Here Comes The Ostentatious Bride

Here Comes The Ostentatious  Bride

Laaleen Khan
http://tribune.com.pk/story/259506/here-comes-the-stentatious-bride/

ISLAMABAD: Every girl wants to feel like Cinderella on her wedding day, so much so that Disney even sells “classic ballgown(s) of tulle and glitter net over taffeta, inspired by Cinderella’s glass slipper.” For real-life princesses—whether Royalty, heiresses, socialites or celluloid and TV queens—the sky is the limit in terms of bridal couture, priceless jewels and antique lace for their big day.

Trans-Atlantic notables like Chelsea Clinton, Ivanka Trump and Petra Ecclestone have traditionally opted for Vera Wang gowns at their high profile weddings, the antithesis of heavily embroidered Pakistani bridals in their ivory simplicity.  However, there is also a happy medium. South Asian and Middle Eastern aesthetics are evident in Lebanese designer Elie Saab’s signature shimmery, ethereal bridal lines and Indian designer Naeem Khan’s contemporary bridal silhouettes with exotic undertones. The ensuing result is a more glamorous, global Cinderella.

Wedding customs that have gradually diffused into the cultural fabric of Pakistan’s extravagant society weddings include solitaire engagement rings, the practice of exchanging wedding bands, chocolate truffle wedding favours, multi-tiered wedding cakes, a nightclub-like dance floor, bridesmaids in matching colours, themed weddings, pre-wedding cocktail parties and post-wedding after-parties. Bridal couture, however, remains a significantly indigenous in Pakistan, despite the white gowns customarily worn in many other Muslim countries. Signs of international influences here started with the late nineties’ addition of pastel colours to the bridal jora palette along with eschewing traditional yellow gold and gemstone encrusted bridal jewelry for de rigeuer platinum, white gold and diamond settings. Since then, the celebrity world has grown gargantuan in its influence over bridal couture. It seems inevitable that glamorous overseas bridal trends may invade Pakistani society weddings.

Lace Sleeves

Inspiration:             The English lace and French Chantilly used for the Duchess of Cambridge’s full sleeves, sweetheart-neckline bodice and low back on her £250,000 wedding dress by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen. Although Catherine popularized the trend, sleeves of lace are not a new feature in princesses’ bridal gowns; they also featured in the dresses of Princess Marie of Denmark, Princess Noor of Jordan, Crown Princess Marie Chantal of Greece and the legendary Princess Grace of Monaco.

Crossover Potential: Delicate white lace is unlikely to gain significant popularity among characteristically dramatic Pakistani brides, unless it’s gold Chantilly encrusted with Swarovskis!

Forehead Jewelry

Inspiration: Kim Kardashian’s $2.5 million Lorraine Schwartz forehead-framing diamond lariat, worn with her tulle-laden Vera Wang wedding gown #1 (she wore three wedding dresses that day) made her feel like “an Armenian princess.” Earlier, Alicia Keys wore a budget version in rhinestones at her wedding to complement her one-shouldered Vera Wang.

Crossover Potential: This could translate as the traditional gold maatha pattee’s richer, snobbier cousin: think diamond maatha pattees, along with jhoomers and teekas (sunglasses, anyone?).

Bohemian Hair

Inspiration: Kate Moss’s romantically tousled tresses, styled by Sam McKnight at her English country wedding, suited her dreamy, vintage style John Galliano dress that paid homage to the 1920s.

Crossover Potential: Even if Pakistani brides are ready for a softer, more relaxed look on their wedding day, who’s going to convince the hairspray-loving, backcomb-crazy stylists?

Regal Tiara

Inspiration: Crown Princess Victoria’s massive Cameo Tiara, last worn by her mother Queen Sylvia at her own wedding, was perched on her golden hair as she married her fitness instructor. The future Queen of Sweden’s gold tiara, encrusted with pearls and intricate Greek mythological cameos, is significantly larger than those worn by other recent royal brides.

Crossover Potential: Even the most ostentatious Pakistani hieresses would draw the line at wearing an actual crown (so far).

Jeweled Fascinator

Inspiration: Princess Charlene of Monaco’s 'Diamond Spray' tiara, designed by Lorenz Bäumer, adorned the left side of her hair more like a diamond fascinator than a traditional tiara, highlighted with 11 pear-shaped diamonds totaling 59 carats.

