New Ad Noticed for Breaking Social Norms. Jewelry brand Tanishq is getting attention for its wedding ad. IBN Live says “Tanishq’s new ad tries to break the social norms and shows a dusky bride with a daughter who is all set to remarry.” India Today talks to the ad’s director, filmmaker Gauri Shinde who shares details about making the ad, including why she didn’t go for traditional vivid wedding colors like red and that she didn’t deliberately use a “dusky” actress. The ad, which features actors Kavi Shastri and Priyanka Bose as the couple, isn’t the first to deal with the theme of remarriage. An earlier Femina ad portrays a remarriage, with a young woman walking her mother to her wedding ceremony. [IBN Live, India Today]
Perceptions of Pashtuns. Historian and author William Dalrymple (Return of a King: The Battle for Afghanistan, 1839-42) writes in an op-ed that the inspiring Malala Yousafzai is no freak of history in Pashtun society, despite stereotypes of the region. Her namesake Malalai of Maiwand is another brave teen, one who turned the tide in the second Anglo-Afghan War in 1880. Dalrymple also highlights Wafa Begum, the real power behind the Afghan monarch at the turn of the 19th century. She negotiated the king’s release from prison in Kashmir. [The New York Times]
Waris Ahluwalia: Modern-day Marco Polo. T, the NYT Style Magazine, reports a new shop from actor and designer Waris Ahluwalia set to open inside the Gritti Palace hotel library in Venice, Italy. Everything sold at House of Waris Rare “is the type of affectionate object one might imagine, say, Ernest Hemingway gifting his mistress.” Luxury Collection owns the hotel and commissioned Ahluwalia (The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, The Darjeeling Limited) “Global Explorer.” [T Magazine]
Ladies Who Power Lunch? The Post writes that Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin and Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour were seen having lunch at The Lambs Club, a restaurant in The Chatwal Hotel. The two are reported to have been friends for years, but that didn’t stop speculation: “Was the meeting about Anna becoming a bundler for Hillary’s expected presidential run? Is Huma hatching an image revamp in the pages of the Condé Nast fashion bible…?” [via NYMag. Previously]
Pavani Yalamanchili is a co-founder and editor of The Aerogram. Email her at editors@theaerogram.com. Find The Aerogram on Twitter @theaerogram.
