhar’s spirits high: “If you want to be world number one, you have to have self-belief, along with fitness, which is the key to reach there,” he says. “It won’t happen overnight; you should be ready for a journey with its ups and downs, and try to enjoy both rides, and by the grace of God, you will reach your destination.” Enjoying his teammates’ company on and off the field is part of the game. “It’s one big family,” says Shikhar. “There’s healthy competition, and yet there’s friendship.” Although he admits one needs to invest time to get to know one another. And it’s his partnership with Rohit Sharma that the nation is pinning its hope upon in the Asia Cup being played out in Bangladesh. “I want to continue my good form, and scoring runs for my team; I always believe in making an impact when I bat in the middle,” he says. Passionate about big cars, he’s currently enjoying his Mercedes-Benz GL350. “It’s hard to drive in Delhi traffic; the best time was during the odd-even days,” he says. “But maybe I will buy a sports car, like a Lamborghini. I’ll ask Virat to first give me a ride, and let me see how it is.” With a yen for fast bikes, Shikhar used to be the proud owner of speed monster Suzuki Hayabusa, but had to sell it as he had little time to ride it, and it was “turning into junk”. Time is of essence for Shikhar, who has a home in Melbourne, Australia, where his wife, the beautiful Ayesha, two daughters Aliyah (15) and Rhea (11), and two-year-old son Zoravar live. “I was lucky to be in Australia for longer last year because of the World Cup,” he says, “Otherwise I’m usually travelling, and my daughters have school that they can’t miss. During the holidays, they visit me; my wife and son usually travel with me.” And in this world of social connectivity, his Facebook romance with Ayesha is well known. “Neither of us believe in Internet love,” he says. “I saw her pic and found her to be the most beautiful girl – she’s a tomboy, a sporty girl who’s not girly-girly, and that’s what attracted me.” He says that Ayesha didn’t accept his friend request for a month. “I was then busy impressing her, and then our chemistry became so strong that we fell in love with each other, and it’s still going along.” When he’s on the road, Shikhar can always be seen with his Beats or BeoPlay headphones, that he plugs into his iPhone and iPad to listen to Sufi or Punjabi music. He’s also keen on his portable Bose speaker, which is usually turned on in his hotel room when he’s just relaxing or taking a shower. Another pastime is watching movies on his iPhone when he’s on the road. “I usually wander to YouTube to catch videos
White knit pullover: Ermenegildo Zegna Cardigan: Missoni Trousers: David Beckham for H&M Belt: Canali Shoes: Christian Louboutin Watch: Ulysse Nardin Logitech K480 Keyboard at Amazon.in
Cover Story online, but I would love to try movies on Netflix (now in India),” says our cricket star, who admittedly loves the ‘superhero’ concept of sci-fi movies like The Avengers. A not-so-well-known fact about Shikhar is that he loves to meditate. “I close my eyes and pray,” he says. “I like to feel that silence, that blankness, and being present.” As one of India’s elite sportsmen, it comes as no surprise that he uses wearable technology to track his fitness goals. Armed with the Fitbit Surge, he and the other Boys in Blue, he can see that during a match, he’s covered a good 5-6 kilometres and burned around 5,000 calories. “The Fitbit also lets me know my heart beat, when I am resting (a cool 55 beats a minute),” he says. “So it’s great to get this info, to check where I stand during workouts.” The team has lately also adopted a special sports vest as per their coach’s orders, that has in in-built GPS tracking system to pick up a player’s movements, and identifies peak performance phases, to be scrutinized and analysed later. Back home, he loves to ply his children with gifts, including the latest sports shoes and gear for Aliyah, who wants to be a cricketer and is growing up to be a tomboy of sorts herself. While his wife Ayesha loves to shop online for little Zoravar. “His mom is mad about him, and keeps getting him funky clothes,” laughs Shikhar. He admits he’s quite taken up with the battery-powered cars he uses to play with Zoravar, and would love to purchase a mini drone next, just for the fun of it, but is a bit reluctant because of its hidden dangers. All teenagers love their action toys, and the Hoverboard is to his daughters’ generation, what roller blades were to him as a child – something that is high on his list of gifts. And how does he keep himself updated on the latest gizmos? “It’s usually by word of mouth,” says Shikhar. “Also, if I like something that attracts me, I will go and buy it. If I get bored with it, I will find something new to replace it.” The impossibly stylish Shikhar, whose brought the moustache – and its twirl – back in fashion, cuts his own hair, with an electric clipper. “I’ve been doing it for so long, and if I want to play with new style and keep some hair longer on one side, I ask my friends to cut it,” he says. It’s only if he’s tired or short on time, that he will step into a salon. When not in his team colours, he likes to wear Canvas shoes: Scentra Watch: Ulysse Nardin Tee: Missoni Jeans: Paul Smith Kindle Voyage at Amazon.in Logitech X300 speaker at Amazon.in
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Cover Story Tee: Scotch & Soda Trousers: Vivienne Westwood Shoes: Ermenegildo Zegna Watch: Ulysse Nardin Samsung Galaxy Tab S2
T-shirts and jeans, and unsurprisingly, sporty jackets and boots. Earlier in between shots, as he sports the camel David Beckham suit for H&M, he tells me that there’s nothing he loves more than a fitted suit for a formal evening out, or conversely, a pathani suit with a shawl. Tom Ford perfumes are among his favourite scents, while he’s partial to the gold Corum watch on his wrist, although he loves Ulysse Nardin’s latest pieces with the leather strap, and Hublots. One cannot but be riveted by the sports star’s powerful arms, covered in intricate blue tattoos, inked in Australia, representing Lord Shiva, Arjuna, and Baba Deep Singh. “Shivji is the biggest god in Hinduism, and represents dedication, hard work, and perfection,” says Shikhar. “Baba Deep Singh was the greatest warrior in Sikh history – so I want to be one of the greatest warriors for my country. I also like doing seva, and making people happy.” His quarter of a million Twitter followers are easily pleased with his daily tweets, something he never fails to do, even while on tour. Asked about what would he never tweet about, he jokingly says, “Something that will harm me!” And after a gruelling match, how does he celebrate victory? “If it’s a dramatic win, all the emotions pour out,” says Shikhar. “After we won the series against Australia, our first in 20 years, we had a big party, with drinks and dancing. Sometimes, it’s nice just to open a bottle of champagne as a quiet celebration.” The locker room, that secret epicenter of the team’s emotions, is the place where the players get pumped up by their coach before a match. “We want a happy environment, so we play really loud music on the speaker. We don’t want any stress at that point,” says Shikhar. Known for his prankster ways, he tells me he’s teased his teammates while they’re getting massages, and even skulked into their rooms in the dead of night, wearing a scary mask to creep them out. But underneath Shikhar’s jovial ways, impeccable manners, and wholehearted innocence, lies the grit of a true winner that flashes on our screens when he attacks those balls, unsettling bowlers, and creating cricketing history. And today, I just got a glimpse of the legend he’s destined to become. n
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TECH ENTREPRENEURS
BASKET of Surprises
Hari Menon Ceo & head of Merchandising, BigBasket.com
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lick. Select. Shop. With BigBasket. com, grocery shopping from within the comfort of your home, has become just that much more simpler. Based out of Bengaluru, this start-up, which started operations in December 2011, is the brainchild of VS Sudhakar, Hari Menon, Vipul Parekh, Abhinay Choudhari, and V S Ramesh. “We are the pioneers in e-grocery and had originally started in the year 1999 under the brand name FabMart. In December 2011, we were reborn as BigBasket.com. Today, we are present in over 17 cities, with over 18,000 products, over two million registered customers, 32,000
36 | Outlook Splurge | March 2016
With a wide range of products, and a proven record for on-time delivery, Big Basket has raced to the top of the game in the online grocery space.
orders a day,” says Hari Menon, CEO and head of Merchandising, BigBasket.com. Having raised funding of `900-crore already, Big Basket is already on the path to profitability, According to Menon, what keeps Big Basket ahead of competition is a combination of customer focus, operations excellence, and advanced technology. “The real testimony is in our delivery model which is inventory-led. It’s very difficult to work in this segment if you don’t have the visibility to inventory. You need to ensure you’re meeting large orders of customers. We currently operate at a 99.5 percent fill-rate and 99 percent ontime delivery,” explains Menon. So, what is next? “We will be expanding our services to 28 cities by March this year, including tier I and tier II cities,” says Menon. n
Home Lovin’
Exceptional customer focus and a wide variety of designs on offer has made the four-year-old furniture startup, Pepperfry, a leader in its category.
