Luxe 21 01 2016 issue01 pdf low by Partha Pratim Sharma-Portfolio

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01-16-2016

16:32 Color: C K Y M

THURSDAY, JANUARY 21, 2016

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FROM THE HINDU BUSINESS LINE | www.businessline.in

Swish precision Futuristic timepieces — from hydro technology to biomorphic cases — promise to demolish the lingering image of the Swiss artisan as being conservative

hat’s the ﬁrst image that comes to your mind when you think of a smart-watch? A small LED screen that simply mirrors information from smartphones and tells time the usual way? While most geeks might be content with today’s ‘Beam me up, Scotty’ devices, a bunch of independent Swiss watchmakers are redeﬁning the smartwatch concept for those who dare to be distinctive. Neither connected to a smartphone, nor relaying information from one, these smarter and truly futuristic timepieces will demolish the lingering image of Swiss artisans as being conservative. Imagine, for example, a watch powered by liquid! The Pharaohs used water clocks. Nearly 3,400 years later, horologists have created wristwatches that defy gravity to tell time using reservoirs of liquid.

Back to the future Called Hydro Technology or HYT watches, they rely not on any computerised chip but have a mechanical mind of their own instead. Vincent Perriard, CEO of HYT, explains that the technology was inspired from the 3000 BC water clock Clepsydra, which had two flexible reservoirs with a capillary attached at each end. One contained an aqueous liquid with fluorescein in it, while the other held a viscous transparent liquid. What kept them apart was the repulsion force of the molecules in each fluid.

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We know that Pharaohs used water clocks. Nearly 3,400 years later, horologists have created wristwatches that can stun gravity to tell time using reservoirs of liquid

How did this device tell time? “The hours are indicated by the coloured fluorescent aqueous liquid released from a flexible reservoir compressed by a piston. These reservoirs, or bellows, are located at six o’clock and are made from a supple electro-deposited alloy. The first coloured liquid travels through the capillary, pushing back the transparent viscous one into its own reservoir and then returning to its original position at six o’clock in what is referred to as a retrograde manner.” The HYT team works with NASA suppliers in the US for its watch parts. The company has crafted several limitededition watches for a waiting list of connoisseurs. The price: ₹35 lakh onwards. Yes, they sell in India too! “A new era of watches has dawned,” declares Perriard. Indeed a new era for Swiss watches with more than one ground-breaking idea. Maximilian Büsser & Friends, or MB&F, is another independent brand that is in demand for unconventional, smarter watches. Founder, Maximilian Büsser insists it is not just a brand. “It is a concept lab where we deconstruct traditional, very high-end watchmaking and reconstruct it into amazing pieces of 3D kinetic art.” Launching MB&F — his ‘dream project’ — after several successful years as Managing Director of Harry Winston Rare Timepieces, Büsser only recently managed to bring it to India, a country close to his heart, since his mother is an Indian. CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

Liquid time Maximilian Büsser, founder of MB&F, or Maximilian Büsser & Friends, is another independent brand that is pushing the bar for smarter watches. MB&F recently introduced his futuristic watch designs in the Indian market

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LUXE ALL/ 1 Inside_01 User: cocge

01-16-2016

16:35 Color: C K Y M

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Gender-bending the rules of fashion Women embraced androgynous fashion a while ago. But men’s fashion is ﬁnally catching up

Showstoppers High-end fashion might not have embraced the theme in a large scale yet, but contemporary designers are slowly bringing this trend to the runway. (From top left, clockwise) Works from Radhika Sachdeva’s Bodice; Ranveer Singh, in an Arjun Saluja creation, with Priyanka Chopra; actor Jaden Smith; Rishta by Arjun Saluja; an outﬁt by Bodice. BODICE/AFP

he ﬂowing silhouette of the kedia top on a male goat herder in the desert of Kutch. The female sarpanch in Haryana, in a crisp white buttoned shirt offset against her glittering neon ghagra. Sartorial choices of men and women on the streets are often precursors to what will play out on the runway, and its cyclical nature is a reminder of the changing fashion seasons. But a trend that has remained forever fashionable in newer avatars every passing decade is androgynous fashion. Diane Keaton walked the streets of Manhattan in a coat and tie in the 1977 ﬁlm Annie Hall. She continues to sport dapper looks at award shows giving the customary designer gown a miss. Actors Anne Hathaway, Jennifer Aniston and Natalie Portman have also worn suits on the red carpet. Whether onscreen or on streets, women have always experimented with androgynous looks, but the only skirts popular among men have been kilts. And those are more a statement of heritage than a fashion dare. Among the few men who did blur the line were Mick Jagger and David Bowie who howled onstage in mascara and a dress in the ‘60s.

