The unplanned love for a city

Wow, long… long time and no posts.

So much has happened. I’m officially a Fashion Design graduate now… yep I did it. Our final year graduation fashion show was an amazing experience, and after that we had a couple more weeks wherein we completed our portfolios. It has been the biggest experience in my life so far, studying and living in Bombay. It’s a place filled with raw reality. The one that’s often hidden from you on purpose. The one that you go searching for desperately yet not everybody gets a glimpse of it.

I feel like I’ve gotten something very important from life. I’ll always have a bit of Bombay in me. And I’d always go back. The streets, the people, the lifestyle, marine drive… I can’t say what it is exactly, but it’s a city that’s got everything. Right from A-Z. It’s the beauty from within. You see, when you enter Bombay, you’d be noticing the pollution, the certain hard-earned stink that parts of bombay carry, maybe the insane floods if it’s monsoon season (that’s literally what I first walked into!)…and maybe the traffic and all the people and the life bustling around you will drive you nuts, but once you start living the bombay life… it all somehow adds up. You notice how anything and everything can be done here… you may (like me) feel safe to take long walks at night around bandra and feel absolutely amazing, dodging all the people around you if you will, in fact they don’t even bother you anymore…  You realize how important life is, how important it is to understand people. How important it is to be nice, and how easy it is. I remember sitting by bandstand and I saw this whole family come up with this plastic basin filled with used utensils and a huge bucket of clothes to wash by the sea. First I noticed the mother washing the dishes and the daughter helping her, then I saw the dad washing the pile of clothes, and the daughter went back and forth between the two of them. They were there for at least an hour. So was I. Watching them. Feeling helpless. Those were some of the times I’d try to get it in my head to be grateful for my life. And to believe that what I think is hard in my life might really not be so, and there’s far more going on in the world and the importance of being aware is severe. I’m not saying they’re leading miserable lives, just hard lives. The more I visited bandstand the more I witnessed this. Amongst other things in other places. This is just one among the many experiences that Bombay has given me. People would always say “life passes you by when you’re in bombay”…”it’s so fast-paced!”…but really? Pay attention to life here then you won’t ever say that. You can watch life HD if you like, living in Bombay. It’s that vivid.

On a much lighter note, the other day my friend called me while he was waiting in line to get his hair cut at the local barbers’ at

muhammad Ali road… at 1.oo am! He was 5th in line for a haircut at 1.00 am. And again I thought… no. place. like. Bombay. With a huge smile on my face.

I initially started this post thinking I’ll post all about my fashion show, WHICH IS A HUGE DEAL! …but then I got all nostalgic about Bombay, so I guess a whole other post will be coming up about my show.

Later!

thank you bombay!

It’s been one hell of a month, week, day…

I realized today, traveling in the rickshaw, in this crazy almost-summer/too-bad-winter-is-slipping-away Bombay heat and amidst the worst traffic jam ever, that despite the fact that I’m doing this for the millionth time this week/month/day- sourcing fabric and whatnot, that I enjoy this. I seem to enjoy the fact that I’m working so hard on something like never before, I crib about it, (very little- honestly), but at the end of the day, I enjoy it. Although in the past one week I never got around having breakfast or lunch, I realize that was the choice I made, that was how I prioritized my work… and I wouldn’t have if I didn’t enjoy it on some level. One of my friends said to me the other day “trust me doing what you love to do is a big success in itself”… made me smile thinking just how true that is.

We’ve started working on our final graduating show, you see. Anything and everything that could’ve possibly gone wrong, already has, so I’m sort of relieved. A number of the fabrics I had sourced for my collection beforehand got discontinued by the time I needed to place the order, it was a lot of chaos, a few tears, and with a lot of determination, support (mum especially) and faith, I made it through- I found other fabrics, I got numerous samples made out of which I got to pick the best one… I am now on first-name basis with most of these fabric store/market/ people and those fabric dying and printing walas! It’s quite nice to see their smiles when I enter their stores.

The things I’ve learned in the past one month, week, day:

1. Staying calm works wonders. I could’ve lost it any one of these days. In fact I think I’ve begun to worry considerably less now.