Ashish Shah Co-founder & COO, Pepperfry
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ounded in the year 2012, by Ambareesh Murthy and Ashish Shah, online furniture retailer Pepperfry.com has emerged a clear frontrunner over the last four years. “We started Pepperfry with a vision of building India’s largest home store. It is humbling that in the process, we have emerged as the largest brand in this space today by
providing the most exhaustive selection of designs,” says Ashish Shah, COO, Pepperfry. Till date, Pepperfry has delivered up to two lakh units of furniture, which is a big achievement in this segment. The four-year journey has seen its challenges too: poor infrastructure, poor supply chain, and building customer trust. However, Pepperfry has taken special care to make significant investments in all these three areas. “By overcoming the supply chain hindrance with a ‘large item distribution model’, we are able to manage door delivery of large furniture items in 400-plus cities across India with an unprecedented accuracy,” says Shah. “To address the issues of customer trust, we have introduced a host of unique services, including flexible return policy, establishing studios in key cities that allow in-store consultancy and offering ‘In-a-day-Carpenter Service’,” says Shah. “We realize that delivering good experiences to customers is a key differentiator in an online furniture space like ours. We are already the market leaders in the online furniture segment and we believe these efforts will help us further entrench our leadership,” concludes Shah. n
March 2016 | Outlook Splurge | 37
TECH ENTREPRENEURS
For the
Chef Within
Built on the premise of creating a lifestyle change, iChef.in is fast revolutionizing the concept of gourmet cooking at home. Chirag Arya Co-founder and chief coordinator, iChef.in
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ancy home cooking just got a tad easier, all thanks to gourmet recipe kits from iChef.in. Founded in 2014 by siblings Chirag and Sneha Arya alongside help from chefs at Hotel Trident, and inspired by a similar concept in the US by the name of Blue Apron, this Mumbai-based food start-up delivers ingredients measured, diced and sealed – for you to cook a delicious meal. “iChef is for people who would like to cook gourmet food at home without having to hunt for ingredients or shop for large quantities that may eventually go waste,” says Chirag Arya, who credits his venture’s phenomenal success in a very short time to the sudden explosion in India’s food space and the booming e-commerce sector. iChef is built on the premise of creating a lifestyle change, so the challenges are greater. “From treating food as a basic necessity to spending on food that is more aspirational, the shift is definitely not an easy one to make in India and requires a large amount of effort. To enable this change in mindset, we have also kept our price points very competitive,” explains Chirag. Since iChef.in has nine full-time culinary experts on board, who test and taste every recipe, and also determine the measures of each ingredient, there is little scope to go wrong. “Our recipe selection is based on the ones we’ve encountered on our travels, and those that been popular on Masterchef,” concludes Arya, who is now working on expansion plans to take iChef beyond Mumbai. n
38 | Outlook Splurge | March 2016
Hoops &
Pendants Jewellery startup, BlueStone.com, is changing the way Indians shop for their trinkets and baubles. Gaurav Singh Kushwaha CEO, BlueStone.com
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uality, design, craftsmanship… define India’s first jewellery startup, BlueStone.com. “Today, the brand offers close to 5,000 unique designs with a variety of customizable options for the new generation of jewellery buyers,” says Gaurav Singh Kushwaha, CEO, BlueStone. Overcoming the initial challenges of customer trust and loyalty with its unique Home Try-on feature successfully, BlueStone today services between 5,000-7,000 transactions every month across 20,000 pin codes. The company has now successfully raised funds from Accel Partners, Kalaari Capital, Saama Capital etc. “However, the high point in our journey was when Ratan Tata personally invested in the business reinforcing our faith in the model,” smiles Kushwaha. n
The Deal Maker
Anisha Singh of Mydala.com has an ambitious plan to introduce discount coupons from local businesses in virtually every neighbourhood in India. Anisha Singh Co-founder and CEO, Mydala.com
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s a student of political communications and business administration at American University in Washington DC, Anisha Singh had no idea she would ever turn entrepreneur. “I kept telling myself, no matter what I do, it won’t be that,” says Anisha. Today, more than a decade after moving back to India, she’s the co-founder of India’s most successful online couponing and discount website that services 200,000 small to medium businesses in 209 cities, with 50 million active users. The discount marketing platform was launched
in 2009 by Anisha and two friends, Ashish Bhatnagar and ArjunBasu (who also happens to be Anisha’s husband), and will presumably be raising dollar funding in the double digits, although she remains tight-lipped about the exact amount. She does share that one of Mydala’s oldest investors, Info Edge (of Naukri.com fame) initially put in $6 million. It could well raise ten times that amount. Anisha was finally bitten by the entrepreneurial bug while working at Capitol Hill, as she sifted through over 5,000 business plans sent by women entrepreneurs across the USA to a programme called Springboard. “I realized just how phenomenal the women out there were,” she says. “The more I read, the more I wanted to look at entrepreneurship seriously.” She worked at an e-learning company, and then in 2005, decided to move back home, starting her first company, Kinis, that made digital content for e-learning. In 2009, she saw that globally, Chicagobased e-commerce marketplace giant Groupon had taken off. “It seemed a great opportunity in India, so I set up Mydala, as there existed a real need for businesses in India to market themselves,” she says. “There was no cash up front required, and hence an easy sell. For the discount we take for the merchant, we make a coupon out of it, and it’s a win-win for the merchant because he only takes the discount once a customer walks in the door,” she says. Of naysayers who called them ‘Groupon clones’ she says, “If you are addressing a need, you will succeed.” Anisha says that her company does “hardcore analytics” to connect users to the right businesses, based on their location, surfing, and spending patterns. And it’s also helping new businesses get online, market their services, and provide real, offline customers, and vice versa. Mydala works with brands at all levels – from big ones like VLCC and Peter England, to more local brands like eatery Southie or Moti Mahal. And Anisha’s been ahead of the game, going mobile in 2011, when few had done so, by approaching the major telcos like Airtel and Vodafone, with 85 percent of transactions, mobile based. In the next three years, Anisha’s plan is simple: “World domination. The opportunity in our retail market is in billions of dollars. We want to go deeper in every locality and neighbourhood, and take our current sales force from 250 to 1,500.” Watch out, world. n
March 2016 | Outlook Splurge | 39
TECH ENTREPRENEURS
Hit that Gym!
This fitness app lets you book the workout of your choice at your time and convenience, among 1,100 locations in the Capital. Akshay Verma Co-founder, Fitpass.co.in
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ired of wasting money on gym memberships, that go unused because of a hectic work schedule? With Fitpass.com and its app, those looking to get fit can work out at their convenience, at any gym or studio located within the National Capital Region. “You get a taxi at home or get food delivered to your house, but nobody has envisioned a product that lets you work out anywhere, anytime,” says 29-year-old co-founder and St Stephens/Oxford/Columbia graduate Akshay Verma, who launched Fitpass last June with co-founder and sister Arushi, with 65 gym owners. Today, this app is a one-stop pass linked with 1,100 gyms and fitness studios specializing in yoga, zumba, spinning, pilates, kravmaga, mixed martial arts, aerobics, or kickboxing, giving flexible workout options for harried young professionals, or enthusiasts who just want more on the menu (there are literally 100,000 classes to choose from), for a monthly fee. How does it work? You just download the app, and find the gym or fitness studio closest to your location, as well as the workout/class available, and once you’ve zeroed into your choice, pay `999 (per month) to start booking the sessions. Similar to the Classpass model in the USA, that was launched a year earlier, Fitpass is making fitness accessible to anyone who wants it. And unlike the mature US market, where people have outdoor options like running
40 | Outlook Splurge | March 2016
and cycling to get fit, and not just restrict themselves to a gym, Akshay sees a greater opportunity in India, since fitness in its infancy here and the gym is central to our wellness ecosystem. “The word ‘gym’ is more searched on Google than Bollywood,” says Akshay. “But fitness is not accessible across the country, with its urban population of 400 million.” Users are growing by the day (currently under a thousand), but as Akshay expands Fitpass to Bengaluru, Pune, Mumbai, Chandigarh, Hyderabad, and Chennai, numbers will grow. He has also introduced six new value-add products: 6-Pack Abs, DolaySholay, Sexy Calves, Bikini Bod, Pecs of Steel, and 3624-36. “These are fitness goals, that everyone has in mind,” says Akshay. Users pick a fitness goal and get a tailor-made workout guide and diet plan for an extra `499 a month with the one-month pass fee. So far, funds have come in by way of family and friends, but Akshay is in talks with potential investors. “Our entire team uses Fitpass,” says Akshay. “Everyone must use it eight times a month. If they don’t, we deduct `999 from their salary, and if they use it eight times, it’s free.” A fitness incentive if there ever was one. n
Help is at Hand No problem is too great for this first-of-its kind online community, where users are happy to help one another find solutions. We meet its young co-founder. Amol Goel Co-founder, Helpost.com
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perfect world is where everyone helps one another,” says 28-year-old Amol Goel, founder of online network Helpost. com, that connects people looking for help with those who can solve their problem or need. After a marketing degree from the University of Nottingham, and two corporate stints in Delhi (with Leo Burnett and Audi), Amol had become the go-to guy for friends’ problems, and finding quick solutions. “Plus, every time I went to a new city, I needed to know where to get a good haircut, or what to check out,” says Amol. “What if there were
a massive community in every city, and one could just enter it, ask a question, and get a solution?” Helpost started its first chapter in Chandigarh last year, and within four months, became the largest online community in Punjab, with around 45,000 people. Headquarted in LadoSarai, New Delhi, with 26 employees, it is present in a 100 Indian cities via part-time employees or interns, and has even opened chapters in Accra, Kabul, and Amsterdam. There are two ways to approach Helpost: enter one of their closed online communities on Facebook, or join the website directly with its 55,000 users, log in, and search for your key word in a particular city. “Someone posted about a missing pet, and within three days, their dog was found,” says Amol. “There is a massive community waiting for you to post a question, and they would love to help you.” He has used the site to help hire illustrators for his design team. With the website garnering 15,000 hits a day, Amol also a couponing system to give discounts to users for services like Uber or Domino’s, who, for a fee, get increased traffic. Everybody wins, and nothing is charged to the user. After a first round of funding that amounted to $250,000, Amol is about to clinch a second round of funding, to the tune of $2 million. His success mantra is simple: “Find the problem; once you’ve identified it, go for it,” he says of a startup idea. “The money will come – that should be the least of your worries.” n
Other Top Startups Eccetrav.com, connects travellers and travel agents from the loneliest, most offbeat regions of India. Launched in January this year, it will serve as a travel guide for 400 off-the-track destinations, and sees 3,000 visitors a day. It is free for users, and so far has no funding. Ruprr.com is an online marketplace for professional and creative services, with 88,000 users globally, and 85,000 in India. With seed funding of
`15 crore, this Delhi-based startup has 50 employees, and is free for users.