Quick recap While high-end fashion might not have embraced the theme in a large scale yet, contemporary designers are slowly bringing this trend to the runway. In January 2014, Gucci’s menswear was sported on female models with androgynous features and thin male models who walked the ramp wearing silhouettes which would traditionally ﬁnd place in women’s collection. That same year, Ireland-born designer JW Anderson’s collection ‘Versus’ also saw pretty men in makeup and lace. Then, in the ﬁrst week of January this year, Nicolas Ghesquière, the creative director for Louis Vuitton, announced via Instagram that 17-year-old actor Jaden Smith, son of actor Will Smith, is the new face of SS16 Womenswear Campaign. Closer home, runway outings by designers such as Dhruv Kapoor of DRVV, Arjun Saluja of Rishta and Radhika Sachdeva of Bodice have celebrated and experimented with androgyny. Dhruv’s 2013 Lakme Fashion Week showcase included straight tunics with side slits that can be worn as a dress CM YK

by women or layered over pants by men. Monochromes in black, white and the occasional nude tone also lent itself into an androgynous style. The brand’s vision is to move “past social conventions (and this) is expressed in the androgyny of the garments.”

Skirts and suits

Louis Vuitton recently announced that 17-year-old actor Jaden Smith is the new face of its SS16 Womenswear Campaign

Arjun Saluja’s lifelong tryst with androgyny materialised in 2014 as his collection ‘Rishta’. “If you look at the history of India there was a lot of tailoring that was involved, besides the embellishment and the surface ornamentation. It's about taking those concepts of menswear and applying them to women's wear. It's about working with different shapes and forms and seeing how 2D would fit into 3D. It's a very technical way of looking at it”, he said in an interview to The Hindu in 2011. Ranveer Singh wore Saluja’s ‘skirt-suit’, and went on to be named the Most Stylish Male Actor of the Year at the Absolut Elyx Glamour and Style Awards recently. “Androgyny for women has been around last two decades or so — androgyny for men is clearly having a moment now. Besides jewellery and dhotis, angarkhas and anarkalis are in vogue for men. “A major part of the trend involves the confidence and the attitude to carry it off,” says Diksha Sachdev, CEO, Fashion Solutions, a marketing agency for fashion and lifestyle brands. Delhi-based designer Radhika Sachdeva of Bodice also blends classics with a boyish style and creates androgynous basics in neutral palettes. While men may not be in a hurry to make a fashion-statement in skirts, women continue to experiment with androgynous style with plaid shirts, boyfriend jeans and Oxford shoes. “For winters it will probably involve borrowing some sweaters from my man. And then there are the power suits, loafers and big bulky boyfriend watches on a dainty wrist that I would swear by,” says Richa Gupta, Founder and CEO of Zumbasa, an online retailer of women’s clothing and accessories. Even though all these styles seem to blur the line dividing gender, each item of clothing exchanged between men and women and worn with gay abandon is not necessarily an androgynous fashion outing. Defining style in gendered terms can be as restrictive or limiting as the socially defined norms of behaviour for each. In the end, fashion remains a sacred and special way to be who we want to be. MANIKA DHAMA is a freelance writer and journalist based in Dubai

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LUXE ALL/ 1 Inside_02 User: cocge

01-16-2016

16:35 Color: C K Y M

THURSDAY, JANUARY 21, 2016

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BLING

Swish precision

Liquid swag In each of the four corners of HM6’s biomorphic case is a 360° sphere. (Right) On the reverse are twin spherical turbines that spin to power the winding system, to reduce stress and wear in case of excessive speed Horological Machine Number 6, aka ‘Space Pirate’, is one of my favourites from MB&F. Though not their latest, it perfectly defines what MB&F stands for. In each of the four corners of HM6’s biomorphic case is a 360° sphere. Right in front are two semi-spherical indications that display hours and minutes in large, legible numerals. On the reverse are twin spherical turbines that spin to power the winding system, to reduce stress and wear in case of excessive speed. At the centre is a dome for a 60-second flying tourbillon, the precision regulator of HM6’s engine. The flying tourbillon is functional, of course. The fact that it looks sensational is a bonus. Any Space Pirate would expect protection from the harsh rays of the sun. Team MB&F has added a retractable, semi-spherical, titanium protective shield to protect the machine’s lubricating oils. A crown at 9 o’clock opens and closes the cover in — and like — the blink of an eye.