2. People are so, so nice. More than you give them credit for!

There was this one cab driver a couple of days back, he was this stern looking fellow, I shared my kitkat with him, mainly because he looked like he could use it, and the rest of the ride he was giving me (fatherly I suppose I can call it) advice! Just on life and stuff. I had never laughed so much talking to a cabbie! (For my mum, if she’s reading this- I know what you’re thinking- stranger and all, but I gave him that little bit of happiness and that made me feel really good. On another note, no, I don’t share chocolates and laugh along with every cab driver…I promise.)

3. Finishing off work before due date- always works your way. In fact I couldn’t have gotten through so much this month without doing that.

4. After going through the worst day ever, sleep. Or watch Friends. Either can help.

5. Walk lots. Just for the heck of it. Clear your mind, distract yourself, create a story, anything you like. For me, it’s an act of multi-tasking.

6. Sandwiches. Quick and healthy. (Okay, this one I sort of already knew.)

7. If you know that something can be better, then it can, so don’t settle for less.

8. Pasta does it for me. The solution to this month.

(the best pasta I’ve cooked till date!)

9. Balancing work and fun works when you do it right. This month wasn’t all work, I got to hang out with friends a lot as well.

10. Be polite. The amount of people who helped me this month, it’s almost overwhelming. No amount of carrot cakes can show just how much. You know who you are!! =]

11. You’re all you’ve got! Sometimes not relying on anybody else no matter how badly you need to, is the only way you can get things done.

12. I learn every single day that there is NEVER a reason to give up or give in. Can’t stress that enough…

Alright, that’s all for now. Have a good night.

The rainbow at the end of the storm

The title pretty much covers the situation/feeling/moment etc. This is it. Our big fashion show is in 2 days… unfortunately I don’t have sneak peek pictures this time! Was too busy to keep that one little thing in mind. So much work went for this, I really hope the show’s gonna be one of the greatest nights for me! Oh and for those who’re graduating too, of course. It’s rightfully their night.

The Fashion Show @ MOD’ART INTERNATIONAL

See that, so you know WHY I’m looking forward to this so much. Besides, I get to showcase two garments this year, which more or less means double the joy… as well as double the stress it took me to get this far!

As the year is ending (academic year, people), I can say I’ve come pretty far, I’m happy with the progress and I can only hope for a better, much more kickass last year of Mod’Art! This year has helped me actually understand the course, and that whole “need” to do the course became more of a “want” … and also to be one of the best.

Be back after the big night. Promise a post of our show. See ya’ll then! Night bloggers!

On another note, I know it’s only the start of the week, but relax a little, have a slice of some fun looking cake. [The day after my show, I plan to buy a whole freaking rainbow cake like the one below, and have the happiest weekend. ;] Hey, no one’s gonna judge me for planning ahead now would they.. don’t answer that.]

 

A Fashionable Sunday.

A VERY short post, 1. because it’s been a while and I like to update my blog :], and 2. because I’m swamped with work. I really am! Honest.

One whole week, well more like a whole month of working super hard and today I happened to treat myself to a liiiittle shopping trip. I didn’t plan it, it just happened. ;]

I got this beautiful pink top… the detailing on the collar is so in right now, and I’ve been wanting something like this for ages. A decent, completely justified buy I believe, yes? =]

And other than that… my mind is completely occupied with my work right now, so everything else is tuned out. I guess I’ll be back for a kickass post as soon as I can. Still have that LFW post to cover! … Happy Sunday!!

Rain, rain… pain or gain.

“Mumbaikars” either love it or they simply despise it. Rain could be a curse that visits a little too often and without warning, or it’s a pleasant surprise which could be the best part of somebody’s day, for it brings forth a feeling of complete bliss and freedom. Although, in Mumbai, it also brings with it whatever that gets mixed with it on the ground; be it dirt, be it waste articles, be it absolutely anything that people tend to throw out in the public. Yeah, true story.

For me it’s a bit of both. You see, Mumbai floods faster than anything. And for somebody who does a lot of walking and having to rely on public transport to get to places, I might have a problem with rain there. Big problem. Since the start of this crazy monsoon I’ve already spoiled a nice pair of trèsmode shoes. Not good. =|

However, on a day like today wherein I enjoy my day indoors, it is absolutely amazing to sit and watch the rain and feel some of it as well, with a cup of hot tea and some really good music, it made my day quiet a good one. [Despite that I’m falling sick, which I’m guessing is cause of all the rain that I’ve been exposed to!] So like I said, it’s a love-hate thing. You’ll either embrace it or just you know, beware. Stay IN. haha. Goodnight, bloggers!

