United Express

  Kala Ghoda gallops head and shoulders ahead of the pandemic, goes virtual! Adds e-stalls this year – bringing artisans online! THE EQUESTRIAN statue of the Black Horse stands tall yet again. Even the novel Coronavirus could not keep the mother of all art festivals down! Kala Ghoda Arts Festival, one of the premiere iconic arts and crafts festivals of Asia, will now take on a digital avatar from February 6-14 this year, commencing as always on the first Saturday of February, and closing on the second Sunday of February, refusing to let the cacophony of the pandemic drown the annual cultural awakening which will include 70 programs! For the first time ever, the festival is also set to take its stalls (a huge attraction at the festival every year), online. The Marketplace will open on 6th February, but will go till the end of the month- 28t February. A showcase of an eclectic collection of handicrafts and other products, the Marketplace can be accessed at www.kgaf2021.com Sa...

It can de-grease a kitchen. It can clean windows. It kills athlete’s foot. And now, this elixir is brought to India to replace the toxic chemicals used to kill COVID. Electrolysed Oxidising Water, the patented technology brought to India by the country’s pioneering water technology platform, Amazing Ambrosia Pvt. Ltd. under the name Amazing Hygieia and HygieiaDent, is hailed as ‘El Liquido Milagroso,’ or the miraculous liquid, a substance that scientists aver is powerful enough to kill any lethal virus without harming people or the environment. Used as a sanitizer for decades in Japan and Russia, Electrolysed Oxidising Water is safe, inexpensive, cuts costs and cuts employee injuries from chemicals. It is prepared by employees on-site and is ten times more effective at killing bacteria than bleach and is available in a convenient powder form in a 3.2 gram sachet that gives up to 10 litres of disinfectant. Says veteran water technologist Dr. BK Sharma, “Amazing Hygieia is green, saves m...

New Year marks newer beginnings for our film industry with ace directors SS Rajamouli and Karan Johar releasing the poster of Mumbaikar, an action thriller with the heart and emotions of Mumbai.  Said Karan Johar, “I am very very pleasured and honoured to share with you, two gentlemen whose work I have admired and applauded in cinema. One is Santosh Sivan, the  prolific cinematographer and director whose work is tremendous, and the world has acknowledged it and continues to.  The other is the brilliant artiste, the genius artiste Vijay Sethupathi Sir.  His work has been again world-acclaimed, applauded and for everyone to see how it has been. There two formidable gentleman are coming together to make a film, and I have the grand pleasure of actually sharing the first look. It has a formidable ensemble and I cannot wait for you to actually have a look. There is much more coming up…" After Slumdog Millionaire and Gullyboy, Mumbaikar seeks to look at the metroscape of t...

The simplicity, the social distancing and the small gathering could not hold back the glitz and glamour of 'Perfect Mrs India' 2020 Season 3 finale saw the chosen 12 Top finalists  from all over India prove their mettle to try and win the crown. Dr Khooshi Gurubhai Thakkar and Gurubhai Thakkar, the driving forces behind the empowering women's pageant  along with Dr Geet Thakkar avered, "There are no barriers of Height, Weight or Age in this pageant.  Indian women give up their dreams and turn four walls into a home. This pageant looks beyond everything and aims to empower them, to help them grow wings!" The contestants came from varied fields. From housewives to professionals to COVID warriors, the field was open. Soumita Nandy won the awarded Perfect Woman Of The Show, while there was a tie between Pooja Nishar and Jayanti Gupta for the Second Runner Up, Reema Bahl was the First Runner Up and the coveted title was bagged by Saraswathy Iyer who was crowned 'Pe...

Ustad Haafiz  Ali Khan was born in a house responsible for giving the Sarod its present shape and structure.  The traditional style of music which today has become somewhat rare is called Dhrupad, where the use of embellishments does not exist. The usage was more of long glides both for vocalists and instrumentalists. He added to it the melodic possibilities of instrumental music in its complete dhrupad form. A rabab oriented Sarod style, more staccato,  more  right  hand  than  left,  more mechanical than melodic was converted  by  Ustad  Haafiz  Ali Khan to a brilliant amalgam of feeling and cleanliness,  heard only in the Rudra-Been and the Sursingaar of the descendants of Mian Tansen. Ustad Haafiz Ali Khan could make his sarod sing. This he did by a very advanced technique of the left hand fingernails and a thorough understanding of the Raga pattern filtered through feeling and Aesthetic   awareness.  ...

Post COVID, Mumbai welcomes Art again, after a 9-month hiatus with Art Adda, a unique event at Jolly Board Towers, I-Think Campus E Wing, Kanjurmarg East, hosted by India's Consul General to Czech Republic Rashmi Jolly and master artist Gautam Patole of Art Desh Foundation, in association with Secular Art Movement. The Art Adda, a one-of-its-kind open air, live Art show, with live canvas paintings, workshops and demonstrations sees the participation of noted artists from different cities of India. Actors Preeti Jhangiani, Pooja Bedi and Angela Krislinzki graced the inaugural ceremony that also witnessed the presence of Rashmi Jolly, Gautam Patole, Dr.Agarwal, Bharat Patel, Anisha Jolly, Rupali Patole among various talented artists. People mingled with each other, shared ideas, interacted with visitors and created great works of Art. There were live demos, workshops, discussions etc while strictly adhering to social distancing norms.   “These have been trying times for all of u...

The Mid- Day Showbiz Icon Awards saw veterans Dharmendra and Bappi Lahiri bag the awards for their contribution of 60 years and 50 years to the Indian film industry. While Vivek Oberoi bagged the Iconic Actor Award, Ranvir Shorey won The Most Versatile Actor Award with presence across platforms and media, Shreyas Talpade was awarded for his Contribution to Theatre and Cinema, Nawazuddin Siddiqui bagged the Best Actor Award for Raat Akeli Hai, Kunal Khemu bagged the Best Actor in Negative Role for Malang, Dino Morea won Iconic Health & Fitness Ambassador 2020, Anupria Goenka won Best Breakthrough Female Performance of 2020  and Nandini Viswanathan of Naarad PR and Image Strategists bagged the Iconic Brand Custodian Award among many others. Director Anil Sharma, Sunny Leone accompanied by actor- musician husband Daniel Weber bagged awards as well. The esteemed glitterati included besides the awardees,  Suneel Darshan, Leslee Lewis, Raju Singh, Rahul Shukla,  Kavya Jone...