Neha Mehrotra
15-Jan-2026
This week brings a curated mix of what’s new across food, travel, fashion, design, and culture.
1. Six Senses Vana Announces the Launch of Anayu – Recipes and Stories from Vana
(Anayu, by Six Senses Vana)
Anayu reflects how food is understood, prepared, and served at Vana. 'Anna', meaning 'food', and 'Ayu', meaning 'life' or 'longevity'. The recipes in Anayu are those served at the retreat, alongside adaptations designed for everyday kitchens. They use accessible techniques, limited ingredients, and fewer steps, while remaining mindful of waste, water use, and excess. The book also talks about Ayurveda and reflects on the realities of modern food systems, from the impact of monoculture and industrial farming to the ethics of sourcing and consumption.
2. Chason Beverages Brings Umbria’s Old-World Legacy – Bocale – to India
(Founder of Chason Beverages, Prasan Chawla)
Chason Beverages has expanded its portfolio with the introduction of Bocale, a boutique winery from Umbria celebrated for wines of depth, precision, and character. Rooted in a long family tradition, Bocale follows a handcrafted, natural approach to winemaking, producing limited quantities that express the region’s terroir with authenticity. Spread across ten hectares, the estate is best known for its acclaimed Montefalco Sagrantino, prized for structure and longevity. Bocale will debut in India at the Vinitaly India Roadshow 2026.
3. Emirates Extends Premium Economy Reach
(Emirates Premium Economy)
Emirates is expanding its Premium Economy offering to ten new cities, including Kochi, while adding the cabin to more flights across existing destinations. The airline will also deploy its next-generation A350 on additional daily services to Copenhagen, Phuket and Cape Town, boosting capacity ahead of peak summer travel. By 1 July, Emirates will operate Premium Economy across more than 84 routes using retrofitted Boeing 777s, A380s and new A350s, delivering enhanced comfort, elevated dining and a consistent premium experience worldwide.
4. ASICS SportStyle Collaborates with Japanese Fashion Label doublet
ASICS SportStyle has partnered with Japanese fashion label doublet to unveil the GEL-QUANTUM™ 360 I AMP, a playful sneaker inspired by the world of the Jurassic period. Featuring a bold dinosaur head graphic across the upper, the design uses 3D printing to create a textured, reptilian-skin effect, enhanced with three-dimensional polyurethane elements. The sole’s colour palette mirrors dinosaur teeth and gums, creating a chomping visual when both shoes move together.
5. Celebrate a Cultural January in Quorum, Gurgaon
This January, The Quorum, Gurgaon, presents a vibrant cultural calendar, starting with a Big Band Night featuring indie band The Tapi Project on 14th January, followed by a Winter Storytelling Session for children with Charlotte’s Web on 18th January. Guests can then experience Gourmet Cinema—a curated film screening paired with a five-course menu—on 25th January and conclude the month with Dil Se, a soulful tribute to A.R. Rahman, on 30th January. Together, these events bring music, cinema, food, and storytelling to life under one roof.
6. Gigi Bombay brings Alice, Seoul, to Mumbai for a Bar Takeover
Inspired by Alice in Wonderland, Alice is hidden behind a flower shop in Seoul’s Gangnam district, leading into a refined, wood-panelled space where imaginative, seasonal cocktails take centre stage. Known for playful storytelling and precise craftsmanship, the bar ranked #13 on Asia’s 50 Best Bars 2025, delivers innovative drinks. For one night, Eggsy and Loni from Alice bring their fairytale-inspired cocktail philosophy to Gigi, showcasing creations crafted with fresh fruits, house-made syrups, bitters and jellies, alongside a strong selection of premium spirits and local soju. Expect an evening where fantasy meets finesse, down the rabbit hole, one drink at a time.
7. Celebrate Veganuary Across EHV International
(Comorin, Delhi)
EHV International celebrates Veganuary from 2 to 31 January 2026 across its Mumbai and Delhi restaurants—Indian Accent, Comorin, Fireback, Hosa, and Drift—with thoughtfully crafted, plant-forward menus. Each restaurant interprets vegan cooking through its distinct culinary lens. The experience is complemented by a curated selection of detox mocktails, offering guests a flavour-driven yet mindful way to begin the year.
8. 403 Forbidden Bar Redefines Nightlife with Bengaluru’s First ‘Theatre of Presence’
403 Forbidden, the latest addition to Bengaluru’s nightlife, reimagines the bar experience as India’s first Theatre of Presence. Founded by Aman Dua and Rachit Saboo, the space rejects spectacle in favour of intimacy, intention, and attention as luxury. Inspired by 1970s social clubs and the idea of “access denied”, the bar curates rhythm across light, sound, and service. With a clarity-led cocktail programme and a by-request personalised drink ritual, 403 Forbidden functions as a cocktail laboratory where science, sustainability, and sensory storytelling shape deeply individual experiences.
9. Taste of Saigon Comes to Bengaluru
(JW Marriott Bengaluru Prestige Golfshire Resort & Spa)
JW Marriott Bengaluru Prestige Golfshire Resort & Spa hosts an exclusive two-night Vietnamese culinary and cocktail pop-up at East – The Asian Living Room on January 16 and 17, 2026, in collaboration with Dean With Us. Bringing Saigon’s vibrant dining and nightlife culture to Bengaluru, the experience features acclaimed mixologist Thep Dinh of Stir – Modern Classic Cocktails, alongside Chef Nhan Ngo of Savour & Stir. Guests can enjoy four signature cocktails each evening paired with a refined Vietnamese menu created in collaboration with East’s Head Chef Saiful Agam.
