TGS Life 22/10/2016

TOUGH GUYS DON'T DANCE PG 8-9

WHEN CLOTHES GIVE YOU AN EDGE PUNE, OCT 22-28, 2016 | www.thegoldensparrow.com

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GET SET TO PARTY WITH MR BOOMBASTIC

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

STAGE

Get set to party as the super reggae sensation Shaggy comes to town

By Zainab Kantawala @kantawalazainab

H

e’s not known as Mr Lova Lova for nothing.

Shaggy has composed and performed enough love songs to last a lifetime and he has recenty added one more to his list. So here is your long-awaited opportunity to move and groove with Shaggy, the international reggae sensation, at Phoenix Marketcity. Popularly known as Mr Boombastic, Shaggy has several gold- and platinumselling albums and a Grammy to his name.

On his second tour of India, he is planning to floor the Pune audience with a reggae fusion blast, with some of his best hits like Oh Carolina, It Wasn’t Me and Angel. His distinctive voice is what makes him a magnificent performer, and boosts

his status as King of reggae, dancehall, hiphop, R&B and pop.

“The Pune audience will be thrilled.

We are going to perform some of our new compositions along with all the old classics. It’s going to be a very energetic show,” says Shaggy.

His new single That Love is inspired by music itself. One of the things that is associated with feeling good is just love, and being in love, and missing that one person that you always spend time with, he explains. With a really catchy, feelgood melody, the song is hitting the charts worldwide. “Scott Storch produced the beat. The minute I got it, these melodies just came to me. We ended up writing and it just felt like a really nice catchy love song.

We decided just to rock with it,” he adds.

Born as Orville Richard Burrell, he adopted the moniker ‘Shaggy’ when he was in school. His hair used to be messy, and so the name was given to him by his fellow classmates.

“They called me Shaggy as in shaggy the dog. Then when I went to England, I found out that shaggy meant something

else. I kind of adopted that reason and that’s what I tell the ladies,” he laughs.

Dancehall and reggae has evolved over the years and now is probably the biggest time for the genre because it has gone mainstream, he believes. He has had many high points in his career, like winning a Grammy and getting the opportunity to perform worldover.

“Those are all high points for me as far as my career is concerned. I don’t look at any part of it as a low because even when there was something that didn’t go my way, I look at it as a lesson. I still learned something,” he says. What keeps him making music after more than 20 years in the business is his passion, he says.

“Music is in my blood. It’s a way of life for me and it is something I love to do. I would do it even if I didn’t get paid,” says the tealented musician. Next out on floor will be a collaboration with international pop and reggae star, Omi, he tells us.

When: October 22, 7 pm onwards Where: Liberty Square, Phoenix Marketcity, Viman Nagar zainab.kantawala@goldensparrow.com

They are dreaming of a soul connect The Live Alive band makes its performing debut at Hard Rock Cafe, Pune this Sunday, and their repertoire features rock, pop, soul and some other genres to ensure that every one gets their groove

By Salonee Mistry @SaloneeMistry

I

t was their mutual interest in 80s rock that compelled keyboardist and composer Johnson and bass guitarist Rickson join forces to form Live Alive. The two of them began recording original compositions in their home studio and they almost immediately found a connect.

They were then joined by Oswin as the lead guitarist, who was majorly responsible for bringing in all the loops and effects. Jignesh the drummer followed next and his powerful beats took their music up a notch. Last to join was Jaffery on vocals. Performing in Pune this weekend, Live Alive do not believe in sticking to any single genre, and will be playing everything from rock, pop, and soul, along with a few other genres too.

Jamming together for more than fi ve years now, the band actually started in 2015. “We all were introduced to music since our school days. Jaffery and Oswin performed for their school band, and almost always also won

singing competitions in school.

Jignesh, who is a trained drummer started with the percussion and has even performed with the maestros of Bollywood, when he was 20.

Rickson and I were teenagers when we were introduced to harmonised singing in the church choir and then respectively chose our instruments to become musicians,” Johnson says, when asked about how they were drawn to music.

For them the best part about doing what they do is that they never stop learning. They consider it a blessing that they have the opportunity to entertain people and spread happiness. Their own experiences are the inspiration for their compositions. Talking about their biggest challenge Rickson says, “Today there is a large fan following for electronically generated music and this in a way suffocates those that rely only on instruments. We hope and in fact know that our audience will connect with every song in our set at the Pune event.”

Part of a larger chain of hotels, Hard Rock Cafe Pune was the

third one to open its doors. The energetic vibe at this place can brighten even your most dull day. Spread across 8,500 square

feet, Alive Live will be playing here for the very fi rst time. Prior to this all of them have performed in the city but with different bands.

When: October 23, Where: Hard Rock Cafe, Koregaon Park salonee.mistry@goldensparrow.com

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To broadcast the muffled voices of dissent Young film-maker Sonam Singh has made a documentary film on the Kabir Kala Manch controversy

By Zainab Kantawala @kantawalazainab

C

inema’s characteristic forte is its ability to capture and communicate the intimacies of the human mind,” Satyajit Ray once said. Young film-maker Sonam Singh believes in this implicitly, and she is trying to break down stereotypes, as she attempts to explore different subjects through her films and documentaries. A graduate from Miranda House, University of Delhi, Sonam studied Direction at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune. Her film The Forbidden Notes, was selected at an International Student Film Festival in Turkey recently.

The film is based on a real case that goes back in 2013, when Kabir Kala Manch, a Pune-based cultural

group had been charged as being Naxalites by Mumbai High Court.

This was when she was studying at FTII, and inspired by this she made a short documentary on the lives of the members and how those arrests

affected them quite adversely. .

“In the current socio-political scenario, the subject of the film holds a significant role where the dissenters are labelled as ‘anti nationals’.

This documentary

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

ENTERTAINMENT

throws light on the idea of governance in India which has been in practice for years.

The state has always tried to muffle the voices of Sonam Singh the common citizen questioning the state’s failure,” she says.

Sonam describes herself as a passionate cinema buff, dreamer, writer and film-making enthusiast.

For her cinema is a medium to produce a universal language of meaningful entertainment, and it’s always a priority to bring out the subjects that are silenced by the authorities.

“I was inspired after watching Jai Bhim Comrade by Anand

Patwardhan. That was my window into realistic cinema. I made this film The Forbidden Notes as part of a college project. The film is not about who is right or wrong, but it simply narrates their side of the story,” she tells us.

Sonam has tried to bring out a human element, and get closer to the families of those involved in the case through the film. The plot revolves around two girls who fall in love with the two men involved, and their tryst to save them from the entire controversy.

“Student union of FTII has played a very instrumental role in the making of this film by providing me contacts of these people as they are living a grounded life after the arrests and avoid facing camera out of panic. I shot this film with almost zero police permission,” she adds. zainab.kantawala@goldensparrow.com

SEQU3L, making music that has roots in real life DJ and music producer Nakul Ambilkar’s music-making is inspired by real life

By Gulal Salil @gulalsalil

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akul Ambilkar cannot be called an upcoming artist, yet he exudes the charm of an enthusiastic beginner. He is a DJ and music producer from Aurangabad, who since 2004 has created an array of electronic sounds. A prolific person, he has been involved in a large number of projects, which have not stopped him from making good on the music charts. The 30-yearold moved to Pune for studies in 2005. Known as SEQU3L on stage, he released his first Timelapse EP, under the label Juicebox Music on October 11.