March 2016 | Outlook Splurge | 41
fashion
Missoni on a mission
Missoni CEO Emilio Carbonera Giani
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fter a quiet entry into India last year, Italian luxury fashion brandMissoni is firmly entrenched with a boutique in New Delhi’s DLF Emporio Mall. The Lombardy-based, family-owned brand, best known for its instantly recognizable ‘zigzag’ knit pattern that has been worn by models strutting their stuff on fashion runways since the ’60s, was in fact founded by Olympian Ottavio Missoni and his wife Rosita in 1953. Today, family matriarch Rosita heads Missoni Home and daughter Angela is art director for Womenswear and Menswear at Missoni. But after the accidental death of Rosita’s son Vittorio Missoni in 2013, and patriarch Ottavio at age 92, the mantle has come to rest on generation next, Vittorio’s three sons, Ottavio Missoni Jr, Giacomo, Marco, and their cousins. “The three sons are all young and between the ages of 25 and 31,” says Emilio Carbonera Giani, CEO of the Missoni group. “They are lovely guys, with new ideas, and are starting to do
With a youthful trio at its helm, Italian luxury knitwear major Missoni is all set to revive the heritage of its famous machine looms, and reintroduce a new bag collection, tells us CEO Emilio Carbonera Giani. things differently. Their goal is to retain Missoni as the most sophisticated knitwear company in the world, a vision shared by the entire family.” One of the first tasks that Carbonera has set for himself, with the blessings of the family, is to fine tune organizational departments like merchandising and retail. “We are training staff to cater to a more luxurious shopping experience in our stores, whether it is in New York City, or Rome,” says Carbonera. But his biggest challenge ahead is to promote something hitherto never thought of at Missoni, simply because it was always a given: the quality of the product, insofar the uniqueness of the garment made in machine looms that nobody else in the world has today. “There are four machines of this kind, and we bought another four from a company that went bankrupt,” says Carbonera. “But
The iconic Lombardy fashion house has the most sophisticated knitwear machines in the world
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they were developed in consultation and as per the needs of Missoni.” Which makes them the most unique knitwear machines on the planet. “This fact was always taken for granted, and was not communicated properly,” says Carbonera. “We will now begin doing this in a fun, light manner, taking advantage of social media.” Another aspect of Missoni’s retail tune-ups involves the setting up of a full small leather handbag collection that is currently missing from the shelves. “We have a few bags, but these are far from a real collection,” says Carbonera. “Our most important asset is our archive, since we cannot ignore our heritage.” He speaks of the ’80s and ’90s, when the brand made striking, original bags that sometimes combined fabric and leather, or leather that had
Runway looks from Missoni’s Spring Summer 2016 collection, featuring the trademark colours and zigzag pattern
The Missoni family, taken a few years ago
been treated as though it were knitted (akin to what Bottega Veneta does). “People may like it or they may not, but at the end of the day, it will be a Missoni bag,” says Carbonera. For India, plans are to go beyond the current growth rate of 20 percent a year, and if that happens, a store in Mumbai just might become a reality. “Although most people in India don’t know much about Missoni, yet,” says Carbonera, “Our customers are the ones that visit our stores on Sloane Street in London or Madison Avenue in New York, and unsurprisingly, the best-selling items in India, be it a polo shirt, a men’s cardigan, a dress, or a cape, is the same in New Delhi as in New York, Paris, or Milan.” In future, the brand intends to use celebrities for brand associations – “We don’t have brand ambassadors, but particularly in Asian markets like China, Korea, Japan, and India, it’s important,” says Carbonera. At the moment, Carbonera shares the fact that the Missoni family has no desire to sell, and wants to continue to work for the company, so as long as the brand generates a positive income, they will have the financial strength to develop their big retail projects in New York and Rome by themselves. “So far, our strategy is based on steady, sound growth,” he says. The near future sees Missoni dabbling in real estate, and getting involved in cultural projects, such as the upcoming ‘Missoni Art Colour’ exhibition in London’s Fashion and Textile Museum that showcases OttavioMissoni’s knitwear inspirations from 20th -century Italian artists. There will also be an art gallery occupying a full floor in Missoni’s New York showroom that shows the brand’s “love of the arts”. Asked about the perfect Missoni woman, Carbonera is quick to name Michelle Obama, who visited Milan dressed head to toe in the colourful, zigzag patterns that can only spell knitwear magic. n
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fashion
Fashion It’s a
revolution The way we use technology is transforming the industry as we know it, from new-age fabrics to precision laser cuts, writes designer Narendra Kumar.
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he fashion industry has been slow in adopting technology, but now that it has, it is revolutionizing fashion across the globe. The adoption of technology has created certain challenges on one side while on the other it’s simplified the manufacturing of textiles and helped in reviving many traditional weaves with a modern twist. International fashion houses and labels are sourcing designers trans-nationally with expertise in varied techniques, crafts, materials and an understanding of global markets, cultures, and technological innovations in the field. The Indian fashion designing industry too has adopted technology in a big way and has modernized designing and manufacturing to make itself viable, more relevant to current times and globally competitive. From veterans of Indian fashion like Ritu Kumar, Tarun Tahiliani, and JJ Valaya to emerging talents like Gaurav Gupta, Aneeth Arora, India has enormously talented designers who are effortlessly blending the age-old traditions with forward-thinking aesthetics. They are using new surface texturing techniques like digital printing and laser cuts, fabric innovations like neoprene, and constantly blending and mixing various fabrics to get better and lighter materials to create design renditions that are international.
The magic of neoprene
Pankaj & Nidhi’s digital prints
Neoprene,that started its life as a fabric used for scuba diving gear and to line the interiors of automobiles, has come into its own after two years of experimentation on the Indian runways. Today, designers like Shivan & Narresh, Nida Mahmood, Archana Rao, Rajesh Pratap Singh, among others are using it extensively in their collections. The fabric is increasingly being used in dresses, jackets, shift dresses and even footwear. Designer duo Shivan & Narresh are also using this particular fabric for designing swimwear and also for bridal lehengas. Designer Namrata Joshipura came out with a range of chic jumpsuits, jacket dresses and
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Shivan & Narresh’s neoprene sari
skirts in neoprene; Gauri & Nainika and Pankaj & Nidhi sculpted edgy dresses for the new-age woman. Neoprene is malleable and adapts to various shapes and volumes without being unnecessarily heavy, and allows designers to experiment with structured pieces that look edgy and modern.
Digital imprint Digital printing is probably one of the greatest innovations of 21st century fashion.Digital prints are hot. They entered the fashion scene recently and have already dominated designers’ creativity around the world. In India, this technique has been used by designers like Pankaj & Nidhi, AM: PM, Quirk Box and many more. Initially, digital
prints were only a part of the collection, but now these prints have grown into a collection of its own. Digital printing allows designers to bring their imagination into fabrics, and the sky is the limit. The collection by Quirk Box and AM:PM on Amazon Fashion’s Designer Store beautifully depicts what digital prints can do. Designers are now custom-engineering panel pieces to fit garments which allows them to constantly innovate with motifs. As designers now rely on photoshop, illustrator and/or digital photography, digital printing is a great tool that is gaining momenturm.
Cutting like a laser Manish Arora, Namrata Joshipura, Pankaj & Nidhi, and Sahil Kochhar have been at the forefront of the laser-cut movement, now done with machines for a faster pace. Pallavi Mohan used laser cuts in 3D textures in her Spring Summer Collection at AIFW SS16 while young designer Shweta Kapur featured mesh panels that were laser cut to
Designers like AM:PM, Pankaj & Nidhi, and Quirkbox are customengineering panel pieces with digital prints to fit garments. They also rely on photoshop, illustrator, and digital photography as a tool. Right: Namrata Joshipura’s laser-cut dress. Left: Nida Mahmood’s quirky digital prints on a tunic dress.
form motifs. Be it coats, jackets, skirts, laser cuts are popular. I see this trend lasting for long. Soon, the Grand Finale at Amazon India Fashion Week will resonate with today’s changing times – aptly themed ‘India Modern’, our country’s top talent will showcase their creative renditions of how they interpret India in a contemporary context. As technology becomes available to Indian designers, we will see more of them playing with it to create designs that match global fashion trends. It is this transformation story of Indian weaves, its adaptation and relevance in the global context that Amazon.in will be showcasing at the Grand Finale of the Amazon India Fashion Week, Autumn Winter 2016. Exciting times lie ahead. How the industry adapts to new techniques to create new designs is something to wait and watch for. n
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WATCHES
The
The Guess Connect Smartwatch marries fashion aesthetics with made in California technology
SmartSet
It’s the year of the smartwatch. We take a peek at some of the latest offerings, from a high-tech fashion accessory, to a sporty fitness tracker, and a ‘Make in India’ classic. Guess Connected
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his one is smart and fashion-forward. The colourful Guess Connect Smartwatch from cult fashion house Guess (known most notably for its jeans and bags), has entered the world of smartwatches with fashion pizzaz. “We are styled like a watch, but we are not controlled by a screen,” says John Marcheschi, president of International Sales, Sequel AG (that produces Guess and Gc watches). He’s referring to the Connect’s unusual quality of marrying the brand’s bestselling design – Rigor – with the smarts of Californian company Martian Watches, who created the technological ‘movement’ after testing it for two years. “We’re treating the smart element as a movement, just as you would say, a chronograph,” says John, “but our styling is important to us as we’re in the fashion accessories business.” This
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means that the Connect is special in that it is not controlled by the technical nature of the screen. So when the battery goes out (it’s got a battery life of five days, charged via a USB port), you still have a watch that looks great on one’s arm, not a screen that goes blank (big-name smartphones, please note). What does Connect do? The watch works with both Google and Apple, and makes all the social connections for trendy men and women everywhere. “You get text messages, Facebook and Instagram notifications (on the black OLED strip at the bottom of the dial), and a microphone uses voice commands to launching SIRI on the iPhone,” says John. There are also music and camera commands at the touch of a button. “I have it on my wrist, so I know when I get an email or a text message just by the different vibrations,” says John. “We will have an athletic function in the fall, that measures your steps.” The Guess Connect Smartwatch is available
Running, workout trainers, and lifestyle monitors. The Samsung Gear S2 is available is two variants and is priced at `24,300 onwards.
The Samsung Galaxy 2, with its array of options, is a stylish accessory for every mood
Subtly Charming
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in 41mm and 45mm sizes, in three colour variants, and is priced at `30,500 for women, and `33,000 for men, and is available across 300 points of sale across India. “We want everyone to want us, but not everyone can afford us,” says John.
Smooth OPERATOR
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he Samsung Gear S2 is all about being intuitive, and comes in a variety of bands and watch faces, making this newly launched smartwatch a lifestyle choice for every mood. A smart circular dial, durable stainless steel body, and rotating bezel, make the Gear S2 fun and stylish. The dial is fitted with gorilla glass, making it versatile for all occasions. The rich list of customizable dial faces both built-in and downloadable from the dedicated app store, give the user a wide choice. That the Gear S2 comes powered with a host of apps developed specifically for the Indian market at the Samsung Research Centre in Bengaluru makes it an even more tempting buy. “We have a strong R&D presence in India, which is helping us develop a service-oriented ecosystem for smartwatches,” says Manu Sharma, director, Marketing, IT & Mobile, Samsung India. The S Health app, activity sensors and 24H Heart Rate monitor work together to track allday calorie burn. Other apps like Obino Gear Up, monitor and suggest ideal meals based on Indian food preferences, with exercise options. You can also check out the Gear App store, to download more health-based apps such as Nike+ for
The JUXT by Titan can be paired with smartphones, with either Android 4.5 or iOS 8.1 and above, and features email and social media notifications.
lassic watchmaking meets modern technology, sums up JUXT, the smartwatch from the house of Titan. Created in partnership with technology giant Hewlett Packard Inc., one of the features of this first ‘Make in India’smartwatch is a neutral operating system, that pairs it with Android and Apple-run devices. Elaborating on this, S. Ravi Kant, CEO, Watches and Accessories, Titan Company Limited says,“JUXT has been designed for those who appreciate classic watches, yet want smart capabilities. Today, a growing segment of consumers has an entrepreneurial mindset. Titan JUXT has just the right amount of features that helps the consumer stay connected without intruding into his or her daily schedule.” JUXT boasts of a dual caliber mechanism that houses an analog Titan caliber 6130 and a digital module that drives the smartness. There’s a subtle honeycomb dial, 3D indices, and a calf leather strap. This watch can also be paired with smartphones with either Android 4.4 or iOS 8.1 and above operating system. Other features include: incoming call notifications; email and social media notifications (Whatsapp, Twitter, LinkedIn); the ability to read text messages, and calendar and appointment reminders. The power reserve lasts up to five days; there’s an automatic time zone adjustment, and activity tracking with daily, weekly and monthly monitoring of fitness goals. Priced between `15,995 and `19,995, the watch is available in three variants – titanium, stainless steel and rose gold. n
The JUXT from Titan is India’s first smartwatch
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WATCHES
Jewelled
wonders We meet Swiss luxury watchmaker’s artistic director and co-president Caroline Scheufele, who tells us about her passion for jewellery design, how she began her métier, and the brilliant marriage of haute joiaillerie and watchmaking that runs in the family.