Crafted to perfection “It takes about four years from ﬁrst sketch to delivery. Any MB&F watch takes about 2,500 to 3,000 hours of work to complete in the purest tradition of high-end

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These futuristic timepieces are not made for every watch-wearer

artisanship,” says Büsser. These futuristic timepieces are not made for every watch-wearer. “Our clients are self-assured personalities who do not care if no one recognises or understands what they wear. Contrary to people trying to show off,” Büsser declares. Both HYT and MB&F are showcasing their newest creations for 2016 at the prestigious Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH) in Geneva this month. For the ﬁrst time SIHH has nine independent brands, including names like Cartier, Audemars Piguet, Panerai and others from Richemont group. HYT will unveil HYT H2 Tradition. “In 2016, we want to highlight the traditional watchmaking with our H2 series. But we are also launching the new liquid colour that took three years to develop,” says Perriard. MB&F has already announced the launch of the Platinum version of its very popular Legacy Machine 101 for SIHH 2016. “Expect eight new product launches in 2016!” adds Büsser. SHILPA DHAMIJA is the Editor-in-chief of LuxuryVolt

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LUXE ALL/ 1 Inside_03 User: cocge

01-16-2016

16:37 Color: C K Y M

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Rise from the ashes From the Electronic Peacock Festival to Colomboscope: How post-war Sri Lanka is fuelling a music, arts and ﬁlm festival scene against all odds

Art, not war At the Electric Peacock Festival (left to right) it is easy to forget that merely six years ago, Colombo was plagued by military check posts and bomb attacks YOU’RE MY FAVOURITE

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n the 1980s, only hotels had nightclubs and packed a crowd of 300 on weekends. The biggest bands to visit were The Wailers or Kool & and the Gang,” says Russell Fernando, a renowned music performer and owner of RnB, one of Colombo’s leading nightclubs. A stalwart of the scene, Russell has lived in Colombo since before the civil war in Sri Lanka. “Now we have so many concerts lined up. The future’s looking good.” At the Electric Peacock Festival (EPF) on the lawns of the Taj Samudra, a stone’s throw away from the beach, as DJ Yoda’s breakbeats blitzes the air, it is easy to forget that merely six years ago Colombo was plagued by military check posts and sporadic bomb attacks. “We grew up during the war,” says Leah Bazalgette, cofounder of EPF. “We lost so many friends and family members.” As the festival picks up tempo, expatriates and Sri Lankans dance their cares away. Kids don face paint, costumes and fairy wings. The Grammy-award winning Mark Ronson pumps his arms in the air as he plays to a thousandstrong audience. In the last year Shreya Ghoshal, Sean Paul, Enrique Iglesias, and Lionel Richie have all enthralled ecstatic crowds here. The festival has also seen Basement Jaxx, Tinie Tempah and Chicane in past editions. From the look of things, Colombo is shaking the war off in style. Since the end of the Civil War between the separatist LTTE and the Sri Lankan army in 2009, business and tourism has seen steady growth. The increase in post-war infrastructure and real estate deals, resulting in billion-dollar highways and multi-million dollar hotels across the island-nation, has been followed by arts and culture festivals in Sri Lanka. Colombo Art Biennale, Galle Literary Festival, Colomboscope, Jaffna Music Festival, and the ﬁlm festivals in Colombo and Jaffna are just a few of them. Audience numbers vary — the largest averaging at 5,000, save for solo acts like Sean Paul’s that gather double the crowd — but festival organisers aren’t worried. “First, we want to foster a culture of festivals,” says Tasha Marikkar, co-founder of EPF. “That will take some time, but we want to get it right.”