Within two days of the release, the EP climbed to second position on Beatport in their list of Proghouse Top 100 releases.

Nakul wanted to be a fighter pilot and music was the most obvious choice for him after that.

He finished his education from Symbiosis in 2007, while he was DJ since 2004. He started

producing music internationally in 2013 and had collaborations with artists like Paul Thomas and Scott James. His evolution into Sequel occurred while he defined his genre. The development took place, as he says, “When it was decided to stick to performing and composing a particular style of electronic music that I loved the most. It was mostly underground and a more intelligent style of house music in general.”

The evolution of Nakul into SEQU3L has an interesting tale behind it. His wanted to have a unique stage name since there were a lot of DJ Nakuls around. He recalls, “I was in search of a project name which sounded cool as well as had a deeper meaning just as the music I do. A friend randomly asked me as to how I defined my music. My reply was that my tunes are more like stories from real life. He said, ‘How does Sequel sound?” Thus, Sequel was born with the idea to create music stories that eventually unfold into a new one. However, a Google search showed that there were other artists of the same name. So the E was replaced with a 3, “Now when you Google sequ3l on the web, everything that you see is me,” he says with a smile, and the search links that direct to him are many. “I guess what they call EDM today is pop

electronic music,” says Nakul, stepping away from his categorisation as an EDM artist. The artist wants to permeate more into progressive house, deep and techno genres. His influences range from trance artists Tiesto and Paul Van Dyk to further up north in rock with Metallica and U2.

The young musician has toured eight cities since his EP was released and has already remixed a track of his for renowned UK artist Funkagenda’s compilation under the label Ultraviolet Music.

This is just one of the many gigs and releases that SEQU3L will be phasing into as he goes on to perform at India’s first Electric Daisy Carnival edition (EDC) in Delhi. But this is not the first time he is seeing such success. The artist has been previously nominated for VH1s MyFavDJ of the Year twice and won the Sunburn Anthem Contest. He is globally recognised, but his approach is equally humbling.

“When your ultimate goal is not to be successful but to inspire, I feel it is an endless journey. All the little positive experiences definitely give me peace,” he says.

He has zero regrets, and he believes that life should be like a rollercoaster ride, which he has had. Whenever he is in turmoil, he just tells himself, “Life is beautiful.”

SG

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

STAGE

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SHERLOCK HOLMES LIVE IN PUNE

Feel the magic and charm of this much-loved character come alive as Theatron Entertainment stages the play, The Case of Mistaken Identity

By Salonee Mistry @SaloneeMistry

N

ever has it happened that someone who has read the books, or watched the Sherlock Holmes series did not fall in love with the chief protagonist. Whether you paint a picture of how he looks for yourself, or visualise Benedict Cumberbatch from the show, it is hard to not fall in love with the man. He’s charming, mysterious and more importantly, extremely smart. Over the years there have been innumerable theories as to why Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes, killed him off at the end of the series, the most popular one being that he as an author lost his identity over the character he created. Attempting at putting together all these theories and finding the most logical explanation, Pune-based theatre

group Theatron Entertainment, decided to script and stage a play, The Case of Mistaken Identity, shifting the focus from the character to the author.

It was their love for theatre that pushed five college friends to start the group, six years ago. They stage plays in Marathi, English and Hindi. Being ardent fans of the Sherlock Holmes series themselves, they were quite disappointed that the character was killed off eventually. They all had so many memories associated with it that they decided to research and find out a little about why the author did what he did. “For Arthur Conan Doyle, his character simply took over his identity. He started getting letters that were addressed to Sherlock and it kind of hit him hard. When we read all this, we realised that as a writer this was not fair on him and wanted to find

a way to honour him. This is when we decided to stage a play,” Nimish Jadhav, one of the directors, tells us. The play was staged at the Kala Ghoda Festival in Mumbai this year, and garnered some much deserved praise.

Their biggest challenge while scripting the play was to ensure that while they made the author the hero, they could not in any way downplay or turn Sherlock’s character into a negative one. “We know for a fact that Sherlock is extremely loved and making him the villain only meant digging our own grave,” says Nimish.

Gaurav Sawant, who has written the script, had quite a tough time initially but as the script progressed it got easier. Another major challenge that the actors faced was to get the British accent right. Since mostly all of them come from Maharashtrian backgrounds, the directors, Nimish and Girish Joshi, were extra careful about the pronunciations and spent two months perfecting it. The music for the play has been composed by Vikrant Pawar, and the play has been choreographed by Abhishek Lonkar.

Nimish was hooked to theatre while he was still in college and

eventually progressed from acting to directing. It is the entire process and seeing things pan out the way he had imagined them on stage that keeps him going.

Watching Sherlock Holmes live on stage is the major USP of this play and in fact the only one that it needs. The little over one hour play is bound to be witty, keep you on the edge of the seats, and be action-packed too.

When: October 22, 7 pm onwards Where: Jyotsna Bhole Sabhagruha, Shukrawar Peth salonee.mistry@goldensparrow.com

A theatrical juxtaposition of Sanskrit verses Watch Sunaad from Bengaluru bring alive the essence of the Ishavasya Upanishad, and Persian verses from the Masnavi in English

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unekars will get to see a performance unlike anything they have seen before. A combination of two texts from different cultures that highlights the same truth, coupled with a group singing songs from the Dhrupad genre, which is the most ancient classical form of Hindustani Classical Music, story-telling, theatre and dance is everything that will be weaved together in a single performance.

Isha Rumi- Beyond Form, has been inspired and choreographed under the guidance of Sri M, who is a householder yogi. The music for this has been composed by the Gundecha Brothers.

Sunaad is an eclectic group of people driven by one passion, their love of classical music. It consists of professionals working as designers, doctors, lawyers, scientists, software and hardware engineers, architects, homemakers, dancers and even students, all trained in music to different levels. The group has prior to this performed seven

different projects in over sixty shows in Bengaluru, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Pune, Thiruvananthapuram, Manjakkudi, Ahmedabad and Mumbai. It is led by Tara Kini,

who is a consultant in education and music.

“Finding the resonance between the Ishavasya Upanishad and the Masnavi, was our foremost challenge. It was inspired by Sri M who also gave us the assurance that it would happen. When it did, it was amazing,” says Tara, who is also the director of this performance. “It so happened that Gita Shenoy, the

script-writer, and I felt that the stories in the Masnavi were written to explain the Shlokas in the Ishavasya Upanishad,” she says. The Gunecha brothers have composed the Sanskrit and Persian verse with equal ease set to over twenty ragas, and it is simply a treat for the ears. To teach the compositions to thirty enthusiastic singers with varying musical training and ability was another

challenge that she faced. But by dint of hard work and perseverance they mastered it within no time. Regardless of one’s caste, colour, religion, socioeconomic backgrounds, there is one divinity within each of us and this is what the performance aims to highlight, she explains.

Interestingly enough, the team has never had a rehearsal with the entire cast present at the same time. This is something they made their peace with given the size and composition of their group. They rehearse at seven in the morning to cope with the Bengaluru traffic, and post six in the evening to enable office goers to participate.

