Out of my Closet: Komal Mirchandani

With a personal touch
A mini version of her boutique, the wardrobe of Komal Mirchandani, the stylish owner of Sanskrit on Lyndhurst Terrace, is immaculately organized.

Areas of her cupboard are cordoned off for her Western outfits, her shimmering saris, designer bags and bejeweled shoes. And there's a small area reserved for her husband to hang his shirts. "Otherwise, the place is all mine," she says with a laugh.

"I know where every single item is. I hate a messy environment and thankfully my kids have inherited that from me. Well, my son has. My daughter is studying in Britain now and when she comes home, it's like typhoon has hit the room."

The clothes are a reflection of her identity as a Hong Kong Indian. "I've lived in Hong Kong for five decades and it is really my home. I go to India often and have been to many of the fashion weeks that are held in Delhi and Mumbai, and I pick up pieces that suit my lifestyle."

She likes pieces that have a Western silhouette with an Indian touch. "It isn't practical in the heat and humidity of Hong Kong to wear traditional saris all the time or a shalwar kameez, so we - and I can speak for many Indian ladies in Hong Kong - wear them for special occasions only. I try to remember how my mum taught me to wear a sari, but now there are many ready-made saris I can just zip into."

For her daily wear, Mirchandani goes for comfort with a splash of style. "I pick up outfits with little Indian embellishments, like a sparkling arabesque pattern at the collar, or a print that's colorful."

She often wears Indian designer shoes, but also has a collection of Jimmy Choo, Giuseppe Zanotti and one pair of Christian Louboutins. "His shoes are gorgeous, but they are so painful after 10 minutes. I'm sure many women secretly agree with me."

For Mirchandani, a personal touch is important in fashion. "There are are some designers who  I won't work with or buy from as they are difficult for no reason. It's really important for me to like them, that we have an understanding and a connection.

"Not only do I wear the designs of Satya Paul, Rina Dhaka, Rabani and Rakha, and Anjalee and Arjun Kapoor, I sell their pieces in my shop. I knew Anjalee and Arjun before all the Bollywood stars started wearing their outfits - they're lovely, talented people, who understood that many of us non-resident Indians need to mix and match, it can't be too traditional or too Western. They have reconstructed pieces for me, to suit the weather and style here."

Mirchandani travels often, and prefers shopping in London to the US. "In the US, you see the same brands in every mall. You see them in Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, you'll find them all in Hong Kong too, so the temptation to shop there is limited. In London, it's great to find these off-the-beaten path boutiques in Marylebone Lane, and Marylebone High Street, Knightsbridge, New Bond Street and Notting Hill."

She prefers authentic jewels and stays away from costume jewelry. "My traditional sets of kundan or polki jewelry or the bigger diamond sets are locked away and come out only occasionally.

"I'm glad fashion evolves constantly, " she says. "Remember when people frowned if your bag didn't exactly match the colour of your outfit? Thank God, we've moved on from matchy matchy."



Text: P.Ramakrishnan (ramakrishnanp @ hotmail dot com)
All photos by Carmen Chan.

Just another day in the office. Outtakes from a wedding shoot

Going over printouts and colour proofs and what not for upcoming issue. 

With my gorgeous friend Aliya, yet again.

Model: Aliya Zaidi

Photographer: Samantha Sin

MUA: Rennie Fensham 

Cover shoot.... Behind the scenes of Galaxy magazine cover shoot in Macau

Risking life and limb for the Winter cover shoot of Galaxy magazine!

Ah that Jonas will find a unique angle at whatever cost!

Can't wait for YOU to see the final cut.

Rama

Galaxy magazine, Fall 2012: Melanie Z cover girl

Woo hoo! It's here at last.

Galaxy magazine, Fall 2012. 

Worked with an amazing team to create the best cover/issue yet.

Melanie Z on the cover rocked it out.

My usual team at the shoot, Olaf Mueller (photographer), Karen Yiu (makeup) and co. 

Worked with the loverly Tasha Ling (stylist) for the first time, she styled the cover shoot/inside shoot.

Already working on Dec issue now... 

PS: The Galaxy font is gold - but when you scan the mag cover, it comes out black. Don't ask.... 

It looks much better on hand that online! ;0)

Isle be back! Behind the scenes of a bridal shoot for a special edition of Galaxy: The Wedding Issue

Hmm. No major updates in ages. Have been up to my nostrils with magazine work. Super excited about a project that's coming soon, come November...

Some snaps from the making of!

First shoot with the fun Rennie Fensham (hair/makeup) and model Amanda G. My n'th shoot with Taner S. 

Shankar Mahadevan in Concert: Indian singer, composer, TV Star and Reality TV Judge in Hong Kong

Normally when Indian singer and composer Shankar Mahadevan visits Hong Kong, it’s for a private performance. But the star has announced a one-off concert in the city for his loyal legion of fans, who he loves to connect with through social media.

“Well, I have a fan page which has about 730,000-plus followers,” said the star, who is also a judge of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa (an Indian talent show similar to The X-Factor). “I joined quite recently and originally wasn’t that active. But now it’s a great way to inform people about events, about my music academy, and get their feedback. When you see how many young people are taking part in reality shows via social media, it’s great to know that interest in Indian music is alive and well with the youth.”

Mahadevan had his own star encounter earlier this year when he performed with soul legends Stevie Wonder and Chaka Khan.

“Walking up the stage to sing with my musical heroes, the ones I’ve looked up to my entire life – what can I say? I was representing India for a jazz festival at the United Nations and all these luminaries were on the same dais. To have Stevie Wonder on the piano, sing with him and Chaka Khan. Amazing!”