Audience numbers may vary, but Sri Lankans and organisers are keen to foster a culture of festivals

Literary display The Galle Literary Festival, the brainchild of Anglo-Australian denizen Geoffery Dobbs, stands out because of its tidy line-up of celebrated authors. Gore Vidal, Tom Stoppard and Richard Dawkins have held court here. Amitav Ghosh, Anuradha Roy, Jeet Thayil and Samanth Subramaniam will speak at the festival in 2016. “Initially, the aim was to reconcile with the repercussions of the war through literature and the arts by voicing

Tune in Sound installation called 'The Vimana Kiranaavarta Observatory 2015' on the roof of the Rio hotel thoughts and having open debate. Now we want to move forward – not by forgetting the past, but by concentrating on showcasing everything that our beautiful country has to offer,” says Amrita Pieris, Director of the 2016 edition. When the Galle Literary Festival took a break for three years, the Goethe Institut and the British Council sprang into action to launch Colomboscope — a multi-disciplinary event featuring art, music, ﬁlm and literature. Curators Menika Van Der Poorten and Natasha Ginwalla gathered a host of international, Indian and Sri Lankan artists and speakers for the 2015 edition. The skeletal innards of the bombed Rio Hotel and cinema complex ﬁttingly housed charged art, music and video installations. The scars of the 1983 anti-Tamil pogrom remain evident even today, and each year the festival’s theme has, unsurprisingly, explored war, identity and geography. In 2015, the Rio also hosted the Pettah Interchange, an electronic dance festival that was co-founded by Asvajit, one of Sri Lanka’s star exponents. Jan Ramesh de Saram, cultural coordinator, Goethe Institut, calls the Pettah Interchange an intense musical experience based on the Berlin model of reviving derelict spaces, but says what is important is that this might be one of the few self-sufficient events. Self-sufficiency is a term that crops up repeatedly during interactions with festival organisers.

Money matters

Changing Colombo A view of Slave Island from the bombed and looted Rio hotel and cinema at Colomboscope 2015 RUVIN DE SILVA CM YK

“Funding for the arts was easier during the war and immediate aftermath,” says Colomboscope’s Van Der Poorten. “Several international organisations and embassies were keen to fund cultural dialogues when the country was under duress. Sadly, there is a lot less of that going on these days.” On the subject of funding, Goethe Institut’s de Saram is blunt: “Elections and new governments create a reluctance amongst officials of all institutions and foreign missions to approve anything.” Festival organisers feel the government must step up efforts to support cultural initiatives. Petra Raymond, the newly-appointed Director of the Goethe Institut, points out that artists lack governmental support for everything

Self-sufficiency is a term that crops up repeatedly during interactions with festival organisers

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from venues to creative direction. But something that has changed is that artists aren’t being scrutinised like before, she adds. “There is a freedom of expression in Sri Lanka that I haven’t always experienced in other countries,” she says. Raymond has worked in Syria and Pakistan where discussions on movies, texts or ideas are held while hiding in living room or libraries. “For 10-15 years, we had worked with uncertainty and a kind of trepidation,” says Jagath Weerasinghe, co-founder of Theertha, an instrumental contemporary art collective. “But now, as an artist, I have a real sense of a free psychological space. I can do what I want and I know I am not going to be taken into custody for it. That feels damned good!” he says. During a Theertha performance in 2015, two artists sported electric halos, which are widely seen on Buddha idols around the country, and walked near a temple. While there were vehement objections from passers by, as well as police questioning, the performance itself was not stopped. A real marker of the recent tide of freedom and openness in Sri Lanka was when in 2015 the international film festivals in Colombo and Jaffna screened movies with Tamil protagonists. Muttrupulliyaa…? dealt with the plight of Sri Lankan Tamils after the war and Dheepan, the winner of the Palm D’Or at Cannes, traced the life of a former Tamil Tiger looking for normalcy. It is widely surmised that neither of the films could have been screened even a year prior. As post-war Sri Lanka finds its groove while running and managing events by successfully negotiating with different governments and financiers, a host of indomitable wills keep the island’s contemporary arts and culture scene firmly on track. Small but consistent followings continue to bolster events such as the Centre for Performing Arts in Jaffna, I Love Una, Hikkafest and SunFest, and many more scheduled for 2016. “The political situation has changed for the better and people aren’t hiding in their houses,” says Raymond. “You can feel the positivity in the atmosphere. Can you point to another country that has had such a start, or demonstrates such optimism?” GOVIND DHAR is a journalist, currently based in Sri Lanka

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LUXE ALL/ 1 Inside_04 User: cokjk

THURSDAY, JANUARY 21, 2016

01-16-2016

16:41 Color: C K Y M

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LUXE ALL/ 1 Inside_05 User: cokjk