Crossover rating: This is unlikely to appeal to Pakistani socialite brides as an alternative to a necklace, but may be added in addition to accompany other diamond jewelry for over-the-top brilliance.

Dramatic Train

Inspiration: Socialite Lauren Davis’ wore an Olivier Theyskens for Nina Ricci gown at her grand wedding to Columbian billionaire Andrés Santo Domingo. The dress featured 60 metres of silk jacquard woven with peony blossoms and a coat embroidered with paillettes, antique lace, silver threads, and feathers. The embroidery alone took 800 hours, while the dress took 1,200 hours to create at Nina Ricci.

Crossover rating: Absolutely: it’s an exaggerated farshi lehnga after all. And designers’ kaam wallas don’t charge in euros.

Iconic Royal Brides

Lady Diana Spencer, Princess of Wales (1981 wedding)

Little known British designers, Elizabeth and David Emanuel, designed her silk taffeta wedding dress with puffed mutton sleeves frilly neckline, lace hand-embroidered with 10,000 real pearls, a 25 foot train twinkling with sequins, held in place by several layers of starched petticoats.
 She wore her family’s Spencer tiara.

Grace Kelly, Princess of Monaco (1956 wedding)

Designed by MGM wardrobe designer, Helen Rose, the gown was made from 22 metres of silk taffeta and 90 metres of tulle, cinched at the waist and covered by antique Valenciennes rose point lace. Her veil was embroidered with lace doves and seed pearls and she wore a beaded Juliet cap in place of a tiara.

Farah Diba, Shahbanu (Empress) Pahlavi of Iran (1959 wedding)

The last Empress of Iran and the third and youngest wife of the late Shah of Iran, was (and is) a notable style icon. Her Yves Saint Laurent for Dior wedding dress was a 33 lb jewel-encrusted, mink-hemmed masterpiece embroidered with silver Persian motifs, sequins and pearl-like beading. She also wore a 2 kg Harry Winston tiara of pink and yellow diamonds.

Mon Dieu! A 'beta' (son) for Bruni-Sarkozy

Mon Dieu! A ‘beta’ (boy) for Bruni?

http://blogs.tribune.com.pk/story/6767/a-beta-for-bruni/

Life in the upper echelons of European society can sometimes be as gender biased as it is on our side of the globe. On the one hand, there’s Drottningholm Palace of Sweden, that has followed equal primogeniture in their law of succession since 1980, while Buckingham Palace that plans to do the same to enable William and Kate’s firstborn boy or girl to succeed to the throne after the future King William. Then, on the other hand, there’s Èlysée Palace, home to President Sarkozy of the Republic of France, where (as reports suggest) the First Lady, Ms. Carla Bruni, is desirous of producing a mini-Sarkozy to uplift their public image and help her husband win another presidential term.

According to various sources, the glamorous, 44-year-old Carla Bruni prayed to specifically conceive a baby boy when visiting the shrine of Hazrat Salim Chisti in Fatehpur Sikhri, India, with her 56-year-old husband last winter. Why would an accomplished, wealthy celebrity, one-half of progressive France’s power couple who already have a total of 4 sons and 1 grandson between them, be so interested in producing yet another male child?

After all, the celebrity world does not reflect a partiality toward little boys in its obsession with celeb baby bumps. In fact, the paparazzi seem more ‘focused’ on female celebrity offspring: the media’s darling is little Suri Cruise and her million dollar wardrobe and antics and, probably, Baby Beckham #4 (David and Victoria Beckham are ecstatically expecting a baby girl this week after producing their mini-football team of three sons, and we can expect her to be photographed a lot more than her brothers).  

On the global political arena, there are no less than twenty female heads of state in office at the time of this article (twenty eight if you count monarchs). In many Asian, Middle Eastern and Latin American countries with an inherent machismo culture, an infant phallus is often preferred to little female bundles of joy. One can even assume this to be the case in some traditional Italian families, where men continue to live with their mothers well into their middle age so there is a strong maternal longing for producing sons. However, this is hardly expected in très libéral, unconventional France, where hejab is illegal, extramarital affairs are an acceptable mode of society, and where women are certainly not pressured to produce sons. So it’s flabbergasting that the country’s First Lady inexplicably prayed for another son at a Sufi mazar.

