Wine, dine and partaay | Sulafest

If one of your closest friends has a farmhouse in Nashik, at a 15 minute drive from the Sula vineyards, you’re bound to make a trip up to the place every opportunity you get.

While we do getaway on the odd weekends, our friend has introduced us to the shenanigans of Sula fest. It has now become a ritual to attend.

Photograph: Aniruddha Guha

Considering we’ve had so much fun each time, we’re already gearing up for Sulafest ’11.

It promises to be a daylong celebration of music, fine dark chocolate, food and wine on 5th February 2011. This year’s band line-up will feature Pentagram , Midival Punditz, Something Relevant, Tough on Tobacco and Petri Dish Project. Spicing up this great musical line-up will be Sulafest Bazaar: a selection of carefully chosen shopping and food stalls.

Can’t wait!

Tickets available at: www.bookmyshow.com
Mumbai: Sant, Rhythm House, Godrej Nature’s Basket, The Bagel Shop, Landmark | Pune: 11 East Street Cafe, Swig @ Prems, Landmark | Nashik: Sula Vineyards, Caf Express, Foodmart, Vaishnavi Gift House
Call:+91 9004493976/ 022 61280606/ 0253 2230575 or log onto www.sulawines.com

Wake up and look at the t-shirt

It is quite literally what I did this morning.

I logged on to a blog I discovered in the tweeple jury list of nominees: The Bombay Talkies. Check it out: http://thebombaytalkies.blogspot.com

She had put up a funny, yet detailed post on the many shirts of Sid (Ranbir Kapoor in Wake Up Sid). It read:

“Over the course of the year Wake Up Sid has become one of my favorite movies.  It’s not convoluted or contrived or overly sappy, it doesn’t try to hard to be cool, there’s no faux-badassness or celebrity vanity showing through.  It’s just a sweet, simple story about two people and the lives they make for themselves.

It helps that Ranbir Kapoor’s more than a pretty face–the boy can act.

What else can he do, you ask?

He can wear a freaking t-shirt.  And seeing as how the production team went to great lengths to feature him in every version of “pop culturally-relevant graphic t-shirt” known to man, I feel it’s only appropriate to ogle…erm, observe him in a few of them.”

We ALL loved his t-shirts, didn’t we? I had people in office asking me to do a shopping special on cartoon t-shirts. (I did, btw) I immediately got on the bandwagon of praises for WUS, wrote an extensive column and spoke with the costume designers.

Here’s the page from the archives:

Click on the image for a better read.

Which favourite cartoon would you like to have on your t-shirt? Which tee from Ranbir Kapoor’s collection in Wake Up Sid is your favourite. Write in with your answers! I can’t wait to read.

It’s a hoot, the owl pendant necklace

Look what I dug out from my personal archives, especially for you, my loyal readers:

In July 2009, I was commissioned to do a fun feature for Filmfare magazine. We thought up this idea: put together a look identical to a celebrity’s. Easy, right? The catch: a shoe-string budget and two days to shop for it!

For my first assignment, I picked the look Sonam Kapoor flaunted at the Filmfare anniversary issue cover launch. For my first attempt, I was really lucky. I had discovered my main outfit (a jumpsuit) at a shop in Colaba for as little as Rs 650.

The tough cookie, though, was the owl pendant necklace. Copies were available at stalls but we had to cook up stories for them to let us photograph. Just then, the original pendant from Forever 21 went up on sale at ebay for less than Rs 470.

I will never understand how Sonam Kapoor and Deepika Padukone are always pitted against one another.

While you solve the riddle, jog your memory to November 26, 2010. Break Ke Baad had released. And Deepika Padukone was spotted wearing, what else, but an owl pendant necklace in the film!

Incidentally, the whimsical owl necklace she sports is also from Forever 21. Check it out:

It seems like everyone I know (including girl friends) want the owl pendant necklace. It’s a little late but it’s still in vogue. We’ve scouted the Mumbai streets and found them at Sabbah Sharma’s store in Juhu, Vero Moda’s store at Bandra and Street Soul in Lokhandwala. However, there are really cute ones out there. All you have to do is shop online. My picks follow.

Click on the links for details:

Amazon – here ; Modcloth – here ; Promod – here ; Fredflare – here ; Girlprops – here ; Econscious – here ; Miss Selfridge – here and Urban Outfitters – here

Hoot away! And if you already have an owl pendant or two, email me your pictures and we shall feature you on the blog. Lots of love, Alice.

Update: Ze friend, Shruti wandered the streets of Colaba  and found the owl pendant necklace she had been looking for. Like I had discovered on my shopping assignment and Raey had pointed out, imitations were available at the stalls. You could bargain with them and get them for Rs 100.

Photograph: Dhruvi Shah

Style in Hindi cinema of 2010

2010 was a year of many surprises, many more blunders and hardly any gems.

Presenting a review of the year gone by in a style file.

The item girl was reinvented! The question everyone had to answer at the end of the year was: Munni ki badnaami ya Sheila ki jawaani? You could even cast an electronic vote if you logged on to http:munniyasheila.com

While Munni had rustic appeal clad in a choli and short lehenga, complete with dangling gold jewellery, Sheila had urban appeal teaming her choli with knee length harem pants. Don’t miss the kamarbandh on both ladies!

Some films succeeded in recreating fashion of the genres they had taken up.