Happy Sunday morning folks!

Butterfly Cupcake, Bandra west. Made my morning… =)

Woke up to this beautiful day, attended Sunday mass at Mount Mary’s- on my way back picked up a delicious red velvet cupcake from my favourite cupcake shop, came back home & made myself sunday brunch, watched a movie aaaaand now getting back to some work with a smile on my face. Happy Sunday morning folks!

The Fashion Show @ MOD’ART INTERNATIONAL

It went fantastic! I thought it was brilliant, the garments all looked beautiful in their own way and were definitely portrayed well by the gorgeous models!

My duty for the day technically was to be part of the photography team. Well it was “technically” assigned to this girl from my year and I was added along to it (as some people recommended me) “if she gets tired, you can click the pics” sort of a deal I was told. I decided to not let that interfere with my genuine interest and love for photography and clicked as much as I could, and to the best of my ability, and also it was a mini war field out there with all the other press photographers and all. Such a cool experience. Tiring but I loved it. :] I got some amazing snaps and I was so thrilled with how it was going…but as always some sort of mini disaster did strike, my card got full (I probably shouldn’t have taken all the rehearsal pics before), nevertheless I did have 2 other cards which were full with old pictures…and then I had to delete and click..delete and click…you see, it got a little messy and I missed about 5 garments or something. Never gonna happen again!!

Here’s how I’m gonna go about this post… I’ll write something about each collection and then add a few photos. There were about 109 garments which is why I’m only adding a few. For instance, in the case of 1st years I’ve added just one garment from each group. Enjoy the show!

The show started around half past 7 at the Crystal Ballroom of Hotel Sea Princess @ Juhu Mumbai, they showed a small video clip on the 2 huge screens at either sides of the room, clips showing the faculty at our institute as well as an intro on our 3yr students of design. Then the show started off with first year’s first group- “Palace”. Generally the whole first year collection was inspired by our trip to Rajasthan. Candice started off the show…. this model can really make anything look good on her. You’re just about to see why. Group members: Pooja Mistry, Shezeen, Mehraaz, Ariba and Jeemol.

The second collection is black with mirror. (the group that I’m a part of). Other group members: Jigar, Farhine, Janki, Ekta and Sanjana.

The penultimate collection of the first years was the “Desert” group, the group members: Niharika, Jyotipriya, Aeishwarya, Gazal and Saloni.

The last group from our year, the “balcony”: group members: Tanzeer, Jennifer, Saraie, Pooja Parekh, Krisel and Trisha.

Next up were the 10 garments, designed by  2 of our patternmaking short-term course students- the whole concept being “larger than life”, and the pictures shout out just that. Again, Candice kicks it off…

Then the 2nd year students collections- which were 3 garments each, inspired by Pondicherry. As many cultures are present in Pondicherry, you can see a variety of cultures; victorian, japanese, etc in their collection. [this is sort of where my camera messed up)

Last but not the least… the 3rd year students of Mod’Art present their collection, four students each having 12 garments, in their own style.

Started off with Devkey’s collection, which was more of couture and chic creations. She believes in “revolutionizing the classic chic.”

The second one was Amanjot’s. It was all coats and a fusion of dark colours and patterns, which sort of portrayed a confident, sexy woman’s wardrobe…

Next up, Vatika Gupta. The whole dark concept and the mix and match of various fabrics and patterns definitely made it stand out, kudos to her creative style. Her quote: “the uglier, the better”.

And the show ended with Devang Lal’s collection. Bright colours like orange, pink, purple induced with blacks and whites, his collection was fresh, I thought. His quote: “Scissors make magic.”

Awards were given out at the end of the show, and Vatika Gupta bagged the best collection of the year award (which I believe is probably the most important award that she could get at this point, congrats!) From second year Shloka got the award for best collection, whereas, the award for the best design of 1st year goes to Ekta Singh. Well deserved win to all, and my best wishes.

Notable guests at the show and the ones who were called to give out awards: Super model Carol Gracias, Actors Kunal Kemu, Gauhar Khan and big time celebrity; Indian fashion designer, Gavin Miguel!

Host of the show, model Shamita Singha!

 

Well there you go, that’s it. What more can I say? The show was a hit.