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eneva-based luxury watchmaker Chopard’s artistic director for watches and jewellery, Caroline Scheufele, is a very busy woman. For someone who admittedly spends 70 percent of her time on work-related travel around the globe, she’s remarkably high energy, and practically lives and breathes design. Passionate as she is about her work – she designs a few new collections each year of jewellery and jewelled watches – she wants those who look at Chopard creations to be amazed every single time. “I always design for the Chopard customer in mind – one who is looking for excellence in quality and design,” she says. Having got her design chops as a teenager while sketching pieces of jewellery, and exploring the Swiss watch and jewellery workshops that her Pforzheimbased jeweller and watchmaker father Karl bought over from the Chopard family in 1963, she enhanced practical knowledge with studies in gemology, and today with her brother Karl-Friedrich, works as co-president of the brand. “It’s a family-owned, independent company, and we wish to remain that way,” says Caroline. “For us, it’s about a ‘Passion for Excellence’ where in-house expertise unites with crafts to push the boundaries of creation.” Her personal sense of style reflects the two worlds she so easily embraces – that of haute joaillerie and high watchmaking. Two accessories she is never without are: the L.U.C. Tourbillon Lady, a glittering testament of David Kohler
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A Lovely Lady’s Diamond Watch from Chopard’s Green Collection, has a circular pavé-set diamond dial set within diamond flowers, and a silk strap. Inset: A Fine Lady’s Diamond Watch, also from the Green Collection, is a limited edition piece, and has a pavé-set diamond dial within a laurel branch of marquise-cut diamond leaves.
this incredible marriage of crafts, and a pair of diamond studs. And if it’s an evening out she’s attending, then she’s happy to wear one of the latest pieces from Chopard’s haute joaillerie collection. The word ‘happy’ is also very much part of Chopard’s vocabulary, with an entire watches and jewellery collection, Happy Diamonds, named after this euphoric state. “Born in 1976, and inspired by the multiple reflection of waterfall drops in the sun, it was initially a watch concept,” says Caroline. In 1985, she designed her very first piece of jewellery – an articulated clown with diamonds and precious stones in its belly. To please her, her father Karl had a piece produced. “It encountered a lot of success and that is how jewellery began at Chopard,” says Caroline. In 2015 they celebrated the 30th anniversary of this creation with a
re-edition of the original Clown Collection. Last year also saw the launch of the brand’s first diffusion jewellery line made from Fairmined Gold (a label that assures gold is sourced from small-scale responsible mining practices), the Palme Verte collection. Even last year’s Palme d’Or (the award at the Cannes Film Festival has been designed by the luxury brand since 1997 when then president of the festival Pierre Viot asked Caroline to give it the Chopard touch) was made out of Fairmined Gold as part of the brand’s project towards sustainable luxury, The Journey. “Reinventing such an icon but keeping its specificities and legend was a challenge, and it still is today,” says Caroline. “This year for the second time, the Palme d’Or was made with Fairmined Gold.” So complete is her devotion to ethical mining that she launched the Green Carpet collection, Chopard’s first ethical jewellery line,
Caroline Scheufele is so devoted to ethical mining that she launched Chopard’s Green Carpet collection in 2013, in collaboration with Livia Firth, wife of actor Colin Firth.
Top: A Unique Diamond Necklace, part of the Green Collection, has hundreds of diamonds in a never-ending circle. Left: The L’Heure du Diamant watch is in 18k white gold with concentric rows of diamonds that surround a silver guilloché dial, and a diamondset bracelet.
Caroline Scheufele of Chopard
in 2013, in collaboration with Livia Firth (ethical entrepreneur and wife of actor Colin Firth). As a jewellery designer, Caroline is continually inspired by the countries she visits, art, or nature. “The world is so beautiful, you just have to be curious,” she says. “There’s been a vintage trend lately; our latest Happy Diamonds collection, for example, featuring large flowers, has a pop ’70s touch.” She’s also been inspired by traditional Indian jewellery for her last Red Carpet collection, which is normally worn by stars – at last year’s Cannes fest, Julianne Moore, Charlize Theron, Lupita Nyong’o, Marion Cotillard, Kendall Jenner, and Sonam Kapoor donned some of Chopard’s biggest baubles. The brand also launched a new addition to their Imperiale joaillerie line, the famous ‘Empress Jewellery Box’. “This capsule collection has five exceptional pieces – a watch, earrings, ring, necklace, and tiara, to be worn alone or together, with diamonds sourced from official mines,” says Caroline. She gives her team the direction; they do handmade sketches, and sometimes a piece is designed by computer. The jewellery is then set in their workshops in Geneva or Pforzheim, Germany. And in terms of watches, for Caroline, the highlight of last year is the L.U.C Regulator, which has subdials for seconds and hours, within the larger dial for minutes. The world has applauded this beautiful piece. She also speaks of the classic Mille Miglia which was recently revisited with the introduction of the Mille Miglia GTS, with a threehand and date chronometer, a power reserve, chronograph, and a Chopard movement, a first made in the workshops of Fleurier Ebauches. The lady of a million sparkles collects ‘sheep’ as a hobby, and recently bought a sheep sculpture by François-Xavier Lalanne, which now graces her garden. After her travels, she’s happy to be home in the“Swiss mountains”. n
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DÉcor
Florentine
The luxurious interiors of the 230ft Super Yacht for the Benetti Custom line designed by the Stefano Ricci Luxury Yatch Division
Heritage The Stefano Ricci home line, built on an evolving line between the rule of art, innovation, and a tribute to tradition, is a combination of sophistication and elegance. text by Riddhima Seal
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n equilibrium of pure lines, precious fabrics, and timeless design – this best sums up the premium home range from Italian menswear brand Stefano Ricci. Developed on the lines of sophisticated designs, the new offering from the brand, The Royal Suite Collection, currently housed at the brand’s flagship store at The Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in Mumbai, oozes luxury and craftsmanship, that are characteristic of the Stefano Ricci name. The collection includes porcelain, crystal, and silverware lines enhanced by furnishing and leather accessories com-
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Pieces from the Stefano Ricci Royal Suite Collection
(Above and top right) The Stefano Ricci Royal Suite collection includes porcelain, crystal and silverware lines enhanced by furnishing and leather accessories, all complete with home linen
pleted with home linens. Created entirely by the expert hands of Florentine artisans, every piece in this collection is a true representation of the exceptional design details required for the Stefano Ricci discerning customer who only desires the best quality of manufacturing and design. Just as a Stefano Ricci suit takes a minimum of 60 hours to make, each one of the glasses in its Royal Suite Collection is the fruit of great skill, creativity, and ability. Its fine textiles line features cashmere blankets of intense colours that may be lined in splendid fur for the best comfort and softness.
And it doesn’t end at just that. The finesse associated with the Stefano Ricci home line finds an extension in the Bespoke Interiors services undertaken by the Stefano Ricci Luxury Yatch Division known to design some of the most sophisticated yacht interiors around the world. In collaboration with Florentine yacht designer Luca Dini, the Luxury Yacht Division developed a project for a 230ft Super Yacht for the Benetti Custom line using the brand’s more signature materials: Californian briar-root wood, Tuscan travertine marble, and genuine crocodile skin, along withproducts from the Royal Suite Collection. For Stefano Ricci, the transition to yacht interiors was a natural one. “Our family has been blessed to spend many summers on some of the finest yachts,” says Filippo Ricci, the company’s creative director and one of Stefano’s two sons. The Riccis have also designed interiors for their company’s boutiques – in Florence, Paris, New York City, Shanghai, Moscow, and elsewhere – as well as for the homes of select clients of the fashion brand. Catering to only a handful of clients,the Stefano Ricci Interiors service is meant only for those who demand a high level of customization and exquisite style. Bespoke indeed! n
March 2016 | Outlook Splurge | 51
DÉcor
Sumptuous
Slumber Left: The Felix 03 Bed, by creative director Mandeep Dillon, with the tapestry ‘Bacchus, god of wine’, costs £20,000 upwards; Right: Alistair Hughes, managing director, Savoir Beds
in a brand-new, glamorous way of life never seen heretofore. During a refit in 1905, the feeling was that no bed on the market met the hotel’s legendary standards of excellence, so the prestigious upholsterer James Edwards Ltd was specially commissioned to create the Savoy Bed. This luxurious model, slumbered upon by the rich and famous down the decades, is still made in England today as the Savoir No. 2 bed, featuring the trellis ticking designed by Lady D’Oyly Carte herself. To ensure exclusivity of the marque, the Savoy Group bought the bedworks in the 1930s, and this did not change hands until 1997, when a change of management prompted the hotel to sell it to present managing director Alistair Hughes and his business partner, who took on the marque’s three existing craftsmen, to continue the bedmaking tradition, albeit under a brand new name, Savoir Beds. Today, the company, headquartered in northwest London, continues to manufacture around a thousand beds a year there, as well as at a smaller bedworks in Wales, much in the same way James Edwards did back in 1905. The most expensive model, the Savoir No.1 bed takes around 120 hours to make – boxspring, mattress, and topper. In 2013, the company released the limited-edition Savoir Royal State bed for Queen Elizabeth’s 60th coronation anniversary. Costing a cool £125,000 a pop, Savoir only made 60 pieces. What makes a Savoir bed so luxurious? To begin with, each is a bespoke creation, hand-crafted from high-quality natural materials to the exact size, shape, tension, and finish requested. For example, the No.1 mattress is topped with a
From Edwardian innovation to 21st-century excellence, Savoir Beds have stood the test of time. Their bespoke designs, handcrafted from the world’s highest quality materials, make them the best beds money can buy today. Splurge takes a look.
