Mumbai Diary: Wednesday Dossier

She's nailing the look

Mira Rajput blows on her nail polish, even as husband Shahid Kapur listens to instructions during a shoot at Mehboob Studio on Tuesday. Pic /Ashish Raje

Wool you look at who's in this jury?

The International Woolmark Prize recognises talent from the global fashion industry who take Merino wool, one of the most prized textiles, to new heights with their designs. The award was constituted in 1953. The two designers who won it the following year were Karl Lagerfeld and Yves Saint Laurent, both of whom went on to chart iconic paths in their careers. This year, the advisory council for the award comprises a host of leading fashion editors, stylists and India's very own Manish Arora. The designer shared that it's turning out to be a tough task for the jury to whittle down the 10 finalists who'll compete against each other next year for the coveted honour. But he also said, "The prize will open immense opportunities for them to grow, flourish and make an impact to the industry."

Manto shines in the Land of the Rising Sun

Manto was one of the more important Hindi films to have released last year, evidence of which lies in the fact that a screening for it was held recently in a country as far off as Japan. Director Nandita Das was present on the occasion, as was Kenpaku Kajimiya, who, interestingly, is a professor of Urdu based in Tokyo. Another attendee was possibly the cutest of the lot - Das's nine-year-old son, Vihaan. It's heartening to hear that the film got an excellent reception, and there were some insightful questions that Das got asked at the Q&A session that followed the screening.

A legendary get-together in America

It's always heart-warming to see two doyens of Hindustani classical music get along like a house on fire, like Pandit Jasraj and Pandit Hariprasad Chaurasia do. The two have been thick friends for decades, even though Jasraj has now shifted base to New Jersey. That's where Chaurasia met his pal yesterday, with the latter sharing this photo, and the two gurus later meeting some of Jasraj's disciples in the music academy he runs there. Here's hoping that this relationship lasts for many more years to come.

In hot water

Shiv Sena's Priyanka Chaturvedi had a foot-in-the-mouth moment recently. The party's deputy leader shared a photo of flash floods in Washington and captioned it sarcastically with, "Oops! Damn, can't even blame BMC." This met with angry responses, with one social media user saying, "Mam, next time there are farmer suicides, you can share pics of starvation deaths in African countries," and another stating, "I thought that with Budget 2019, we had dumped the thought of comparing ourselves with the western world." Ouch.

A Finn situation

When Mumbaikar and horse owner Captain Jamshed Appoo was on holiday in Prague this June, he met former Formula One world champion from 1998 and 1999, Mika Pauli Hakkinen aka The Flying Finn. "I met Mika at the Aria hotel where we were both staying. I know him because I have met him earlier in Monte Carlo through common friends, almost 15 years ago," Appoo told this diarist. "Mika was humble and down-to-earth. We had a sandwich and chatted a bit. He wanted to know what I have seen of Prague. It was an interesting, fun time and taught me that never mind records and legendary achievements, in the end, it is kindness, humility and the connect with people that stands out," he finished (or should that read Finn-ished?).

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