Pregnancy rumours:

“I would love to have children with Nicolas. I hope to, if I am young enough. It would be a dream.” (Carla Bruni, Vanity Fair magazine, 2008).

Gala magazine reported Bruni’s desire in 2009 to have a male child with Sarkozy in 2012 and, failing to do so, planned to adopt one. This year, Bruni fuelled rumours by replacing her slinky gowns and stilettos with looser silhouettes and ballet flats.  She also declined to attend the premiere of her Woody Allen film, Midnight in Paris, at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, which led to further speculation in the French media. The June cover for Elle magazine (French edition) only served to confirm the pregnancy, depicting Bruni with a generous abdomen and a glowing complexion.

A brood of boys:

From their previous relationships, Bruni has eight-year old Aurelian, and Sarkozy has 25-year-old Pierre, 23-year-old Jean (whose wife Jessica has had a baby boy), and 12-year-old Louis—a considerable amount of testosterone as it is! The President’s father, Pal Sarkozy, expressed the hope that couple’s future child would be “a girl as beautiful” as his daughter-in-law even though the couple reportedly seems disinterested in having a daughter.  Carla herself was born from a love affair between her mother, concert pianist Marisa Borini, with a young Brazillian classical guitarist, Maurizio Remmert. Carla grew up thinking that her step father, the late Italian billionaire Alberto Bruni Tedeschi, was her biological father. An heiress, model and pop star, Bruni has had several high profile romances with celebrities including Mick Jagger, and her son Aurelian was the result of a relationship with then-married philosopher Raphael Enthoven.  After being introduced to Nicolas Sarkozy at a dinner party by advertising executive Jacques Seguela, the divorced President Sarkozy said to her, “You’ll be my Marilyn to my JFK” (as described in Seguela’s biography). Eighty days later, they were husband and wife.

Mujhe larka de ('give me a son'):

Last winter, the Sarkozys made an official trip to India and paid a visit to the mazar of Hazrat Shaikh Salim Chisti in Fatehpur Sikhri, famed for assisting childless people with conceiving male children including Emperor Akbar, whose wife Jodha conceived Prince Salim (later Emperor Jehangir) soon after visiting Salim Chisti and built the shrine afterwards. With Bruni wearing a shawl atop her head, the couple wore soft soled socks and carried a blanket of roses as an offering and tied a kalava at the latticed marble windows of the dargah before requesting a qawwali from Aziz Chisti. The Sarkozys also spoke with the mazar’s ancestral guardian, Peerzada Rais Mian Chisti:

“I told them this (shrine) grants wishes to (the) jobless, unmarried and childless. He (Sarkozy) asked me to pray for him and wish him success ... Carla said ‘Pray for me, I want a son’ and I prayed for them…They followed the customs and seemed very happy...Begum Sarkozy (is an) extremely family oriented lady” (Sources: PTI, The Telegraph and Sufitimes.com).

Un petit garçon:

In recent months, Bruni’s mother mentioned that she was expecting a grandchild, while the couple’s matchmaking friend, Jacques Seguela, confirmed that it was a boy in an interview with Le Soir magazine.

A political tool?

The Sarkozys aren’t exactly the most popular couple in France at the moment; last year, Carla Bruni was voted France’s most irritating celebrity in a poll, while Sarkozy came in fourth in France’s most irritating politicians. European media mostly agrees that the birth is ideally timed before Sarkozy begins campaigning for the presidential elections in May 2012:

·      Le Post mocked the pregnancy with, “Is this child going to appear at birth with a press release aimed at disproving everything ever said about its parents?”

·      Gala magazine reported, “The child would also be a way of silencing everything that has been said and written about their relationship in the French media.”

·      Le Parisien newspaper stated, “Carla Bruni's constant presence in the media clearly gets on a lot of people's nerves.”  

·      In a biography on Carla Bruni, author Besma Lahouri described her as being one of her husband's biggest handicaps to getting re-elected.

Can a Bruni-Sarkozy beta change all that? We’ll have to wait and see.

