(From top): Ritu Beri with models at her fashion extravaganza; Tapur strikes a pose at the Swarovski show; a model shows off a Surily Goel creation; Khushwant Singh with author Vikram Seth and former chief justice Leila Seth at the Penguin event

Like a prayer

A Prayer? is an unusual name for a collection of clothes. But as designer Ritu Beri explained at her recently-held fashion extravaganza in Delhi, she couldn?t think of ?a better name. The mood is special and pure. The emotions of beauty and joy, happiness and love are all embraced in this collection.? And in keeping with the theme, the line featured several ethereal white creations and intricately-embroidered lehngas and cholis.

Beri also showcased her signature line of ethnic contemporary gold jewellery, Amour, in association with jewellery brand D?damas, even as Shibani Kashyap serenaded the gathering.

?Accessorising is so important when it comes to dressing up. I chose the eternal and malleable nature of gold because it reflects the power and beauty of myriad possibilities in jewellery,? says Beri. All the neckwear, pendants, earrings and rings in the collection come with her initials engraved.

Among the guests admiring the designs on display were Uma Gajapathy Raju, Nafisa Ali and Laila Khan Rajpal.

Local bytes

The great Indian divide of languages is in the process of being bridged. At least, that?s what Penguin India proposes to do with its new venture of publishing books in Hindi, Malayalam, Marathi, Tamil and Telugu.

To this effect, the publishing house has released four books in Hindi, including three translations and one original work. Hamara Hissa, an anthology of contemporary Hindi stories, edited by Arun Prakash, is the first original book in Hindi released by the company along with three books in English translated into Hindi. The three include Jannat Aur Anya Kahaniyan by Khushwant Singh, Shakuntala: Smriti Jaal by Namita Gokhale and Ladies Coupe? by Anita Nair. The Hindi and Marathi titles will be published in association with Yatra Books, New Delhi.

Says Ravi Singh, publisher of Penguin India, ?It always seemed like an incomplete enterprise to be based in India and publish exclusively in English. Our aim, as with our English-language publishing, remains to make quality books in all genres available to the maximum number of readers.?

John Makinson, the Penguin Group?s chairman and CEO, who released the books formally, said that where languages such as Spanish and French have failed, Marathi, Malayalam and Hindi have succeeded on the translation front.

In every language, there will be a mix of original titles and translations of Penguin India?s most successful English titles. Among the forthcoming highlights in the language publishing programme are an anthology of stories in Marathi, translations of Ruskin Bond?s selected stories, Arundhati Roy?s new book of essays, An Ordinary Person?s Guide to Empire, and Shobhaa D??s latest offering, Spouse: The Truth About Marriage.

Sparkle and shine

When Swarovski holds a fashion event, you can be assured of a sparkling show. The world leaders in the manufacture of full, cut crystal aptly chose Blue Sea in Mumbai to preview their latest Tropical collection. Dazzling crystals came together in the form of stunning jewellery, tattoos, watches and even on handbags and decorative objects especially for summer. Turquoises, aquas as well as hues of coral, salmon and sand radiated a summer-like, sensual freshness.

The evening had some of the country?s leading models including Fleur Xavier, Vidisha Pavate, Tapur Chatterjee, Aditi Govitrikar, Gauhar Khan and Pia Trivedi showcasing the new look. The highlight, though, was the sexy Malaika Arora Khan taking to the ramp, wearing brilliant Swarovski jewels.

Touted as the must-haves from the new line are handbags featuring embossed letters, mesh crystal on calf-leather bags and buckles in solid crystal. Also a big hit are the watches, that come with both metal as well as colourful leather straps with crystals on the watch dial.

Among those spotted at the event were actors Chunky Pandey, Kim Sharma, Preeti Jhangiani, Udita Goswami, Jimmy Shergill, Shekhar Suman and Simone Singh.

Summer splash

Designer Surily Goel recently unveiled her Spring-Summer line in the plush interiors of the J. W. Marriott. Goel translated her visions for summer into three primary categories ? resortwear, clubwear and a cocktail line. While a bevy of beauties sashayed down the ramp in gorgeous creations, none could beat the loud cheering when Jassi (of Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahi fame) was introduced in her new avatar. For actress Mona Singh?s first appearance as model Jessica, Goel dressed her in an interesting fusion of the ethnic and the Western.

Goel?s resortwear line threw up wrap pants and ponchos to be worn over swimwear embellished with silver and gold for a bit of summer glam. Her clubwear collection took in calf-length kaftan dresses with unusual silhouettes, single-shouldered outfits, mini-skirts and ribbed T-shirts embellished with coins, something that?s become her signature style. A special line of funky sarees for cocktailwear had her using pinks and greens as base shades embellished with mother-of-pearl sequins.

According to Goel, bright, bold hues like pink, green and yellow will dominate this summer. The cuts are young and modern with an emphasis on easy wearability.

Among the celebrities who dropped in were Amrita Arora, Abhijeet Sawant, Mandira Bedi and director-husband Raj Kaushal, Simone Singh, Nandita Mahtani and Manish Malhotra.

Photographs by Rupinder Sharma and Gajanan Dudhalkar