Movie watching is a luxurious experience at Cinema Europa

film theatres
Haute Lounges

DELHI Once upon a time, watching movies used to be a unidimensional experience. A darkened hall with your attention focused on a flickering screen. Silent films, black and white talkies, Technicolor, 70mm, 3D Dolby surround sound, digital-movies have come a long way. But they clearly did not have enough to keep the audiences coming back for more.

Now, other elements are being introduced to lure people into the cinema experience. Some multiplexes now offer a haute combo. Luxury lounges-Cinema Europa at PVR Gurgaon and Platinum Lounge at Wave Noida-allow you to sit back, eat and drink all you want and get pampered while watching a film.

There is no need to queue up with the hoi polloi for tickets. A separate counter, smiling staff and a welcome drink pander to your snobometer. At PVR, you can order snacks or a meal, which is served during the interval, from your seat. Besides, if you find that long song boring, you can pop out for a quick drink at the lounge, done up with posters of old Hollywood and Bollywood classics, before you head back for the climax. At PVR, which has 132 such seats, the charges are Rs 50 over the usual ticket price of Rs 150. Given the response here, the PVR at Saket in Delhi will also have these premium lounges, as will those in Bangalore and Mumbai.

At Wave, on the other hand, which has two such posh lounges with 17 seats each, for Rs 500 you get a combo of ticket and unlimited popcorn, colas, sandwiches, meat rolls, ice cream and cakes. The lobbies are slick and the seats are business class-comfortably inviting, with footrests and all.

You can hold hands but smooching, Liz Hurley style, could get you more attention than you want. And yet, at the end of it all, a question remains. If a cinema experience is incomplete unless you can eat, drink and get indulged for a price, doesn't it say something about the quality of the films?

— By Shefalee Vasudev and Kanika Gahlaut

installation art
Spectacular Suspension

BANGALORE Installation art might not have a thriving market in India, but that doesn't deter the enthusiasts. Sculptor and installation artist Nivedita Deshpande, who has worked in New York studios, brings her first exhibition to Bangalore. Precise, crystalline arrangements of fragile materials suspended in mid-air-an extended yet playful exploration of the nature of being in space is what the exhibit is about. Deshpande says that she works as a stylist for advertisements, on the creative side of movies and does everything that she finds creatively acceptable "as long as it helps pay my bills". Wooden chips and silver foil form the basic material of the installations. Deshpande, who has exhibited in New York and Baltimore, will be showing at Grasshopper, an avant-garde boutique restaurant. From March 7 to April 18.

— By Nirmala Ravindran

music
New Age Spin

Purists will cry foul if they listen to this album. Traditional classical compositions have been sung to the accompaniment of drums, bass guitars and keyboards. Youngsters, however, will lap up this contemporary spin to classical music. The album features the father-son team of Pandit Ajay Pohankar and Abhijit Pohankar. Abhijit calls it New Age music. Tum Kya Jaano Preet, the title track, has a mellow feel and charming groove. The funky sonic arrangements come together with a sensual touch in this track. Sajna Jao is a romantic number and its music emphasises a yearning for the beloved. It is one of those mixes of the west and the east. But if you enjoyed the fusion music in Piya Bawari, their earlier album, you will like the lounge music strain in this too.

— By S. Sahaya Ranjit

exhibition
Brush with a Pen

A human form by Padamsee (left) and Bajaj's vibrant art

MUMBAI Words become works of art as the Tao Art Gallery celebrates its fourth anniversary in a unique synergy of paint and poetry. Illumination-Paintings, Poems has the works of artists like S.H. Raza, Akbar Padamsee, Manu Parekh and Dashrath Patel, among others. These are offset by the poetry of Gulzar, Arun Kolatkar, Pritish Nandy, Prabodh Parikh and others. On display are works of nine painters and framed verses penned by 17 poets.

While Pritish Nandy writes "A thousand desires such as these ... A thousand moments to set this night on fire", Akbar Padamsee presents the human form in shades of burnt ochre and Sujata Bajaj speaks through vibrant colours. Interestingly, Gulzar has written a poem in Urdu which has been framed without translation, like a work of art. Gujarati poet Prabodh Parikh writes on Medha Patkar, "You have another name also ... River".

The uncommon concept was the brainchild of Kalpana Shah of Tao. "I love both art and literature as they are equally creative forms of art and this was my way of combining them," she says. She handpicked the artists on display, making it a mix of the old and new. On till March 20 at Tao Art Gallery, Mumbai.

— By Kimi Dangor

fashion
Bold Beads

DELHI Jewellery designer Parul Puri's line, Intuition-Jewels Before Time, is an interesting range of bold and chunky jewellery and accessories. It was displayed at the recent Spring Lifestyle show in Delhi. Intuition includes kundan, silver, semi-precious stones like blue opal from Peru, and some unusually shaped gold beads. Good for accessorising fusion outfits.