The city — sliced, diced and served with a dash of sauce
Farah Siddiqui
All great sheikhs
One of the premiere international art fairs came to a close yesterday in the splendour of the Middle East, and we are told that the city’s artists and gallerists had a blast. The tenth edition of Art Dubai saw booths swamped with visitors, who took in well-curated works by young, senior, modern and contemporary artists. "The fair has become more global and is an intimate space where you can engage with each work of art. There was a good representation of Indian art and galleries, and a lot of important sales have happened," said Farah Siddiqui, the fair’s Ambassador from India. Notable patrons and collectors such as Rajeeb and Nadia Samdani, Sanjay Lalbhai and Kavita Singh dropped in and there were soirees aplenty, we hear, especially one held by the fair’s partner, The Abraaj Group. Kudos to the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and his wife Sheikha Manal bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who, attendees say engaged thoroughly with the fair. From Mumbai, galleries Chemould, Chatterjee and Lal, Sakshi, Lakeeren and Jhaveri Contemporary had their booths out there. We believe Nasreen Mohamedi’s untitled painting at Chatterjee and Lal’s booth was a crowd-puller. In fact, the gallery booth was concerned with the way landscapes have been represented by four artists, and Mortimer Chatterjee said, "For us, Art Dubai is crucially important as it functions as an important bridge between global and local art discourses."
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Farah Siddiqui
Taking Float to Pune
Raja and Rita Dhody’s little girl, Aneesa Dhody Mehta is taking her pop-up night club, Float, to Pune, now that it seems to be a hit in Mumbai. The brand consultant and event organiser launched Float with partners, restaurateurs Sunny Sara, Ritik Bhasin, Shashi Thadani and Rishi Acharya, and has already organised four editions at the St Regis ballroom. "There is something wanting in the clubbing scene in Mumbai and India, and we want to fill that gap," says Dhody. The reason why the pop-up works, she feels, is because one can maintain "exclusivity" and can play around with the format. "So last time, we had these kinetic lights, which are all programmed differently. We also had an outdoor section that played only techno." The guest list usually includes people the organisers know, or know of. After Pune, she plans to go pan India. "Our focus is to provide great entertainment, a good-looking crowd, good alcohol and impeccable service — it’s all about high-end luxury."
And we were here...
SoBo’s new selfie spot
We walked into Pooja Dhingra’s Le 15 Café on a Monday afternoon for a late lunch and realised we had overestimated the place. Our asian salad had enough vinegar to burn the throat and the lemonade was just really, really cold water. But leaving the food aside, the café is a perfect place to catch a few celebrities and the SoBo crowd. Pernia Qureshi was having lunch next to us, and stylist Anaitha Shroff Adjania was heard telling her that it was her fourth visit to the café. The others just took selfies and pictures of their food as proof they had been there. Ah, well, at least
there’s that.
The gentlemen's club
Parvez Damania (in striped t-shirt) seems to be paying his respects to Vivek Jain (extreme left) during the Polo Cup event at Mahalaxmi Racecourse. Pics/Pradeep Dhivar
Rajashree Birla was caught in an awkward moment by shutterbugs
Revealed: Rogers’ unkindest cut to his Baggy Green
Examples of reverence towards the Baggy Green cap crop up every now and again in Australian and world cricket, although many Australian cricketers before Steve Waugh didn’t exactly value it as gold.
Chris Rogers
Some greats like our columnist Ian Chappell felt Waugh took things too far and made "a mockery" of the Baggy Green when he wore the cap to watch fellow Aussie Pat Rafter take on Goran Ivanisevic in the 2001 Wimbledon final.
The Baggy Green is in the news again with Cricket.com.au reporting that former Australia Test opener Chris Rogers recently revealing that he accidentally tore his cap in an effort to loosen it during his Test debut in the 2008 Australia vs India Test at Perth.
Rogers, who was presented his Baggy Green by fellow West Australian Justin Langer before that famous Test which Anil Kumble’s Indian team won during the Monkeygate-series, suffered from headaches on Day One since the cap was a bit small for his head. To make it sit well on his "big head", Rogers used a pair of scissors, but ended up mutilating the cap in the dressing room much to the amusement of eyewitnesses Phil Jacques and Adam Gilchrist.
Ultimately, Rogers had to borrow Brad Hogg’s cap and didn’t know what to say when a kid yelled out to him during play, "I bet you slept in that (cap) last night."
Oh yes, Rogers got a replacement Baggy Green and though he’s hung his Australia cap, he’ll still turn out for Somerset in the English county championships for which he will adorn a blue cap in the longer format.
Gigi comes calling
When he’s not gallery hopping, Delhi-based artist Gigi Scaria has other plans chalked out during his stay in Mumbai. He is here till March 23 to conduct a workshop on Video as Art at Natasha Gowani’s new offering, TAG — The Amateur Gallery, in Lower Parel. But what he wants to do most is roam the alleys of Colaba. "I love those gullies behind the Taj Mahal Hotel. Mumbai gives me the same kind of island feeling I get in Kerela. So every evening, I am going to discover authentic restaurants, taste some local flavours and indulge my crustacean cravings," says the Malyali. Scaria admits his weakness is for Mumbai’s seafood. "I love Bombay Duck, and the way they prepare it is different from what you get in other cities," he says.
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