Ageless and Alluring: 50 of the World's Sexiest Women

http://blogs.tribune.com.pk/story/5595/the-a-to-z-of-the-worlds-sexiest-women/

The A to Z of the world’s sexiest women

April 26, 2011

Men dream about them and women dream of looking like them.Beauty may be skin deep, but sexiness goes a long way.This list counts down some of the world’s most attractive celebrities who are captivating, charismatic and often virtually ageless.

Although many have had work done (from fillers and rhinoplasty to hair extensions), it’s not as extreme as some of their contemporaries.

From starlets, thespians, royalty and models, whether Euro, Hollywood, Latina, Bollywood or Pakistani, there’s enough collective allure on this list of 50 to knock down a billion men (in alphabetic order, not ranking):

1. Amanda Seyfried, 25 – Hollywood actress who shot to fame withMamma Mia, and can be seen next in Red Riding Hood.
2. Babra Sharif, 56 – Iconic Pakistani movie actress who rose to fame in the 70s and went on to lead Lollywood in the 80s.
3. Blake Lively, 23 – Statuesque blonde of Gossip Girl fame who has also appeared in Sisterhood Of The Traveling Pants. See her next in The Green Lantern.
4. Camilla Al-Fayed, 24 – Egyptian-Finnish socialite and heiress. Daughter of Harrods owner Mohammed Al-Fayed and Heini Wathen, and half-sister of the late Dodi.
5. Carla Gugino, 39 – Italian-Irish-English American actress with a wide range of portrayals, from The Buccaneers to Spy Kids.
6. Charlotte Casiraghi of Monaco, 24 – Daughter of Princess Caroline of Hanover and Stefano Casiraghi and inherited her grandmother, Grace Kelly’s striking good looks.
7. Cybil Chowdhury, 27 – German-Pakistani runway and print model, mommy who also works in Gymboree.
8. Dimple Kapadia, 52 – Rose to fame with Bobby and Saagar to emerge as an A-list Bollywood star in the 80s with current arthouse roles. She retains her glamorous mane of glossy brown hair. Previously married to actor Rajesh Khanna, and is mother to Twinkle (wife of actor Akshay Kumar) and Rinkie Khanna.
9. Dita Von Teese (born Heather Renee Sweet), 38 – Burlesque icon and ex-wife of Marilyn Manson who brought fetish dancing and retro glamour in vogue.
10. Emmanuelle Chriqui, 33 – Moroccan-Canadian actress from HBO’sEntourage and You Don’t Mess With The Zohan. See her next in Showtime’s The Borgias.
11. Gabrielle Anwar, 41 – Daughter of Tariq and Shireen Anwar, this British actress from The Tudors first shot to fame in Scent Of A Woman. She’s currently on TV’s Burn Notice.
12. Gemma Aterton, 25 – This Bond girl also starred in Prince of Persiaand Tess Of The D’Urbeybilles. See her next in Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters.
13. Heather Graham, 41 – This Austin Powers alumn is the daughter of an FBI agent and played a likeable porn star in both Boogie Nights andThe Guru and a pleasant stripper in The Hangover.
14. Iman Ali, 31 – Lahorite runway and print model who’s starred inKhuda Ke Liye, music videos and ad campaigns, all the while valiantly fighting Multiple Sclerosis.
15. Iraj Manzoor 39/40 (unconfirmed) – Karachiite fashion and print model with a fearless, distinctive persona that redefines Pakistani feminine identity.
16. Isabelle Adjani, 55 – Algerian-German-French actress who has starred in prolific films since 1970 including Queen Margot andDiabolique.
17. Juggan Kazim, 30 – Pakistani TV actress, host, print model and mother to Hamza. A vivacious personality, she’s one of those people who are even prettier without makeup.
18. Crown Princess Letizia of Spain, 38 – This future Queen was a divorced TV news-anchor for Bloomberg and CNN Plus before she married Prince Felipe of Asturiaz. They have two daughters, Leonor and Sofia.
19. Lady Kitty Spencer, 20 – ‘It’ girl, aristocrat and heiress, she is the daughter of Diana’s brother, the 9^th Earl Spencer and former model Victoria Lockwood, and is engaged to South African footballer Larry Cohen.
20. Katy Perry, 26 – Pop singer who rose to fame with ‘I Kissed A Girl.’ Has a contemporary Betty Boop kind of style and is married to Russell Brand.
21. Laetitia Casta, 32 – Iconic French model who played Bridgette Bardot in Gainsbourg and has three children.
22. Li Gong, 45 – Chinese actress who played the envious Hatsumomo from Memoirs of a Geisha and Colin Farrell’s love interest in Miami Vice.
23. Malaika Arora Khan, 37 – Punjabi-Malayali former MTV India VJ who shot to fame ‘item’ dancing in Bollywood hit songs, with Shahrukh Khan in Chaiyya Chaiyya and with brother-in-law Salman Khan inMunni Badnaam Hui. She is married to producer/director Arbaaz Khan has a son, Arhaan.