“As almost all of us are not professional musicians, we don’t charge for a show, other than actual costs of our travel. However, any amount that we do get as donations, goes into our account to support our projects,” says Tara. The show has been organised by Kaveri Kalakshetra, which is the cultural organisation of the Kaveri Group of Institutes. Their aim is to promote all kinds of art forms with special focus on school children and youth.

When: October 22, 6.00 pm onwards Where: Kalmadi Shamrao High School, Ganesh Nagar

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A PICTURE-PERFECT HOME Humble, courteous and always smiling, Manisha Sanghvi’s home is the epitome of the adage ‘when less is more’

By Salonee Mistry @SaloneeMistry

W

e have all heard the phrase ‘less is more’.

Executive Director of Sancheti Healthcare Academy Manisha Sanghvi’s home is a perfect example of just this. You may feel that there is a lot going on in every corner of the house, but the interiors have been done up so smartly, that there is ample open breathing space, and it doesn’t look cluttered at all. Set up in just four days, every piece of furniture in the house has been purchased from outside.

Absolutely nothing was built or made in the house, Manisha tells us. The four-bedroom flat is one of the most tastefully decorated homes we have come across in a long time.

At the entrance you are greeted with a beautiful standing sculpture of the Buddha, with a huge painting in the background.

As you step into the living room, there is ample seating around the centre table and it is as colourful as it can be, without there being a clash. Yellow and shades of it could be considered the theme of the room, occasionally contrasted by the greenery from the plants in the corners. From the tiles and the rustic wooden chairs, to the huge gold lantern in a corner, everything complements each-other.

“I honestly believe that a house reflects the personality of the people living in it. Growing up there was always a creative side to whatever I did and this is something I wanted to bring out in the house too,” Manisha says.

Her interest in art is well reflected in the innumerable paintings all over the house.

Her favourite spot in the house is the huge wooden chair that takes up a corner in the balcony and the swing which is in the balcony attached to her room. With minimal furniture throughout the house, it is easy to maintain. A lot of open space throughout the house makes it look bigger than its actual area of 4,500 square feet.

Living in the house for just about a year now, Manisha says, “It is better to have minimal furniture as cleaning becomes easier. Given my work schedule, I have to rely on help to do most of the cleaning or do it myself when they don’t turn up. So having lesser things to move around works just fine,” she says with a smile.

The most striking feature that we absolutely adored were the antique pieces of furniture be it the closets or the chairs, all around the house. Their rustic charm balances out the room subtly, as everything else is a splash of colour. salonee.mistry@goldensparrow.com

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

FEATURES

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

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Hi-fi chai hai?

Brewing a perfect cup of tea is an ancient art. At Tea Trails, they understand the importance of brewing and steeping loose leaf teas to perfection

By Zainab Kantawala @kantawalazainab

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ea is a beverage that most Indians wake up to every morning.

There is nothing quite as refreshing as a steaming cup of well-brewed tea. But how many of us really care to explore and discover the myriad aromas and f lavours that make up your everyday cuppa? At Tea Trails, on Law College Road, we were offered a gourmet tea drinking experience with a desi twist.

They have brought together under one roof an incredible variety of tastes, textures and aromas of teas from all over the world. The place is not too spacious, and neither is it cramped, but just perfect for hanging out with friends. It is cosy, youthful and the interiors exude a leisurely aura.

The staff is alert and on their toes, and the pricing too is reasonable keeping in mind the young clientele. As part of the tasting, they even served food that was paired with some beautifully brewed tea.

The hot beverages are served with a sand timer and a card educating one about the steeping time for each of them.

We began the tasting session with the white tea paired with bun-maska, starting from the light and going to stronger versions of tea. The silver needle tea was delicately scented and made from the fine tips of silver with a pale olive green liquor. It was mildly fruity and sweet in taste. We were then served smoked chicken sandwiches with Lapsang Souchong (black tea) that had a smoky aroma and a golden coppery colour. The tea

that impressed us the most was the Tapioca bubble tea which was a lychee-f lavoured iced tea paired with fruit bubbles. As you drink you pop a bubble into your mouth and it bursts to release the fruity concoction.  Tea Trails serves gourmet teas from around the world, an exquisite range from hot to cold and simple to extravagant teas. The other tea f lavours range from white to green tea and oolong to herbal tea along with a variety of freshly brewed chais like adrak, pudina, masala and lemongrass. They also specialise in a tea-infused food menu. The signature tea infused dishes include Burmese Tea Salad, Tea Marbled Eggs, Tea Infused Thai Bowl, and Teazamagrita. The wide range of desserts include Black Forest Pastry, Chocolate Éclair, Pound Cakes and more.

From Punjab with love

By Salonee mistry @SaloneeMistry

T

he Punjab Grill is a mustvisit place for all carnivores.

Succulent chicken will rightly be the highlight of your meal, with just the right amount of spices and flavours. Stepping into the Punjab Grill outlet in Phoenix Marketcity, we were definitely not expecting our minds and taste buds to be blown away. What could possibly be different about this place, we thought. But, we had probably passed the verdict much too soon. Just as if it were a palette cleanser, we started our meal with a refreshing lemon and mint mocktail. The drink was indeed a good way to prepare oneself for the smorgasbord of spicy flavours and that were to follow. Some must trys under the beverages list would be the Nimboo Ka Achaar Caipiroska and the Danger Dose.

There is also an all-new chakhna menu with dishes starting at Rs 100 and featuring some delicious, out-of-the-box creations

like the Ambarsari macchi with desi aloo chips, Channa Zor Garam, Tandoori Kukkad wings and Kotkapure da atta chicken, to

name a few. The refreshing drink was followed by some simply mouth-watering starters like the Raan-E-Sikandari, Chicken

3 ways, and the Paneer Tikka Multani. All these dishes were full of flavours and did in fact do justice to and complemented the main

ingredient, be it chicken, mutton or paneer. They all had character, the Raan-E-Sikandari proving to be our favourite.

Having had our fill of the starters, we were equally spoilt for choice with the main course. To our surprise, the Paneer Lababdar stood out from everything that we tried, be it the Subziyaan de Millniyan, Mutton Boti or Dal Punjab Grill. For us hardcore nonvegetarians, it was quite a surprise that the Paneer Lababdar would top the list.

Unlike most other places, the Dum ki biryani here had just the right amount of spice, it was neither too dry, nor too spicy. The balance between the masala and the rice was perfect.

Like every hardcore Punjabi meal, this one too had Gulab Jamun and Phirni at the end. A great combination of hot and cold, the rasmalai is also an option for those with a sweet tooth. The highlight of this entire gastronomical adventure was what was served to us at the end of the meal, the pan shot.

Refreshing, sweet and just what you need after a meal full of spice, the shot could also be the sole reason that you try this place out. salonee.mistry@goldensparrow.com

Food is always on Vidita’s mind

By Salonee Mistry @SaloneeMistry

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idita Kamat, unlike most of us, only bunked lectures during her college days to rush to the hotel she was interning or working at. Holidays for her meant spending every waking minute in the kitchen, learning, exploring and experimenting with food. Proud owner of Mezclaa - Blend It, which is her own confectionery brand, the young chef is a workaholic and has worked at The Orchid Hotel, The Trident Hotel and Taj Lands End Hotel before she started off on her own. Working at all these places has only improved her skills and made her the best at what she does today, she says.