01-16-2016

16:42 Color: C K Y M

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The CES showcase The Consumer Electronics Show recently ended in Las Vegas. Launched in New York in 1967 with just 250 exhibitors, CES 2016 had 3,600 companies from 150 countries with more than 1.5 lakh attendees. The biggies of the tech industry made news, as usual, but some other announcements and displays stood out

Smart bras and shoes Another giant leap for men and women. Tech developers are clearly bending over backwards to make path-breaking health and ﬁtness wearables. The Chromat Aeros Sports Bra has 3D-printed frames from shape memory alloys and features Intel’s Curie Module. If you are feeling hot, the bra will sense the increase in heat and sweat, and open vents to cool you down. Men don’t have to feel ignored. On display at CES were Altra IQ shoes. The smart shoes are powered by iFit, a system that provides the athlete with personalised analysis and coaching tips. The shoe, to be priced at $199.99, will be launched next year.

MedWand Finally, something for the good of all mankind. The multi-tool medical instrument called MedWand enables a doctor to examine patients who are in another city, state or even country. MedWand is expected to hit markets in March 2016, and is awaiting FDA clearance. Developed by US-based MedWand Solutions, the device comes with a digital stethoscope, high-def camera to look at skin and inside passages, a thermometer, pulse oximetry, respiratory and heart rate monitors, EKG, and Bluetooth for peripheral device data. AFP/ ROBYN BECK

Trackimo and CleverPet Pet-owners with deep pockets have more reasons to splurge. The CES 2016 had several tech products aimed at those who consider pets cherished family members. Take Trackimo, for instance. The wonderwoof bow-tie shaped activity tracker is made for dogs and virtually tethers people to their canine companions. Another whacky gadget for pets is the CleverPet Hub, a gaming console for dogs priced at $269. Yes, you can chew on that. The console is Wi-Fi enabled and will engage your canine friend while you are away.

Eastman Kodak Super 8 movie camera This is a blast from the past. All cinephiles have longed for the touch and feel of the reel, rendered obsolete with the rise of digital technology. Well, the Great Yellow Father has heard you. Eastman Kodak launched the Super 8 Revival Initiative at CES 2016. The Super 8, launched 50 years ago, has been used by several great filmmakers. Kodak said it won’t stop at a new camera and has a roadmap in place to launch film development services, post-production tools and more. With its aim to create a new ecosystem, will this initiative successfully blur the lines between analog and digital, and manage to save the craft of filmmaking? REUTERS/STEVE MARCUS MAHIMA A JAIN

Uncompromising in style and delivery B&O Play H2 Headphones are just right save for some minor glitches

hen it’s a Bang & Olufsen piece, it’s a distinct pleasure to listen to the music ﬂow. The B&O Play H2, bears all the ‘earmarks’ of a well crafted and highly stylish set of headphones and with the company’s signature sound, ﬁnely tuned to cover a full range. Its delivery of acoustics makes it a worthy accessory for your mobile or portable media player. The design hasn’t quite strayed from the path set by its forerunners; however, it has managed to make it comfortable, robust and easy on the ears and eyes. The headband and outer shell of the H2 are built from an adaptive composite material that looks and feels very sturdy. The headband’s upper and inner portion features a soft rubberised cushion that sits slightly raised from the smooth contour of the curve of the band. That, coupled with the durability of the soft, plush lambskin leather ear covers make for a product that’s lightweight (150g), strong and comfortable for longer use. The covers also help ensure that you are listening to the music and just the music; the outside world just fades away. There’s zero audio leakage from the H2 — perfect to enjoy those private moments while commuting while taking in the surroundings.

Low notes All that said, the lambskin can be a slight problem for those living in humid places such as Mumbai. Perspiration is something not everyone can deal well with. The provisioned cable (1 m) features an inline three-button control module with a built-in microphone for calls. It’s great with Apple products and allows control of the volume, pausing/resuming, skipping tracks and taking/ending calls. The H2 doesn’t play well with Android or Windows devices. Other than for calls and playing/pausing music, there’s no other function — even the volume buttons seem redundant. The audio quality is crisp, clean and balanced proporCM YK

The audio is crisp, clean and balanced proportionately across the entire acoustic range that high-end players are equipped to dish out. The deﬁnition of the audio is, in a word, sublime.

