Mukul Deora

All this March Pirate Radio has a very major treat in store for you on Saturday nights only on 94.3 Radio One. 10-11pm Mukul Deora is hosting a four-part Bob Dylan special on my show with LIVE renditions of his favorite Dylan songs and things you probably never knew about the legend himself! I must confess I was never a Dylan fan, actually I just didn’t know enough about him but thanks to Mukul’s incredible depth of knowledge and the quirky, crazy and fascinating facts he’s sharing I’m totally sold! You will be too :) in case you missed it here’s the show in all its audio/video glory (with links to all the Dylan songs I could find on YouTube (rules baby rules) don’t forget to tune in next Saturday and feel the groove LIVE on Radio One!
Psst! You can check out Mukul Deora’s offical website here. But for now enjoy your exclusive education in the man, the legend – Bob Dylan!

(Please watch this space as I update all the audio files and videos I’ve taken during our shows, it’ll be fully updated by the weekend weekend I promise!)

Week 1

Talkin’ New York
See that My Grave is Kept Clean
Blowin’ in The Wind
Masters of War
Don’t Think Twice
Talking World War III Blues
Spanish Harlem Incident
It ain’t me Babe
Subterranean Homesick Blues
Mr. Tambourine Man
Its all Over now Baby Blue
Like a Rolling Stone
Ballad of a Thin Man

Week 2

Pledging My Time
Visions of Johanna
Just like a Woman
I Want You
All along the Watchtower
As I Went Out One Morning
Lay Lady Lay
Knocking on Heavens Door
Shelter From the Storm
Meet Me in the Morning
Tangled Up in Blue (live)
Simple Twist of Fate
You’re Gonna Make me Lonesome When You Go

Lisa Haydon, Amrit Maghera, Indrani Dasgupta and Suneet Verma (photo courtesy: www.daylife.com)

Sabina Chopra, A.D. & Sabina Singh, Queenie Dhody & Farhad Taraporewala and Narendra Kumar Ahmed

And then there was the Lakme Fashion Week Finale. SOOOOOoooooo much fun (and even worth the nearly two-hour wait)! It was basically one giant disco party with a cracked glass runway and bling to the max. The best bit of course was a killer combo of the Midival Punditz and Shai’r & Func spinning up a psychedelic storm LIVE for the models and Lakme faces of 2010 Lisa Haydon, Amrit Maghera and Indrani Dasgupta to bop to. Suneet Verma you’re a star! Check out the video to see what I mean. Also solid props to Sabina Chopra for topping up her style quotient with a do-up right off the runway! Fashion Week is so much fun :)

Lisa Hayden and Angelina Jolie

By the by, in case you never noticed (like me) Lisa Hayden looks one helluva lot like Angelina Jolie! (I was wondering she looked so familiar and mistook her for Sarah-Jane Dias once, doh!) It just never struck me till one of the journo’s said so during the show but check it out, they could be twins! Also isn’t it charming that she makes balloon animals for charity when she gets time?

Psst! I saw Lisa Hayden do Vodka-oyster shots in the Grey Goose lounge, aren’t those things really gross?

Night Fever

Sabina Chopra

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Night Fever Finale Party

Of course the after-party everyone vies to get tickets for was a debaucherous open bar with a whole lot of “Burn” in my drinks. I have to say the stuff ain’t half bad (its no Redbull but close enough!) I’m just not crazy about the name though, somehow when you order a “Vodka-Burn” you know you’re setting yourself up for a big night, dead giveaway for those of us in denial. Me party too much? Shut up and pass me my Redbull.

MissMalini at the afterparty

To be honest with you I may actually be burn-ed out from the week of hecticness! I’ve actually ordered Dominos thin-crust pizza and plan to watch LOST Season 6 instead of going to Hype to party with Akon! But I guess since he’s available for weddings now it won’t be the last time he’s in town :) Ohhh and tomorrow Akon and Shah Rukh Khan will be at Tote for the IPL party might swing by after Blue Frog, I hope I’m seeing you at the pond? The Twilight Players are in da house!

The Twilight Players

More than a dance, a lifestyle in the making!

