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Malavika’s Mumbaistan: Taseer’s king-sized kiss and tell

Hindustan Times | ByMalavika Sangghvi, Mumbai
May 14, 2018 03:37 PM IST

“In a louche past life, I was almost a member of the British royal family.” So begins noted (and dishy) author Aatish Taseer’s instance of King Size Kiss and Tell in the latest Vanity Fair. Taseer had dated Ella Windsor, daughter of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent.

“In a louche past life, I was almost a member of the British royal family.” So begins noted (and dishy) author Aatish Taseer’s instance of King Size Kiss and Tell in the latest Vanity Fair. Taseer had dated Ella Windsor, daughter of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent. (Prince Michael was first cousin to the Queen and married to the unpopular Princess Michael, whom the British press had labeled Princess Pushy.) He writes about what could most likely have been his mother-in-law in the article titled ‘Race and the Royals: An Outsider’s View Inside Kensington Palace’ for the international glossy.

Author Aatish Taseer.(Ronjoy Gogoi)
Author Aatish Taseer.(Ronjoy Gogoi)

With a nod towards Brideshead Revisited, Taseer describes a phase of epic Hooray Hooliganism, which lasted ‘three surreal years’ and included hanging out at Kensington Palace; swimming naked in the Queen’s pool at Buckingham Palace; and dropping ecstasy in Windsor Castle... (we weren’t kidding about the King Size Kiss and Tell…). Which brings us to the issue that’s plagued much of Taseer’s writing career (with one particular princess-politician said to be still outraged at the poor light he depicted her in, in one of his books) and which has once again come up in chi-chi drawing rooms from Manhattan to Lutyen’s Delhi with this latest offering: Should Taseer have revealed so much about people he’d once been so close to and whose daughter he’d almost married? Our view on this is pragmatic: he’s a writer and writers use whatever material they require to tell their stories. What’s more, it’s not as if Taseer has used his proximity to the Brit Royals to buttress his fortunes. Over the years, he has written equally candidly about various aspects of his life, many of which must have taken exceptional candor to articulate and which could not have done him any good besides just telling a story. Neither is the article just a series of salacious revelations.

“British racism is more casual than its American coeval, but more insidious, because its animating prejudice is class.” Is one of Taseer’s thoughtful conclusions in the riveting essay.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY PUREROSE!

Purerose Baptista from Bandra turned 102 last Sunday.
Purerose Baptista from Bandra turned 102 last Sunday.

Hats in the air and let the band keep on playing, because this Sunday Purerose Baptista — originally from Chapel Road and now of Veronica Road in Bandra, and the much loved mother, grandmother and great aunt to a large and loving clan — turned 102. Her son, columnist Marcellus Baptista, who we ran into at the Indigo farewell brunch that day, informed us of the happy news. Born at a time when the suburb was a jungle of chickoo and mango groves, and when Rs2 could buy you your daily bazaar and Rs15 was sufficient to buy a pair of shoes and material for a dress and a hat, Purerose Baptista’s presence is a reminder of a more graceful era, a time when people lived with simplicity and joy (and a small peg of whiskey-soda daily). “It’s always nice to hear of someone turning 100 years old,” Baptista had written two years ago, “especially if she happens to be your mother”.

Happy birthday Purerose! And cheers!

WTSWTM

What They Say —

“Mother bakes a cake. A guest puts icing on cake. Guest claims she baked a lovely cake.”

– Former FM P Chidambaram commenting on the PM’s claim that India has achieved 100% electrification under his regime

What They Mean —

“At least with our superior use of language and argument, we are determined to make you eat humble pie.”

FITNESS FIRST

Anand Piramal (left) with Ratan Tata.
Anand Piramal (left) with Ratan Tata.

Word is that celebrity trainer and fitness enthusiast Sohrab Khushrushahi’s Sohfit boot camps are one of the reasons for some of Mumbai’s glamorous women displaying a newfound radiant glow. His roster of clients includes fashion designers Surily Goel and Shehla Khan, jewellery designer Kajal Fabiani, entrepreneur Tarini Jindal Handa and actress Kiara Advani. We also hear others like Shweta Bachchan Nanda and Roohi Jaikishan have been recently inspired by his famed exercise regimes. But, the trainer is not only whipping the leggy lasses into shape, he is also making serious inroads in corporate India and is said to be the man behind the transformations of industrialists Ajay Piramal and his son Anand. “Honestly, this father-son duo is the finest and most hard working people I know,” Khushrushahi said on social media. “Anand, you’ve been an inspiration buddy. In the last 12 weeks you’ve worked harder than anyone I know and have dropped close to 15 kilos,” his post said. And, as this recent picture of Anand with corporate statesman Ratan Tata — carried on social media — proves, all that moving and shaking has paid off.

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