For more information on this Paris based institute visit here: http://www.modart-india.com/

WAH! BOLLYWOOD

 Back to writing about the greatest restaurants in Mumbai…

If you’re someone who’s lived in mumbai for at least 2 months you’d know Carter’s Rd. If you know Carter’s Rd, then the restaurant “Wah! Bollywood” may ring a bell to you… a very classy looking set-up right there. As the name hints, this restaurant is all about Bollywood. The food choices were mainly Indian dishes, in fact if I remember right, they were all Indian dishes. At this point I should mention, the tandoori chicken I had remains to be one of the best I’ve ever had from an outside restaurant. The chicken was so well cooked; my knife just slid through it as if it were warm butter.

The set-up is certainly one of a kind! Their walls are filled with gigantic     bollywood movie posters, posters of certain actors; for example there was one of Aishwarya Rai from Devdas. The place was practically filled with people when my friend and I entered- such a crowd, that it made us believe this must be a pretty neat restaurant! And it certainly was. Did I have a good time? No doubt.

I’ve been told they have karaoke certain nights, which just screams out FUN RESTAURANT. As the IPL (Indian Premier League) is going on right now- (huge deal here), there was a huge screen inside the restaurant in which they were showing the current match live. Carter’s being an area covered with restaurants, this probably means competition for the restaurants to their left and right. Nevertheless I could notice among people on the street, were staff from other restaurants peering in trying to catch the match. Like I said… cricket is a very huge deal here. ;] Anyway, food was great, service was great, lovely unique ambience, overall, loved it! Found yet another great restaurant in Mumbai. Doesn’t get better than this.

Colaba Causeway ♥ what a colourful world !

Colaba Causeway. That’s it, that’s my third love in Mumbai. The stalls over there boast excellent jewellery, unique yet fashionable and amazingly affordable items.

I’ve always been crazy about jewellery, and to discover this place was to me, like finally finding paradise. Well yeah it’s way hot in the day time to go street shopping, as Mumbai doesn’t really have much of a cold climate, ever, but Causeway remains my favourite point of street shopping in the whole of Mumbai (as far as I’ve seen), it’s almost entirely covered however, so a little shaded, thank God. :]

& for when you’re craving for food or just wanna escape the heat and the crowd…

FOOD! That’s another best part. All these amazing restaurants and bakeries are all over this part of Colaba… the choices are unlimited! There’s Mondegar where it all starts, then you have the extremely famous Leopolds (my favourite), Piccadily, Churchill, and amazing amazing Theos (which I’ve already blogged about), and the usual MOD, Mcdy, subway…etc. You can also easily take a cab to Fort, there you have the brilliant Five Spice (yet to be blogged !) which is close to Kala Godha, which is close to Fashion street! (one of the biggest street shopping experience). Yet, here I’m saying it again, the type of stuff you find in Causeway, somehow ends up really special, beats hill road shopping and linkin road and all those. For me, anyway. =) There’s your cue, GO SHOPAHOLICS!

Oh, and this is very very close to Marine Drive. Can’t get any better right? That’s what I thought. After an exhausting day (and a rather satisfying one for that matter) you can grab a bite and go chill at Marine Drive. NOTE: Marine Drive is at it’s best by 7 pm.

So there we have it! I know the stalls and all the jewellery would naturally appeal mainly just to the ladies, but well who doesn’t like food right?! There’s enough and more places to chill out, so it’s not just a girl’s world.

 ;] Happy shopping !

Another one of those cupcake shops found me!

 

 

This is such a tiny but cute place! They have amazing interior; rot-iron chairs, mirrors and glass tables, not forgetting, rather a wide range of yummy goodies!  It’s such a nice ambience altogether. I keep emphasizing on all these places I blog about how you MUST visit, but it’s so true! One big thing I find here in Mumbai that I don’t have in my hometown are some of these! So today while my cousin and I were coming out of church, I spotted this little bakery, noticed the words “cupcakes” written on it, aaaand, didn’t think twice. I’m glad I didn’t. I had my usual red velvet cupcake… yuuum.

Couldn’t click a picture of the wide selection of amazing goodies, my bad, though I’ve got a snap of a personalized cake they’ve made, doesn’t it look absolutely amazing? Born to shop? with shopping bags? Damn. I want.

The staff was also friendly (which matters more than you’d imagine), the place is loacted right opposite St.Peter’s church in Bandra. What’re you waiting for? GO, GO, GO!