While I was at Fashion Week I ran into this really funky crew of artists/dancers at the Grey Goose lounge and was intrigued when they told me they’ve even featured in Anurag Kashyap’s movie Dev D. (yup that trippy-trio at the bar during Abhay Deol’s drinking binge to the tunes of Pardesi) which I LOVED. So now I’m looking forward to catching them in action at Blue Frog tomorrow. C-aTOMIC introducing ‘The Twilight Players’ - Sinbad Phgura, Ammo ‘Too Sweet’ (who was incidentally also at Ash Chandler’s birthday bash at Shiro a few weeks ago) and Jimi ‘The Quiff’ have the reputation of being slick, sharp and dynamic. The brother’s perform in their own classic style, with a heavy dose of showmanship to a soundtrack of Latin Jazz, Ska, Asian and Electro Funk. The Twilight Players were also awarded the first ever ‘UK OG’s 4 Life Award’ at the prestigious ‘Carnival – Choreographer’s Ball 2005’. Sweeet!
Take a look at their show-reel and website www.twilightplayers.com.

Personally I just like all things Twilight! Yummy like Edward Cullen or otherwise :) so shall we go check em out? I love watching gigs like this, full power and crazy energy! Live Performance & DJ Set @ Blue Frog Thursday March 11th – if you come I’ll even give you your MissMalini fan badge in person.
Psst! Vir Das’ comedy rock band ‘Alien Chutney’ will open the night at 9.30pm should be a blast.

Akon

So I knew Akon was coming to India to perform but I had no idea it was for a sangeet! (Can everyone stop making fun of Shah Rukh Khan for dancing at weddings now? Thank you very much.) I guess Kanye West opened up that million dollar baby for American rappers and their myriad ridiculously loaded desi fans huh? But it gets better (or worse) the wedding in question was of Sanjeev Nanda and long-time girlfriend Medha Bhatnagar at a farmhouse in Saket.

Does the name ring a bell? The very same Sanjeev Nanda accused-convicted-and-then-(oddly)-acquitted of running over 7 people with his BWM back in 1999. I actually knew this guy, we went to The British School together in New Delhi and he wasn’t a crazy dude or anything just hopelessly loaded. (I distinctly remember the gold-plating on all the sofa’s in his house.) Well I guess he’s turning over a new leaf but its still a little creepy and I suppose fitting that Akon has done some jail time himself?
Are you as weirded out as I am yet?! *shudder*

Shah Rukh Khan

Akon is also doing some IPL performances for Shah Rukh Khan’s kick-off party in Mumbai and @ankitlodha87 tells me on Twitter that Akon is also recording a song for the new SRK movie Ra 1 with Vishal & Shekher, which they’ll be doing this week! At the sangeet Akon was wearing jeans and a black tee and swaggered in a little past midnight. He performed for about two hours along with UK-based band RDB, known for their hit songs in Akshay Kumar movies. The pre-wedding bash hosted by one of Sanjeev’s friends featured ghazal singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan’s as the star attraction.

Spotted: Eesha Koppikar, Timmy Narang,Ramona Narang Rodella, politician Amar Singh, Bakul Nath, Cheena & Anil Vig, Rohit Rajpal, Tanisha Mohan, Priya Chatwal, Tanisha Mohan, Ritu Beri, Dilip and Devi Cherian, Ayesha Thapar, industrialist Peter Punj, Meenu Bakshi, designer Manav Gangwani, singer Adnan Sami with wife Roya and Vijay Arora. The blue décor was designed by Tarun Tahiliani no less!

P.S. Speaking of the IPL did that Fake IPL Player ever out himself? If not I wonder if he’ll be back this year!

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Arjun Rampal

My second day at Lakme Fashion Week was even more colorful and celebrity-studded than the first and I think on that front I’ll just let the videos do the talking! Clearly everyone thought it was just priceless that MissMalini is taking video bytes about Malini Ramani’s show :) but curiously enough the two people I least expected to give me the once-over, Koel Puri and Carol Gracias both seemed fairly wary once I introduced myself and reacted with a slightly icey, “oh yoouuu’rrrreee MissMalini, you’re a naughty girl.” Really? Me, naughty? Never.

Chunky Pandey

MissMalini's gadget land!