“For me the pleasure and satisfaction of knowing that I have worked hard and achieved my end goal is seeing my clients smile. As a child my mother enrolled me in every activity one could ever think of, be it skating, karate, drawing, singing, and even swimming. But there was something about food that always kept me hooked,” she tells us. Being a part of the family that runs the Kamat group of hotels, Vidita learned a lot growing up and is fortunate to have got the right guidance throughout.

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

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Her mother Vidya Kamat, is her biggest inspiration and mentor when it comes to cooking. Ingredients that she finds in her kitchen help her plug into her creative side and being challenged is something she loves. “The most challenging part with any dish is to get the taste and texture of it right. I have remade so many of my dishes over and over again till I am not satisfied with it and this has helped me learn a lot,” she explains. While she cooked several dishes under her mother’s supervision, it was when she was 14 years old that she made tea cakes and brownies for her family and friends for the fi rst time.

In addition to her mother, she credits her father from whom she believes she gets her innovative side from. Linus D’Silva and Ma’am Hufriz Motawara are two other mentors who were instrumental in making her the chef she is today. While every dish that her mother prepares is her favourite and picking one is quite a task for her, the South Indian food from Karnataka is something she is absolutely crazy about. With a natural flair for tossing up delectable dishes and a smile that stretches a mile, Vidita is a force to reckon with in the culinary world. salonee.mistry@goldensparrow.com

Tailor-made meals for your fitness regimen

Kilobeaters is aiming to make getting fit fun, by providing food that is not only healthy but tastes good too

By Salonee Mistry @SaloneeMistry

O

ther than having a fitness routine, a proper diet with the right amount of nutrition is a must for those who want to get fit. Very often people give up on the diet part since it eventually gets a bit taxing to cook customised meals especially when you live with a family, and you need to cook different meals for the others and yourself. Shyama Menon and her husband Abhishek Shinde are health freaks and food lovers at the same time, who had observed that most of their friends hardly paid much heed to their eating habits. And they also cribbed about innumerable health

issues, often.

Th is is what inspired them to launch K i lob e ate r s , which aims to provide customised meals for everyone Shyama Menon who places an order, depending on their body type and fitness goals.

A venture that makes do with a small team of six and four partners, they meticulously plan their menu every Sunday, keeping in mind their motto to serve the best tasting food and yet abide by their basic concept of healthy

eating. They alter the protein, carbohydrates and other contents in the meal depending on the client’s fitness goal. Shyama had been researching health foods and healthy alternatives for almost a year before she felt she knew enough and was ready to go ahead with Kilobeaters. She also did a fitness nutrition course to ensure that she could do it all perfectly.

“The ideal way to fitness is eating at regular intervals. With a busy schedule, one has no time or energy to think about healthy food four or fi ve times a day. Th at’s where we come in.

Our USP is the fi ve-meal plan which includes breakfast, lunch, dinner and two protein-packed snacks,” she explains.

Kilobeaters delivers all over the city and this is in fact their biggest challenge. The kitchen starts at four in the morning to ensure that the food reaches your doorstep by breakfast time.

Shyama used to be a teacher till about fi ve years ago. She then realised how much she loved cooking, and Abhishek encouraged her to pursue a career that interested her.

“He wanted one of us to be able to live our dream and he very selfl essly chose me,” she tells us. She began cooking with her blog www.liquorish.in, and there has been no looking back ever since. salonee.mistry@goldensparrow.com

TOUGH GU DON'T DAN

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

FEATURES

The bouncer stereotype is a tall, dark and sleeveless top wearing scary person, whose only job is to bash up trouble-makers. But what we find is that bouncers also have another, very human side

By Gulal Salil @gulalsalil

A

tall man dressed in black runs through the usual bustle of shoppers on MG Road until he reaches Cafe Toons, his destination. He removes his jacket, clasps his hands behind his back, and stands ready for action. Azeem Sheikh is the bouncer all set to deal with trouble-mongers at Café Toons, but he smiles readily.

To trace Pune history, 10 Downing Street was one of the earliest pubs in the city, opening in 1994. Then came other clubs like Polaris and Black Cadillac. Pubbing and clubbing culture was

He feels it is his duty to protect people

A

dil Engineer is six feet tall. He has been working with Imubhai for the past twelve years. His part-time indulgence as a protector is only complemented by the fact that bouncing fetches him extra income, but it is truly because he loves what he does.

The 43-year old clerk at Zoroastrian Bank works events and for celebrities, whenever he gets the chance.

“I built my body and got offers from my friends to do bouncing twice or thrice.

I tried it out and liked it. Meeting people and going to new places was really enjoyable. Protecting celebrities is also really nice,” he says.

Adil started his career as a bouncer under Imubhai’s wing and has stuck to him ever since. For him, it is Imran or nothing else. He works out four of seven days and plans to continue with this profession for the next two to three years. He feels he makes a particular contribution when he helps out girls who are harassed by boys. He feels it is his duty to protect people. His demeanour is amiable, incongruous with his physique, but his smile gives it all away as he speaks about his job and his love for what he does. In the end, it is the first impression that makes for popular parodies. The interactions come into play only once you become a regular partygoer. That is when you see behind the façade of the bouncer, and see him for who he really is.

An ideal part-time occupation

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zeem is impressively built and it's obvious that he has put in hard hours working on his physique. He had no idea that bouncers even existed four years ago. He had been working as a mechanic since the age of 15 and this is when some of his friends suggested that he train at a gym.

“I worked out for three years before I started working as a bouncer at Cafe Toons about a year ago,” he says. His black polo shirt bears the logo and name of Sharp Edge Security.

A father of four, Azeem supports his wife and mother. “It is a good part-time occupation,” the 30-year old says. He earns Rs 9,000 rupees a month. But besides the salary, the job offers him other perks, as he keeps meeting new people and making new friends every night he is on the job.

Azeem pays Rs 300 as gym fees. He works at his uncle’s garage till the evening, then it’s time for his night job. He rides to Camp from Kondhwa on the bike he bought from his bouncer job.

“A bouncer has no social life. But bouncers can see what even the police cannot see,” he says with a laugh. He believes that bouncers have a more intrusive job than other security personnel. They have to sort out arguments as well as fights. People lose control when they get drunk, and talking to them politely is the better option. Azeem claims that he has never had to use physical force to subdue any trouble-maker, so far.

yet to take firm necessity of m bouncer breed was the time w Former ev bouncers in the events, even be face of the se that is surpris the profession situations, and

‘I give them three c

R

aj Vikram works as can be found at the been working for th he is a passionate bodybuil 33-year-old works out and personal trainer.

“My salary is not fixed, n with my boss Rahul. We w to him and tell him that I n Raj finds it great fun to wo mind is cleared of clutter a Describing his interest, he the way to Baner for bounc I have made friends there a meet them only once a wee The bouncer believe patience with those who and cause trouble. He wait they get abusive. “Even th give them three chances. they cross that, I get the light, and I bash them he says. Just like every bouncer, he too seems cap force when required. The d is that he is much more int just having his dose of fun his seven fellow bouncers and keeping the gates closed to those he thinks will cause issues.

