Weather Update

It was a chilly morning in Mumbai right? Well I suppose not so much if you’re coming from Canada but for me, I’m one of those “can’t stand air-conditioning” kind of peeps! So here’s a little peak at what it’s like around the world this week! Mostly chilly (and some downright fah-reezing) places my wedding guests are coming in from, so I’m sure they’ll be pleased to see happy shiny me in happy shiny Goa!

PS. Dear God, thank you for the sunshine :) xoxo

Birthday girl (photo courtesy | bollymasala99.com)

Sophie Choudry sure has come a long way in the industry; she’s transitioned from being a back-up vocalist for Alisha Chinai, to joining a band, to becoming a VJ, to releasing super-hit remix albums, and finally to working in Bollywood. She’s really one of those people who has done it all. Here’s wishing this multi-talented girl a very happy birthday from Team MissMalini; have a great one, Sophie! xoxo

MissMalini

It’s go time folks! Or in our case make that Go-a time :) I can’t believe it’s finally actually here, we’re all set (thank you Marry Me – The Wedding Planners!) AND I am *SO* excited!!! From the day I started this series I’ve felt like you’ve been along for the ride, so I wanted to say thank you for all your enthusiasm, warm wishes and adorable comments. I really do love you guys and as Nowshad and I start our new lives together I’m looking forward to sharing our journey and taking this baby to the moon! Oh, and just to clear things up if in case you were still wondering,

photo courtesy | www.omgimgettingmarried.com

But NO, the blog is NOT changing to MrsMalini.com! (I think I told you that the day I Got Rocked.)

So as I sit here blogging and the boy wonder watches AskMen.com videos on “How to fold a pocket square” (which I think is so cute btw) I have a confession to make; all week I’ve been having crazy dreams about how the wedding is over and I can’t remember anything that happened! Is that normal?! Well you can be damn sure I’m not taking any chances and will be documenting the whole Big Fat Indian Bonanza on this blog, for live updates you can follow me on Twitter @MissMalini and Facebook Like my page for pix!

Psst! Any last minute tips, tricks, advice or blessings you wanna bestow? Please do so in the comments below :) xoxo

Shit Bollywood Says

Have you been seeing all those “Sh*t ____ say(s)” videos doing the rounds? I’ve seen a few – but among my favourites has to be Sh*t Bollywood Says, created by Waseem Shaikh, Naach Radio host that MissMalini does Bollywood updates for. He pays homage to some classic Bollywood elements, and I guarantee you will let out a laugh!

Ayesha Takia | Photo Courtesy: Ayesha Takia Web

Well, just when I blogged about celebrities using Twitter to have cute conversations, Ayesha Takia and Sidharth Mallya are doing the absolute opposite by having a bit of a Twitter showdown! Watch out, people – this girl’s angry.

@ayeshatakia

So apparently Ayesha’s sister’s boarding pass was torn by a Kingfisher Airlines employee (though why, she doesn’t mention), and Ayesha was absolutely livid upon hearing this – and has therefore taken to Twitter to rant it out. And as though she feels her tweets haven’t gotten rid of her rage, she’s even retweeted over 40 of the responses she’s received from followers.

@sidharthamallya

Meanwhile, Sidharth claims to not know who Ayesha Takia is, and states that there are always two sides to a story.

@ayeshatakia

While I know I’d be angry if this happened to me, I’ve got to agree with Sidharth Mallya on one point – there are always two sides to a story, and clearly, Ayesha Takia is giving us only one. We don’t know what her sister did to initiate this reaction – and the only way to really know would have been to be there, which… neither of them were! Either way, some poor PR person somewhere is going to go into overdrive trying to make this whole situation better!

Karan Johar

I love Twitter, if only for the conversations we get to see between celebrities; it’s always fun to get to know them beyond the characters they play on-screen. This recent conversation, I found both hilarious and adorable, took place between Karan Johar, Hrithik Roshan and Abhishek Bachchan.

@iHrithik, @kjohar25, @juniorbachchan

*Hahaha* I guess we can say KJo’s new theme song is Subah Hone Na De (“Humko kehte superman, on kardo handycam…“). But what I really want is to see are those pictures. What about you? Guys, please share them with us! :D

Abhishek Bachchan

We at MissMalini.com love Abhishek Bachchan. That’s no secret. He’s just got that vibe about him that’s so inherently Abhishek, I don’t even know how to explain it. When I met him, he was packing in some serious charm – the kind that gets you swooning! The good thing is, he carries just as much charm on-screen as he does off-screen, so for his birthday, I’m going to share with you some of the films where I think he pulls off his Abhi-vibe extremely well! ;)

1. Hum Tum

He only had a small role in this film, but that was enough to win me over. How cute does he look in the wedding sequence, and the scene after, where he gives Saif a good talk? Love!

2. Dhoom/Dhoom 2

ACP Jai Dixit is one of my favourite Abhishek characters – and his scenes with Uday are always a treat!

3. Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna

While I’m certainly not immune to the SRK charm, if I were in Rani‘s place, I’d definitely pick Abhishek here. There’s something endearing about the guy who won’t stop trying and will keep taking things in his stride.

4. Guru

This is among my favourite Abhishek films, if not the favourite. Abhi plays the cunning businessman to the T, and while his means are not always ethical, you still find yourself rooting for him the entire time.

