Sonali's Society: Walking on sunshine

Walking on sunshineGlowing in a vibrant yellow ensemble on Wednesday Malaika Arora stepped into Sweeney Khar to launch her new lifestyle accessories line Maejoy mdash and yes the restaurant happens to be hers too Two birds one very stylish stoneSkin glowing Wit showingThe internet will tell you Malishka Mendonsa is an Indian radio personality Having known her for nearly three decades mdash we went to college together mdash I can assure you the operative word in that description is the last one personality lsquoMumbai ki Ranirsquo Malishka is less a job title than a fullblown presence Her wit is quick her laugh quicker and her switch to lsquoonrsquo appears to have been permanently installed sometime in the early 2000sMalishka MendonsaTake for instance her social media tellall from a spa session on Tuesday Alongside the picture wersquove reproduced here Malishka writes ldquoMe trying to get my payment app to open through face recognition while getting a facialhellip Access denied Skin aglowrdquoPeak personality And then mdash because she canrsquot resist mdash she tops it off with a message to me when I ask for the image ldquoBabe when you finally decide to write about me yoursquore going to use this picture where no one can see my facerdquo Some people have good timing Malishka naturally has the last wordDesi TriumphOne of my early lessons in journalism mdash and easily the one I remember the best mdash came from the brilliant Bachi Karkaria Her point people care far more about the dead dog on their doorstep than a war on the other side of the world Itrsquos been ages so forgive the paraphrase but the lesson sticksVikas KhannaUnderscoring that sentiment this week is chef Vikas Khanna In a yettobereleased podcast with Vir Sanghvi Vikas recounts his journey to stardom peppered with tales of racism and despair all with one message ldquoLetrsquos turn this pain into purposerdquo Mission accomplished clearly because these days the Michelinstarred chef is fielding calls from Jeff Bezos who wants to know how one scores a reservation at NYCrsquos Bungalow mdash Vikasrsquos East Village eateryBut back to our main mudda In August 2024 Bungalow was awarded a prestigious threestar rating by The New York Times Apparently it marked the first time in nearly 25 years that an Indian restaurant has received such a high honour from the publication Understandably excited Vikas rushed to share the news with his mother in India ldquoMumma ne sidha bola ki Punjab Kesari mein toh aaya nahirdquo the chef recalls Perhaps this piece published closer to home will finally deliver the news to her doorstepBrand StandCelebrity brand ambassadors donrsquot always put their money where their mouths are but that canrsquot be said of Sachin Tendulkar Literally walking the talk in Ten x You sneakers Sachin showed up to support son Arjun during a practice session at Bandrarsquos MIG Cricket Club last month No planned press conference no staged photo op mdash just Sachin being Sachin and yes actually wearing his own brandSachin Tendulkar PICSHADAB KHANThis kind of commitment is commendable especially since it isnrsquot the norm We find local ambassadors for Louis Vuitton or Gucci wearing their brand one day and Dior or Hermegraves the next mdash as evidenced by ample airport looks Perhaps therersquos an aspect of good sportsmanship to it because another cricketing icon showed the same sort of commitment during a photoshoot with yours truly some years ago Yuvraj Singh is the man in question whom I had kitted out as a Keanu Reevesinspired Matrix heroFashion designer Narendra Kumar Ahmed was tasked with getting the ensemble on point which he did with aplomb and that left us to match Neorsquos signature Matrix microsunglasses Chuffed to have found the perfect pair we were met with pandemonium on set when Yuvi refused to wear anything but Oakley because he was associated with the brand at the time No amount of cajoling worked and eventually we went with what he wished Because in a world of flexible brand loyalties that kind of consistency is its own quiet heroismHistory in silkVijay DeverakondaBaroda royal Radhikaraje Gaekwad is a custodian of culture and a connoisseur of the arts She wears legacy with a lightness and grace that makes her relatable but donrsquot mistake that ease for ignorance mdash this maharani knows her history Which is precisely why she had an unexpected observation when actor Vijay Deverakonda popped up on her Instagram feed dressed in a regal Falguni and Shane Peacock ensemble for his recent sangeet ceremonyRadhikaraje GaekwadWhile the internet fawned over Vijay as the seasonrsquos bestdressed groom Radhikaraje clocked something else entirely the cape To her trained eye the look carried echoes of royal wardrobes from decades past mdash the powderblue silk cape recalling the very cloak Maharaja Sayajirao wore in 1919 when the British Empire awarded him one of its highest honours For everyone else this was just another stylish celebrity moment For the Maharani of Baroda it was proof that fashion has a long memory And to us a reminder that a royal eye sees what the crowd cannot