Julius Macwan (yup that's the dude in the skirt)

Bandana Tewari

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Marc Robinson

Malini Ramani’s show was really quite the production and I loved it! She actually managed to seamlessly weave together her clothes with Grey Goose Martinis in a Mills & Boons type romance about a girl called Rita. Rita clearly lives the good life and from what I gathered spends most of her time jetting around the world in fashionable attire drinking expensive cocktails looking for Mr. Right. Charming. Amid her models was the legendary Meher Jessia who’s doting husband Arjun Rampal and daughter were also there in full support. Koel Puri raved about Malini (as you can see in the video) and was actually already wearing something from the new collection off the ramp, how very posh (I’m trying not to be naughty I swear!) Rahul Bose made an appearance as well and I’m wondering who the leggy lass next to him was? She has a very Aishwarya Rai look to her so I first thought it was Sneha Ulal but apparently not.

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Narendra Kumar Ahmed

Narendra Kumar Ahmed really blew it out of the park with a psychedelic – futuristic show. The models bathed in laser lights did very terminator-type catwalks and stopped frequently to stare up at the sky. (This may come in really handy someday if we do get visitors from outer-space, no harm putting our prettiest face forward I say.) Nari seemed to really be enjoying himself and the wig he took a shine to, considering he wore it to the fancy after party with an equally big smile on his face!

Acquin Pais

Junelia Aguiar and Ash Chandler

Sabina Chopra in Sabyasachi

Kalki Koechlin

Sabina Chopra was wearing another gorgeous Sabyashachi and trendy red shades when she revealed her own plans to take off on a much-needed holiday. She laughed that Sabyaaschi insisted that she do it all first class! Oh and I also spotted Kalki Koechlin before Nari’s show, she really carries herself with SO much old-world elegance. After Dev D., that Coke commercial with Imran Khan and this picture I’m officially a fan!

Queenie Dhody

Gossip! Overheard in the ladies room: Queenie Dhody reading out text messages she was receiving to Sharmila Khanna, “Look everyone’s texting me saying how amazing I’m looking, first a PR agent then a journalist, so funny!” So I’d usually have poked fun at something like this but just look at her! For her age she’s pretty smoking hot so, why not enjoy it eh?

Sammeer & Palak Sheth

Arijit Bose

The Grey Goose Lounge saw its fair share of party animals on a liquid diet thanks to the killer bar crew (I tried a yummy new sparkling-wine there too courtesy Arijit Bose!) Ronit Roy in particular was SO drunk he literally could not stand straight and walked right into the bar before being escorted out, I guess its convenient that apart from being an actor he also runs a security company, since most of the people who would have wanted to beat him up that night probably use his guards he’s safe! Clever (and lucky.) At one point Arjun Rampal stepped in and was heckled by some drunk dude (no not Ronit) and quickly left, but I still got a good look :)

My bad for not recognizing Diandra Soares after she’s shaved her head twice for Fashion Week. Girls got guts. She was also extremely peeved that they weren’t letting her into the after-party without a pass and then joked that, “well then I said I just won’t come to work tomorrow and they were more than willing to let her through!”

Designer Nikhil and MissMalini

Designers Shantanu & Nikhil, Nikasha & MissMalini

Plus I got to attend the post party in the plaza which was pretty posh, the highlight for me of course was running into Shantanu & Nikhil who’s dresses I just LOVE (and happened to be wearing!) It was pretty funny actually I walked by and Nikhil was like “nice dress” and for a second I thought what if that’s the designer?! And guess what? It totally was! I’m told their new collection is even more killer and they’ve decided to play with two colors only – black & yellow. (Some day do more Grey & Magenta pretty please?)

MissMalini and Shahin Badar

Everyone once in a while you’ll come across someone who’s super famous for something they did 10 years ago and before you “oh-so-last-decade them them you have to stop and respect the fact that people haven’t forgotten, that’s gotta be worth something yes? So here’s who I had on my show a few weeks ago (yes backlog backlog I’m trying!) singer-songwriter Shahin Badar known the world over for her haunting alap on The Prodigy epic hit techno tune “Smack My Bitch Up.” (I love that the original title was nothing at all like that, watch and learn!)

