Roving Eye

The room was decorated with large plastic balloons and beach-balls and the snacks were round too — cheese balls. In the beginning there was only a bunch of phirangs dancing the night away. But later the crowd started pouring in. Among those having a ball were Gautam Singhania, Jules Fuller, Sophiya Haque with her boyfriend who has moved down from Hong Kong just to be with her, Anish Trivedi with wife Vinita and Kailash Surendranath wearing his usual garishly-printed cotton shirts. But the real star was a middle-aged man who stood next to the bar and danced all night putting all the youngsters to shame.

The other Narangs

Everyone has heard about Rachna and Sanjay Narang’s latest business ventures. But their cousins, Timmy and Jimmy, of the Ambassador group are also up to their own tricks. They recently opened Mumbai’s first revolving Chinese restaurant, Pearl of the Orient. And now, they plan to open a rock `n’ roll coffee shop. This will replace their bar Club 21 and should open next month. To lend authenticity to the ambience, a juke box is being imported.

On the stands

Out on the stands is the new Verve, Anuradha Mahindra’s glossy up-market magazine, which has now become a quarterly. Full of information on the lifestyles of the elite, it includes a fashion spread of Laila Lamba and Hasina Jethmalani, both showing off their blonde hair and designer wardrobes. But the real eye-catcher is the cover. The picture of Karisma Kapoor is simply mind-boggling. She looks stunning. Full marks to the Paris-returned make-up artist Jojo.

Furthermore

It seems Hotel Marine Plaza is now joining the bandwagon and trying to prove that it too can be a cool nightspot. Soon it will be opening its very own pub called Geoffery. It will be a typical ye olde English pub where you can eat some tucker and lager without deafening techno music in the background.

Bohemian nite

Nikhil Chib started his monthly theme nites at the Hyde Park Cafe last Saturday. The cover charge was Rs 150 and the menu included a whole list of unpronounceable Burmese dishes. Thought it was pay and enter, there was an exclusive invitee list, and the cafe turned into one swinging party. Among those who tried the exotic fare were Aarti and Kailash Surendranath, Rahul Singh, AD Singh, Prahlad Kakkar and Suresh and Devika Bhojwani. And it seems that Suresh was really inspired by the bohemian atmosphere as he began singing for all the other guests.

A quiet birthday

Friday’s big bash at the Leela Kempenski’s Cyclone was a packed affair but strangely spartan in celeb presence. It was a double celebration, being the third anniversary of the club and 10 years of the hotel. The all-girls group, Cliche, looking suspiciously like a rip-off of the Spice Girls, sang in grating, high-pitched voices. But theirs was a sad song as they had to literally plead with the audience to clap and dance.

The other `highlight’ was the opening of the Cyclone Recreation Room. The room can seat around 75 members and has a pool table, television, chess and backgammon facilities, and an Internet access. Michael Ferreira was the guest of honour. He tried to launch the place in style by playing an exotic shot. But even after five attempts, Ferreira failed to net the balls. Nevertheless, the club was impressed enough to offer him free life-membership.

Finally…

Piano Bar was the place to be on Sunday night, as that’s where Shah Rukh’s wife Gauri had a surprise party for a friend. Gauri is fast becoming known as Bollywood’s hostess with the mostest, thanks to her fun-loving spirit. And of course, Bollywood turned out in full force. That is, what is left of it. It seems that most stars have decided to beat the heat, and are either shooting out of Mumbai or cooling down in England or America.

Contributions by SA and DK