Mahadevan will be performing on Sunday at the Convention and Exhibition Centre. Tickets are available through hkticketing.com.

Shankar Mahadevan Live In Hong Kong
Sunday, 7 Oct 2012 at 7pm
Tickets: HK$300-HK$1500
HKCEC - Hall 5G (Harbour Road Entrance)
Tickets: www.hkticketing.com 

A Star is Reborn: Sridevi

Fifteen years after she stepped out of the spotlight to focus on her family, Indian film star Sridevi returns with a new movie. P.Ramakrishnan meets the Bollywood legend.

Queen, housewife, journalist, nurse, mystical snake-woman, princess, bandit, goddess, secretary, mad woman, fallen angel, police officer, drug addict, wannabe pop star, dancer, singer, embittered first wife, chief executive, Afghan tribal leader,  falsely implicated drug smuggler and streetwalker – Sridevi has been them all.

Star of  more than 200 Indian films (in five languages) and a member of the haloed pantheon of Bollywood celebrities, Sridevi is a larger-than-life figure.  She had done it all on-screen by the age of 34. With beguiling, sari-clad ease, she’d sung and danced, grieved and raged and cried and laughed on the big screen. As a child star – she won her first award before she was a teen – to a leading lady and screen icon, her cinematic journey was marked with box-office triumph, record-making paychecks and trophies galore.

Then she took a break – for 15 years.

WITH  A TEAR ROLLING down her cheek and a quivering smile, Sridevi faced a 10-minute standing ovation after the premiere of  her comeback film,  English Vinglish, at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 14. At the event, her glistening  Sabyasachi  Mukherjee sari ranked her alongside  best-dressed celebrities Zac Efron, Penelope Cruz and Monica Bellucci – and that was before she brought her most potent weapons to bear.

Sridevi at the Toronto International Film Festival. Sept 14, 2012

“Those eyes – when she looks at you, you sort of get lost,” says writer and director  Gauri Shinde, who yanked Sridevi out of her self-imposed retirement. “As a woman, I  [was affected], I can’t imagine what it does to men.

“Meeting Sridevi the first time was surreal. Is this true? Is this happening? I felt like I was in the middle of  Requiem for a Dream, not sure what was real and unreal. I sat there and just watched her.  And she looks like a diva-movie star in her natural state. She was at home in blue jeans and a shirt. She had no make-up on, her youngest daughter was running around. She has this lovely, luminous skin and the most gorgeous, heart-breaking eyes…”

Heart-breaking indeed.  Oscar nominee and  Midnight’s Children director Deepa Mehta, who ran into Sridevi at the  festival where both their films were being screened the same week, tweeted: “There is something very poignant, heart-breaking about a megastar making a comeback after eons.”

Shinde flinches at the word “comeback”: “Oh that expression means nothing to me. The movie was never a vehicle to bring anyone back. My husband [producer/director  R. Balki] was in conversation with Sridevi’s husband,  Boney Kapoor, and casually mentioned that I was working on my first film. Sridevi overheard and was intrigued by the story. She asked to meet me.”

With a background in  advertising, Shinde wrote and directed a slew of  minute-long ads in Mumbai before she took a break and flew to New York to study film.  Her first short,  Oh Man! (2001), was screened at the  Berlin International Film Festival. Her latest script, written in 2008, was penned  without a specific actor in mind.

“My first full-length feature film, with the most famous Indian actress alive – who thinks like that?” laughs Shinde, pulling back copious curls. “I’m certainly not that optimistic. I feel everything fell into place by some miracle, from my DOP [director of photography], music director, crew and cast – that includes  Mehdi Nebbou [seen in  Steven  Spielberg’s Munich and  Ridley Scott’s Body of Lies], I can’t imagine this movie without them. The script   I had written, shooting that in cinematic New York, in Pune, where I grew up, in Mumbai, where I work, it was all a waking dream come true.”

“The script made me want to do the film, and, of course, Gauri,” says Sridevi,  when I grab a few minutes with her at the  JW Marriott hotel in Mumbai. She has just finished a workout and  stands before me in a tracksuit. Her hair pulled back in a tight ponytail, her unmade-up skin showing few signs of her  49 years. She’s soft-spoken, notably shy, yet easy to smile.  And when she looks at me, I know immediately what Shinde was talking about when she mentioned those eyes …

I zone back in and ask about the reasons behind the 15-year break.

“When I had my daughters, I didn’t want to miss out on anything, so I took a break,” says Sridevi.  “I didn’t want to miss their first words, their first walk, by being on a set while the nannies took care of them. Because of my children, I didn’t miss the industry, not even a little bit.

“But I didn’t think I’d be away for so long. When Gauri gave me the script to read, I loved it. I could relate to it – so I did it. Had she come to me four or five years ago, I would have said yes then, too.”

Born to  Ayyappan and Rajeshwari in  Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu,  Sridevi was first cast in a Tamil film  at the age of four. One film led to another and  her  career as a formidable child artiste grew as she appeared in a spate of South Indian films. National recognition came a little later. Solva Saawan  (Sweet Sixteen; 1979),  her first  Hindi film, tanked  at the box office and Sridevi was happy to never do a  Bollywood  movie again. She’s often said she hated doing the film as she didn’t understand Hindi.  Years later, she gave Bollywood another try. With her voice dubbed by another artist (she learned Hindi years later), she exploded into the national consciousness in  Himmatwala (The Brave One, 1983).