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elebrities like Madonna, Oprah Winfrey, Liza Minelli, Sir Elton John, Sir Michael Caine, Kylie Minogue, Chris Martin, and younger stars like Daniel Radcliffe and Kelly Osbourne retire on it for some shut-eye. Frank Sinatra insisted on sleeping on one after after his concert in London, and Emma Thompson’s insomnia was cured after she stretched out upon it. King Hassan of Morocco ordered 24 pieces for his palace after a supremely comfortable stay at the Claridges. It’s the wellkept secret for a deep, restful slumber, that only a few are privy to — the world’s most exclusive bed, made today by a British company called Savoir Beds. The story begins in the industrial age over a century ago, in the heart of London. Richard D’Oyly Carte, a local impresario, was a man with a vision — as he opened the doors to the city’s most exclusive and hotel, The Savoy, he was ushering
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Clockwise from left: A 1986 photo shows a model with the Savoir mattress favoured by Liza Minelli, who said she’s never slept better than in a Savoy hotel bed;The Royal State bed, made in 2013 for the Queen; Savoir beds in The Savoy and The Claridges in London.
panel of high-tech stretch cotton fabric, filled with extra-deep, high-turn pocket springs, masses of loose, curled South American horsetail hair and double layers of carded lambswool, all eco-friendly and chemical-free. A hardwood frame with dovetail joints is used in the box spring, together with star-lashed, deep hour glass springs to provide the ultimate in support. If sheer decadence is on one’s shopping list, then one would appreciate the kilos of pure cashmere included in the‘HCa’ topper. The upholstery is finished by hand by the company’s skilled craftsmen, with a limitless array of fabrics available, as per customers’ requests. Even the linen is bespoke, crafted in Italy from fully sourced Egyptian cotton, available at thread counts from 300 to 600. Legs come in different options, the most popular being a Georgian leg with brass metal cap, and the headboard shape is as per customer wishes. The company brings out around five new designs a year, made in-house by creative director Mandeep Dillon, and also collaborate with designers such as Lv Yongzhong, Robert
Some of the exclusive features of a Savoir bed include bespoke crests or motifs; silk thread, custom-dyed and woven by British silk mill Vanner; and an upholstery technique used in the 1700s that creates the illusion of mouldings by precious metals.
Couturier, Phillip Gorrivan, and Sacha Walckhoff. Some of the exclusive features of a Savoir bed include bespoke crests or motifs hand-stitched by The Royal School of Needlework (who embroidered the Alexander McQueen wedding dress worn by Kate Middleton in 2011); silk thread, custom-dyed and woven by British silk mill Vanner, that extends for 2,624.84km (equivalent to flying halfway from London to New York), and an upholstery technique used in the 1700s that creates the illusion of mouldings by precious metals. Albert E Chapman, master upholsterer to the Queen since 1989, was commissioned to cover the cornice of the Royal Bed. Today, you will find a Savoir bed at The Savoy, of course, as well as The Capital, the Claridges, The Boundary, Chewton Glen, and Durrants Hotel, among other London hotels. The Lowell and the Peninsula Suite in NYC both carry Savoir beds. With its crisp linens, downy pillows and a deep sleep that leaves you refreshed for the day ahead… a Savoir bed is the start of an enduring love affair. n
March 2016 | Outlook Splurge | 53
design
The Stuff of
Eames The iconic Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman
We meet Eames Demetrios, the grandson of the creator of one of the world’s most iconic designs, the Eames Lounge Chair, learn about its fascinating American heritage, and discover a unique travelling exhibition that cements a formidable legacy.
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Top: Eames Molded Fibreglass Rocker Base Chair; Right:: Eames Aluminium Group Chair
ou may have spotted it in an episode of US sitcom Frasier, silhouetted against the Seattle cityscape through the glass panes of psychiatrist Frasier Crane’s mod apartment. Or you may have seen it in New York, at the Museum of Modern Art’s permanent collection. Any way you look at it, it’s one of the most iconic pieces of furniture ever: the iconic Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman, created in the 1950s by Californian architect-designers Charles and Ray Eames for Herman Miller furniture firm. Today, the grandson of the great Charles Eames, Eames Demetrios – a filmmaker, designer, and most important of all, director of the Eames Office – is continuing his grandparents’ legacy with books, exhibitions, installations, and videos that aim to communicate their design story to a whole generation. He’s in India, for his travelling exhibition ‘Essential Eames: Pocket Edition’, based on Eames Demetrios’s book, An Eames Primer, for design buffs in Asia. The San Francisco-raised, Harvard-educated Eames, is the son of Charles
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and Ray’s only daughter, and whose name combines his famous family name as a first name to continue the family tradition, and his Greek-American father’s surname. “In the corner of the book is a flipbook,” he shows me. “It’s the movie I made about closing Charles and Ray’s office after Ray died, and the book is the inspiration of the show.” The Eames office was started in 1941, the year the couple started “experimenting” with design, and used to sit in the Eames Demetrios
The Eames Sofa and Walnut Stool, and the Eames Lounge and Ottoman
now-trendy shopping district of Venice, before it was shifted out of the condemned building to Culver City, five miles away. One of their greatest experiments was molding plywood, after winning a competition in St Louis, a technique that they perfected when they were called upon by the US Navy to create lightweight leg splints for injured soldiers during World War II. They made 1,50,000 pieces, and the Eames leg splint, that sits in the MOMA’s permanent collection, is also being shown in India. Access to military technology gave them the know-how to mass-produce molding plywood – which they subsequently used in their chairs and furniture.
The interiors of Charles and Ray Eames’s house
“Charles and Ray Eames had this idea that the role of the designer was that of a great host, anticipating the needs of the guest – focusing on a guest/host relationship.”
So how many designs did Charles and Ray create? “I would say a relevant number is 120, when you look at a chair that came in lounge height and dining height, or say a piece with metal legs,” says Eames. “Charles and Ray had this idea that the role of the designer was that of a great host, anticipating the needs of the guest – focusing on a guest/host relationship,” he says of the creations that were made to be comfortable. “If it looked good, but wasn’t comfortable, it wasn’t a good chair,” he says. The ‘guests’ the couple designed for included filmmaker Billy Wilder, while greats like Buckminster Fuller and Gregory Peck were regulars. Today, Eames continues to work with manufacturers like Herman Miller in Germany and Vitra in in the US, who are the only two licenced to produce these chairs in aluminium, wood, eco-friendly plastic, in new colours and patterns. Their best-selling chair till date is the Aeron, made 35 years ago. In India, the Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman retails at `4.5 lakh at Herman Miller showrooms, a sofa costs `7-8 lakh, while a plastic chair is `45,000. “We have the trademark and the copyright,” says Eames. So while furniture is the family business, the foundation is non-profit and focuses on education and preserving the Charles and Ray house in Santa Monica. A gift to the world, and a design legacy to behold. n
March 2016 | Outlook Splurge | 55
wellness
The Four Seasons Chiang Mai surrounds a picturesque rice paddy field
Thailand Fling From Chiang Mai’s resort set in a rice paddy field, to authentic Lanna massages and a futuristic holistic clinic in the capital, Splurge comes away enchanted from the land of Siam. The blissful environs of the Anantara Chiang Mai
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t’s that rice paddy field smack in the middle of the Four Seasons Chiang Mai that has us gobsmacked. Tucked away in a quiet corner of the verdant Mae Rim Valley, a 25-minute drive from Thailand’s picturesque, temple-strewn northern city of Chiang Mai, lies this pastoral paradise that magically transports us a couple of centuries back to the Lanna Kingdom (meaning ‘kingdom of a million rice fields’) of ancient Siam, with its landscape of undulating fields, villagers carrying yokes of rice, and dwellings on wooden stilts. Today, Chiang Mai is a city of 1,5 million. With its temperate, mild climate, it’s a top choice for travellers. We’ve flown in via the barely-hour-long flight from Bangkok on Thai Airways. The stunning Four Seasons property (fourseasons.com/chiangmai) is built on 36 acres of land, with 98 pavilions, villas (some with their own pool), and private residences (for a wedding party). The next day, we head to the luxurious Anantara Chiang Mai (chiang-mai.anantara.com), located in the heart of the city, by the banks of the River Ping, in a 93-year-old building which used to house the British consulate. We pop into the spa, with its 10 treatment rooms overlooking the swimming pool, and discover the signature Essence of Anantara treatment, that
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lasts three hours and 20 minutes, and includes steaming, buffing, reflexology, and aromatic oils. Back at The Four Seasons, a short buggy ride amidst the greenery, takes one to the tranquil spa. Seven couples rooms, are done up in décor inspired by Lanna culture, in hues of grey and gold. Prin, our spa manager, offers us a soothing cup of ginger tea. The Royal Lanna Signature treatment is a delight, a two-and-a-half hour treatment that begins with a silk-glove massage, followed by a scrub of rose blend and tea, a wrap, a delicious Traditional to the core, the Oasis Spa in Thai massage, and an application of pure gold leaf Chiang Mai on the hands. Another great tension reliever is the Royal Samunprai, with the body gently pummelled The Holistic Health by silk poultices containing herbs, finished off by a Centre in a highrise in Bangkok offers statemangosteen oil massage. of-the-art health and cosmetic treatments The next day as we wend our way to the Old City, our guide Jira tells us that Chiang Mai has over 200 temples, and for a time, between 1500-1700, was heavily under Burmese rule. With these cultural references in mind, we reach the Oasis Spa (oasisspa.net), one of the most renowned spas in the country that specializes in the famed, ancient treatments of northern Thailand. Within its organic, green interiors, a two-hour King of Oasis massage is powerful yet gentle enough to put one in a state of slumber, and includes the application of hot compresses, followed by a hot oil massage. All too quickly, the chimera that was Chiang Mai has dissolved, and we’re in the heart of bustling Bangkok, at the Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit (sheratongrandesukhumvit.com), a five-star property blocks from the night market and malls. A sight for weary city-slickers, the There’s a lovely spa with 10 treatment rooms, Bhawa Spa in central Bangkok however, we want to explore the city’s popular uses in-house oils Bhawa Spa (bhawaspa.com) in the city’s tony Soi 1 district, that was founded by Kisana, a former nurse in the US, and uses French essential oils blended in-house. A soothing almond oil massage (unscented always works best), is sheer heaven. After a quick lunch, we head to the nearby Holistic Health Centre (holistic-medical.com), anüber-modern, slightly futuristic-looking clinic nestled on the 20th floor of a highrise. With a database of 22,000 patients, it is favoured by members of the Thai royal family, celebrities, models, and industrialists. To perk up your looks, there is Thermage, Botox, and Nano Perfectors, besides Ultra V Thread Lifting, Tissue Fillers, Placenta and Cell Therapy, and Mesotherapy for the face. For the body, there’s Thermage, Lipolysis, and Arasys Inch Loss and Fat Killer (where one gets an injection every day for 23 days to lose fat). The equipment is from Europe and skincare is Swiss. The team of doctors is headed by Dr Kanin. After a quick blood test (Life Blood Analysis, measured via a pin prick) one is taken to another room where one dons headphones for the doctor to detect, via molecular resonance imaging technology (MRIT), trouble zones in the body, such as hormone and thyroid issues, iron levels, and signs of disease. We celebrate that night on a barge from Manohra Cruises on The Sheraton Grande Sukhumvit in Bangkok the Chao Phraya River. A blissful end to a perfect week in Siam. n
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Spirits
Scent of a
Malt
Chivas Brothers’ Royal Salute 21 Years Old, first created for Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation.
