(From top): Javed Akhtar, Yash Chopra, Farhan Akhtar and Shabana Azmi at Crossword; Ruskin Bond with Kapish Gautam Mehra at the Mariott hotel in Delhi; Malavika Tiwari at her studio; the unveiling of Nisha JamVwal’s India Phoenix Collection at Distil in Chennai

Jaswant Singh must be a super-fast writer. The ruckus that accompanied the launch of his first book has barely died down and he has already released his second — this time without a political storm. The new book, Travels in Transoxiana: In Lands Over the Hindu-Kush and Across the Amu Darya, published by Rupa, was released at Delhi’s Marriott Hotel last week and is the second in a series of five that’ll be launched in the near future.

Doing the honours at the release was children’s writer Ruskin Bond. Later media personality Sunit Tandon read out excerpts from the book. And while the author himself was conspicuous by his absence, his family attended in full force. The reason for Singh’s no-show was the call of duty — he was in a session at the Parliament. But sons Manavendra and Bhupendra were there along with Singh’s wife Sheetal Kumari and daughter-in-law Chitra.

Singh’s book, as is evident from the title, is a travelogue. The author takes the reader into territories beyond the Amu Darya region where lies, according to Singh, the “crucible of mankind”.

“It’s not the kind of place you’d think of going for a summer holiday. The region is not very well documented, and this is what makes Singh’s travelogue so special” said publisher Kapish Gautam Mehra. Singh had travelled to the region without diplomatic trappings at the time. As compere for the event, cricket commentator Gautam Bhimani put it, there was “nothing official about it.”

The event also happened to be a double celebration for Rupa, which has turned 70. To mark the occasion, it gave away the publisher’s recognition award to author Ramesh Menon. Menon is the author of works including The Mahabharata: A Modern Rendering.

Glass act

What do ex-models do when they’ve come off the ramp for the last time? If you are Malavika Tiwari, you get into the world of glass art. Tiwari spent an entire morning at her studio in Delhi explaining how an ordinary piece of glass can be transformed into a beautiful work of art. Tiwari stepped out of the limelight to carve her niche in glass art, having designed for places like the Imperial Hotel, the Palace on Wheels and Kota House (the naval officer’s mess in Delhi).

Tiwari started with a presentation that took one through the ages during which the art transformed itself. She then proceeded to help some enthusiasts carve out glass with the help of a cutter. “Sure there’s the danger of shredding your palms initially, but when you’re in this field, you become used to cuts,” said Tiwari.

On a poetic note

Javed Akhtar is known for his soul-stirring poetry and poignant lyrics. But this time around, it wasn’t his work that stole the show. Instead, the day was devoted to the writings of his father, famed Urdu poet, Jan Nisaar Akhtar and several other Urdu poets, who were the centre of attention at Crossword recently. At the bookstore in Mumbai, a new edition of Hindostan Hamara — a two-volume collection of Urdu poetry by various poets, edited by Jan Nisaar Akhtar and published by Rajkamal Publications — was released by Javed Akhtar and director Yash Chopra. Shabana Azmi and Farhan Akhtar were also present, and with Javed Akhtar read out excerpts from the book.

Jaan Nisaar Akhtar won acclaim for his Urdu ghazals and nazms. He also penned the lyrics for innumerable songs in Bollywood and developed a wonderful association with music director Madan Mohan. His other books in Urdu include Nazr-e-Butaan, Salaasil, Javidaan, Ghar Angan and Khaak-e-Dil. He was awarded the Sahitya Academy Award of India in 1976 for his collection of poetry titled Khaak-e-dil (The Ashes of Heart).

Said Javed Akhtar, “There’s a misconception that Urdu poets write only romantic nazms. In this book you will find odes to the natural beauty of our country and almost a dozen of them are on festivals like Holi and Vasantutsav.”

Southern style

Distil, the nightclub at Taj Conemara, joined hands with the Mumbai-based architect & design columnist turned fashion designer Nisha JamVwal to herald the advent of the newest fashions in Chennai. Bringing together a perfect blend of the latest in couture and cocktails, Distil showcased Nisha JamVwal’s latest collection, India Phoenix.

India Phoenix is inspired by the rising India, an India that in the midst of bombs, threats and floods rises like a Phoenix, brighter, stronger and statelier than before.

Black was the predominant colour in the collection, reflecting the mood of the country. An underlying theme ran in silver, gold and Swarovski elements to lend credence to the mythical metaphor. The show featured frocks with optional churidars; kurtis which defy the basic tenets of ‘matching’; and dresses and tunics.

Photographs by Rupinder Sharma and Jagan Negi