So much has changed in the  15 years  she has been away from an industry that centres on the young, the new and  the endless parade of beauty queens and models with limited acting skills.  In her second act, will the audience find Sridevi as appealing as they did when  temples were created in her name? The premise of  English Vinglish is unlike any  of those that are garnering millions at the box office in India, or  elsewhere, where action-packed flicks and inane, slapstick comedies have been  filling cash registers.

And then, there’s the age factor.  As  Meryl Streep famously said in Vogue after having been offered three parts as a witch: “Once women passed childbearing age … they could only be seen as grotesque on some level.”

When Sridevi left the industry she was pregnant with her first child   and had seen the song and dance numbers peter out. She had been nominated for best actress at the Filmfare Awards – the Indian equivalent of the Oscars – consecutively for five years  and the critically acclaimed film  Lamhe (Moments, 1991) had garnered her nearly every major award, although the box office had not been kind.

If Shinde’s anxious about  ticket sales, though, she shows no sign of it.

“It’s been a blessing that I’ve not had a moment to think about opening weekend box-office figures,” Shinde says. “There’s always a modus operandi in the media to work a phrase into a film: it’s a ‘women’s picture’ – which it isn’t; I’m no feminist, neither is my film – it’s not a ‘comeback film’ – which is such an easy slot to pigeonhole this into – and I certainly don’t think about whether the movie will make a 100 million. I honestly haven’t thought about it as we’ve been working day and night to meet deadlines, firstly to send the final cut to Canada for the film festival, then simultaneously, as the movie is being made in regional languages, we’ve had launches and premieres in different states in India, so all that has to be overseen.

“Thankfully, my husband is Tamilian, he’s been going over all the details for the [southern] states in India.  We’ve not forgotten that Sridevi is one of the last pan-Indian stars. She’s a familiar face everywhere by the sheer volume of films she’s done.”

In English Vinglish, a linguistically challenged housewife,  Shashi (Sridevi), is  married to an educated patriarch  (stage actor Adil Hussain), who is condescending about his wife’s English. A family wedding takes Shashi to New York, where she’s traumatised by the overwhelming city and its foreign cacophony. Encouraged by her niece, she takes up English tuition, joining a class of immigrants.

Having been the leading lady in five regional languages, Sridevi  says, “I’ve always had a problem with language – so when I did this film, I could relate to it instantly. I’m not fluent in any [she says with a laugh].

“My directors used to call me a parrot,” she said in an interview with CNN. “I’d retain the dialogue, emote what was necessary, but I didn’t know what I was saying in the beginning when I did films in Kannada, Malayalam and even in Hindi in the 1980s. Now I’m better but …”

A comedy of errors and miscommunication aside, the film is a gentle probe into class structure, alienation, fear and embarrassment brought on by a world that speaks a common language – but where the lead protagonist doesn’t.

“My mother’s the inspiration and starting point for the film,” Shinde says. “She’s a businesswoman and always felt had she been fluent or at ease with English, she would have prospered much more.  She thinks the film’s about her – but it really isn’t. There’s no Frenchman in her life who comes  and whisks her around New York. She’s happily staying put in Pune.”

How did the Frenchman, played by Nebbou, who is used to working in understated American and European films, feel about his love interest?

“He, like most of our cast, was in awe of our leading lady – my husband calls her the ‘hero’ of the film,”  Shinde says. “Sridevi has this awesome way of being completely true to her character on-screen and then she just switches back to being herself when the scene’s done.   She’s very shy and  keeps to herself, mostly. Well, she did originally and most of the crew – many of us who grew up watching her – were in awe of her. But she made the effort to put her co-stars at ease.”

As the late  photographer  Gautam Rajadhyaksha, who had known Sridevi from her first few Hindi films,  once said: “There are two Sridevis. Two people as different from each other as you can imagine, leading quite separate lives, who never seem to meet even though they inhabit the same body. I first met the off-screen Sridevi. She’s shy, unsure, awkward, an almost simple-looking girl who  talks in barely audible murmurs. Then, there is the screen Sridevi, who appears as if by magic the minute you switch on the  arc lights. She’s a sensuous seductress capable of unblocking your abused arteries with one look from her smouldering eyes.

“No matter how she saps my energy and spontaneity with her obsession for perfection, the Adrenalin spurts back the moment she turns to face the camera.”

At the Toronto  festival, co-star  Adil Hussain said: “Having worked on stage for years, I’m not in awe of stars. When I heard I had to work with her, I thought, ‘Good, she’s a good actor.’ But the one time I was nervous,  was during a scene near the end of the film  when I had to dance with her.” Hussain   covers his eyes with his hands. “Dance with the Sridevi. That day I was full of doubt.”

Says Shinde: “She  doesn’t live in the past, there are no affectations, she’s supremely  … normal. She’s just so calm and collected.”

The film itself has a patina that’s more Westernised than the glitz and glam of  the average Hindi movie. The director’s proclivity for independent films as opposed to mainstream, song-and-dance flicks, is visible  in the trailer.

“I think my film is not ‘filmy’ … Despite having such a glamorous mainstream actress, I didn’t want to fall into that trap. We kept it   suited to her character, there’s no big ‘item’ song number, and this is despite the many people who told us that you can’t have a film with a dancing diva and not make her dance. But I listened to no one. You’ve got to have conviction in your own story, what’s right for her character, it’s pitched that way. There are no jokes per se, there’s no slapstick, there’s humour, drama, emotion, romance, it’s all there, but it’s subtle.

