Design sense
Abu Jani and Sandeep Khosla have had a clear run of the London market for a while. They have been supplying clothes to the UK and so far there hasn't been any real competition. Anyway, the time has come for them to gird up their loins. Tarun Tahiliani -- their Indian bete noir, their only real rival -- is eyeing the London market, rather covetuously. He plans to visit this city next week to hold a special preview of his clothes at a chic five-star hotel. His target audience: the rich NRIs for whom London is home. Tarun may have moved to Delhi but he has not lost any of his Mumbai business acumen. He has slowly but steadily been gaining a foothold in foreign markets. Last year, he held a similar showing in Hong Kong another city full of rich NRIs.Just cause
It was feared that the real cause would be buried under the hype and hysteria when Richard Gere came to town to raise money for HIV positive individuals. Detractors even went to the extent of saying that the fundsraised would have to go toward footing the fancy bills that the celebs seemed to have generated. They couldn't have been more wrong. The charity that Gere was working with in India -- Art of Giving -- has already started to help organisations working on HIV/AIDS. Spearheading the movement are the city's leading lights Dolly Thakore, Gita Mirchandani and Devika Bhojwani. They have been scoring Mumbai to find worthy causes to pump money into. Last Friday, they gave Rs four lakh to an organisation called Udhavam Karangal, that will be opening a destitute home for HIV positive women from the red-light areas. Also present at the cheque giving (held at Dolly's house) was Ashok Row Kavi. His own organisation, Humsafar, will also be benefiting from the money raised by the Richard Gere Charity dinner.
Dancing queen
We all know that Simone Singh is one of Tellywood's top stars. But now, it seems that her star is on the ascendant. The model-turned-actress with the flawless complexion is right now in colderclimes making sure her skin stays soft and silky. Just kidding. Simone is currently in Nepal for work. She is the chosen one for Asha Bhosle's newest video. While we do not know more about the project, we are waiting for Simone to come back and fill us up on the details. Watch this space for more scoops.
And finally...
The Ambanis seem to be on a winning spree. First Anil and Mukesh Ambani were chosen as Business India's Businessmen of the Year. Now, it's Ambani Sr's turn to cover himself with laurels. Dhirubhai -- rated among Asia's 50 most powerful men -- has been given the Wharton Business School's Dean's Medal. This prestigious Ivy League University's highest award is a tribute to an extraordinary achievement or service by individuals throughout the world. Former recipients include former Israeli prime minister Shimon Perez. But such an award is only a fitting tribute to the man who put India on the international business map.
Reliance is expected to be India's Du Pont in the next centuryand it is joked that the sensex drops if Dhirubhai even sneezes.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
