Soumitra Chatterjee and Sabyasachi Chakraborty at the jewellery store opening. Picture by Rashbehari Das

Not one but two Feludas inaugurated Sonar Kella 2 on Saturday. The glittering new gold address in town may not be the sequel to the Ray classic you hoped for, but the Kankurgachhi shop is still worth a look.

Sonar Kella 2 is the theme for a dream outlet MP Jewellers launched last week. Though there was little resemblance to the fortress save a poster, the presence of erstwhile Feluda Soumitra Chatterjee and his successor Sabyasachi Chakraborty was reassuring. While the “original Sonar Kella of 30 years ago” still reminds Soumitra of “Rajasthan and its sights and sounds”, he was “equally surprised by the modern version” of it that reflected the “same grandeur”.

The 3,000 sq ft glass, steel and woodwork giant is indeed grand. A glass staircase leads up to the first-floor showroom. The flooring is unconventional as well, combining Swedish wooden laminates and Italian marble. The décor is still touted as “minimalist” by the proprietors.

Lightweight, trendy 18-carat jewellery priced at Rs 2,000 onwards forms much of the collection. Those looking for more value can pick from the 18 to 22 karat True-Blue collection, studded with semi-precious stones, also priced Rs 2,000 onwards.

Most still prefer their jewels traditional. Filigree, kundan and the antique look are some of highlights in the higher range, priced at Rs 5,000 onwards. Platinum and diamond collections add some sheen as well.

Some of it got today’s tough-talking Feluda starry-eyed as well. “I usually don’t wear jewellery but now I think I should start wearing some,” laughed Sabyasachi. Male model Dipendu lent weight to the joke by strutting a few trinkets along with his female counterparts Shreya and Nicola.

Bargain bazaar

Shoppers looking for a good bargain have yet another destination to hit in the New Market-Lindsay Street area. After their success in Gariahat, Baazar Kolkata has come up with another outlet at 7/1 Lindsay Street. The plush 4,500 sq ft split-level air-conditioned store is looking to hit home with the brand unconscious.

Stocking up on trendy western and ethnic wear for men, women and children, the store swears by the age-old USP of “quality products at affordable prices”. Sourced from local manufacturers, the garments combine big-shop styles with pavement prices. The store offers trousers at Rs 195, jeans at Rs 250, shirts at Rs 50, T-shirts at Rs 100 and bermudas at Rs 50 for men. Women have it just as easy with tops for Rs 50, jeans for Rs 250, hipsters for Rs 190, saris for Rs 115 and salwar-kameez sets for Rs 125. Little tykes or their parents have most of the fun with baba suits available for Rs 125, jeans for Rs 225, T-shirts for Rs 80 and even a party wear range starting at Rs 225.

June Maliah at the makeover session. Picture by Rashbehari Das

Shine bright

Badly co-ordinated diamonds could turn even girl’s best friend against her. To stop such injustice from happening, Prabir Kumar De held an hour-long workshop at International Club on Saturday. Presented by Senco, the session saw actress June Maliah model for the evening, donning the traditional bridal look and then transforming herself completely in the evening wear session, looking gorgeous in a black cocktail dress and short hair.

“With heavy gold jewellery or kundan, makeup has to be essentially bright and reddish,” explained Prabir, darkening June’s kajal and applying some bright lipstick. “Shades of orange, red, and maroon are what go with heavy gold jewellery, especially for brides,” he said.

For a high-society evening out, diamonds and coloured stones are obvious options. A heavy neckpiece complemented by a slim bracelet and matching dangling earrings is what June wore for the makeover session. A short crop of hair was the perfect touch to go with the black evening gown.

“When wearing diamonds around the neck, it helps to have a good haircut. It adds to the chic look of the stones,” added Prabir, recommending glossy lips and smoky eyes for the evening. “Since we didn’t have much time, I applied eyeliner on June and then used a silvery glitter line on the smudged liner,” he shared with a captivated female audience.

After the ever-smiling June mingled with the crowd to give them a closer look, the ladies were ecstatic when Prabir picked on a few of them for a complete make-over as well.

