With the ongoing coverage of the Rahul Gandhi-USA magical mystery tour, and the fanfare around his speeches and appearances, we imagine our readers are pretty sick of it all
Sam Pitroda and Rahul Gandhi at a Chipotle Mexican Grill
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With the ongoing coverage of the Rahul Gandhi-USA magical mystery tour, and the fanfare around his speeches and appearances, we imagine our readers are pretty sick of it all. After all, how many photo-ops with tech whizzes and NRI successes does it take for viewer fatigue to descend? But among RaGa's less-publicised outings were his impromptu and anonymous visits to America's fast-food outlets.
A source informs that on one instance, the Congress VP along with a family friend and his father's former aide, Sam Pitroda, and other colleagues, took some time off between appointments and dropped by at the nearest Chipotle Mexican Grill for lunch. The chain's format is self-service, and it is an extremely popular choice for quick-work lunches, as all the ingredients are fresh; it is known for its burritos and tacos.
"Rahul stood in the queue to place his order and personalised his burrito bowl before occupying a place at a corner table, where they sat till they finished their meal. Not many people recognised them and he seemed to enjoy the anonymity," informs our source. We wonder if he ordered the famous chipotle flavoured tabasco sauce, made specially for the fast-food chain, and if this was responsible for the raising of heat levels in his critique of Narendra Modi back home.
Contains strong language
She may have left Mumbai more than a decade ago, but news of poet-artist and documentary filmmaker Imtiaz Dharker, who subsequently settled in London, never fails to interest.
Imtiaz Dharker with a friend
The recipient of the Queen's Gold Medal for Poetry in 2014, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, the soft-spoken Dharker will be one of the participating poets at the upcoming festival 'Contains Strong Language,' described as a 'major new national spoken word and poetry festival in Hull'. Kicking off on National Poetry Day, September 28, it features 'local, national and international poets and promises to be a celebration of new and existing word craft inspired by the literary city'.
Ayesha Dharker
Dharker will be reading her works along with those of Zena Edwards, one of London's leading award-winning performance poets, and writer of fiction Michael Symmons Roberts. And naturally Dharker's actress daughter Ayesha Dharker is pleased as punch by her mother's upcoming stint. "Can't wait to see this Imtiaz Dharker,' she posted on social media by way of congratulations.
Foodie friends
Anirban Blah, the founder of a celebrity management firm, which manages most of Bollywood's biggest names, is well known in culinary circles as one of the biggest foodies in town.
Hrithik Roshan at POH
Just back from a trip to Bangkok that included stops at two highly-rated restaurants - Gaggan and Nahm - Anirban wasted no time in reacquainting himself with the ever-bubbling melting pot that is the Mumbai food scene.
Anirban Blah
He was first spotted at a Lower Parel restaurant on Tuesday night, and on Wednesday, spotted once more in the area at POH along with his friend and client, Hrithik Roshan. "A special 10-course menu was created for the duo and some of the dishes included lamb meatballs, crab rolls and salmon polenta," informs our source. And this is not the first time Blah has visited the restaurant either. He was spotted a couple of months ago, dining with Jacqueline Fernandez. Good meals make for happy clients.
Sensitive support
As a run-up to October, internationally regarded as Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Marks & Spencer, the Ogaan Cancer Foundation, and the Women's Cancer Initiative at the Tata Memorial Hospital, hosted a brunch on Wednesday to introduce their fund-raising, awareness-raising, advocacy and patient support initiatives. One of these included a new line of post-surgery lingerie being sold by the department store through its outlets across the world for the first time.
Urmee Mehta Mankar, Soozie Jenkinson and Devieka Bhojwani
The afternoon was led by Soozie Jenkinson, global head of M&S Lingerie, Active & Swim Design, Urmee Mehta Mankar, director of the Ogaan Cancer Foundation, and Devieka Bhojwani, (declaration of interest: she is our sister) director and vice president of Women's Cancer Initiative, who discussed the new partnership, 'Change for Breast Cancer'.
Though we could not make it to the event, Bhojwani filled us up on it later. "It's difficult enough for a woman to be diagnosed with breast cancer," she said. "What can be even more traumatic is having to lose a breast, even if from a life-saving mastectomy. Breasts are such an integral part of a woman's identity and femininity. The loss of which can affect a woman's confidence and self-esteem.
"That there is now a large international department store franchise responding sensitively to this is so heart-warming. It will go a long way in making those affected by mastectomies regain their self-confidence and self-image to get on with their lives."
Love is in the air
A few weeks ago we had written about this attractive young Bolly starlet who'd been making news not only for the sassy and revealing pictures of herself that she'd been posting, but also for the much-smitten scion of a billion-dollar fortune in the Middle East who had been flying her to various European hotspots in his PJ.
Well, as expected, Smitten Scion's parents were not too thrilled about their son's latest arm candy, and the attractive lady, we learn, had been subsequently 'de-planed' from his life. Not that she's too upset about the sudden ejection either. According to sources, a young (loaded) city-based real estate type has been showing some interest in her and she is seemingly reciprocating. It's easy come, easy go with her, obviously as long as the air miles (and sundry other perks) are forthcoming.
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