10. Sufi Heritage Festival Returns to Sunder Nursery, New Delhi this Feburary
This week brings a curated mix of what’s new across food, travel, fashion, design, and culture.
(The Sufi Heritage Festival)
The Sufi Heritage Festival returns to Sunder Nursery for its second edition on February 28 and March 1, 2026. Conceived as a cultural IP under Culture Plus, the festival celebrates Sufism as a living cultural continuum shaped by love, devotion, oneness, and equality. The programme unfolds across two stages—Samaa, featuring contemporary performances by Sona Mohapatra, Daler Mehndi, and Marham Poetry, among others; and Bebaak, a platform for bold new voices, including Sonam Kalra, Saumya Kulshreshtha, Aahvaan Project, Shinjini Kulkarni, and the Murad Ali Collective. Beyond performances, the festival extends into the Sufi Souk, a marketplace of heirloom crafts and artisanal finds, alongside immersive workshops and culinary experiences.
11. Sansaar Marks Its International Expansion
This week brings a curated mix of what’s new across food, travel, fashion, design, and culture.
((L-R) Sarah Arora, Co-Founder of Sansaar; Sanjay Arora, Managing Director of D'Décor Exports Pvt Ltd; Gary Neiman, Director at Bru Textiles; Sanjana Arora, Co-Founder of Sansaar)
Sansaar, the premium home furnishings brand from D’Décor Exports, marks its first international expansion with a strategic partnership with Bru Textiles’ Fabric Library, launching in Dubai and entering the GCC market. The B2B-led rollout, completed in December 2025, places Sansaar’s fabric collections across select retail and trade counters in the region. Leveraging Fabric Library’s strong Middle East presence, the collaboration reflects a shared commitment to design integrity, quality, and long-term value, positioning Sansaar for phased global growth.
12. Nappa Dori Unveils the Wingman Collection
Nappa Dori has unveiled the Wingman Collection, a contemporary luggage line inspired by the romance of classic travel. Blending vintage leather detailing with modern engineering, the collection balances timeless design and everyday functionality. Crafted with lightweight polycarbonate shells, smooth wheels, TSA locks, and organised interiors, Wingman is designed to evolve with every journey. Available in multiple formats—from cabin to trunk—and finished with customisable name tags, the collection reflects understated luxury for the modern traveller, offered in a refined, travel-ready colour palette.
13. UP Warriorz Unveil New Playing Jersey Inspired by Ekaya’s Banarasi Heritage
UP Warriorz have revealed their new playing jersey in collaboration with Ekaya Banaras, titled A Blooming Rebellion. Drawing from Banaras’ floral heritage and Ekaya’s weaving legacy, the design reinterprets traditional motifs through a modern, performance-driven lens. Symbolising strength, renewal, and modern femininity, the jersey honours Uttar Pradesh’s rich cultural identity while reflecting women athletes carrying tradition forward on their own terms.
14. Echoes Of The Hand a Solo Exhibition by Gaurab Das, At Black Cube Gallery
(Sculptures by Gaurab Das)
Black Cube Gallery presents ‘Echoes of the Hand’, a significant body of new sculptures by Gaurab Das, a Santiniketan-based artist. Themes of connection run through the exhibition: mother and child, human and nature, and buffalo and land. These forms, never literal, reveal themselves slowly through abstraction, rhythm and surface. Trained at Kala Bhavana, Das inherits Santiniketan’s legacy of contextual modernism, an approach that embraces materiality, craft and an empathetic understanding of the living world. His sculptures invite viewers into a space of contemplation, where form becomes emotion and presence becomes relational.
Dates: 30th January - 20th February 2026
Location: Black Cube Gallery | G12A Hauz Khas New Delhi
15. Ranthambhore at 50: Kairav Engineer Launches Landmark Book and Exhibition Honouring Valmik Thapar
(Image Credits: Kairav Engineer)
Marking 50 years of Ranthambhore National Park, photographer-conservationist Kairav Engineer unveils Ranthambhore – 50 Iconic Years, a landmark book and immersive exhibition from January 20–22, 2026, at Bikaner House, New Delhi. Conceived as a final collaboration with the late Valmik Thapar, the project brings together five decades of imagery from over 130 photographers. Blending archival history, large-format photography, films and soundscapes, the exhibition is both a tribute to Ranthambhore’s legacy and a celebration of India’s enduring tiger story, with proceeds supporting Tiger Watch.
16. Jio World Drive Presents a Soulful Evening with Nirvaan Birla
Jio World Drive presents a musical evening and soulful gathering led by Nirvaan Birla. Known for blending spirituality with modern musical expression, Nirvaan Birla brings his Sounds for the Soul initiative to life through an intimate, immersive concert experience. The evening will feature his original compositions like Shankaraa, Hari’s Heart, and Radhe Hari, alongside thoughtfully reimagined devotional melodies, Western classics, and Hindi love ballads.
Cover Credits: Sufi Heritage Festival