Design debut

Professionalism was the key word at Weaves 2004, the graduating show of Wigan and Leigh College, held at The Park last week. Well-crafted designs with attention to detail, music co-ordinated to match the theme of each sequence, smart no-frills choreography by Marc Robinson and some of the country’s hottest bods like Fleur Xavier, Diandra Soares, Shonal Rawat, Shahwar Ali, Vijay Balhara walking the ramp — the show could give any pro bash a run for its money.

The display of 17 student’s collections kicked off with Rachna Maheswari’s line called Scent of the First Rain, a range of skirts and tops that won the Best Design Collection from Asmi. This was followed by Arunava Mondal’s Pahari, heavily embroidered outfits in red, green and blue for both men and women. Essence of the Past by Shivani Singh was all about the vintage look, heightened with frills and flounces on leather finish fabrics, in dark colours. Pradeep Behera’s collection called Just A Minute, which bagged the award for the most Practical Design, was a unique line of reversible clothes, work wear on one side and party wear on the other.

Seema Sen took the audience Back to School with her collection for school teachers, with structured skirts, trousers, tunics and dresses in black, white and red. The first kids’ collection of the evening by Geetanjali Sanda was called Vogue in the Valley and received thunderous applause. This was followed by the Best Design Collection winner Charu Saxena, with To Begin With… Serenity. This was the most delicate line of the evening with a range of chiffon outfits in white with silver embellishments. Subhrangshu Roy’s Clown Express, which bagged the Best Design Concept award, was a men’s wear line of gypsy clothes.

Spoilt Brats by Alka, inspired by hippies, presented a riot of colours in leather-finish fabrics, accessorised with garlands and rudraksh. Ode to the Celtic Art by Chayanika Das captured the warring spirit with a brightly coloured line of short skirts and trousers. Nidhi Agarwal unleashed a lot of Fun and Frolic with the bohemian look of the Seventies. Aditi Bhattacharya’s red, black and white Power Play line was inspired by bull-fighting. Shagun by Reena was a line of Western silhouettes in Indian colours and embroideries. Soumi Basu’s Black and White was dedicated to the visually challenged.

Savage Mix by Soma Ghosh took inspiration from the forests, using leopard skin and leather finish fabrics, with twigs and branches as accessories. Fantasize by Ashish Minh, which had odd-shaped outfits in red, black and white, was the most funky collection of the evening. The last sequence A Wonderful World — Subhomoy Pandit’s line — won the most Creative Design award.

Chris B. Pfister at the cigar talk. Picture by Rashbehari Das

Smoke in style

Not all puff pleasures are as sinful as others. Clinching the case for cigar loyalists was Chris B. Pfister, director export sales, Villiger, a Swiss cigar company, at a tête-à-tête with Chambers Lounge members at The Taj Bengal on Saturday.

Part of a promotion at The Taj attempting to bring discerning guests a wider choice of cigars, the Swiss company was invited to give members a taste of some fine blends. As the aroma of the leisure smoke hung in the air, Chris took guests on a Villiger journey.

The family-owned company founded in 1888 now has five factories spread across Switzerland, Germany, Ireland and Sumatra. Though handmade cigars are much sought after, they have been reduced to delicacy status now. Villiger’s main business comes from machine-made cigars. While it mostly exports within Europe, India is emerging as a “key player” as well.

“We consider India to have good potential in the cigar market,” stressed Chris. “We were the first ones to hit the Indian market with machine-made cigars,” he claimed. They have had a “surprisingly good” run in Delhi and Chennai, where cheap varieties (at Rs 5 onwards per cigar) are available.

Calcutta is next on their agenda, in association with importers Geekay Sales Corporation and others. The premium handmade and big cigars, some varieties costing as much as Rs 1,500 per piece, will be promoted in star hotels, clubs, restaurants and bars, whereas smaller machine-made cigars will be available at retailers and corner shops for mass consumption.

Chris stressed that cigar smoking is “much less harmful” than cigarettes. “You are not supposed to inhale cigar smoke. They are smoked for their unique flavours which should stay in the mouth. No need to carry them down to the lungs!”

Cigar smokers are not generally brand loyal, conceded Chris, but like to experiment with different flavours and sizes. “In fact, there is a trend towards small, flavoured cigars all over the world,” he explained. Vanilla, honey, mocha and cherry are some of the hot flavours from the Villiger bouquet.