Bigger and better than ever before, the fourth UpperCrust Show that took place on December 1, 2 and 3 2006, transformed the sprawling World Trade Centre complex of Bombay into a foodie�s paradise quite literally! Three days when it was okay to indulge and pamper your taste buds with world renowned chefs whipping up exotic dishes and more than a hundred stalls selling everything related to food and wine. As food lovers and wine connoisseurs started pouring in on the first day, you could sense that expectations ran high in the air; after all, this was India�s premier food, wine and lifestyle exposition, which is visited by ordinary folks and celebrities alike. And inaugurating the three day extravaganza was veteran filmmaker Yash Chopra, who was introduced to the eminent people teeming in the courtyard by UpperCrust editor, Farzana Contractor. The dashing filmmaker made a quiet entry but was soon surrounded by excited onlookers and media personnel who gathered around him.

Introducing Chopra was Farzana Contractor looking svelte in a yellow kurta. And then taking centrestage was the unusually reticent man, a true blue foodie, who�s given us so many hit films in the past. �When Farzana first asked me to come here to inaugurate the UpperCrust Show, I wondered why me! I guess it was because she�d read an article where Shahrukh Khan had mentioned that my two passions are films and food. And truly food and films are so synonymous! Just as a chef feels nervous till the entire meal isn�t consumed, I as a director, too, get nervous before every film is released and seen by the audience. I heartily congratulate Farzana for doing such a wonderful job in keeping Behram�s memory alive. As long as I�d known him, Behram Contractor was a wonderful person and the best food journalist I�ve ever known,� he said.

After an appreciative round of applause from the audience, Chopra proceeded to light the traditional lamp in the courtyard, marking the official start of three non-stop days of food, food and more food! For all those of you who didn�t make it for the show, the courtyard is a vast open space in the heart of the WTC, with two huge trees providing much needed shade. And this year there was a special guest at the UpperCrust Show; Dadi Contractor, the late Behram Contractor�s brother, had flown in especially from France for the three day food extravaganza. Chopra was then ushered to the Expo Centre by Farzana Contractor, where more than a hundred stalls waited to be explored and Chopra with a delighted expression on his face, sampled a bit from each booth.

And that�s what everyone else who visited the UpperCrust Show 2006 did as well. After shopping to their hearts content at the stalls (did we mention all the great discounts?), content visitors satiated their hunger pangs by gorging on the incessant variety of food items that were available i.e. of course, when they weren�t attending the various live demonstrations that were held by eminent chefs over the three days. The best was saved for the last day, when the much waited Chateau Indage grape crushing ceremony took place and the three day affair finally came to an end.

It didn�t really matter if you weren�t a chef or a food expert. You just had to love food and even if you didn�t, you�d have fallen in love with the astounding multiplicity of things that were on display and, that too, at specially discounted rates. Right from mouthwatering pickles to wafers, kulfis to hot dogs, olive oils to fruit juices � it was all there. Almost all stalls had tempting free samples, so your taste buds were assured of a melee of flavours! A special �Wine Alley� had also been put up (yes, you could sip the wines!) where Reveilo, Sonary�s, United Spirits and Chateau Indage among others had put up some innovative stalls, all just waiting to be sampled.

After the inauguration on the first day, guests and visitors sauntered through the numerous stalls put up at the show. But they soon gathered back at the courtyard to watch Chef Mathew Cropp toss up relishing Australian cuisine. Born in Sydney, Cropp�s current occupation is heading a team of chefs at the Oberoi. With his charming smile and bright blue eyes, Cropp led the audience through the simplest and quickest native Australian bush food. �The spices used in this bush food were discovered by the Aborigines who migrated to Australia,� said Cropp. The first dish was Avocado Soup, more explicitly called Chilled Avocado Cream with Roasted Wattle Seed�, which is served with a topping of whipped cream. The next dish on the list was the Lemon Myrtle Crusted Tenderloin in Spiced Parmesan Cups. The tenderloin, chopped into thin pieces was covered with a parsley mixture and served in small cheese cup moulds and garnished with lemon vinaigrette and mustard cress. �The tenderloin (beef) isn�t cooked,� said Cropp. Not that the audience complained; they relished every bite of the tasting samples of the dish that were passed around.

This was followed by an interesting demonstration in the Expo Centre by Zelma Lazarus. Zelma demonstrated how to use exotic condiments like mustards, wine vinegars and natural cheese to make the most ordinary dishes into culinary masterpieces. And with an eager audience full of housewives, Lazarus made quite a few ladies take down notes of the dishes she whipped up. Using Boursin cheese to make Cucumber and Cheese Mousse and Mushroom Pate and then a combination of mustard and mayonnaise with red wine vinegar to make a Curried Potato Salad, Lazarus made it all look so very easy.

