Age?Just a year old but already at the end of its life. As 1997 comes to an uneventful end tomorrow, so does the life of many so-called celebs, missed-out events and sordid sagas.
So, what was the high point of the year?
According to this stalker -- a well-known name and face in Mumbai's social circuit -- not a thing. "The year was too full of lows," says the Secret Surveyor.
It cannot have been all that bad? There must be some redeeming features, right?
After a lot of thinking and hemming and hawing, the stalker says, "Diana Hayden being crowned Miss World and the new queen of hearts." Even that win is tarnished, though. "I wonder if she won because of her name or was it the Ketan Somaiya connection," the Wicked Witch of the West adds.
Has the beauty business fared that badly? If our Miss Barbies were stained then what about the high-gloss world of haute couture?
"The fashion shows that Mumbai thinks are like the London Fashion Week or Milan's Clothes Show," says
the stalker, "were all disasters." The biggest flop: the Smirnoff Show gets the award for topping that list. Badly organised, boring designs and boorish organisers. "There was not much happening so everyone flocked to fashion shows."
But the stalker slipped off the high heels and rapier tongue to compliment Rina Shah. The woman behind the brand name Rinaldi, our Glorious Gestapo, thinks that it was high time design entered the arena of fashion accessories.
Mirror, mirror on the wall, which fashion designer dominated the town?
Abu-Sandeep's tenure as Mumbai's reigning design kings is over. Roll over Juhu duo for Shahab Durazi's designs. Not that our roving Fashion police appreciates his work. "They look like polyesters made in Hong Kong kind of stuff."
Let's look at sterner stuff. Who gets the crown for 1997. Which society belle walked away with 1997?
The year saw Parmeshwar Godrej and Maureen Wadia relinquish their crowns. Rather, their tiaras were knocked off their heads and doing the
disabling were the ladies themselves. In the game of one-upmanship -- starting and ending with the Cinthol Look of the Year and the Glad Rags gladeye -- both Parmesh and Maureen ended the year as losers. "The younger women are taking over," says the society's stalker. In 1998: Watch out for Lia Dubash and Ramona Garware. "People may say nasty things about Ramona but she is really a nice girl." Kind words from a self-confessed crone?
And the prize of premier party goes to...
Anuradha Mahindra and her black and white party, held at the glittering Mahindra Towers in Worli. Next, Gautam Singhania's annual Powai party. "Only there was so much security...but that just shows what a sad state of affairs Mumbai's society is in," he says.
Then the day belongs to the young and restless?
No. Some of them -- most of them -- still border on the precipice of wannabes. "Avanti and Yash Birla are so small, they are insignificant. And an industrialist promoting filmi designer Manish Malhotra, now that's
just sad."
Some wannabes such as Queenie Singh have grown up. "But they are still wannabes," says our stalker, condemning people like her to the never never land of snakes and ladders. For every tiny social step up, there is a giant fall back into the world of noveau, where money cannot buy you class. "No one with class entered the fray. But I guess Smita and Raj Thackeray have now entered the high society circuit."
The other comments, names and ranks we withhold in fear of libel.
Explain the emergence of the wannabe species?
"Thanks to the rise of gossip columns in the papers it started with Femina's Incogonito and just spread like wildfire," says Society's Keeper of the Faith.
"Thank God Shobha De has graduated from gossip queen to writing a good column."
Should we write 1997 off as a bad dream?
Yes. But our stalker knew that from the start -- particularly when the year kicked off with the overdone and opulent Godrej wedding. After that the ride downhill was fast and
furious.
What is the stalker's wish for 1998?
"A return to elegance." That will take a lot of hard work, particularly since Mumbaikars lack etiquette. Number two: A definite improvement in dress sense. "Veejays deciding to wear anything that shows as much body as possible, was bad news as your typical clubber copied it -- even though it looked awful."
And what were you most likely to hear in 1997?
"My Shahab is better than yours."
And least likely to hear?
"How beautiful? Is it made in India?"
Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