tionately across the entire acoustic range that high-end players are equipped to dish out. The definition of the audio is, in a word, sublime. The H2 handles deep bass with panache and delivers a solid grounding sound stream. B&O have fitted the H2 with two 40 mm drivers and thrown in a bass port with each earcup to make sure that all audio passing through these headphones is tuned to perfection. The highs and mid-range levels are almost precision-perfect but can seem just a little hidden behind the lower tones. Over all though, it’s like standing in the sweetest spot in an auditorium. Even at extreme volumes (and we do not recommend that) the B&O Play H2 comfortably handles the output with not so much as a squeak or sharp tone. The Bang & Olufsen H2 headphones, priced at ₹15,000, will be available in an array of colours Carbon Blue, Silver Cloud or Feldspar Green and textures of the rugged textile used by designer Jakob Wagner. The headphones are just a rung away from perfect but are so close it’s hard to tell. Given that there’s no Bluetooth functionality, some might contest that the price is not justified, but if you are an audiophile who’s always on the go and you’re looking for a trendy option, it’s not going to be easy finding a product to beat the B&O Play H2. DHIRAM SHAH is the Mumbai-based founder of Luxurylaunches.com

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LUXE ALL/ 1 Inside_06 User: cokjk

01-16-2016

16:43 Color: C K Y M

THURSDAY, JANUARY 21, 2016

SAUNTER

Old Mahabaleshwar, new memories There’s more to Mumbai’s favourite hill station than multiple ‘points’ and boating on the lake. Dig a little deeper to discover the treasures

Factﬁle Getting there Mahabaleshwar is 260 km from Mumbai, and it's a scenic drive via the Mumbai-Pune Expressway and NH4. Stay Luxury: Le Meridien Mahabaleshwar Resort & Spa offers rooms from ₹7,499 (including breakfast ) Mid-range: At Bella Vista Resort rooms start from ₹4,200 (including breakfast) Do Trek to the various viewpoints, which offer stunning views of the valleys. Visit Shivaji's bastion Pratapgad (20 km) or the pretty temple town of Wai (33 km) Eat Get your stock of fresh strawberries at any of the farms or from roadside vendors. Head to Mapro Garden for strawberries and cream, fruit crushes and syrups.

On the edge The inﬁnity pool overlooking the Sahyadris at Le Meridien. There are several enjoyable treks to the various viewpoints around Mahabaleshwar

rowing up in 1980s Bombay, summer holidays meant escaping to the hill stations of Matheran or Mahabaleshwar. My brother and I were always excited at the prospect of boating on the Venna Lake, pony rides and picnics. In the 1990s, our family holidays acquired a global flavour and Mahabaleshwar only lived on in our memories, and in a handful of photographs. So, a recent weekend getaway at the Le Meridien Mahabaleshwar Resort & Spa became an opportunity to reacquaint with an old favourite. The six-hour drive from Mumbai was punctuated with traffic snarls and my driver’s insistence on beating Schumacher’s records. I arrived at the resort with slightly frazzled nerves, but found quick solace in its sylvan setting. The resort is built on 27 acres of forest land. The 122 rooms and suites are spread across discreetly spaced villas, connected by winding, tree-shaded trails. The next day I set out for Le Meridien’s Destination Unlocked programme that offers guests curated local experiences that are different from the usual, touristy ‘must-dos’. My first stop was the Krishnadevi Temple, located at the end of a small trail behind the more famous Panchganga Temple. The temple complex is large with several carved columns, and a serene kund (water tank) in the middle of the courtyard. “This is a 5,000-year-old temple and was built by the Pandavas”, claimed Mangesh, the temple priest. This, of course, seemed like a stretch of his imagination and belief. Google revealed that the temple was built in 1888, at the source of the River Krishna. The river flows from a

Le Meridien Mahabaleshwar Resort & Spa is built on 27 acres of forest land

One with nature The 122 rooms and suites are spread across discreetly spaced villas, connected by winding, tree-shaded trails.

stone gomukh (spout shaped as a cow’s head) into the kund, vanishes underground, and reappears in the valley below. Inside the pitch dark sanctum sanctorum, the shivalingam resting over a massive stone dhamru (drum) was lit by a few lamps. There were hardly any devotees, no stalls peddling offerings, no ‘guides’ looking to make a quick buck — just the peaceful temple overlooking a misty valley and the river cutting through it. From the temple I headed to Panchgani, 20 km from Mahabaleshwar, to visit the Devrai Art Village. Devrai (sacred grove) is a non-proﬁt initiative started by Mandakini