UYS NCE

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

FEATURES

m root. But with free-flowing alcohol, there was the muscle to keep trouble-makers under control. The was distinctly different from security guards. This when bouncers became part of the city club scene. vent organiser Khodu Irani states, “The best e business started off with us when we were doing efore High.” These are professionals who are the curity industry, and they function in a manner singly and unexpectedly polite, though theirs is where they are trained to handle the toughest of d people." gulal.salil @goldensparrow.com

chances and bash them up after’

s a bouncer for his own entertainment. He gate at Area 51 every Saturday, where he has he past five years. He hails from Kenya, and lder, fitness freak and a graphic designer. The also works at Multifit in Kalyani Nagar as a

nor do I share that kind of tallying relationship ork pretty well as bouncers and whenever I go need this or that amount, he gives me,” he says. rk as bouncer after a week of hectic work. His at the pub, which is open only on Saturdays. says, “A lot of my friends ask me why I go all cing, but it is just that I really like going there. and I get to ek.” es in brawl ts till hen, I Once green m up,” other pable of difference terested in n with ,

‘We are there to not fight but to sort out matters’

I

mran Sayyed, 40, has been a bouncer long enough to call himself a veteran.

He is also the owner of state-renowned Man Power Corporate Protection.

Imubhai, as he is known, has been around for the past twenty years on the Pune club scene. He has seen clubs open and close, and new ones take their place.

Khodu Irani is his close friend.

In the year 1995, Imubhai started deejaying among contemporaries such as Nadeem and Yusuf. He learnt how to watch over the gate and take care of the entry fees and security at the popular weekly parties hosted by the DJs on the riverside. With his experience, Imu became the go-to bouncer, ensuring security for the bigwigs.

Describing the hard work that has gone into becoming what he is today, he says, “I used to stand from 4 pm to 3 am every day on my job. It requires a lot of energy and patience is the key.”

He was a freelance bouncer with his company Man Power at Polaris, Black Cadillac and TDS in the 90s, and at High Spirits, 1 Lounge and Arc Asia later on.

Imu spends four days of the week at High. Khodu Irani prefers the veteran over any other bouncer. The only difference is that today, Imu comes with seven or eight of his boys to the student hub. He has seen generations of Symbiosis kids, one batch after the other.

“Sometimes parents call me up and ask me to take care of their children who are coming to a party. I know them because I have seen their generation partying too,” he says.

Man Power has around 40 employees who have been with the company for the past 15 years.

“If the kids are happy, we are happy and the company is happy.”

Their website mentions the list of celebrities and high-profile events (IPL being an example) Imu and his boys have worked for in Mumbai and Pune.

His style is customer-friendly. “Even if someone grabs me by my collar, I let them go. You talk politely to drunk people, they will understand. The main thing is to take care how you speak. We are there to not fight but to sort out matters,” he says.

Imu is set to become a legend of sorts just like the pubs he works at. People know him, and he and his team are the ones who call for autorickshaws to drop partygoers home in times of need.

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

THRILL OF DRIVING

Quick Drive: Tata Hexa The Hexa is the third vehicle on the philosophy is on display in many nuances.

X2 platform that underpins the original For instance, the door lock/unlock button Aria and the more recent Safari Storme is front-and-centre where either the driver SUV. Little else reminds the driver of the or passenger can reach it. The reverse other two platform stablemates, however. camera can be activated by a button Clearly, the Hexa is going up against without engaging reverse. The maps are competition such as the Mahindra XUV co-developed with MapMyIndia and run 5OO and the Toyota Innova Crystal, and off your smartphone. Little good decisions the package, equipment list are chosen to that add up to a nicer experience. be competitive. The design also reflects Inside the vehicle, the dash is very Tata’s now global design team, and there smart to look at, maintaining an allare shades of JLR in the vehicle. There dark theme. Controls fall to hand easily are new wrap-around headlamps, LED and visibility of the infotainment system DRLs, wraparound tail lamps using and driver binnacle is good. Plastics flexible LED strips, a very look better than they feel. butch front fascia with Land Seats are a particular high Tata Hexa Rover inspired grille, and point, being in leather + Features, those 19” alloys that fill with contrast stitching 4x4,Auto the wheel wells nicely. (another learning from - Engine, manual The overall visage is less upmarket stablemates). gearbox minivan and more SUV, They’re nicely bolstered which is clearly the intent. and accomodating, which TGS rating Most impressive of all should be a plus for the ;;;22 is the feature list on the Hexa. heavy-set. Headroom is ample, Mahindra has made a habit of save for the third row, which is throwing surprisingly sophisticated okay. The second row provides a lot of gadgetry at even their mid-tier models, legroom. There are a couple of ergonomic and Tata has been taking notes. In no niggles. The door locks are hard to grab, particular order, the feature list includes for instance, and the front centre armrest is rain-sensing wipers, automatic headlamps, useless for the driver, since it has a cutaway reverse camera, traction control, ABS with for the handbrake. The driver footwell is EBD, 4x4 with limited-slip and torque onalso cramped in the manual, with some demand, 10-speaker JBL sound system, space freed up in the automatic. There is 19” alloys and a massive range of Tatano dead pedal. designed, dealer-installed accessories.

On the go, the Hexa is clearly the Clearly the Hexa lacks little for a superior use of the X2 platform. It is a bodyvehicle of it’s class. Tata’s new HorizonNext on-frame design, but body roll is controlled

and the vehicle stays relatively flat around corners. Suspension is also well-damped, but some may find it firm. Steering is light, but not feathery, providing a secure feel at speed. It is also tilt-adjustable. The driving position is commanding and visibility is good as well. Tata Motors have made the clutch self-adjusting so that feel remains consistent over an extended period of time.

The cabin is a quiet place at speed, and we heard no squeaks or rattles even over mad roads; or off-road for that matter. Then there’s the engine.

Unfortunately, we believe the Hexa’s Achille’s heel is the motor. Sure, there’s 156bhp and 400Nm on tap from the 2.2-litre Varicor 400 diesel engine, but you’d be hard-pressed to report the impact.

Part of the reason is likely the Hexa’s near-2.3 tonne weight, which dulls the twist supplied by the motor. Much like other turbo mills over two litres, there’s lag below 2000rpm, when the boost kicks in and you see progress. With the Hexa, you must avoid this part of the rev range vigorously, or get stuck behind agonisingly slow trucks on a two-lane road like we did.

The situation is not helped by the manual gearbox, which has long throws and feels vague; not receptive to quick shifts.

Having sampled this motor in the Safari Storme, we were not surprised by this performance, but held out hope for the automatic variant. And the automatic delivered. It’s a 6-speed torque converter supplied by global OEM PPS, and it is excellent. Shifts are smooth and reasonably

quick in either D or S mode, and Tata Motors have configured the transmission with a “race car derived” mode which aggressively holds revs and downshifts when you’re using more than 80% of the throttle. Tata Motors officials tell is this is useful in ghat roads where one needs to keep the engine on the boil to overtake heavy vehicles going uphill. It’s an interesting concept and works as advertised, and a bit of a surprise on a vehicle of this class.

We found the Hexa immeasurably nicer to drive with the automatic, which will be available in rear-wheel-drive only at launch.

The most surprising aspect of the Hexa was left for the end of our drive in Hyderabad. While our initial reaction to the 4x4 demonstration track was that it was a sweetener, it turned out to be a revelation. The Hexa’s ground clearance is ample, and we were unable to scrape it even in unnaturally deep ruts. The traction control, hill hold and descent features work as advertised, and you can actually traverse some silly terrain in comfort. The hypermodified camping Hexa Tata Motors had on display doesn’t seem optimistic after our brief off-road experience.

