New Delhi., April 05, 2005
New Delhi, March 31 : Amid old photographs, a special
video and installation art depicting her life and
times, Bina Ramani, India's original society queen,
said goodbye to fashion designing and Delhi in the
way she knows best - by throwing a party.
"All my life I have loved people," said
Ramani, who was the first Indian designer to feature
on the cover of the Vogue and was the queen bee of
Indian society at home and in the US for years.
"This love for people has kept me going,"
Ramani told IANS, standing before a flickering screen
showing her as a young woman in large Jackie O style
shades at the Olive Bar and Kitchen.
The party-cum-sale of clothes, jewellery and accessories
designed by Ramani went on till the wee hours of the
morning Thursday as her friends, the old glitterati
of Delhi, raised a toast to the inimitable spirit
of India's first lady of parties.
Bina Ramani personified designer wear in India when
there was no designer wear in India. In America, along
with her friend Veena Merchant and Gopal Raju, she
became a pillar of non-resident Indian society.
At one time, if you were rich and famous in India,
you were guests at the fabled parties of Bina Ramani,
the jetsetter who organised the biggest do's in India
and the US, and created exquisite clothes.
In 1994, she started the AIDS awareness campaign
in India, roping in, as only she could have, Hollywood
star Richard Gere. "We got a lot of flak for
it because we were taking about a taboo subject but
we brought our something that is so important."
That's quintessentially Ramani - a care-a-damn attitude
coupled with a fair bit of razzle-dazzle.
But Ramani's greatest success has been in hunting
out exotic places that she turned into treasure troves
like the old mansion in Mehrauli which she found in
1986 and turned into her famous boutique Once Upon
A Time.
Then she discovered a 13th century village in Hauz
Khas and opened her second boutique Twice Upon A Time
- Bina Ramani was changing the face of Indian fashion
retail.
But the journey hasn't always been smooth. Ramani
has battled cancer and a few years ago model Jessica
Lall was shot dead at her restaurant in Mehrauli.
"There are ups and downs in life," said
Ramani about the incidents. "I've learnt to take
both."
And now, she has found her cove in Goa. "There
is just a perfect spot that I have found. It's very
idyllic and I'm going to sit there, look at the backwaters
and find my peace. I'll always be doing a bit of jewellery
design. But my fashion journey is over."
Her fashion mantle has been taken over by her daughter
Malini who is a popular designer in her own right.
"My clothes journey is over," said Ramani.
"Now I'm looking forward to what life has in
store for me." (IANS)