24. Princess Madeleine of Sweden, 28 – Younger daughter of King Carl Gustaf XVI and Queen Silvia of Sweden. She called off her wedding to her fiancé, lawyer Jonas Bergstorm, after she discovered he was cheating on her.
25. Madeleine Stowe, 52 – British-Costa Rican American star of The Last Of The Mohicans and Twelve Monkeys, she trained as a concert pianist before venturing into Hollywood. She is married and has a son.
26. Marion Cotillard, 35 – French actress and Oscar winner star of La Vie En Rose, as well as Inception and the upcoming The Dark Knight Rises. She is expecting her first baby this spring with The Beach‘s French actor Guillame Canet.
27. Michelle Pfeiffer, 53 – Stunningly cheek-boned  star of Grease 2, Scarface and Cheri and is married to TV director David E. Kelley with two children.
28. Mila Kunis, 20s – Ukrainian-American from TV’s That 70s Show,Black Swan and, yes, voices Meg’s character in the animated series, The Family Guy. See her next in Friends With Benefits.
29. Minka Kelly, 30 – T daughter of an exotic dancer who had a love affair with Aerosmith guitarist, Rick Dufay, she played Leighton Meester’s doppelganger (and vice versa) in The Roommate and stars in TV’sParenthood.
30. Monica Belluci, 46 – Starred in Malena and The Sorcerer’s Apprentice and is married to French actor Vincent Cassel. They have a daughter, Deva.
31. Noureen DeWulf, 27 -  Gujerati-American supporting character onAmerican Dreamz, Ghost Of Girlfriends Past and The Back-up Plan and is currently on TV’s Outsourced (US version). Engaged to US ice-hockey player Ryan Miller.
32. Olivia Wilde, 29 – Seen in TV’s The OC and starred in TV’s House:MDand Tron: Legacy. She recently divorced her husband Tao, the younger son of the 9th Principe Ruspoli (papal title for Italian prince), whom she married in a castle.
33. Paz Vega, 35 – Spanish actress seen in Spanglish and The Six Wives Of Henry Lefay.
34. Penelope Cruz, 37 – Spanish actress and Oscar winner, the darling of director Pedro Almodovar, and is married to Oscar winner Javier Bardem and the mother of baby Leo. Can be seen next in Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.
35. Romola Garai, 28 – Hungarian-British actress, starred in Atonementand Emma.
36. Queen Rania of Jordan, 40 – Palestinian wife of King Abdullah, she takes an active role in politics, philanthropy, and glamour. An ex-Citibanker, she has four children – Hussein, Iman, Salma and Hashem.
37. Rebekah Wainwright, 25 – Irish actress who played Catherine Brandon, Duchess of Suffolk in The Tudors.
38. Rhona Mitra, 34 – Irish-English-Bengali Indian from TV’s The Practice, Boston Legal and The Gates.
39. Rihanna, 23 – Barbadian Pop/R&B singer who shot to stardom with ‘Umbrella.’ Currently sports Ferrari-red hair and a risqué, futuristic wardrobe.
40. Rima Fakih, 25 – This Lebanese-American was the first Muslim and Arab to win the Miss USA title in 2010.
41. Saffron Burrows, 38 – British actress is known for her portrayal inDeep Blue Sea and currently stars in TV’s Law & Order: Criminal Intent.
42. Sofia Vergara, 37 – Voluptuous Columbian who stars in Modern Family and can be seen in the ensemble-cast New Year’s Eve.
43. Sophie Marceau, 44 – French Bond Girl, played the Princess Isabelle in Braveheart and starred in Anna Karenina.
44. Stacey Dash, 45 – West Indian-Aztec American New Yorker. Starred as a high schooler in Clueless when she was 30 and still looks as amazing. She’s been married three times, has two children and can be seen on TV’s Single Ladies.
45. Stana Katic, 33 – Serbo-Croat Canadian star of TV’s Castle, previously had bit parts in films including Quantum Of Solace.
46. Vaneeza Ahmed aka Vinny, 39 – German-raised Lahorite runway and print model and a national pioneer in lawn branding.
47. Virgine Ledoyen, 34 – French actress from The Beach and 8 Womenand can currently be seen in TV’s XIII: The Series.
48. Yasmin Le Bon, 46 – Iranian British model who’s married to Duran Duran lead vocalist Simon Le Bon and mother to aspiring model, Amber Rose.
49. Zeenat Aman, 59 – Legendary Bollywood actress who introduced western ideals of allure, including her portrayals in cult classic songs,Chura Liya and Dum Maro Dum. Has been married to Sanjay Khan and Mazhar Khan, with whom she had two sons, Azaan and Zahaan.
50. Ziyi Zhang, 32 – Chinese star of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragonstarred as a villain in Rush Hour 2 and as Sayuri in Memoirs Of A Geisha.