Tata Motors appears to benchmark the Hexa against the XUV and the Innova Crystal. We’d expect pricing to be somewhere in the middle of those vehicles when announced. It’s a solidly specified package, let down only by the manualengine combo. If you opt for the automatic, you should be fine.

There is far more to Mahek’s moves than meets the eye

By Salonee Mistry @SaloneeMistry

F

or Mahek Shah, after 12 years as a Shiamak Davar dance school instructor, dance was pretty much a part of his life. It was during his stint with R a hu l Saxena, a wellk now n

Mahek Shah is the first Indian to be certified as a Piloxing master trainer, teaching a combination of Pilates, boxing and dance choreographer that he stumbled upon Zumba. During this time he would often choreograph celebrities and was loving every minute of it too. When he learned of Zumab he almost immediately got himself certified as an instructor. Being curious, he would often research and read up on the science behind a lot of dance routines and techniques.

Th at is when he found Piloxing. A combination

of Pilates, Boxing and dancing, the inter-disciplinary routine, is indeed a tough one, he remarks. In the city this weekend to take a master-class for the same, TGS caught up with the

Piloxing guru, and this is what we spoke about.

“I was always interested in why the body works the way it does or how things function. I honestly believe that no matter what exercise or routine one wants to take up, they must never just blindly follow anything. Having proper knowledge as to why you are doing what you are doing and how it will affect you is imperative,” he says.

Piloxing, he says, is something that has the capability to raise your heartrate one minute and help you relax the other. While it is essentially a combination of Pilates and Boxing, the dance element simply makes it fun.

Every move in this routine has a scientific explanation behind it, be it why we do a stretch a certain

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

FEATURES way or why it is done barefoot.

The major advantage of this routine is its ability to strengthen your core and help you elongate and tone your muscles. Mahek went to Malaysia to get himself trained in Piloxing and was one of the first Indians to get the certification.

When he was a Zumba instructor, he was also sent to the Zumba Jammer as a candidate of India, which is a huge honour, he believes.

“Dance for me is much more than just being a profession or passion. It is that one thing which gives me immense happiness and helps me spread joy. The feeling one gets after having put a smile on someone else’s face is inexplicable,” he says. The fact that he gets to learn and grow so much as a person himself is also a huge plus point for him. When he initially started out, getting his Pilates technique right was a big challenge for him, he admits. But once you get a hang of it, there is no better energiser, he assures. salonee.mistry@goldensparrow.com

How cool can Hindi poetry be?

Bebaak is a movement which believes in the writing of constructive Hindi poetry

By Gulal Salil @gulalsalil

B

ebaak means being fearless.

Yugishtha Shrivastava and her friend Shailaja Mohapatra started Bebaak, a YouTube channel about Hindi poetry, in its rawest form.

Figuratively however, it is about writing constructive Hindi poetry, weaving stories through visuals and fi nding a slice of life in everyday occurrences through the lens.

“We made it because we wanted to combine the two things we love, movies and poems,” says Yugishtha. Shailaja edits and does the cinematography, while Yugishtha, a poet herself, collaborates with fellow poets. The idea behind Bebaak is to collaborate with poets and make movies using the pieces as narratives. Relevance is the key, Yugishtha says. “Hindi poems could be cool too. You just have to place them where people can fi nd them more easily, and use a medium that is not too plain and

boring, hence Youtube. I was lucky that I could recite my poetry to people over tea. But to be honest, the opportunities you get as someone who writes Hindi poetry are fairly limited,” says Yugishtha, a fi rst-year student of SCMC hailing from Vidisha, MP. The young poet has grown up listening to her mother’s poetry, who always made it a point that Yugishtha read

Mahadevi Verma and Ramdhari Singh Dinkar besides Aesop’s tales.

She feels that all things Hindi are greatly stereotyped.

“Even in Bollywood, the Hindi teacher is always someone wearing horn-rimmed spectacles with greasy hair, speaking tough Hindi words. I am pretty sure Ramdhari Singh Dinkar was a cool guy,” she says. Bebaak has more than six videos published on the video hosting platform and more are in the pipeline. One of the videos called Aman is in collaboration with

a young Pakistani poet Subhan. is becoming a little extrovert They feel great about working with Bhaav Manjari,” she says. with people across the border. “It The forum will give a line to the is so nice to see that people are so participants to start their poetic similar in both the countries. We narrative with, and they will have got messages from to create a video people in Pakistan and send it to the who watched the channel either video and said that through Facebook we love what you are or email. They aim doing and let there to be more diverse be peace,” she says. and enter other The video draws a languages as well. parallel between “I reading a the lives in both the Bhili version of countries. The slice the Mahabharata of life is the most which was so important element interesting. in their work.

Whole cultures - Yugishtha Shrivastava While their work are based around aims to factor in languages and it harder social issues is so important to eventually, Yugishtha remarks on document them and savour them,” the current theme. “Being fearless she says. Is Hindi poetry taking a also means overcoming internal new form? “Poets in all languages fears, which our videos are largely these days are trying to connect to focused on. In fact, isn’t the broader more real topics than just talking social outrage a result of some kind about how their lover compares of internal insecurity?” she asks. to a peacock. I think people have Bebaak has come up with a started viewing poetry as more of forum they call Bhaav Manjari a way to connect to reality than to which is about connecting escape it,” she adds. people through poetry. “Bebaak gulal.salil@goldensparrow.com

“Bebaak is a combination of two things we love, movies and poems”

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

FEATURES

By Salonee Mistry @SaloneeMistry

hile some of us may feel that writing letters is a thing of the past, there are others who believe otherwise.

A hand-written letter makes every message personal, and moreover, it has the capacity to spread sheer joy. Nivendra Uduman, a counsellor by profession, was reading for his Masters degree at Christ University, Bengaluru, when the idea of launching Letter Earthlings came to him. His inspiration came from a community called Moved by Love, that functions on the principles of generosity and kindness.

Nivendra began by leaving letters containing messages of love and goodwill for strangers at cafes, bookshops and washrooms, which he did all throughout his degree course. During this time he decided to stretch out the scope of the concept, and that is how the Letter Earthlings concept saw the light of day. The very first gathering was held at Koramangala, Bengaluru, and the initiative just took its own course from there onwards.

“When we started off, the concept was completely new and some people found it a tad difficult

W

Brighten up your Saturday by writing a letter to someone in need.

All you have to do is tune in to your inner self and let the ink flow to grasp the m o t i v e .

However, as the gatherings took place every month, people in the communit y began to click with what we Nivendra Uduman were trying to do. They felt it, and now there is a steady flow of people coming in for our letter writing gatherings every month,” Nivendra told us with a sense of pride. A native of Sri Lanka, he wanted to kick off the initiative in his homeland too, but it became a tiresome process with him taking time to settle down.

Today, Letter Earthlings has gatherings in Dubai, India, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Australia and England.

Nivendra is holding a Letter Earthlings gathering in Pune, at Bee’s Cafe, Aundh, on Saturday afternoon. He feels that Punekars who attend the event can expect a lot of love and warmth. Participants will also be motivated to get in touch with their inner selves while they contribute to the happiness of someone else. The Letter Earthlings team has representatives in all the

When was the last time you actually wrote a letter? above-named countries, with two co-ordinators in every city, which helps keep the movement going.