Mathur. It employs craftsmen from the Naxal-affected areas of Gadchiroli, in eastern Maharashtra, and Chhattisgarh, to create iron and brass artefacts. “We started Devrai seven years ago under this umbar tree,” said Mathur, pointing to the massive Ficus, sheltering a workshop. There was a large pile of stones in a corner. Mathur explained that Devrai is known for the Rock Dhokra art form. “Dhokra is a traditional tribal art technique used to make brass artefacts, but here we have created a fusion art form by melding brass with these stones collected from the Krishna river bed,” she said. The artisan visualises a form around a stone, perhaps a charging bull or a shapely woman, and creates a wax mould, which is then packed with layers of clay. After about 20 days of drying, the mould goes into a kiln, where the wax melts and runs out, and molten brass is poured in. “The brass solidifies in seconds, then we break open the mould and we have our rock dhokra figurine,” elaborated Mathur. The kiln was ready to be fired up. Two young men placed half-a-dozen completed moulds inside. As sparks flew, they worked quickly with the molten brass. An artisan sat nearby, carefully working on a new mould. I watched as new figurines took shape — a calf, a frog, a fish with a bottle-opener at its tail. No two pieces were alike. I came away with my own little memento — a handcrafted tortoise with a stone body and brass head and legs. Mahabaleshwar meant something more now, surprising and delighting me in equal measure. PRACHI JOSHI is a Mumbai-based food, travel and lifestyle writer

An affair with a difference A Thai doesn’t have to be just beaches and sun. It can include colons and poo spas too

ost people go to Koh Samui in Thailand on honeymoon, or to celebrate wedding anniversaries or to rekindle the spark. I went there to learn how to be in an affair — with

my colon. Ten kilos is a lot of weight to have amassed in a year, and I had done just that. I tried everything: yoga, walking 7 km a day, a vegetarian diet, a Paleo diet, a soup diet, you name it. Nothing worked. My doctors said I was fine, just getting older. So I decided on a detox holiday. Not the predictable variety with fancy massages and a controlled diet but one that included a week-long liquid diet, coupled with yoga, meditation and massages. And the kicker — two colemas a day. What the hell is a colema? Quite simply, it’s a treatment in between an enema and a colonic. Simplest description: 16 litres of coffee-infused water to titillate the colon into emptying its contents. On the day I arrived at Spa Samui, a resort built in the jungles of Samui island, there were only two other residents. My diet for the day was only raw food. At 7 am the next morning, I reported at the Detox counter where a beer glass awaited me — instead of lager, it was filled with psyllium husk and bentonite clay in pineapple juice. It served the purpose it was meant for: kill the appetite. I was also rationed several doses of herbal pills with diuretic properties. This made me run to the loo, of which there are aplenty in Spa Samui, every five minutes. Four pm and it was time for my colemic rendezvous. CM YK

Simplest description: 16 litres of coffeeinfused water to titillate the colon into emptying its contents

The lovely Annabel, with spotless skin and a demeanour that screamed ‘alternative lifestyle’, tried to allay my fears. She introduced me to the kit that would purge my colon of all impurities. A bucket filled with coffee solution, an assortment of tubes, including — gasp — one that went into the anus, and a Thai equivalent of the K-Y Jelly. Within the safety of a toilet cubicle, Annabel imparted the most important lesson — like the local guide of a disaster tourism destination. The bucket topped with room temperature water was to be hung at a hook above the commode. On the top of the commode was a fibre glass surfboard contraption and a cement-tiled cube opposite it. I had to hook in the tubes to the bucket, connect it to the anal insert, gel myself, slide down on the surfboard and well... stick the tube in. The bucket had six blue stickers at regular intervals indicating the amount of water I should release into the colon. I was this close to fleeing the resort, but I managed to stay on.

Talking shop Everyone at the Poo Farm — in a few days there were nine of us — discussed bowel movements in graphic detail. Nothing can break the ice better than a pile of shit. Soon enough, we were trading the most embarrassing details. Sample this: A woman’s colon threw up a Barbie shoe she swallowed as a child; another resident ‘lost the marbles’ consumed in boyhood. And there were tales of ‘anacondas’ and ‘pythons’ exiting bodies. Such camaraderie made the cups of insipid, mineral-rich broth we were made to sip every day, palatable.