5. Dostana

What can I even say about this movie? He is just awesome in this, and is oozing the Abhi-vibe like no other, whether in his interactions with John, or moments with Priyanka (like above!), or his Maa Da Laadla wackiness. All I can say is… he’s *totally* my jiggerypoo! :)

6. Delhi-6

And I had to give a special mention to this movie, if only for the song Sasural Genda Phool. How much is he rocking this song?! His moves here are my absolute favourite. :)

A very, very happy birthday to you, Abhishek, from all at Team MissMalini! Please keep rocking that Abhi-vibe. ;)

Chronicle

Chronicle is a found footage film about teenagers who develop mysterious superpowers. The trailer looked good and I was really interested in what the filmmakers would come up with. However, I was wary from past experience because found footage films have a tendency to lose steam somewhere along the way, mostly because they have to work too hard to keep up the pretense of having been shot on the fly. So far I think the Paranormal Activity movies have done the best job of delivering on the promise of the found footage homemade video aesthetic.

Well not any more!

Chronicle is the new champion, not just in terms of how they use that aesthetic but also in terms of how well the filmmakers have told their story. Director Josh Trank and screenwriter Max Landis are unafraid to explore the darkness that can lurk just under the surface of the supposedly carefree teenage years.

Chronicle

The way they set up their primary characters and then go about delivering on each and every one of those setups is solid and very very impressive. Because of the thought that has gone into the powers given to these kids it becomes possible for that supposedly handheld camera to go into places and see things that most other films of this nature could never do convincingly.

The premise is not too different from what it says in the official synopsis but there is so much more going on once the film starts rolling that it is tough to believe that all that information was packed into 83 minutes of screen time.

Chronicle

And lest you think that this film is some sort of triumph for technical gee-whizzery, I can assure you that it is not. The performances by the three lead actors Dane DeHaan, Alex Russell and Michael B. Jordan are so nuanced that it really looks like this is just life being captured on the fly. In fact because it is so effectively executed, a lot of those layers will only become appreciable to people who stop to think for a moment about all that goes on in the film.

Chronicle

When the end credits began to roll the only thought running through my mind was, “Everybody should stop making found-footage films now. Because it’s going to be impossible to top this one.”

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that Chronicle might be the best superhero movie released this year. And I have not forgotten that Nolan, Bale and gang are bringing us the new Batman movie later this year.

www.onesmallwindow.com

Cooking with Chef Vineet Bhatia

As cooking enthusiasts, Heena Jain (The Kitchen Butterfly) and I had the great pleasure of partaking in a private cooking lesson with celebrity Chef Vineet Bhatia, visiting Mumbai to launch a new menu for his restaurant Ziya at The Oberoi. Chef Bhatia showed us how to make two of his dishes: Tandoori Malai Broccoli and his Bisi Bela Chicken. Both came out to delicious perfection – the broccoli was beautifully marinated without being drowned in cream or overcooked to a mush; meanwhile the chicken was succulent and delightfully spiced. For those of you keen on trying these simple yet elegant dishes at home, watch the video below!

Tandoori Malai Broccoli

Bisi Bela Chicken

Team MissMalini

After the lesson we settled in for a preview lunch of his upcoming menu, with Heena going the vegetarian way while I jumped right into the protein. Both of us received a Dahi Bhalla amuse bouche, beautifully complemented with a cool dollop of Tamarind Sorbet.

Dahi Bhalla with Tamarind Sorbet

As an appetizer I was served the Akhroti Tawa Seekh, a classic seekh kebab that was beautifully spiced and surprisingly well paired with sweet, crunchy walnuts. On the veg side, Chef Bhatia served Tikki-Pe-Tikka: a spinach-dahi tikki with a smoked paneer tikka, featuring a delicate cardamom flavor and a side of aubergine chaat.

Akhroti Tawa Seekh

For the main course, I devoured the perfectly grilled Kolhapuri Jhinga (jumbo prawns) – tender but retaining that satisfying bite. As with all of Bhatia’s creations, this dish also featured a twist, as it came served atop a bed of classic Poha surrounded by a spicy Kolhapuri sauce.  The vegetarian dish featured the same base, with a Mushroom Galauti Kebab substituted for the prawns. Although I am not generally fond of galauti, fans of the melt-in-your-mouth kebab will be hard pressed to find a better vegetarian substitute, both in texture and flavor.

Kolhapuri Jhinga

Chef Bhatia makes no bones about his sweet tooth, and his desserts certainly reflected this. The inventive Rose Petal and Gulab Jamun Cheesecake – literally a rose flavoured cheesecake poured atop a gulab jamun base – was only to be outdone in its sweetness by the delicious Coconut-Mango Kulfi.

Gulabi - Gulab

Ziya’s new menu launched this week, and offers both a la carte and fixed menu options. 

The Details
Ziya Oberoi Hotel
Nariman Point, Mumbai – 400021
Tel: +(91)-(22)-66325757, 66324343, 66326210, 66102007, +(91)-(22)-22043282

Watson Fitness

As you’ve been seeing through the blogs, MissMalini is getting fitter and fitter, thanks to her workout sessions at Watson Fitness. This time around, they’ve got two new offerings that’ll appeal to two different types of people – kids and pressed-for-time folks!

They’re starting a Speed Kids program every Sunday for kids between 4-12 years. It’s supposed to help develop and enhance motor co-ordination skills, helps with their agility/balance, and on top of that, is fun!

And for those of us who keep making excuses to avoid going to the gym (guilty!), they’ve got an online personal training program that designs workouts especially for you and lets you carry them out at your home or office. So, if you’ve been meaning to keep up with that New Years resolution… well, this is probably a good start. ;)