They have also collaborated with The Goodwill Tribe, a kindness initiative based in Dubai, to hold the letter writing sessions.

“I find letter writing invigorating.

It makes you feel whole. It also helps you slow down, breathe and enjoy the little moments you encounter. I may have founded the initiative but I honestly feel that I don’t own it. It’s a people’s initiative and that’s how it will thrive,” he explains.

Subtly capturing the social

By Gulal Salil @gulalsalil

R

utuja Patil forayed into photography because her best friend pushed her.

Before that, she always felt that her strengths mostly resided in her capability to illustrate. A former visual communication design student from Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology in Bangalore, Rutuja has won two international awards for her photos since she started visualising through the lens. Her uniqueness is in that apart from her style itself, she loves to click through analog cameras. A number of her projects have been done and treated in dark rooms the same way.

Rutuja found herself interested in clicking in the first year of her education at Srishti during a small course. But she didn’t really practice it till her best friend convinced her to. She recalls, “I paint a lot and my best friend used to love my work.

She pushed me a lot to at least try.” Her first camera was a Canon 1100D. She gradually felt that her inclination lay more towards documentary photography, while they were palatable to varied tastes as they had an artistic look. She describes, “A lot of my photos have the look of a painting while

having a social backdrop.”

The design student went for an exchange to University of Michigan in her third year where she found a course for analog photography. The seats had gotten almost completely filled so she had to push really hard for her acceptance in it. With numerous email exchanges, she finally got her chance, and that is where she first tried her hand at

Rutuja Patil

Rutuja’s project on ‘Tourists posing for photos’ often resulted in quirky images like this one

Nivendra is someone who enjoys random acts of kindness and sometimes spends his Saturdays giving free hugs at a local market.

He enjoys bringing people together, connecting with them and tries to be as involved with his community as is possible. He is also a musician and loves writing. “I do what I do because I care deeply about humanity. Letter Earthlings allows me to care and love wholly,” he says.

This is how the community functions. At the gatherings, participants are asked to write letters

depending on requests that have been made to Letter Earthlings.

Anyone can get in touch with the community and request a letter for someone who you care about, for yourself or for a stranger. It could be for someone who is going through a rough patch or just to empower and encourage a friend. The request is then taken into consideration, and people at the next gathering will write the letters. The community accepts requests from anywhere in the world. salonee.mistry@goldensparrow.com

Social commentary is often either implicit or in your face. Rutuja Patil’s photography has subtlety, but speaks volumes about the subjects she clicks

the traditional art. Once she got back from the exchange, her professor who was involved in filming work with NGOs and social campaigns invited her to do just photography in two social campaigns. Rutuja got to do her first two full-blown projects then, called Fisheries and Millets in Orissa, and Kutch, eponymously named after the district. A photograph from the former eventually won

a competition held by International Centre for Tropical Agriculture for a workshop in Nairobi, Kenya.

Two of her latest projects are about real estate hoardings and trees, and how tourists click photographs of themselves in various destinations while giving poses. Both the projects are ongoing and nascent. The former juxtaposes trees and real estate hoardings placed around them with construction sites in the backdrop. The latter is something more humourous which the photographer feels really amused by. In this yet to be titled project, she captures tourists from different regions giving poses for their photos. “I am very fascinated as to how and why people pose in travel photographs or take selfies. It is very amusing to see that,” she says.

While currently working as an editorial illustrator at Arré media based in Mumbai, she keeps looking forward to working with students in their research. “I want to help them showcase their research more creatively by helping them out with their photography, graphics and illustration.” While she welcomes commercial projects, she feels that “there is more freedom in social commentary and it is more challenging. I don’t know how far can commercial work be creative.” gulal.salil@goldensparrow.com

Tejashree Khanvilkar has forsaken a promising teaching career to take up painting as a full-time profession, and keeps her fingers crossed, hoping that she finds recognition

By Salonee Mistry @SaloneeMistry

ejashree Khanvilkar has straddled both worlds, one where she has regular working hours as an assistant engineering professor, and the other as freelancing painter, where she adopts her own schedule. It was in January this year that she decided to quit her job as professor and embrace everything that the world of creativity and painting had to offer. Next week she will be exhibiting her work in her fourth solo exhibition, and the most important one of all, she tells us.

‘My Colourful World’, will be the 25-year-old painter’s first show after she became a full-time painter. To be held at Balgandharva Art Gallery on JM Road, starting Thursday, October 27, her exhibition will be a true test of her versatility as an artist. The show

T

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

FEATURES

Art over engineering?

She’s made it possible will feature a variety and range of Tejashree’s paintings, including landscapes, nature studies, portraits and miniature paintings. She says that her exhibition isn’t focused on just one genre or kind of painting, because unless you are able to prove your merit as a painter through versatility when you start off, people will get bored and ignore your paintings. You would ideally

want them to take their own time and admire everything in that one frame, she explains.

“I started painting when I was six years old. While initially it was just a hobby, I slowly got hooked on to it. Spending time with the canvas gave me the creative release I needed and soon became something I could not do without,” the young painter says. Studying to become

an engineer, colours, brushes and the canvas were pretty much on her agenda every spare minute.

A self-taught artist, she uses several mediums like acrylics, watercolours, oils and even charcoal. It was through trial and error that she learned what colours went together and how to get the shading right. Her inspiration lies in everything that she sees around

her. In addition to this, colours and the emotions that they bring out in her, help her create abstract paintings.

“Portraits are sometimes quite challenging,” she confesses.

“Being self-taught comes with a lot of hurdles. As I have no instructor to tell me whether I have done a good job or not, I constantly feel that there is scope to improve.

This only further pushes me to do better,” she says. While initially her family was not quite supportive of her career as a painter, now that they see how happy it makes her, they stand behind her through thick and thin.

When she quit her job as professor, she also started a small institute in Salisbury Park by the name of Tejashree Creations. The hope, she tells us, is that in the next five years, through the right exposure and opportunities, she will be recognised for her work and that is all that matters to her. salonee.mistry@goldensparrow.com

An evening to remember

Pune witnessed the premiere of the India Fashion Walk last week, an event conceptualized to become one of the country’s leadinh fashion events. It aims to offer a breakthrough platform for homegrown talent and local as well as national designers. The brand launch showed glimpses of designs by seven Pune designers including Shweta Divgi, Mystic Quartz by Tanvi Ejrekar, Runway Ready by Prerna and Justine, a grand finale by Jhelum Fashion House, and footwear sponsored

by Nupur Chaudhuri. The event also celebrated the grand success of the Mercedes-Benz GLA.

(From L to R) Reet Arora, Aarti Rele, Jagdish Rele, Bhupinder Makker & Vikas Bhalla

Mr. Ranjan Sen, CEO & Mr. Gaurav Ghatge. Executive Director Mercedes-Benz Trinity Motors

Bhupinder Makker, Reet Arora and Nishant Shekhawat, Curators of India Fashion Walk

OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

SHOPPING

WHEN CLOTHES GIVE YOU AN EDGE When white makes it right

Floral to the rescue

You can wear this off-shoulder top with denim, white or cream shorts and jeans and they would all fit the late partying bill just rigtht. Plain danglers will add to the charm Top: Berksha, Rs 750 Shorts: Zara, Rs 1600

No matter what the occasion this print white top when paired with white trousers and platforms heels, is just enough to make the style statement you want.