Before you complain about who’s missing from the list, here are some memorable beauties who didn’t make the cut for the following reason:

1. The Typical Twenty: These super-successful international A-listers have beauty, money and box office power. In other words, they have already featured on so many magazine covers and celebrity features that they deserve to give the others a chance. Aishwariya Rai Bachchan, Angelina Jolie, Bar Rafaeli, Beyonce Knowles, Freida Pinto, Giselle Bundchen, Halle Berry, Heidi Klum, Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Lopez, Jessica Alba, Kate Moss, Megan Fox, Miley Cyrus, Natalie Portman, Padma Lakshmi  Reese Witherspoon, Salma Hayek, Shakira, Scarlett Johanssen.

2. The Plastics: Too many visits to the plastic surgeon’s office have rendered this bevy of attractive women ineligible for our Sexy List, ranging from extreme botox, obvious collagen, keyhole surgery, excessive fillers, massive silicone implants and frequent liposuction. Seriously, where does one begin…? a) Hollywood stars: Nicole Kidman, Melanie Griffith, Lara Flynn Boyle, Demi Moore, Meg Ryan, Marcia Cross, Catherine Zeta Jones, Pamela Anderson. b) Pop icons: Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, Kylie Minogue, Madonna, Dolly Parton, Cher, Mariah Carey. c) Reality TV stars: Katie Price, Heidi Montag, Kim Kardashian, Paris Hilton. d) Bollywood actresses: Shilpa Shetty, Sushmita Sen, Bipasha Basu, Kareena Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Preity Zinta. e) Lollywood actresses: Veena Malik, Meera, Nirma. f) Bollywood ‘item girls:’ Neha Dhupia, Celina Jaitley, Mallika Sherawat, Koena Mitra, Ayesha Takia. g) Pakistani fashion models and socialites: typical traits from plastic addicts from each age group include: The 28-39 age bracket have shiny, frozen botox’d faces and collagen ‘trout pouts;’ The 40s and 50s sport youthful crescent-shaped cheek implants and threadlifts; The 60 pluses have super-taut skin from outdated facelifts and funny nostrils from old rhinoplasties. h) Along with: anyone from MTV USA’s Jersey Shore, ITV’s The Only Way Is Essex, Bravo’s The Real Housewives.

3. Pretty women who aren’t very sexy (despite efforts to be sultry): Katrina Kaif, Katie Holmes, Kate Bosworth, Kate Winslet, Kate Middleton, Cate Blanchett, Kate Beckinsale, Katherine Heigl (notice a pattern with the names?).

4. Style icons not known for their beauty (though adored by women and gay men): Victoria Beckham, Lady Gaga, Sarah Jessica Parker.

5. RIP: These feisty classic movie stars are not in this world any longer or they would have ousted the others out of the running—50s era Marilyn Monroe, 60s era Natalie Wood, 70’s era Parveen Babi, 50s-70s era Elizabeth Taylor.

* Note: This list is in alphabetical order and not ranked