“It’s a different masala.”

English Vinglish is showing on October 5 and 6th at Chinachem Golden Plaza Cinema, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
Shows: 9.30pm
Tickets: HK$120 - HK$180
Tel: Morning Star: 2368 2947



NOTES: Have written for Post magazine for years, my first cover story and that too with my fav subject in the world; Sridevi. Every teenage dream of mine came true.

Got a note from Shobhaa De, author and a power-that-be at Penguin India, to write Sridevi's biography. Hmm. Something to think about in 2013...

An archive of other interviews and features of mine with B'wood actors:

Hrithik Roshan, The Master's Apprentice 

Aishwarya Rai: Hooray for Bollywood

Abhishek Bachchan: Heir and Graces 

Priyanka Chopra: My Life 

Sushmita Sen: Universal Appeal 

Amazing to see Sridevi on the cover of Hong Kong's largest circulated magazine (in English). South China Morning Post's weekend magazinee, Post magazine.

UPDATE: Note from Gauri Shinde below. I die! =0)

Purple Reign: Designer Anna Sui: Interview in Hong Kong with an Asian Fashion Icon

Anna Sui has stood the test of time in the fickle world of fashion. she talks fairies and friends with P.Ramakrishnan.

Global citizen is an oft-misused term. But for designer Anna Sui, the words fit comfortably. "My parents were born in China, but they met in Paris, lived in Europe and then moved to the United States. I was born in the suburbs of Detroit and grew up on pop culture, television and rock'n'roll," says the eclectic creative. "Am I American or Asian? I think of myself as a global person, which in essence we're all becoming."

Sitting in a flower-festooned suite at the Four Season Hong Kong, Sui was in the city to launch Fairy Dance, the last installment in a trilogy of perfumes known as Secret Wish. Fairies make dreams come true, notes Sui. 

The launch represents yet another mini-milestone in what's been one long and rewarding career of them. Sui, whose exuberant designs meld influences as disparate as Victorian cowboy, Andy Warhol and Finnish textile print is among an elite to have received a lifetime Achievement Award form the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), whose lofty company includes Yves Saint Laurent, Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren, and Diane von Furstenberg. Named one of the "Top 5 Fashion icons of the Decade" [TIME}, her eponymous brand has grown to become a global fashion industry worth an estimated US$400 million by Forbes magazine. Comprising clothes, cosmetics, eye-wear, and accessories, along with her line of signature fragrances. Sui has more than 50 boutiques in eight countries and sells in over 300 stores in more than 30 countries.

Increasingly, and the irony is not lost on Sui, the potions have became brand enhancer and profit elixir, "Fragrance is the crown and glory of a design house," she says. "It can reach further than your clothing and fashion. People now think of me as a perfume; it transcends a real person."

Like any prescient creative Sui's wardrobe - worn by luminaries such as Sofia Coppola, Zooey Deschanel, and Kristen Steward - is the result of a wild mind and disciplined eye; she's equal parts fashion student and research shopaholic.

Her latest collection, inspired by illustrator and photographer Antonio Lopez, reflect that approach, "Lopez brought the excitement of New York fashion to Paris along with a bevy of models, and they invaded all of its nightclubs. He inspired people like Karl Lagerfeld and Yves Saint Laurent. Because of Lopez, pret-a-porter was born and European designers wanted to do more immediate and younger fashion. There was vintage inspiration too. Women like Paloma Picasso and [model/actress] Marisa Berenson wore things from the flea market. All these influences exploded at this great time - and that was big inspiration."

Hence the intricate homage to vintage prints and sepia-tones that infuse the collection. "I love the way fragrance crates mood - so can colour. I constantly look at photographs, paintings and film from whichever period is influencing me and try to capture that colour and put it on the catwalk."

Appropriating from her own palette, Sui's collection also sees a return to flora and fauna with this collection. "For a few seasons I was trying not to do floral because people know me for it, but this season, it's all floral."

Fascinated as she is by narrative and cultural history, Sui's story is like a re-spun Cinderella of modern day mythology in which the evil stepsisters make way for a glamazonian supermodels. A graduate of New York's Parsons School of Design, she styled with photographer friend Steven Meisel, designed for sportswear companies and then launched her brand in 1980m which grew during the decade. So impressed were catwalk queen s Naomi Campbell and Linda Evangelista they encouraged - and then offered - to do Sui's first runway show in 1991 for free.

Sui, who still maintains contact with both, smiles at the recollections: "I don't see them as often as before because they don't do the shows. But I do see them, Naomi's boyfriend has a place in New York so we get together for dinners. Linda lives in New York some of the time so I run into her every so often. We were pals. I knew them more as friends than as models and we fostered a great friendship over the years."

The show's success saw Sui open her first store in 1992 on Greene Street in new York's Soho. With its vibrant mix of black Victorian furniture, purple walls, and rock'n'roll paraphernalia, it set the tone for all Anna Sui boutiques since.

Today's face of Anna Sui fashion, cosmetics and perfume is Swedish sensation Frida Gustavsson, a dream fit for Sui.

"Frida's the type of model that only comes along every so often, she wear s clothes beautifully and so gracefully and doesn't have to be retouched. She's perfect."

It's hard to feel anything but joy and warmth for Sui in the face of her passion and enthusiasm. Fairy and god-mother, fashion and dreamer, for one so ground she's high fantastical.