Top: Forever 21, Rs 1,500 Pants: Forever 21, Rs 3,000

Chilling after office

Clothes that match meeting times as well as a relaxed Friday evening dinner? Win-win.

Top: Zara, Rs 2,500 Skirt: Rs 2,000

Evening relief

TEJAS GAIKWAD

SP

TGS LIFE

Headed to the shopping streets for an evening spree? The shirts and top are a comfortable combination and can grab you all the attention you want Shorts: Cupid, Rs 750 Top: Forever 21, Rs 600

— Compiled by Gulal Salil

Leave a mark

Extend your visibility to miles ahead of yourself as you walk past oglers in this chic combination.

Top: Dotti, Rs 2,100 Pants: Forever 21, Rs 3,000 Aviators: Emporio Armani, Rs 15,000

14

Sanika Ranadi, 25, is a fashion enthusiast who knows what style truly means. She picks a few outifts that she swears will make heads turn

Choosing the right ingredients

S

anjay Nanoba Pokale popularly known as Sanju Bhai on MG Road has been selling bhel for the past 20 years.

He stands opposite Wonderland building which has the famous Cafe Toons in its basement. The little shop and stall owners, the policemen, the security guards and the regular shoppers, all know Sanju bhai well. His world is not an anomaly in the series of strugglers who stand at the busy street to sell something or the other, and yet it is special. It is demarcated by extreme poverty on one end, 10 years of alcohol addiction on the other and more than a lifetime of hardearned sustenance.

“My father used to sell bhel at the exact same spot. He has seen this building get constructed in front of him”, Sanju bhai says pointing to Wonderland as his hands reach one ingredient after the other hastily.

“I used to have to big holes in my underwear as I grew up. At my

father’s time, bhel used to sell for a mere Rs 5. You go to any other bhelwala here, the quantity they will give you for forty will be alarmingly less,” he says, in scattered sentences as he finishes another batch for his customers in a flurry.

Sanju bhai moves quickly even at 44. His body doesn’t stop as he reaches his spot at 9.30 in the morning and stands till 10 in the night. He has two children, one of whom is curently studying. However, not all was so hunky dory 10 years ago for his family as he was struck by alcohol addiction. “I drank for 10 years, every single day, without any limit. I used to make bhel then too. It wasn’t like I wouldn’t give money home, but managing everything back then was hard,” he says reflecting on how his wife completely turned his life upside down.

The bhelwala doesn’t regret the poverty in his life though. He just strides along with it. He believes

that he has got a second chance and so is making the most of it.

“Everything is going well. I have seen poverty, but I have never lived

like a weakling,” he says laughing, as he finishes yet another batch for another regular to his stall.

(As told to Gulal Salil)

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

FEATURES

unekar

City celeb chat

Name: Prineet Grewal Profession: HR Professional and Model Three words to describe me: Amiable, Courageous, Diligent I love my job because: It gives me a sense of achievement Best advice I’ve received: Life doesn’t require that you be the best, only that your try your best. That’s how I try to lead each day of my life When buying something, the first thing that catches my eye is: The Price! I am a firm believer in value for money What’s your inner animal? Horse – Fast and spirited The first thing you notice about an attractive person: Eyes : they are the window to a persons soul The perfect start to a day is: With a hot cup of tea with my husband Your current four-wheeler: Alto K10 Your fitness regimen: Eating healthy and spending atleast 30 mins everyday working out Your food indulgence: Anything made by my mom. Even the simplest of dishes are so lip-smacking good Books by your bedside: Not without my daughter by Betty Mahmoody. A Riveting Tale about a mothers love and courage for her child The first site you visit when you fire up your comp: E-online Your favourite city: As Audrey Hepburn said –“ Paris is always a good idea” the city is so vivacious Ideal holiday: My job gives keeps me on my toes. So a day at home with my family is something that I really cherish and is the best way to unwind

TRAVELLER’S CHECKLIST FOR BRAS

W

e are all guilty of over packing while travelling at some point of time in our lives. To make it easier for you, here is a note on what Arpita Ganesh, CEO and Founder of Buttercups, thinks might be the right number of bras to pack while travelling. Yes, that is definitely going to give you some extra space in your suitcase.

• How many times should you wear one bra: Contrary to popular belief, it is perfectly alright to wear a bra two to three times before washing it. That being said, an obvious factor to consider will be the weather. If you are travelling in the summer or to a hot and humid destination, wearing it more than once without washing is not something you would want to do.

• Match them with your outfit: Make sure you pack bras that can be worn under most of the outfits you are carrying. Pack styles (T-shirt bras and convertible bras are the best) and colours (nudes are a must) that can easily be worn under multiple outfits.

• Keep your itinerary in mind: If you are planning some heavy impact activities as opposed to just sightseeing, it might be a good idea to pack a sports bra or two.

Lots of such activities also mean you may have to pack a couple of extra bras since you’ll have to wash them often. A sports bra is always good to have as a backup in case some unprecedented bumpy rides or a workout session make their way into your schedule.

TGS LIFE OCT 22-28, 2016 PUNE

BUZZ

I confront, accept reality: Soha

By Shubha Dubey

A

ctress Soha Ali Khan says she takes success and failures with equal dignity and believes in staying strong.

The actress feels facing difficult times gives better understanding of life and makes one treasure happy

moments.

"I am one to confront and accept reality how bitter it may be.

I feel it is not right to turn your face from something you don't like. Be it success or failure I take it all with equal strength and dignity. Every bitter experience teaches you a lesson," Soha told PTI.

The 38-year-old actress, who has been particular about her choice of roles, says she never wants to be a big star and earn a lot of money.

"I have always wanted to have a healthy work life balance. I don't want to be number one or make lots of money and I don't want to be very famous. I want little bit of all of that. I want a lot of happiness in my life. "There are lots of things I like doing and I wanted time for them. Be it spending time with my family, traveling, going to Pataudi, play badminton or yoga, writing and reading. You live one life and it's short and I want to live it to the fullest."

Soha will next be seen in 31st October, and the actress says she gave her nod to th fi lm as her role was well written."For me, the most important thing is the role.

I like picking up roles which are meaty and author-backed. But I understand that it is a real life subject, it is a historical incident and has many sides attached to it, so it was important for me to read the script and understand the message of the fi lm. I wanted to make sure that it is a responsible fi lm." The movie, also starring Vir Das, is based on 1984 riots that took place after the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

The project, which is scheduled to release on October 21, has been facing issues with censor board and various other authorities.

'I HAVE EXPERIENCED DEPRESSION'

B

ollywood actor Hrithik Roshan says he has gone through his share of ups and downs in his personal life and been through depression but it is something which should not be stigmatised.

The Bang Bang star says issues relating to mental health must be spoken casually and not as if it is something which can't be cured.

"I've been through my ups and downs. I have experienced depression, I have experienced confusion, as we all do. It's a very normal thing. We should be very casual about it when we speak about it. It should be spoken about casually," he told reporters here.

"When you go through a down then the most important thing is clarity of thought. Sometimes your brain takes over, feeds you with unwanted thoughts. That's the time you need objectivity, a third or second person to look at you and say 'this is what is happening to you'," he said. the popular Bollywood star who started his career with Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai

in 2000.

The actor said he saw many of his friends silently battle depression and other mental issues which prompted him to dig deep into the matter.

PTI