  • Dabangg

Salman Khan aka Chulbul Pandey brought Ray Ban’s aviator sunglasses back in vogue. Be it the cockpit or large metal styles, they were selling like hot cakes. And if Ray Ban didn’t fit your budget, the official Dabangg sunglasses surely would. Salman also showed you a new place to tuck in your sunglasses. No, it’s not your head or the opening in your shirt but the back of your collar. :)

Sonakshi Sinha who played the gaon ki gori rocked ‘em backless blouses worn with mirror work sarees. It was quite a trend the following navratri.

  • Aisha

Flashy costume had to be rung out, couture had made its way onto the silver screen. In 2010, Aisha was the most celebrated where fashion was concerned. The setting was Delhi and giggly girls essayed by the likes of Sonam Kapoor, Ira Dubey, Amrita Puri and Lisa Haydon become instant fashion icons. Reams of newsprint and television reel were spent displaying photographs, running interviews and conducting fashion quizzes with the cast of Aisha.

Sonam Kapoor aka Aisha was the contemporary Emma penned by Jane Austen. The trademark Clueless (earlier adaptation of Emma) skirt suit couldn’t be missed on Sonam. The Barbie doll room and closet of Manolo Blahniks was only a teaser. The clothes, be it Prada or Prabal Gurung, hogged the limelight. Fashionistas everywhere rejoiced. They now had something to aspire toward.

Abhay Deol wore the suit Mr Darcy style. And he looked equally gentlemanly in a plain tee. The chocolate boy was back in fashion.

  • Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai

Ajay Devgn and Emraan Hashmi played their roles to the T, looking perfect, be it an all-white safari or a checkered 3 piece suit. Hats off to them for wearing large collars and bell bottom trousers with equal panache.

The girls weren’t left far behind. If one played a successful heroine, the other paid a fitting tribute. The sarees and kameezes reflected craftsmanship, achievable only in those times. A shy, conservative girl or an outspoken, modern woman, Prachi Desai and Kangna Ranaut were styled appropriately.

’80s fashion didn’t look better in the first decade of the 2000s.

  • Break Ke Baad

In a year where Dabangg, Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai and Aisha ruled the roosters, for their ethnic charm, retro costume and classy couture, Break Ke Baad provided the much-needed freshness. The styling was casual, quirky and very real. If you had the boy sporting his favourite bands on his tees, the girl mixed it up with shorts and bikini tops. The wedding ensembles were well-cut and uber stylish. You saw a lot of girls sporting teeny tiny blouses with their lehengas this wedding season Deepika Padukone style. If only we had that flat stomach!

Lo and behold, there were films that had one too many fashion blunders.

  • Anjaana Anjaani

Ranbir Kapoor was probably left wondering what he did to deserve an unshapely hospital gown. Priyanka Chopra probably had a say in the matter. It was fifteen minutes of screen time after all. How could she not have a form-fitting button down full sleeved mini dress? Oops… that’s her version of the hospital gown. Take it or leave it. You know doctors are going to check you out right?

  • Badmaash Company

Dior’s white rimmed sunglasses, distressed mini skirts, hot pants, bikini tops, slinky waistcoats. Girls are drooling already. Baggy jeans, trademark tees, white keds. Boys are checking their wallets. Wait, we’re not talking about the ’90s. You see, we were really impressed with present fashion. We couldn’t take a risk making our actors look out of vogue in ’90s trends. We just went to the mall, picked out the brightest colours and dressed our actors in them. Nobody checks Hindi films for period authenticity anyway. Not if we wear skinny jeans.

  • Robot

Aishwarya thought we wouldn’t see beyond her fancy head-gear. We have to admit it took us five minutes to process the number of feathers on her head. And even though the scene had moved to the next sequence, we were being flashed with shiny sequins and multi-coloured buttons. We did scream for sartorial surgery but Dr. Rajni was too busy cutting up Chitti. We’re hoping for better luck next time.

That’s it for tonight, folks! I’ve refreshed my memory and hunted out the best and worst for you. I sincerely hope you enjoy the post or at least scroll through the images. Until next time. :)

Some cravings are big!

It’s unfortunate that I have to rethink titles for this blog post in attempt to make it sound not dirty. And yet, I fail.

So, you know there are those days in every girl’s life when you crave bizarre things? I will never get over craving ‘kamrak’ when I was fasting? I mean, tangy green star-shaped fruit, really?

"kamrak" and mangoes anyone?

As you guys already know, I have a major sweet tooth. I open the fridge every now and then hoping to find some exotic chocolate. It usually doesn’t work. I must eat a sweet dish to end my meal, as much as possible! I’m being truthful.

As I mentioned earlier, over a month and a week ago was my birthday. My best friend had declared the theme to be ‘Alice in Wonderland’. We found some fun plates, glasses and stirrers. Even then, I was stressing too much, hoping to find cakes and drinks around the house, shrinking and blowing me up as and when I please. I had to snap out of Wonderland, because that wasn’t happening.

What did happen though was a giant cupcake. I gifted myself one on my birthday. There’s no better cure to mood-swings than generous doses of self-love. Try it!

Isn’t it sweet? I enjoyed it a little too much. You can get yourself one by placing an order a day in advance at Butterfly in Khar. For details, click here.

I think it’s really sweet to have messages written in icing on your cake.

Although, not everyone will take it in the right spirit. Remember, Miranda in Sex & the City freaking out when she reads ‘I Love You’ written on a giant chocolate chip cookie. She eats all of it by herself!

I love birthdays and presents and cakes! And right now, I’m craving a giant cupcake. Since I know I’m not getting one more, a triple scoop hot fudge ice-cream sundae would be nice. :)

image via pitchengine.com

What are your big cravings? Did you ever get yourself a giant dessert?