Symbol, Philosophy

Anna Sui's Fairy Dance is the third installment of perfumes under the title Secret Wish. "We wanted something that was light and fresh, the way the other fragrances were, but this one has an element of fruit: tangerine and mango," she says, as a voluptuous bottle, topped with a fairy cap mists the air. "We wanted to evoke sunshine, when you see the juice itself, it has a sunny glow to it. We tried to capture a summer festival feeling with roses, and rose gardens and fairies, laughter and friendship."

The seemingly lofty aspirations are grounded in reality, as Sui explains. "There's a festival I go to every summer in Cornwall, England, a long weekend where we celebrate life with music, literature and now there's a fashion element going on there. And I thought, why not do something inspired by all of that? All in all, it's about friendship. See in this whole theme, a fairy-tale element.

Fairies are the ones that can answer your dreams, which can make your wishes come true. So why not have the fairy as a symbol?"

Anna Sui

Creatve Force: Interview with Jeweller to the stars: Stephen Webster

Stephen Webster leads a double life as regal and racy jeweller, writes P.Ramakrishnan.

Designer to the stars and royalty, Stephen Webster creates jewellery collections with split personalities: one espousing glam-rock attitude, the other regal distinction and contrarian reserve. As such, he's the Jekyll and Gyde of high jewellery a playful practitioner of precious stones, two parts danger, and one part discretion.

The flamboyant designer shares something of the rock star glow. With pierced ears, long tresses, raspy baritone and electric wardrobe (leather pants, velvet jacket included), Webster could easily double for Mick Jagger. His chest cascades with chains and his fingers drip rings that bear racy rock'n'roll names like "Thorn", "Poison Apple", and "Seven deadly Sins".

Webster's double life is punctuated by a pair of Elizabeths; one a British monarch, the other, Hollywood royalty; "Though I never met her - and my god I would have loved to - Elizabeth Taylor is the first encounter with celebrity for my jewellery," says Webster as we mull over a treasure trove of his blinding jewels at Lane Crawford.


"My style is a  bit out there, very flamboyant, and I made this lavender-coloured stone, rose-gold ring," eh says. "the colour was an almost exact match to her [Taylor's] magical eyes. She commissioned a bracelet to go with it. This was back in 1984,. I never approached he, I've never had to approach any star, they found us. "


The second Elizabeth in Webster's universe is Britain's ruling monarch Queen Elizabeth. Webster trades rock for royalty as creative director for Garrard, the crown jewellers. "Working with Garrard has been interesting, educational. My two brands; one is 276 years old, full of heritage, and the backbone of Britain, and the other is so rebellious. I'm really a craftsman, it's about the fine art of jewellery. It's easy to get caught up in the rock 'n' roll element, but I'm into creating beautifully made jewellery and I add my identity and spirit to it." That style and spirit has made Webster a three-time winner of the British Luxury Jeweller of the Year award, and winner of UK Jewellery Brand 2008.

With a background in art school, Webster might have taken the fashion route, but fell in love with the intricate work that goes on behind the scenes of jewellery design. "I could always draw, I thought I'd go into fashion, but at 16, I saw incredibly beautiful signature pieces of jewellery in London and fell in love with them. It was the crown jewels and pieces at Garrard. It's funny how life works that I was asked to join the brand years later."

Webster, the man who counts Cristina Aguilera (as face and long-time model for his brand), Ozzy Osbourne and Madonna as clients, pauses for a second and then polishes off the thought: "I wasn't obsessed with the glitz and glamour - I was obsessed with being the best craftsman I could be. I apply that to everything I do and I think people understand that." More in Style magazine, visit scmp.com

Queen of the Night: Interview with Italian Jazz Singer Laura Fygi

As the first glittering name on the marquee, jazz singer Laura Fygi left quite an impression at the launch of CHINA ROUGE. The chanteuse shares a few notes, of the musical kind, with P.Ramakrishnan.

She seems a little flustered at our arrival. “An interview? There’s a shoot too?” she asks – surprised to see our photographer lumbering through the door with his equipment. “I’m not ready.”

But she looks more than ready. Dressed in a shimmering cocktail dress, her large eyes kohled, with a great big smile (albeit a slightly reluctant one at first), Laura Fygi looks as though she was born for the stage. As the shoot begins – and less than half an hour before she is due to walk the red carpet at the grand opening of CHINA ROUGE – she is all of a sudden the consummate professional. The camera loves her.

“I’ve been to Macau before – I came to old, old Macau, not this modern city. I came for a concert so many years ago, and it was nothing like this,” she says, waving a manicured hand around at her luxurious suite at the Banyan Tree Macau. “It’s gorgeous here. It’s like out of a fairy tale. I saw CHINA ROUGE in the afternoon – it took my breath away… It’s another world in there.”

Indeed it is. As Fygi opens the night with the classic Dream a Little Dream of Me, she has the audience in the palm of her hand. And she knows how to work a room, easily receiving applause and kisses from an appreciative audience. We speak again after the show, when she shares more about her life as a performer.

“I work off the energy of the crowd; there was an electric vibe in the air, especially as it was the first night. Opening night has its own thrills and anticipation,” she says. “When the audience is willing to participate, it’s more fun. In every country I go to, perform in, it’s a new audience and new relationship. Perhaps an Asian crowd is a little shier at first, especially on the microphone, but they’re eager. The CHINA ROUGE crowd was wonderful.”

