Is your company really diverse?

Inclusivity and diversity aren’t just trending topics, but entire movements.

My chat with Loretta Chan is up at PrestigeOnline.com - read up here. 
 

Editor's Picks: My Christmas Wish List

All the editors at Prestige Hong Kong made a Christmas wish-list. 

Here's my column.

New Age Philanthropy: HSBC is Supporting Clients in Making Long-Lasting Change

In an environment where philanthropists are increasingly concerned about social needs, HSBC Global Private Banking supports clients in their pursuit of driving long-lasting change in the communities.

During the past few decades, the number of charitable foundations has increased exponentially, just as philanthropy itself has evolved radically in this increasingly connected world.

Read my interview feature and interview at PrestigeOnline.com here.

Also see my listicle on some of the most incredible women in philanthropy in Hong Kong here.

 

20 Women in Philanthropy: Hong Kong's leading ladies off screen

 

Love what they do, who they are - these twenty women are changing Hong Kong with a quiet, resourceful integrity that is most becoming. 

In the first of a series dedicated to people being the change they’d like to see in the world, here’s our salute to women in philanthropy.

See the - incomplete - list here - PrestigeOnline.com 

There are plans to have additions and sequels along the way... 

Yes, I am working on it as we speak. 

R

Women of Power, 2021: The ladies of Hong Kong who are changing the world

You can read all the profiles and features now at PrestigeOnline.com here.

Outtakes: Bipin Karma on set: Young Actor from Nepal in the Bustling Hong Kong Film Scene

Outtakes from a shoot with young actor Bipin Karma, you can read the full interview with the promising, rising young star in the November 2021 edition of Prestige Hong Kong. 

Star of Hand Rolled Cigarette, it's a phenomenal debut. The young nominee is heading to awards season. Fingers crossed. 

Signed with Model One agency-- that resemblance to Zayn Malik (without the awful tattoos!) paying off in some ways... 

Pop Bytes: Armani in 2021 is as gorgeous as ever: 40 years of Giorgio Armani

Lifting the veil of doom and gloom that has altered the way Giorgio Armani has presented his collection since 1981, the 40th anniversary of Emporio Armani wasn’t filled with movie stars (usually a staple on the front row of his shows), political heavyweights, jet setting socialites and supermodels but a socially distant affair with a level of studied, honed perfection that only he can provide.  

Locked down at his palatial home on Via Borgonuovo in Milan, Armani digitally presented the Emporio Armani collection to a global audience – streaming it online for audiences in New Delhi to New York, Tokyo to Paris. The entire world of fashion purveyors watched simultaneously the mix of the 1980s disco era and the modern that strutted down the catwalk. A patina of technicolour dreams, as well as his signature navy and all-black ensembles. Flashes and pops of colour with contemporary cuts, exquisite silhouettes, patterns and monochrome.  

Filmed against a backdrop of the brand’s name writ in neon, the collection had all the signature pieces one expects from the legend; luxurious fabrications, glitter, leather, whimsical cuts and classic silhouettes, the pride, the peplum, the pinstripe, he showed it all. Models wearing knits with sequin borders, jacquard, suitings for women and loungewear tailoring for men.

For long loving, enduring fans of the brand, there were new graphic shapes, amplified colours, as well as reassuring crystals and glittering gowns – those most often seen on the red carpet of every award show. Pieces you’ll see again on  Armani’s muses like Cate Blanchette, Julia Roberts and that A-list ilk; there’s a reason why he’s held the crown of “the king of the Hollywood red carpet” (Vanity Fair) since 1978, when he  first dressed Diane Keaton. Movie stars and Armani go hand in velvet-gloved hand so when you see a black and white gown with glittering embellishments, you know Kidman will swan down the stage like he made it just for her.    

No other designer of his vintage – Giorgio Armani turned 87 this past July – stands this tall, relevant and a force to be reckoned with. Trends come and go, tides rise and fall. Style is eternal and Armani is forever. 

P.Ramakrishnan

More at PrestigeOnline.com 

Prestige magazine's annual 40 under 40: 2021 edition is out now!

A return to fine form, the latest iteration of 40 under 40 by Prestige Hong Kong looks fantastic - and its reception has been overwhelming. 

You can read my editor's page - and the entire book here at PrestigeOnline.com

A seed of an idea planted back in 2015 that's grown to become this phenomenon. In its latest iteration, all 40 people were interviewed, photographed, styled and featured. Many surprises unveiled - follow Prestige Hong Kong Instagram for updates - esp the insta' stories! 

My two cents;

When compiling Prestige’s annual 40 Under 40 list of achievers, we followed some basic rules. First, to state the obvious, all the contenders have to be no more than 40 years old. Second, they need to have done something remarkable — and worth writing about — in the past 12 months (since last summer’s edition of 40 Under 40). And third, they have to be here in Hong Kong.

Now that last stipulation can be a bit of a doozy. The pervasive cloud of defeat and ennui during the pandemic got even the best of us. According to one newspaper op-ed: “As emigration from Hong Kong steadily gathers pace, a different picture emerges. This time, they won’t come back. A conservative triangulation of government data suggests that about 1,000 people a day are currently leaving Hong Kong permanently.”

Well, we’re here to present you with a somewhat different picture, a jigsaw comprising 40 different pieces — men and women who are choosing to stay in Hong Kong and construct something different, something better than before.

To start, our editors put forward more than 80 names for consideration, every one of which was mulled over at length…And eventually around half of them were culled. If they didn’t shift the needle forward, extend themselves in a noteworthy manner compared with previous years, then they found their chances evaporating.