Didjya Know?
1.) As can be expected with a song called “Smack My Bitch Up,” this song caused an uproar as it appeared to promote violence against women. The band took every opportunity to explain that the title is not to be taken literally, and means to do something with vigor and intensity. The Prodigy didn’t shy away from the controversy this song caused, and the resulting media attention gave their sales a boost.
2.) The bass-line and some of the lyrics are sampled from the 1988 track “Give The Drummer Some” by The Ultramagnetic MC’s, where Kool Keith raps: “Change my pitch up, smack my bitch up like a pimp.” According to a review in the New Musical Express, Kool Keith was The Prodigy’s favorite rapper. They certainly helped Keith’s cause, as he and the other Ultramagnetics received a composer credit for their sample.
3.) The music video for this song is very intense and was banned by MTV. It’s shot in a first person point of view style, where we see a person snort cocaine, go to a club and and cause all manner of hell and unrest. At the end of the video we see the person in the mirror, and it’s a girl. Noisemaker-in-chief Liam Howlett told Q magazine June 2009: “The Americans picked up on it and wanted to make out it was a song about violence. We thought we’d have a laugh with it and set out to make an extreme video. That’s the one time we thought we’d be controversial.”

6/3

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Manish Malhotra's front benchers

Did I tell you how psyched I was that MissMalini was officially invited to blog about Lakme Fashion Week? Holla I have arrived! Ok so I could pretend to know all about fashion but really I’d feel like a bit of a con job. So how about I take you through my first day at Fashion Week my way? That means you get the uncut, random thought, trigger-happy version just the way I saw it! Deal?

Ok so let me tell you straight up that I don’t go to Fashion Week to look at the clothes. I go to Fashion Week to look at the people look at the clothes :) the highlight of my evening is finding a vantage point from which to snap the celebrities (like that one time with Bipasha Basu) this time I was mortally disappointed that Manish Malhotra had no show-stopper. I mean don’t get me wrong the show was super fun and happy and the music was hopping but considering I was actually IN my seat this time (unlike last year) what a bummer! His front bench consisted of Urmila Matondkar, Raveena Tandon, Dino Morea and Celina Jaitley, not too shabby!

The cool thing about being “press” is that you have a pre-assigned seat and can troop in all business-like instead of doing the excuse-me-pardon-me squeeze through the aisles. For some reason though the good peeps over at Lakme think my name is Malini Sharma. Er.. not so much. My friends thought that was hilarious and the perhaps there was a “Mr. Sharma” tucked away that I had somehow failed to mention! Anyhoo, here’s the lo down (as I remember it) from Fashion Week.

missmalini.com access badge

press seats

Verve afterthought?

I love that Verve was “penciled in” amid all the printed place-holders. I sat next to the High Heel Confidential girls who are awesome and I really did try to get a picture of them for you but they’re super shy and prefer to remain incognito. Suffice to say they are lovely and you would BFF them in a heartbeat.

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Front row: Sabina Chopra (Mrs. Lakme) and designer Nikasha (in pink!)

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Designer Narendra Kumar Ahmed (in the red hat)

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Manish Malhotra

So as you can see I got lots of footage of the shows (Anupama, Nachiket Barve and Manish Malhotra respectively) to give you a feel of the vibe (and the press note with fancy words and official pictures are surely on their way.) But I’ll tell you one thing, atmosphere-wise music is crucial and Manish Malhotra had by far the most pumping sound. Also all his models had ace energy and clearly were having a blast on stage!

PDA (Rashmi Nigam* and BF)

I also spotted this actress in pink (with what appears to be her new squeeze) getting all cuddly with her boyfriend. For some reason am totally blanking on her name, help! *Thank you Chetna for jogging my memory!

Carol Gracias

model in Nachiket Barve*

Oh and Carol Gracias is back and how! Its amazing the applause she get every time she hits the ramp. I can’t help but wonder if its everyone’s way of making nice about the wardobe debacle that killed her mojo for a bit. Also full respect to the model with the shiny head. I’m serious, it takes balls to walk down the ramp on a bad-hair-day forget no hair day! *OMG you’re right yashaswini it’s Diandra Soares, and she is stunning (with hair and without!)

Designer Anupama (right)

Designer Rocky S.