Booked for two opening nights at CHINA ROUGE, Fygi enraptured the audience with her mellifluous tone. Sticking to jazz standards for her set list, it’s no surprise to learn who Fygi’s favorite artists are. “For me, Julie London is the singer. The greatest. Ever,” she gushes, adding, “These days I’ve been listening to a lot of Michael Bublé in the car, especially his covers of classics and some of his new songs that have that old flavor. Frank Sinatra is another perpetual favorite.”

As she reels off the names of timeless singers and songs, Fygi herself seems to have taken on a timeless aura. She looks easily a decade younger than her age, 56, and the multi-faceted performer is versatile enough to tackle giant, orchestral numbers alongside smooth jazz songs. Stretching out on a divan at the door to her suite, she poses à la Cleopatra – perched on one arm, her body reclining across cushions. Of Egyptian and Dutch parentage, equally at home singing in English or French, and now with a Chinese song in her repertoire, Fygi embodies the axiom that music has no borders.

“When I saw the large Chinese paintings and the calligraphy, I knew I’d fit right in on the CHINA ROUGE stage. It’s so gorgeous, so beautiful – it’s got the vibe of a certain era in China that I’ve read about in novels, seen in old movies,” she says. “I’m doing pretty well in China – for the last 10 years, I’ve been coming. I’ve sung in English and French – I’m most comfortable with those languages, or even Spanish and Portuguese. Singing a Chinese song was a challenge – I don’t speak Chinese. I’ve had to learn; it’s one of the hardest things I’ve had to do. Someone told me what the words mean: that’s really important to me. If you don’t know what you’re singing, how can you emote?”

Fygi’s music is certainly a multicultural product; still, the level of success she has been enjoying recently in China, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Macau seems surprising.

“It’s about the music. I happened to be successful in other countries already, and when I was first asked to sing in China, it was exciting,” she says. “I wanted to know how people would react. Every new country is exciting. I know they like the songs, as they’ve bought the records – but am I the person they think I am? When I’m up there, live on stage, will the audience go for it?”

As she made her way up there, that star-lit night in Macau, to face a new audience at a new venue, what was going through her mind? “I can’t remember,” she says. “But then I can’t remember much about shows gone by; I don’t focus on the past. I can’t even remember my first concert ever. I have fond memories of a show at the Royal Theater in Amsterdam with the Metropole Orchestra; I played the lead in Victor Victoria in Singapore – those were memorable times, but I don’t remember individual shows. They’re all great – I’m always having fun!”

As Galaxy Entertainment’s Vice Chairman Francis Lui mentioned on opening night, one of his favorite all-time singers is Fygi. Has she been surprised to find herself so popular on this side of the world? “No, I’m not surprised – I’m totally worth it!” she says with a laugh. As she is whisked away by her entourage, her parting note says it all: “You know, my last album was called The Best is Yet to Come.”

Evidently it is a motto she lives by.

Wu-ing the Audience: Interview with Hong Kong TV Icon David Wu

TV personality David Wu is someone who comes alive on stage. Recently Wu played the role of emcee at the opening of CHINA ROUGE – a venue he describes to P.Ramakrishnan as “a class apart”

For a generation that grew up on Asian TV of the 1990s, David Wu Dai Wai – “the Wu-Man” – is an easily recognizable face. As emcee at the opening of CHINA ROUGE, the Chinese-American ex-VJ’s trademark irreverent humor with a hip-hop flavor was a nostalgic treat for the audience.

A youthful-looking 45, Wu may have proved himself on numerous occasions over the past two decades, but the experienced host confesses to still getting pre-show jitters. “My hands shake a bit; my tummy feels funny,” he says, scanning pages of notes on CHINA ROUGE. “I don’t have a script per se – just bullet points… For a venue such as this,” he adds, glancing over the club’s high ceilings and imposing artwork and giving an appreciative whistle, “there’s a moment when you need to absorb it all.”

Switching seamlessly on stage between Mandarin and English, Wu is a born host – his stated nervousness not at all apparent – and the night goes without a hitch. But it wasn’t always so, says Wu. He remembers fondly the trial-and-error days of his early years in live TV. “We were making things up on the fly – we were so young, the station was so young,” he grins. Wu famously hosted Channel V’s Go West program, which taught American slang to young Chinese. “That entire show was made up in a few minutes,” he admits. “We had zero budget to work with – a room, a camera, a few props; and I started familiarizing [the audience with] hip-hop terms, sports terms – the slang that really isn’t taught in school... It’s amazing how that resonated, as I see the ripple effects years later… The strangest people come up and tell me about terms they learned!”

In the dot-com-bubble era, Wu’s fans might have thought they had lost him, as he swapped live TV for the world of Hong Kong cinema. “Man, I was in some bad movies!” he says, with his trademark self-effacing humor. “Um, how can I put this delicately? Ended up on late-night cable on an endless loop!”

Fortunately, with his easy wit and charm, Wu has since enjoyed a second successful career hosting events such as openings and award shows – mainly in China, and his newfound home of Taiwan.

How has he found this trip to Macau, and his first stay at the Galaxy MacauTM? “It’s been great – the hotel, the club,” he says. “It’s really a class apart.”

Behind the Scenes: Galaxy shoot

Behind the Scenes: Galaxy shoot with Michael S and Andressa.

I met Gauri Shinde and Sridevi Today.

No other byte. Just wanted to mark one of those amazing, dreamy, dreamy days...