We meet Royal Salute’s new creative advisor, young Parisian Barnabé Fillion, who takes us through nosing and tasting five extraordinary single malts that form the core of the brand’s 21 Years Old, in an exclusive EM Forster-inspired evening at Jodhpur’s Umaid Bhawan Palace.
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hen Royal Salute hosted an exclusive EM Forster-inspired evening at the majestic UmaidBhawan Palace in Jodhpur this December on the occasion of British Polo Day, poetry recitals, dance performances, and fragrant Rajasthani cuisine aside, it was a celebration of the dialogue, often steeped in mystery, between India and Great Britain. Christened ‘Birds of Chandrapore’ from the fictional Indian city in EM Forster’s novel A Passage to India, the evening saw a special ‘Olfactory Studio’ by Royal Salute’s young, genial creative advisor, Parisian Barnabé Fillion take guests on a sensory journey that blended single malts that are the mainstay of the Royal Salute 21 Years Old, into heavenly concoctions. “The Olfactory Studio is an invitation to a new vision that we are bringing to the Royal Salute brand,” says the slim, bearded, 30-something Barnabé Fillion, a parfumier by profession, and former photographer and model. “Brand director Vadim Grigorian and myself wanted to transform the world of whisky; David Kohler
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so when you’re creating a brand that is king, we have this feeling that the single malt is so precious, and has so much character, almost like a terroir product, and people rarely mention that in the blend.” Royal Salute whisky is known to use only the best single malts in the world, as it’s the only one of its kind that starts with 21 years of age, and for Barnabé and Vadim, this meant a lot of trips to different parts of Scotland to get the best single malts to put in the best cask for a future whisky blend. So on this evening at the Umaid Bhawan Palace, Barnabé conducted an experiment called the Scent of Time, where he used five exquisite single malts that form the main chord of Royal Salute 21 (but no actual Royal Salute 21, that would be blasphemy). “I just took these five, and I totally changed the formula (percentages) to create something for the autimn,” says Barnabe, “Because the autumn is the season with a twist, with leaves falling, and an impending change.” One of the first things he used was a 26-year-old Speyside single malt, Aberlour, that is aged in a sherry cask, and has the flavour of a young pear.
He then used two Glenlivet single malts, one that is 21 years old, and the other, a 23-year-old aged in a sherry cask. “The 21 is like the smell of dried flowers – light and beautiful, fresh with a hint of honey,” says Barnabé. “The 23 has the sweetness of honey with a bit of spice – saffron, nutmeg, and clove – it’s a beautiful, exceptional whisky.” He then used a 22-year old peated whisky from Islay, that is “extraordinary” because it comes from the north of Scotland, where there are hardly any trees, and strong winds. “There’s this burnt earth smell, like if you go into a forest after it has been on fire for 2-3 days, like ashes,” says Barnabé. “But it also has the inky flavour of lapsang souchong, the smokey tea from China.” The last single malt he used was the 26-year-old Stratisla, which is at the heart of Chivas Regal. “We use it because we are a part of Chivas, and it’s very rich and complex, with the smell of a pie that is being cooked; it’s rich, with the flavour of nuts, almonds, it’s delicious.” Each guest got to nose each blend, and at the end, it was this original blend that guests first nosed, then tasted. “When we sniffed the crystal glass that each one of us held, each time Fillion asked us to trace a smell, he linked a memory that was reminiscent of a time and season,” says Anubhav Swami, whisky aficionado and tech consultant, one of the guests invited for this unforgettable evening. Creating original works that delight the olfactory senses is not unusual for Barnabé who has his own perfume studio in Paris, making perfumes for brands like Comme des Garçons, Monocle, and Aesop. He’s also working with mega brand Armani, and Man, the fifth biggest in the world of fragrances. Barnabé started out as a photographer, collaborating with other artists and forming a collective known as the Pillar, where they pioneered 3D printing with ceramic objects that emanated a scent. He set out to go to perfume school near Versailles, found it too academic, and begged his teacher to take him on as an apprentice. The rest, is perfume history. As for whisky, he says, “It’s a
passion. I drink it, and that’s how it started. It has so much tradition and innovation. I am collaborating with the master blender of Royal Salute, bringing a new twist. It’s all about how creative you can be with whisky.” And today, of his experience in the Blue City in the presence of the Maharaja of Jodhpur, he says, “I love being here. The Maharaja is so stylish and generous, and his palace is incredible.” A true India-Britain rapprochement. n
Clockwise from top left: Celeb mixologist Rob McHardy creating a rose petal Royal Salute cocktail the next day; Vadim Grigorian makes a toast; Barnabé Fillion; Maharaja of Jodhpur Gaj Singhji II with Edward Olver, founder of British Polo Day; The regal setting at Umaid Bhawan Palace; Kathak dancers enthrall guests.
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Wanderlust
City of
Stone Exploring the Royal Kingdom of Jordan, Ajit Rana stumbles upon the fount of Christianity, where Jesus Christ was baptized, takes a dip in the Dead Sea, and explores the magical city of Petra, frozen in time, in rose stone. photographs by Ajit Rana
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or the last several years, the wife’s business trips to ‘off the beaten track’ destinations have always been of greater interest to me, as I never hesitate to quickly pack a bag, my cameras, and merrily tag along for yet another ‘photocation’! All I really knew about Jordan was the adventurous King Hussein, Petra, and the Dead Sea. A chance to visit this pre-Biblical land with ancient cultures was a dream come true. I landed in Amman rather wired from the endless cups of exquisite coffee I had been served in Royal Jordanian Airline’s business class. The drive to the Kempinski Hotel Ishtar Dead Sea was a constant descent, and we soon arrived at the lowest point on earth – the Dead Sea. The hotel itself was on different levels and went all the way down to the beach with a swimming pool at each level. The rooms were well appointed and overlooked the Dead Sea. As quickly as the wife headed for meetings to a far away location, I headed out to explore the area. My first visit was to the Jordan River and to the exact spot where Jesus Christ was baptized by John
the Baptist. As I looked at the well where Jesus would have been baptized, I got goose bumps thinking of the historical significance of this place. This was where Christianity started, one of the biggest events in the history of mankind. And then a thought went out to the wife who was missing this and was probably in the midst of negotiating prices and lead times! At another location on the river, a group of young people dressed in robes were getting ready to take a dip in the holy river and on the other side of the river, barely 20 feet across, lay Israel with similar activities taking place there. In the evening, we went down to the sea to experience what the hullabaloo of swimming in the Dead Sea was all about. The Dead Sea is 8.6 times as saline as the oceans and this causes an increase in buoyancy, which means that you can fall asleep while floating but will not drown. I can verify that, having been there and done that. The wife, who is not known for her swimming prowess, also enjoyed floating in complete relaxation. A word of caution however; swallowing any of that water will ensure a foul taste in your mouth for the rest of the day.
Again, been there done that. Early the next morning we met our host Hani Al-Abadi, the owner of Jordan Travel Agency (+962 785311117) who personally took us on a three-day tour of southern Jordan. Climbing mountainous roads, we arrived at Mount Nebo. Like every stop on this journey, which was seeped in history, Mount Nebo was the hill where Moses stood and was shown the promised land of Israel. Several forts and villages with ancient art, like mosaic-making and pottery, dot this route. We arrived at the hotel Petra Panorama, which was to be our base for the next couple of nights. The following morning we departed for the Wadi Rum desert, a geographical feature so unique and ‘out of this world’ that it has been the setting for several movies that want to show life on Mars or another planet! You can only go into the desert in 4x4 vehicles belonging to the Bedouins as this ensures some revenue for them as well. Hani had gone a step further and arranged for us to also have dinner with a Bedouin family after the desert
As I looked at the well where Jesus Christ would’ve been baptized, I got goose bumps thinking of its historical significance. This was where Christianity had begun.
A natural rock bridge formation at the Wadi Rum
Wanderlust
The ‘Martian’ landscape of the Wadi Rum
drive. Living up to its reputation, the desert was The desert unlike anything I had ever seen, having visited of Wadi Rum most of the world’s deserts. Giant rock formations has giant rock seemed to have erupted from the desert floor creating this ‘extra terrestrial’ landscape. Lunch was formations that a quick affair of fresh salad and herbed chicken seem to have grilled in the shade of these rocky mountains by erupted, looking our Bedouin driver. I could not help but wonder a bit Martian. how this nomadic tribe survived in this hostile environment living in tents, which became unbearably hot in the sun. Mansaf, a Bedouin rice and lamb dish Hani found a rock with a flat surface, which we climbed at dusk to witness a stunning sunset, as the burnt orange sun bled into the horizon behind mountains in the distance. Dinner in the Bedouin home consisted of their specialty, Mansaf, which is lamb cooked in yogurt and salt and served on a mound of rice. The entire family then eats directly from the platter A pool overlooking a stunning sight at the Kempinski Hotel Ishtar Dead Sea
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The first sight of the Treasury at Petra after a long walk through a ravine
with their hands. The experience was very different and while the lamb had a unique flavour, it was bland for my Indian palate and had me wishing I could have got my hands on some chilli flakes or even good old Tabasco. The long walk through the narrow gorge with very high rock walls on either side to Petra the following morning was one of the most exciting of my life. I had seen the Treasury (Al Kazneh) appear in front of Indiana Jones at the end of this very gorge in The Last Crusade several years before, and longed to one day see it the same way myself. Only, I was not on horseback! With my camera ready, I took a picture every step of the way after I got my first glimpse of the Treasury. As we came into the clearing, it stood there majestically as it has since the 5th century BC. We then went on to explore this ancient Nabataean city carved into the rocks. Petra later was influenced by several cultures including the Roman, the Egyptian, and the Greek, which is apparent with the presence of an amphitheatre. This had to have been one of the most fascinating places I have visited. The Jordanians are a friendly people not weighed down with what is happening in their neighbouring countries. The best time to visit is in the winter months as the summer can be very hot, like any desert. The journey back home was another opportunity for me to relish the fantastic Royal Jordanian coffee. I’ll be back; to Jordan and on board Royal Jordanian Airlines. n
WANDERLUST GADGETS
The Connected
Traveller Discover new vistas in the world of technology during your next trip. Even if you’re just exploring, these smart tools are fun and can be lifesavers, finds Amit Sengupta.