So there are basically three places to hang out in at your average Fashion Week:
1) The actual show venue where you do a lot of people watching for about 20 minutes while the ushers rocket around “sensitively” seating everyone (so not an easy job by the way!), ironically the actual show lasts about 15 minutes at most.
2) The lobby, where you schmooze and loiter (hoping to spot a celebrity) on your way to one of the lounges (either Kingfisher, Gitanjalee or Grey Goose) where the drinks are free and the music is bopping.
3) The stairs on the far end outside where all the smokers unite.
Plus after each show there is about 10 minutes of absolute chaos when a wall of paparazzi forms in the lobby between the lounges and the smoking section and celebrities come out and do their thing in a frenzy of flashes and “Raveena, Raveena look this side!”

Raveena Tandon

Sabina Chopra

Narendra Kumar Ahmed

Sujal Shah

Bandana Tewari

Then of course there are your Fashion Week regulars, its work for some, play for others. I always like running into them though because they’re super talented and still so friendly. Big love to Sabina Chopra aka Mrs. Lakme (for always sorting me out with passes and having a wicked sense of humor!), Sujal Shah (Head of Fashion at IMG) who I recently discovered has quite the radio voice! Bandana Tewari for her classic elegance and the fact that she lets me take her picture :) Vikram Raizada who always makes me feel so good about myself and Narendra Kumar Ahmed aka Nari who’s a bigger party animal than I am!

Preeti Caberwal, Mike & Sonny Caberwal

Amazing Krishna - the ones that make it all happen behind the scenes!

Sunjay Guleria, the winner Anu Srivastava and her friend Ami Thakkar

shots at China House

@psingh400 and @SunjayNYC

Also ran into my Twitter buddy @psingh400 wearing this stunning dress by the label “Mermaid” in Goa, hmmm must investigate!

Sunjay and Sri (the PR queen!)

Madonna's dancer

Of course we ended up at the Grey Goose lounge and then China House and where I ran into Sonny & Preeti Caberwal who incidentally I met same place, same time last year! They are really awesome (like the mausam, I’ll explain that in a second*) and are responsible for that pretty wicked contest on Exclusively.in I told you about. They even brought along one of Madonna’s dancers! Sunjay Guleria who works with them (and is super-fun to party with and quite the poser as you can see!) introduced me to the winning girls (I’ll get a video of them today!) and said very nice things about my legs. Lol, God I love my life :)
*For some reason we kept saying that all night. And this song is now stuck in my head.

Why you should always "check" what your friends are wearing

P.S. Hilarious that these two guys seem fairly oblivious to their fashion blunder at Fashion Week. Ah the irony can’t you you just taste it?!

Sabyashachi Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Sabyashachi Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Picture this: tiny fairy light streamers highlighting Sabyasachi Mukherjee’s jaunt through Africa, onto the American underground of the 70s and a last stop in 1920s Paris; Sabyasachi took the audience on a grand global fashion journey at Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010. The colour palette ranged from muted shades of ivory, brown, teal, rust, and indigo, with touches of orange, gold and silver embroidery. Separates like trench coats, wrap jackets, loose pants, tight churidars, sexy Charleston dresses over printed trousers, shimmering long tubes, printed tunics, asymmetric waistcoats, sheer skirts lavishly embellished with beads and glitter, blouses with multi prints all over; were cleverly assembled in signature Sabyasachi style.

For more blogs on Lakme Fashion Week check out:  blog.lakmefashionweek.co.in

Sabyashachi Lakmé Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2010

Sabyasachi Mukherjee

MissMalini (photo courtesy: Mikhil Saluja)

LBD? That would Little Black Dress! I had SO much fun doing this shoot. Playing dress up never gets old (especially when you have the professional crew at your service.) My darling make up artist Binny was a delight to talk to and we coasted through an hour of hair and makeup randomly talking about past life regression (bizarrely enough) and Brian Weiss books (I’m a huge fan and a believer FYI.) My shoot was on the same day as Anushka Manchanda and Sophie Choudry’s so I got a chance to get trigger happy with them too! I have to say I’m pretty flattered to be included this list of  “10 real stylish women” :) find out who the rest are in this months issue of Grazia and tell me what you think of my retro-chic styling in a strapless pleated Narendra Kumar Ahmed for Cleo dress and necklace from Aquamarine! I unabashedly love it :)
P.S. I heart you Grazia and Mikhil Saluja for making magic! You wanna see more pictures? 

MissMalini (self-portrait)

Anushka Manchanda

photo courtesy: Mikhil Saluja

photo courtesy: Mikhil Saluja