(From top) Tollywood stars Rachana Banerjee (left) and Swastika Mukherjee join Jyoti Khaitan for the first aniversary celebrations of d’studio, the designer’s flagship store at 5 Loudon Street; students of IISWBM at Golden Park; dancers perform Swan Lake at Pala. Pictures by Pabitra Das and Rashbehari Das

What: Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake hosted by Open Doors in association with ITC Sonar Bangla Sheraton & Towers, Seagram’s 100 Pipers and others.

Where: Pala at ITC Sonar Bangla Sheraton & Towers.

When: Saturday evening.

Take a look: Padmashree Guru Bharti Shivaji and dancers from the Centre for Mohiniattam wooed the Calcutta audience with their rendition of Swan Lake.

It is the story of Prince Siegfried and his love for the swan queen Odette who has been transformed into a swan by the evil sorcerer Von Rothbart. Rothbart paves the path of Odette and Siegfried with problems, but the lovers are finally united.

Set to the music of Russian composer Pytor Ilyich Tchaikovsky, the presentation was graceful and well synchronised. The women made a pretty picture in white and gold Mohiniattam drapes, hair done up in side buns and decorated with white flowers.

The movements were an eclectic blend of ballet, Mohiniattam and chhau. Tiny feet movements, swirls, turns and expressions made up the performance. Vijayalakshmi in the role of Odette was impressive — sensitive and conveying her thoughts effortlessly through the movements.

“We might have blended many dance forms but never tampered with the Mohiniattam basics. It was a challenge for us and we are overwhelmed at the audience response,” smiled Bharti. “The music was so dramatic and evocative. It formed the platform for the perfect blending of dance forms,” added Vijayalakshmi.

Spotted: Former cricketer Snehasish Ganguly, fashion designer Agnimitra Paul, PR veteran Rita Bhimani, actor Arindam Sil and others.

Voiceover: “It has been a beautiful and enchanting evening. The romance, guile and synchronisation could only be appreciated by a Calcutta crowd,” smiled Ranvir Bhandari, general manager ITC Sonar Bangla and area manager (east).

Meet & greet

What: Paradigm 2006, a corporate-alumni meet of Indian Institute of Social Welfare and Business Management (IISWBM), presented by The Telegraph and Power FM.

Where: Golden Park.

When: September 23.

Take a look: Six Appeal, a band comprising current IISWBM students, played to a crowd of students past and present. The evening took a slightly serious turn when current students interacted with corporate bigwigs who have passed out of the institute. “It has been a really useful evening as we spoke to old students, and learnt a lot from them,” stressed Md Yasin Mondal from IISWBM.

Student and aspiring analyst Kanina Chatterjee agreed: “When we meet such people, it is like looking at ourselves in 10 or 20 years’ time.”

There was enough fun to go with the funda. The music was a melange of popular Western, hip-hop and rock numbers.

On a different note, Jim Hartley, a visiting teacher from the United States, said: “I don’t think I have ever been to an event like this where everyone is so well-dressed!”

Voiceover: “I thank the staff and students who have helped put together such a great event,” said an upbeat Prof Ashoke K. Dutta, director of IISWBM.