Adrenaline Rush
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cuba-dive off Bali, Thailand, or Maldives; gosurfing in Mauritius or the Gold Coast; air drop at Alaska, swim with the dolphins, pad up for that mountain biking at the Alps; jump from 15,000 ft above sea level at New Zealand or Dubai, or have an icy affair at Iceland or Antarctica; or head to that much desired Everest Basecamp trek at Nepal. Think of an adrenaline rush and there is one product which you will love to bring to your daredevil sorties: the GoPro Hero 4 Adventure Edition. This particular edition by
GoPro is water resistant up to 40 metres (130 ft). With its 12 megapixel camera lens, rest assured of highresolution photo quality during those precious dives. It also lets you shoot video at 1080p60 and 720p120 with lifelike clarity and sharpness. Price: `31,500
ESPRESSO TO GO
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njoy a delicious hot espresso anywhere - hiking, camping, boating. The Minipresso by Hong Kong based Wacaco Co. Ltd, is hand powered, so no need to plug anything, with just a few pumps for rich, flavourful coffee. The cap doubles as a cup, and the case is made of EVA material. Price: `4,000 (approx.)
Stay Connected, always
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aunched in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in the US, the GoTenna connects easily with your iOS or Android devices, even when there is no cellular service, anywhere on the planet. This pocket-sized device straps on easily to a backpack or bag, and pairs with a smartphone using Bluetooth – all you need is another user with the same device to relay messages and location info within a radius of 50 miles.Price: Two for `13,600 (approx.)
Zone Out
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o you fear those long-haul flights? Irritating co-flight passengers can jar that special holiday ride. What’s useful here is one of world’s finest noisecancellation headphones. While drawing from a rich heritage of acoustic innovation, Harman Kardon NC headphones feature an exclusive acoustic system that integrates superb mechanical design, materials, and electronics which are perfect for acoustic installations in luxury cars. With its rechargeable USB, the NC headphones have a battery life that lasts up to 40 hours. Price: Harman Kardon NC (JBL) `17,999. n
Solar Power
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he Astron GPS Solar is designed specifically for the global traveller.The watch is poweredby solar light, connecting to the GPS network via satellite (a world first), and adjusting at the touch of a button to your time zone.Seiko has produced only about 3,000, with a serial number engraved on the case back of each.Price: Astron starts at `1,45,000
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gastronomy
Homage to
Fromage
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The Tomme de Savoie comes from the French Alps, made out of cow’s milk, and left to mature in a cellar
rench President Charles de Gaulle once famously declared, “How can you govern a country that has 260 varieties of cheese?” The year was 1960, and he was alluding to a nation that was difficult to govern. Today, there are 1,200 types of cheese in France alone, and de Gaulle would have been proud that his country’s greatest artisans and produce are the toast of the world. To celebrate this wholesome, gourmet delicacy, the Embassy of France in New Delhi, the French Dairy Interbrand Association (CNIEL) and the European Union, showcased some of France’s dairy treasures in an exquisite pairing where Chef Sanjay Chowdhury’s Indian flavours mingled with cheeses like Comte, Beaufort, Brie, and Savoie, to create dishes as exotic as a mousse of chilli and onion, salmon with lentils, bell pepper, and garlic, and a beautiful red velvet spiced yakhni melt. Undoubtedly, the star of the evening was cheese ambassador Xavier Thuret, who has won the coveted Best Artisan of France award in 2007, as Best Cheesemonger, and today jets around the world spreading his love for cheese, and finding new ways to consume it. Xavier Thuret, with his French French cheese beard and long, curly, brown hair frammaster Xavier Thuret ing a cherubic face, speaks softly but
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with great passion on what it’s like being a ‘maitre’ or cheese master in a country obsessed with fine food. Growing up in Brie country, in the town of Meaux that lies between Paris and Rheims, to the east of the capital, he was surrounded by rolling green pastures with chubby cows that make milk especially for the rich and unctuous Brie de Maux. “My parents had a farm, where they produced milk, and my grandparents made cheese,” says Xavier. One summer, as a student with “no clear direction in his life”, his mother suggested he earn pocket money by going to the local cheesemaker, as they were hiring people. And that is how he met what he calls “these magicians, who, with just milk, manage to make incredible cheeses”. That was 20 years ago. Since then, Xavier has travelled the length and breadth of France, working under several ‘maitres’ or masters, in what is a purely French tradition of ‘companionage’, where one craftsman learns directly from another the secrets of the trade, staying for a while in one town before moving to another. “It’s a very discreet, secretive profession,” says Xavier. “These are people who are very humble.” He is one of only 20 cheese masters in the world today, and he is
Photograph (top) Shutterstock
Splurge catches up with award-winning French cheese master Xavier Thuret, who tells us about the nuances of his unusual profession, working with some of the world’s greatest chefs, and creating a brand-new, Indiainspired cheese pairing.
Photograph (top) Shutterstock
Left: Xavier Thuret with his cheeses at the Embassy of France, New Delhi; Right: Compté is made from unpasteurised cow’s milk in the FranceComté region of Eastern France
also a roving ambassador, travelling abroad 15 days a month, transmitting his knowledge, and initiating young people into a love for cheese. He conducts classes in school for children as young as eight, giving them warm milk and the know-how to turn milk into cheese. “I always say that we sell happiness,” says Xavier, “Since cheese is like a sweet treat; it’s a delight. Just put a Frenchman or Frenchwoman in a cheese shop, it’s like having a kid in a candy store, literally.” It’s a pursuit of happiness borne of passion. “My life has always been motivated to try and understand why people are passionate about their passions,” he says. “What can motivate a person to make cheese in a saturated, humid environment, with temperatures
The Beaufort Chalet d’Alpage, the most expensive cheese in France, is made in four months, by 15 producers only, at a height of over 1,500m, and costs over €40 a kilo.
Brie is a softened cow’s milk cheese from Seine-et-Marne, one of the most famous in the world
higher than 40ºC, working with a repetitive motion, and arrive at the joy one gets, to go to work every day?” And which is the most expensive cheese in France today? “The Beaufort Chalet d’Alpage, is made in four months, by 15 producers only, at a height of over 1,500m, and costs over €40 a kilo,” says Xavier. Currently, the trendiest cheese in France is the Mont-d’Or, a raw milk cheese that is, again, quite rare and made only between September to March, in the Jura region, that is heated up and eaten with a small spoon.Xavier has worked with masters like twostarred Michelin Chef Michel Roth, ‘Chef of the Century’ Joel Robuchon, and the famous threestarred Michelin Chef Alain Ducasse, who likes cheese made of sheep milk. Together, they’ve worked with Camembert and Rocquefort, and one thing that Xavier has learned from Ducasse is that whenever you go to another country, make sure you taste the delicacy of that country. “Here in India, I am learning so much,” says Xavier. “I teach, but I am learning as much as I teach.” Currently, one of his favourite combos is Roquefort and bananas. “I don’t create recipes, as I am not a chef,” he says, “I create pairings. But I must admit, I’ve fallen in love with the spices in India.” He has bought at least 30 different varieties on his visit to the Capital. “We’ve done a lot of experiments with cheese and wine; in Dubai, we even paired cheese with tea, coffee, and dates. But with spices it becomes interesting.” His dream dish is a fondue — that goes beyond the cheeses of Compté, Beaufort, and Emental — but with Indian spices, a real repast (a fondue is normally eaten in a small group). “Now that would be sheer genius,” he says. n
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Gastronomy
Refreshing
Minimalism A historical farm near Bruges gets a contemporary makeover by Belgian Chef Gert De Mangeleer and sommelier Joachim Boudens, as the new location for their three Michelin star-restaurant, Hertog Jan.
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heirs is a success story that has no precedent. When Chef Gert De Mangeleer, who had worked with some of Belgium’s top chefs, and his partner, sommelier Joachim Boudens took over the brasserie Hertog Jan in 2005, they transformed its conventional menu into something refreshing and revolutionary. With a team of extremely young employees (average age: 22 years), they earned three Michelin stars in barely five years, making them the youngest three-star team in the world. They’ve also relocated their award-winning restaurant to a brand-new location, a farm in Zedelgem, near Bruges, with a minimalistic, renovated barn and lots of space to grow their own vegetables, fruits, and flowers. Since the farm is a classified building, read historical monument, the owners respected this fact when making changes, along with sticking to its legal limitations.
The monument had to be visible, and you had to see a difference between the existing monument and the new building. Belgian architect Dries Bonamie created a demarcation using Flanders-made black stone for the new construction, and by installing lots of glass. The new building is in a ‘goosefoot’ design,that is typical of the region in the late Middle Ages. Dries is also a landscape architect, and as the garden is a key feature of the restaurant, Dries integrated this and matched it with the building, with the low-lying, wooden-floored dining room overlooking large,verdant swathes of it. The vegetable garden grows delectably fresh produce and edible flowers just for the restaurant, such as: tomatoes, beetroot, cauliflower floret, chard, onions, leeks, fennel, orange carrots, blue carrots, Romanesco broccoli, blue cauliflower, black radishes, Roman chervil, sorrel, marigold flowers, asparagus flowers, white and blue borage,
The renovated barn near Bruges features additions in black stone and lots of glass
Clockwise from top: The stark interiors, with their black panels; Minimalist design meets no-fuss home-grown produce; Fresh vegetables and edible flowers form colourful dishes; The vegetable garden is part of the property; The kitchen has a young staff of 15.