Sun and spa Koh Samui in Thailand is known for luxury spas and resorts. (Left) Two buckets of coffee solution: ingredients for a perfect colema SHUTTERSTOCK Did I feel hungry? No. Did I lose a lot of weight? No. But my skin was glowing, I felt lighter and cleaner and the procedure had kick-started my metabolism. I have returned with colon-cleansing senna pod tea for weekly detox. By the end of the holiday, I was so pooped out that I spent two days recouping my energies at the Ananatara Lawana, a beach resort in Koh Samui. After that intense relationship with the colon, I deserved this honeymoon with myself. APARNA JAIN is an Integral Master Coach and an author. Her latest book Own It is on leadership lessons for women

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‘I knew my food would work…’ When Chef Akira Back decided to open shop in India, he had no vegetarian dish on the menu. But his Korean roots helped him woo the picky Delhi diner to his restaurant at JW Marriott

estaurants in the Capital tend to shine for two or three years before being upstaged by newer, shinier places. In Las Vegas, Chef Akira Back’s Yellowtail restaurant is a favourite of celebrities, such as Taylor Swift and Eva Longoria. Therefore, to visit Chef Back’s eponymous two-year-old restaurant at the JW Marriott in Delhi and see it throbbing with customers on a weeknight, it is no surprise that he has beaten Delhi’s jinx. Over the signature dish of tuna pizza, Back tells us the food trends to look out for in 2016 and what makes the Indian diner different. How did you make the leap from Vegas to Delhi?

I moved to Vegas from Aspen, Colorado. My partner and I agreed on expansion of the Yellowtail brand. But that didn’t happen. So after seven years I called my friend who used to work with Marriott and said it’s time to start Akira Back. I didn’t have too much hope. It was out of the blue. But in two days he asked me if I could ﬂy to New Delhi. I was like what’s New Delhi? And he said well, it’s Delhi, but the newer part of the city. I came here the next day. I saw the project. We went to a lot of local restaurants and I noticed the palate is friendly to me. I knew my food would work. The food was very fast and simple. That’s how I like to do things too.

Thanks to TV, the chef has changed in the public eye; he or she has become a star now.

spices are getting very popular. Flavours are going to be very strong in 2016. Mild food is over. It’s a cycle. In ﬁve or 10 years we’ll go back to traditional food. I hate the term fusion food. All my food is non-traditional. How has the advent of celebrity TV chefs changed the food scene?

TV has been good for publicity. The chef has changed in the public eye; he or she has become a star now. That’s great. But, to be honest, there’s a lot of nonsense on TV too. I sometimes wonder if these winners of cooking shows can really cook. So there are both sides to it. There is a lot more gimmick around food because of TV and more people are obsessed by plating and not ﬂavour. But on the other hand, it has also led to awareness about good food and different cooking techniques. VEENA VENUGOPAL

Global adjustment The Indian diner is well-travelled and has an understanding of global cuisines now. (left) Chef Akira Back

When you started, what exactly did you want to offer the Indian diner?

I wanted to infuse more Korean palate. Koreans use a lot of spices, a lot of fermented stuff. So the flavour profile is strong and, in that sense, similar to Indian food. Indians are quite similar to Koreans. They either like you or they don’t. They don’t beat about the bush. I like that. My menu is universal. I don’t change it very much. For India, the only thing I studied is a way to add more vegetarian options. Our restaurants in Vegas are so busy that if someone came in and said I am vegan, I would say, sorry, we can’t help you. But coming to India, I really had to figure out good vegetarian options. And it has been great, because in the recent years, US has also seen a shift to vegetarianism and I have used my experience in India to create a vegetarian and vegan menu in Vegas. I hate it when you go out with your friends and one is vegan, one is vegetarian and one is not a fan of seafood. I create the menu such that six picky eaters can all have a great meal and enjoy themselves. What has India taught you?

My big learning has been in understanding vendors and supply management. We understand the local sources a lot better now. For this restaurant, we started growing our own micro-greens. Now everyone is using our micro-greens. The diner for me is the same as everywhere else. The tuna pizza is my number one everywhere I go. It doesn’t matter what your roots are, food is becoming universal. Our palates have changed signiﬁcantly and we all have global palates now. The Indian approach to food is not very different. Our customers here are well travelled. They know their food. But Indians really eat crazily late. In Korea we have dinner at 5 pm. In Vegas, we close the restaurant at 10.30 pm. People eat early and go to the nightclubs. Here, at 10.30 pm we start getting busier. That’s one difference in India. What are the top food trends in 2016?

Garlic will be the most signiﬁcant ﬂavour this year. And CM YK

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