Domestic Goddess: Alia Zaidi at home

Photography by Olaf Mueller 

Assistants: Moses Ng and Toby Chan 

 Hair and Make-up: Karen Yiu 

Art Direction and Styling: Rama and Aliya Z 

Producer: P. Ramakrishnan 

* Special thanks to Ann Tsang See earlier post, 

Making of... Domestic Goddess

Seeing Red: Cover shoot for Galaxy magazine with Kimberly Verge and David Elliott

Photography: Jonas Lillie 

Stylist: Jolene Lin 

Makeup: Karen Yiu 

Hair Adam Wong 

Models: Kimberly Verge and David Elliott from Starz People 

Art Direction: P.Ramakrishnan 

An amazing shoot done at Galaxy Macau's China Rouge. 

Big loser a winner on the trail

FIT & FAB

Being half the man you used to be tends not to be a good thing, unless you're Andre Blumberg. Over the past two years, the 42-year-old Hong Kong-based German has shed so much weight that he literally looks half the obese, 100-plus kilogram guy he was....


P. Ramakrishnan and Jeanette Wang
Aug 07, 2012

Galaxy cover: Summer 2012: Kimberly Verge stuns in Armani on the cover of the magazine

Super-duper thrilled with the Summer 2012 issue of Galaxy. Best cover, best cover-shoot yet. 

Gorgeous cover girl Kimberly Verge in Armani, shot inside China Rouge. 

The full shoot coming up... 

Photography: Jonas Lillie 

Stylist: Jolene Lin 

Makeup: Karen Yiu 

Hair Adam Wong 

Models: Kimberly Verge and David Elliott from Starz People 

Art Direction: P.Ramakrishnan 

An amazing shoot done at Galaxy Macau's China Rouge. 

Sridevi's Top Ten Dances

My feature for Filmzine.




By P.Ramakrishnan

Long before the term 'item number' hit the Hindi film vernacular and film-zines, southern sensation Sridevi was uplifting the cinematic experience with her dose of glamour, grace and dancing style in Mumbai's movie musicals. Her dances are a highlight of many a movie that are otherwise unwatchable, particularly in the drivel of the ‘80s.

Sridevi had an innate, untutored talent for dance, she never studied the art unlike her South Indian contemporaries like Meenakshi Sheshadiri, Jaya Prada, Bhanupriya, Radha or famed film rival and Kathak-exponent Madhuri Dixit. What she did have was natural rhythm and a treasure-trove of myriad expressions. The audience couldn't wait to get to the part where Sridevi let loose on screen with her magical moves in films that often had little else.

Sridevi's sizzling act on screen was often partnered with non-dancers like Rajesh Khanna, Sunny Deol, Anil Kapoor and the like, much to the chagrin of choreographers. But they were left unperturbed as the opportunity to work with Sri was compensation.

She could do any number with ease, be it classical, modern or a western number. You wanted her to break-dance and ape Michael Jackson? Done. Do a navasara-nritya under the shadow of the Natraj? No problem. Seduce on screen in monochrome chiffon saris? Done, and how!

Sridevi was a Jack(y) of all trades, no step beyond her reach, no expression beyond her faculty. Like her Tamilian predecessors Vyjanthimala, Hema Malini, Rekha, it was the unspoken yet acknowledged rule that to rule B’wood, acting chops and scintillating beauty wasn't enough; you had to dance like a dream.

And even in the garish technicolour dream sequences of the ‘80s, Sridevi shone through. Whittling down the list to just ten song/dance sequences is hard (with over 100 films and roughly six songs in each, that's a lengthy cinematic CV) but here's what it, roughly, boils down to:




10. Main lagti hoon Sridevi
Choreographer: Saroj Khan
Singer: Aasha Bhosle
Music: Bappi Lahiri
Film: Nakka Bandi (1990)

Never heard of it? Youtube it. The film Nakka Bandi is God-awful, but the song is a complete delight. The lyrics are deliciously loopy. The choreography isn't perfect but watch Sridevi in her cheeky, unadulterated best as she mimics yesteryear actresses. Note her comic timing and getting the gist of her predecessors in two-second shots. Irreverent but without being profane, Sri, as always, gets it right.


9. Morni baaga maan bole aadhiChoreographer: Saroj Khan
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
Music: Shiv Hari
Film: Lamhe (1991)

Oh what a song! What a film! What a performance! Five-time Filmfare winner, Lamhe was the most surprising flop from the Yash Raj banner, that walked away with the most astonishing acclaim. This isn't the big jhatak-matak number that Sridevi was most oft famed for. Simple, subtle, a reinterpretation of a traditional Rajasthani folk song, its magic.

Megha re megha, Mohe chedo na and Morni were a series of songs Sridevi performs as Pallavi, the older woman Virendra Pratap Singh (Anil Kapoor) falls for. It’s hard to pick which of the three numbers were better than the other, but for argument’s sake, lets elect Morni. The undulating sands, the gorgeous (Neeta Lulla’s National Award winning) outfits, the intricate movements and expressions, its heaven on the ear and easy on the eye.


8. Main aisi cheez nahinChoreographer: Chinni Prakash
Singer: Kavita Krishnamurthy and Mohd Aziz
Music: Laxmikant Pyarelal
Film: Khuda Gawah (1993)

Although Sridevi was in a league of her own like her Goliath co-star Amitabh Bachcahan, the two superstars appeared on film together just thrice; Inquilab (1984), Aakhri Raasta (1986) and, the best of the lot, Khuda Gawah (1992). The dance perhaps best captures the unspoken yet palpable sense of competition the reigning royals of Bollywood had while sharing screen-space. The engulfing costumes can barely tame the leonine Sri from giving the number her almighty all. Even Big B’s left watching her agape at the ferocity of his leading lady and was most notably eclipsed by the lunar charms of Chandni herself.