Chef Gert De Mangeleer follows a contemporary cooking style, with a strong regional appui. For him, it’s all about a kitchen that respects nature and gives a place of pride to vegetables, herbs and edible flowers grown on the property.
capuchin flowers, bergamot flowers, apricot mint flowers, and calendula flowers. Hertog Jan boasts of 75 covers, but this can be expanded to 120 covers by removing the panels that separate the banquet section and the main restaurant. The décor is very minimalistic, adhering to Hertog Jan’s overall philosophy that “Simplicity isn’t simple”, with leather used for the seats and reception desk, and plenty of black stone that is abundant in the region. The tables, with their stark white linen, offer a wonderful contrast against the dark-panelled interiors, The kitchen has a staff of 15 including the chef, sous-chefs and others, while the restaurant employs eight service staff; all together, 39 people work at Jan Hertog, including gardeners and students who roll up their sleeves over the weekend for extra pocket money. And what about the food itself? Chef Gert De Mangeleer has a contemporary cooking style, with a strong regional appui. For him, it’s all about
a kitchen that respects nature, hence the pride of place given to the vegetables, herbs and edible flowers that grow on the property. The dishes are characterized by their extraordinary depth and wealth of authentic flavours. Moreover, Gert has been studying the presentation of the dishes with the eye of an architect. The menu includes originals such as the Black Carpentras truffle – a puff pastry with sweet onion and melted lard with black truffle; Wagyu beef no.11, grilled with sea salt; their most popular dish – wild turbot from Nieuwpoort (on the Flemish coast, a 20-minute drive from Bruges), grilled Mediterranean-style, with melted tomato and candied lemon; and the pièce de résistance, the Royal Belgian Caviar, a mashed Moscovite Polder potato with 50gm Royal Belgian Caviar in a cockle broth with sour cream, that will set you back €140. As for the wine list, it is made for the dishes and not the other way around, which is usually the case. Gert’s partner and co-owner Joachim Boudens comes with impeccable credentials: he has been elected twice as Belgium’s best sommelier. He also uses Belgium’s fantastic beers in the gastronomy. In the city’s circle of connoisseurs, Joachim is known to be “the perfect gentleman” when he plays host at Hertog Jan, surrounded by specialists in the food industry, who look up to him as the last word in European hospitality. With its three-star Michelin rating, it’s only natural that Hertog Jan attracts food lovers from all over the world. But one thing remains constant: “Our way of working hasn’t changed during the years,” says the duo. “We treat our staff with respect, which is important to us, and every day we keep moving towards perfection.” n
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wheels
Automotive Technology…
Future Forward With technology playing a huge role in the world of automobiles, we have some seriously awe-inspiring concepts that will shape the future of mobility. Hari Govind Nair gives his pick on what to look out for. Delphi Vehicle to Everything
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veryone likes to think ahead and that’s exactly what Delphi is trying to achieve with their Vehicle to Everything (V2E) technology. Explaining the technology, Jeff Owens, chief technology officer, Delphi says, “We are using sophisticated software algorithms to anticipate every situation on the road and make a timely decision before the driver even becomes aware of the danger.” Delphi has even conducted a cross country automated drive, covering almost 5,500 km over nine days. They claim that throughout the way, the car behaved like a human would, only better and faster. Owens says, “We had one guy walk right out in front of our car, totally unaware. He appeared to be intoxicated
Toyota Satellite Communication Vehicle
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oyota has been eagerly working towards the concept of connected automobiles, and on the same lines they recently unveiled a Mirai fuel cell-based research vehicle. This concept is equipped with satellite communications technology from Kymeta, an expert in flat-panel antenna technology. Toyota might also plan to use high capacity satellites in the future as they offer higher data transfer rates than conventional satellite technologies. Kymeta’s lightweight and flat profile of the antenna also allows for seamless integration during vehicle assembly or easy aftermarket installation. It also negates the need for mechanical components by using software and liquid crystal technologies to electronically track and steer towards satellites. This technology offers several other benefits such as distribution of huge amounts of data to a vehicle, more stable and secure communications, and connectivity in emergencies such as natural disasters.
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and fell flat on his face as he stepped into the street. Our car not only avoided where he was going to step, but where he actually fell. The benefit to society could be great if we can continue to make this software robust, reliable and ubiquitous. Imagine if every car on the road had that capability.”
Ford vehicle to drone communication
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aking disaster management to the next level, Ford has tied up with DJI, a drone system and software developer, to create drone-to-vehicle communication using Ford Sync. Over and above the fact that it would be really fun to communicate with a flying object while driving, this is being done for a United Nations programme to inspect inaccessible emergency zones. This technology would be great for first responders of natural calamities, and would give a visual of the area without moving an inch from a Ford F-150.
Faraday FFZERO1
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ince the day Faraday unveiled the FFZRO1, rumours of this brand being the secretive automotive arm of Apple has been doing the rounds. Backed by a Chinese multibillionaire, this concept from Faraday will
remain just that‌a concept. But it does give a glimpse of what lies ahead‌ a vehicle with a sixth sense to intuitively gauge the needs of a driver, a zero gravity design for the driver’s seat to reduce fatigue, and many more features that are way ahead of their time.
Volkswagen BUDD-e
U
nlike other concepts that are thinking ahead in terms of decades, Volkswagen is a step ahead of the others. It has come up with the BUDD-e, a special car which demonstrates what electric mobility could really be like by 2019. This concept is a mobile interface that connects the vehicle to the world around it. Based on an all-new Modular Electric Platform, BUDD-e can effortlessly communicate with your smart office and home. Using the latest innovative technologies, it utilizes cutting-edge touch and gesture control inside the cabin, with individual displays blending into large infotainment panels. n
March 2016 | Outlook Splurge | 69
TÊTE À TÊTE
Achieving The Future
We caught up with human rights activist Kerry Kennedy, daughter of Senator Robert F Kennedy, at a gala dinner hosted in the Capital, who tells us about her India visit, and how we can all create change, in our own ways. text by Priya Kumari Rana
Kerry Kennedy at the gala dinner hosted by Meera Gandhi in Delhi’s Leela Palace hotel
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photographs by Gulshan Sachdeva
I
t’s not every day that a Kennedy visits India with her children,” says India-born, New York-based philanthropist and CEO of the Giving Back Foundation Meera Gandhi about the intimate sit-down dinner party she is hosting at the Leela Palace, New Delhi for her friend, human rights lawyer and daughter of Senator Robert F Kennedy, Kerry Kennedy. “When Jackie Kennedy visited India in 1963, Ambassador John Galbraith hosted a dinner for her, so I thought why not do something in style,” she adds. And there is a lot of style tonight, with oodles of charity thrown in. Fourman band Chaar Yaar, with half of the musicians from New York, and the other half from India, are performing a repertoire of Sufi-inspired pieces, and among the guests is Bhuvan Ribhu, son of 2014 Nobel Peace Prize winner Kailash Satyarthi, who runs the Satyarthi Foundation in Kalkaji, that works towards the elimination of violence against children. Dressed in a long black dress and accompanied by her daughters Cara and Michaela (third daughter Mariah could not make it this evening), the blonde Kerry Kennedy (who is the former spouse of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo), speaks softly, her smile reminiscent of her late father’s disarming grin, about her first India visit in 17 years. “I am so happy to be here, with my friend Meera, who has been a source of joy, fun, and vision,” she says. “When I think of India I think of a place that has a tradition of wisdom, the impor-
photographs by Gulshan Sachdeva
Left: Kerry Kennedy with daughters Cara and Michaela. Above: A file photo of her late father, Senator Robert F Kennedy
tance of love, and peace, and concern for one another. My cousin John F Kennedy Jr, when he graduated from Brown, could have gone anywhere on earth, but he said he wanted to come to India. He experienced some of his happiest times here. My aunt Jackie said that India was a place of tremendous renewal for her, and even modelled the JFK Center for Performing Arts in New York on a building she’d seen in Delhi.” Asked about what are the values of her late father Senator Robert F Kennedy that are reflected in the foundation she spearheads, the Robert F Kennedy Human Rights, she says: “My father believed that one person can make a difference, and that each of us should try. He had a vision of a more just and peaceful world, and that is what the Robert F Kennedy Human Rights does; we work with leading human rights defenders around the world, with people like Kailash Satyarthi, partnering with them in their own countries, and globally, to enhance the work that they are doing. So I have had a wonderful opportunity not only to work with Kailash, but really become great personal family friends.” Kerry says that she’s spent 10 days of her vacation with the Satyarthi family, visiting the Bal Ashram near Jaipur, which is his home for children who have been emancipated from bonded labour. “I sit on the board of the Satyarthi Foundation, and it has had such an impact not only in India but around the world,” she says. “It is really for the most vulnerable children. They come from such brokenness. They are six years old, working 14 hours a day,
“My father believed that one person can make a difference, and that each of us should try. He had a vision of more just and peaceful world, and that is what the Robert F Kennedy Human Rights does. We work with leading human rights defenders around the world, with people like Kailash Satyarthi. His Foundation has had such an impact in India.”
and they are so smart and proud and strong. I came away, thinking: don’t underestimate anyone. Because then you miss their power and capacity, and the love inside.” Kerry’s also had the chance to explore bits of India with her daughters. “We went to Ranthambore, on a tiger safari, and we saw tigers,” she exclaims joyfully.“Then we went down to Goa, where we got to see a bit of the beach, and then we were up in Srinagar, going skiing in Gulmarg – let me tell you what it is when I tell New Yorkers that I went skiing in the Himalayas! And now we are here in Delhi.” She says she’s made it a point to bring her daughters to pass on the tradition of her family’s love for India. “Once you have been to India you can’t help but feel the magic, the pain, richness, the culture, the future. So we will keep coming back.” And to this formidable daughter of Robert F Kennedy, one cannot but help ask her what we as citizens can do to help the less fortunate, as her father would have wanted? “Everybody has something in their community that you can do,” she says.“My father often said, ‘Not everyone is called on to change history, but each of us can change a small portion of events’, so whether it is as simple as saying I don’t want to hear that ethnic joke or that sexist joke in school, or raising money for a foundation, or bringing people together the way Meera does, like-minded people who create change, that can really make a difference.” Kerry’s inspirational words echo those of Robert F Kennedy who once said, “The future is not a gift. It is an achievement.” n
March 2016 | Outlook Splurge | 71
Parting Shot
Oscar’s Stars
Splurge shines the spotlight on three luminaries who shone in scintillating jewels and stunning gowns at the recent 88th Academy Awards held in Los Angeles.
Left to right: Alicia Vikander, winner of Best Actress in a Supporting Role wears a Louis Vuitton gown and jewellery;Brie Larson, winner of Best Actress wears a Gucci gown; Kate Winslet, nominated for Best Supporting Actress in Nirav Modi jewels and Ralph Lauren gown.
A
trio of nominated stars, two of them bagging coveted Oscars at the 88th Academy Awards, caught our eye, Sweden’s latest ‘It’ girl, Alicia Vikander, whose performance in The Danish Girl, with nominee for Best Actor Eddie Redmayne (he missed out to Leo DiCaprio), forgot to thank boyfriend Michael Fassbender (also nominated for Best Actor), but hit the post-event parties with gusto. American Brie Larson, who walked away with the Oscar for Best Actress, for the hard-hitting drama Room, where her character is force to bring up in a shed, the son she has with her abductor, spoke of her
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hardships growing up in a cramped apartment with her single mother, which she says prepared her for the role. While she says she owes everything to her mum Heather, she isn’t on speaking terms with her dad. And best of all, Titanic Oscar-winner Kate Winslet who was nominated this year, did India proud by shining in Nirav Modi’s Luminance Bracelet and Earrings, and a two-carat Pear Celestial Ring. She couldn’t hide her jubilance at Leo ‘Jack’ DiCaprio’s deserved win for Best Actor in The Revenant. Since they starred together in Titanic, 20 years have elapsed, they’ve acted in 46 films between them, and remained firm friends. n
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