Thus, on this year’s listing you’ll find a conspicuous absence of the usual suspects — in fact, 95 percent of the names in the following pages have never been featured before. The novelty lies in not only their faces, but their actions in trying to build a better society, environment or business — and in some cases even reaffirming our hope in humanity.

We found one lady who provided medical mobile units to the government to help the old, infirm and the disenfranchised in remote parts of Hong Kong as the pandemic raged. An heiress who gave up working on her accessories brand and instead committed to philanthropy. Women who left lucrative investment banking careers to deep dive into fixing the education system. And someone who sells luxury condos and flowers by day, but by night provides mental health solutions to those seeking help. You’ll find all these, and more.

So this emphatically isn’t the usual hierarchical roster of the holier-than-thou — for good measure, ahem, we even list our favourite bartender (if ever there was a year to have a stiff drink, this was surely it), plus soothing dulcet singers and exquisite chefs, and a few original designers and dreamy models. But the common thread you’ll find binding together this diverse group is project hope. Standing tall in the face of adversity, these fine young achievers have adopted an admirable stance as they look forward into the light and continue with their endeavours – whatever those may be.

Top Ten Non-invasive Cosmetic Procedures in Hong Kong

As I was writing this, I knew it would do well online - and its easily my most read feature. Ever.

Where do celebrities, ageing models, ladies who lunch and an ever-increasing contingent of men in Hong Kong get their non-invasive cosmetic procedures done? We asked. They answered. Anonymously

Check out the entire feature at PrestigeOnline here.

There's something to be said about the power of suggestion and the lean to persuasion. After talking to all those people, by the end I was looking at the mirror thinking about what to get done. 

Fortunately better sense prevailed - as someone with an addictive personality, I'd start off getting my forehead jabbed... end up looking like Michael Jackson by 2025. And in debt for millions. Also like MJ... 

10 x 10 is back with a bang: Hong Kong's fundraising event is on tonight - by Zoom! How 2021 is!

https://10x10philanthropy.com/hk/?fbclid=IwAR1pNvlYGoQKMVq7nH5yyFDqrLWyHy5A8VCci-CSOeT40oNz5qT5S7kjmPI 

10 x 10 was introduced to me via Antonia da Cruz and for three years in a row, I covered, attended and sponsored (well, the magazine I worked for) the event. 

With a year off from the event (protests, covid!), the event is back on  - and happening in a few minutes live at https://10x10philanthropy.com/hk/

Log on to watch and/or donate. 100% of the money goes to worthy charities and its a tax write-off. 

Mama Mia! My feature (and shoot!) is up at The New Moon

Felt back in form working on this shoot and feature - out now in its entirety at The New Moon - read up here.

I wanna give a shout out to Kaye Dong for creating The New Moon; which has been embraced by so many. When I started the pitch to these ladies, I sent them a link to the page and everyone said yes immediately after seeing it. Most people are suspicious of yet another online magazine but there definitely is an aura and... vibe and flavour to this enterprise that is so vastly appealing. 
 

Planned and plotted with my most frequent collaborator this year - photographer Ruby Law - as my previous editor Christina Ko  (an eternal fav - no one tell her) commissioned me (yay) to write this feature and pull together this shoot. 

Originally we were going to shoot near Blend & Grind in Wan Chai but of course HK weather being what it is, it poured. 

The fine folks at The Upper House provided gorgeous venue and it was smooth sailin' then on. 

It was great to see some familiar faces and meet new ones. Check out the feature at The New Moon - subscribe. Tots worth it. 

Outfit for all my shoots: Hong Kong opening up slowly as things return to the new "normal"

Post vaccination, as the number of new cases spiral down in the 852 (God in heaven, finally!), shoots are happening again, brands are doing events again with great caution and precaution. I've been approached again with plans for events post-June to do invites and mini events. Hmm. Interesting times ahead. 

Will we - as humanity, not just Hong Kongers, learn anything from what's just happened in a post-pandemic world? 

Doubt. 

But here's hoping...

April, 2021

After Covid-19 paused Bollywood , Hrithik Roshan is finally back on set – so how did he become one of India’s best loved stars?

More than a year after War – his blockbuster hit with Tiger Shroff – Hrithik Roshan posted an Instagram photo of him back on set: as the actor turns 47, we take a look at his bumpy rise to fame

The pandemic might have hit pause on the Indian film industry, but luckily for us, its masked superhero is back.

Bollywood superstar Hrithik Roshan kicked off 2021 with an innocuous post – “back on set” – that sent all 33.3 million of his followers into a tizzy. And for good reason – the Indian actor is on screen back where he belongs after a year of no film releases.

As the iconic Indian actor and dancer turns 47, we take a look back at the rise, fall and re-emergence of an icon.

Read the entire feature online at SCMP here.

My interview with Hrithik Roshan in the archive here, when he was in Hong Kong, training for Krrish.

Original Spin: Upspun: Will scan-to-fit revolutinise fashion?

Will scan-to-fit tech revolutionise fashion? Sweden’s H&M brand Weekday is among the first high-street brands to offer made-to-measure clothes – get the ideal cut and reduce waste

Hong Kong’s Unspun, Gay Giano and Isabella Wren are already using the system to tailor personalised attire for men and women

Body scanners can log your measurements in a matter of minutes to ensure the perfect cut – soon you’ll be able to scan your size at home with an iPhone

Read the entire feature at SCMP here.