7. Dushman dil ka jo hai Choreographer: Chinni Prakash
Singer: Kavita Krishnamurthy
Music: Laxmikant Pyarelal
Film: Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja (1993)

It’s the song that inspired Amitabh Bachchan to send a truck-load – not a bouquet - of flowers to Sridevi’s house much to her sheer joy and self-professed embarrassment. Roop Ki Rani... was excessive in every way, the over-the-top mishmash of every Hindi film cliché was an expensive and expansive venture that was a lengthy yarn which left audiences yawning.

Indubitably, the best bits of the film include Sri and some (not all) of the dance numbers stand out. As dance director Chinni Prakash says, “When you see a dance, the first thing you see is the face and Sri is ex-ce-llent in the face.” See the multi-shots focusing just on her expressions near the end of the song's antra . Damn right, she’s excellent.

6. Tarapat Beete Choreographer: Gopi Krishna
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
Music: Rajesh Roshan
Film: Jaag Utha Insaan (1984)

One of Sri’s earlier (and better) films with the much-whispered about co-star Mithun Chakraborthy, Sridevi has three incredible semi-classical numbers in the film choreographed by the dancer of dancers, Gopi Krishna. The fact she gets her mudras bang-on and posture perfect without lengthy lessons makes her performance all the more laudable. As Bharatnatyam danseuse and Malayali actress Shobhana says, “The fact the Sridevi’s not a trained dancer yet so good makes her one of my favourites.” Many would concur.


5. Nainon mein sapnaChoreographer: P.A. Saleem
Singers: Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar
Music: Bappi Lahiri
Film: Himmatwala (1983)

The song that started it all? Perhaps. Sridevi was already a mega-star in regional films and with a flop like Solva Saawan with Amol Palekar behind her, but she burst into the collective consciousness in flashes of orange and hot pink. In scintillating amrapali outfits among hundreds of pots and pans, feather dusters - don’t forget the feather dusters – its Sridevi glistering throughout this metrical exercise. It ignited a slew of similar cutlery doubled as accessories dance numbers for the succeeding diabolical decade. The antics with her white-pant and white-shoe’d co-star Jeetendra (who on second-viewing appears notably stiff unlike her other limber dancing co-star Rishi Kapoor) is the defining image of the masala movie mayhem. Sri in her conical bra-like tops maintained a distinct lack-of vulgarity in an era otherwise crippled with it.



4. Classical music Choreographer: Saroj Khan
Music: Laxmikant Pyarelal
Film: Chaalbaaz (1989)

Who needs words? Like Janet Jackson, Sridevi made the country grove to her rhythm nation. Chaalbaaz was a tour-de-force double dose by the diva as she essayed both Manju and Anju with equal panache. Forget the comical duets in the film (award-winning Kisike haath and Tera beemar mera dil), watch the dances that Sridevi does in the early reels to instrumental beats, as she wraps each step with rage, fear and tears. It’s a new-age taandav that should not be missed as she whips the air with her long plait and burns the carpet with her steady steps.


3. Kaate nahin kathe yeh din yeh raatChoreographer: Saroj Khan
Singer: Alisha Chinai and Kishore Kumar
Music: Laxmikant Pyarelal
Film: Mr India (1987)

For the past 25 years, Kate nahin katthe has lead the pack as the sexiest duet of all time. Mercifully, choreographer Saroj Khan (who had a rather tumultuous relationship with Sridevi though their interlinked careers provided many of the aforementioned dance nuggets) kept non-dancer and one-step wonder Anil Kapoor, hidden in the shadows and she reserved the thundering steps for thunder-thigh’d Sridevi. It was raining amen. Every rain-song that’s followed (and there have been many done by younger and lesser stars) remains a pale imitation to this class act. As the adage goes, many have imitated, none have bettered.


2. Main teri dushmanChoreographer: Saroj Khan
Music: Laxmikant Pyarelal
Film: Nagina (1986)

A song can't make a movie run is the axiom, but in 1986, Sridevi proved otherwise. Rising above a mediocre script filled with jantar mantars and snakes morphing into people and vice-versa, the highlight of the film is the climactic song that drew audiences in droves. As snake charmer Amirsh Puri’s been starts echoing across the halls of the haunted haveli, Sridevi starts undulating to the music in an erotic blend of sensuality and venom. As a genre, Nagina is a fantasy thriller but the real thrill is watching the curvaceous Sri dance in a flurry and flourish as her sequined ghagra spins around her evil sapera. As a dance, Main teri dushman is a trinity of genres amalgamated; movements from Punjabi folk, expressions and gestures from Bharatnatyam and Kathak’s heady turns, all cobbled together for the seven-and-half minute finale.


1. Mere haathon mein nau nau choodiyan Choreographer: Saroj Khan
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
Music: Shiv Hari
Film: Chandni (1989)

The song bursts into the screen four minutes into the movie and the beats have echoed across weddings from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. Sung with the impish glee of a sixteen year-old by sexagenarian (at the time) legend Lata Mangeshkar, knitted with an infectious beat and complimented with memorably cheeky lyrics, Sridevi elevated a wedding song into an anthem.

As Yash Chopra says, “Sridevi gets very excited about a dance number. I’ll do this and I’ll do that, she says and puts a lot of her personal contribution as an artiste into each song.”

The song captures all of Sridevi in a nutshell; its got her child-like insouciance, her sauciness, her animated antics, her comic genius and her sultry act all rolled into one rocking number. Phew, that’s some number.