The next event in the courtyard was a demonstration of Japanese cuisine meticulously explained by Chef Paul Naronha and Chef Vikas Sharma of ITC hotels, who whipped up four recipes, which as the chefs said needed an acquired taste to be enjoyed! The first two, conjured up by Chef Naronha included �Hiyayaku� and �Tebasaki�. The second dish made by Sharma was Tsukune, consisting of chicken mince balls and teriyaki sauce. Aside from a taste of Japanese cuisine, guests who answered the questions put up by lovely hostess Pallavi Raj Walia at the demo received gifts like the �Salsa Dip and Tomato Chili Dip� from the �Kitchen�s of India�, along with free UpperCrust magazines.

Following this were young bartenders Ami Shroff and Delnaaz Irani, who held the packed Expo Centre captivated with their implausible bartending skills. Juggling bottles with the ease of experts, the young flair bartenders made the audience go ooh and aah as the bottles were tossed high in air, only to land back safely in their deft hands. The two girls also made an assortment of mocktails and cocktails, which were then passed around the appreciative audience.

This was followed by Zeba Kohli�s much awaited chocolate fashion show, which was attended by hundreds of people. With accessories like bangles, earrings, necklaces, rings and belts all made out of various types of chocolates, the models looked absolutely delectable! If day one of the UpperCrust Show started on a high note, day two saw even more action. Kicking off day two was the affable Karen Anand, who demonstrated the use of California Prunes to make scrumptious starters, snacks and salads. �I�ve always used Californian Prunes in many of the dishes I make,� she said. �The difference between normal prunes and Californian Prunes is that the latter remain moist and succulent and add intense flavour,� she said to an audience crammed with housewives (and a handful of men.). This was followed by Chef Venkatesh Bhat, who held a courtyard full of people in rapt attention as he demonstrated two South Indian recipes, Kuzhi Paniyaram and Banana Dosa. The Corporate Master Chef for South Indian cuisine at the Leela Palace Kempinski in Bangalore, Chef Bhat good-naturedly answered all questions thrown to him by the audience in his lilting South Indian accent.

Once Chef Bhat�s demonstration was over, the courtyard was brimming with people, who started to make a beeline to the various stalls that had been put up in the courtyard. And before you knew it, it was time for Chef Rudolf Eichele to whip up some appetizing continental dishes. And after everybody had feasted on South Indian and Continental cuisine, it was time to be introduced to the different types of cheese. This job was dispensed to Jehangir Lawyer, who shared his all-embracing knowledge of cheese with the audience. �There are 1,400 to 1,500 popular varieties of cheese globally. And both France and Italy share the status of producing the most varieties of cheese,� said Lawyer, who had brought along the Parmegiano Reggiano cheese, the Kwak cheese and the Fondue cheese, which he cheerfully distributed among the audience.

While Lawyer was charming the audience on the first floor, our very own celebrity cook Tarla Dalal stirred up appetites of a crowd of guests who were spilling out of the Courtyard area on the ground floor of the WTC. Dalal demonstrated Gujarati cuisine and so much was the demand for Dalal�s gastronomic skills that UpperCrust ran out of recipes, which were being distributed amongst the crowd!

Next on the list, and the last for the day was a presentation of an ingredient for healthy living, olive oil by V. N. Dalmia, head of Dalmia Continental. Describing the various types of olive oil, the pure olive oil, the virgin olive oil and the olive pomona, Dalmia handed out cups of olive oil for the audience to drink, who looked slightly disconcerted for a moment but soon went ahead and tasted all the varieties of olive oil and nodded their heads in unison, suggesting they could manage to distinguish between the different varieties. And that was how the second day came to an end.

Day three and the last day of the UpperCrust Show was as rocking as the other days if not more. With crowds rushing in almost as soon as the World Trade Centre opened its gates, the scene was analogous till late evening as people continued to come in to pick up items at the eleventh-hour. Opening day three was nutritionist Naini Setalvad, who spoke about the benefits of eating healthy and how important it was in today�s day and age. Helping Setalvad was young Chef Kaizad Patel from the restaurant �Ammbiir�. Naini spoke about her own journey from being an obese 150 kgs to a fit 58 kgs now. And if you see the petite lady now, you�d never guess that it took her almost two years to get to this size.

Following Setalvad�s stimulating talk in eating healthy was Chef Viraf Patel�s fascinating demo on modern European cuisine. An Executive Chef at the Salt Water Grill, Chef Patel made Chicken Liver Pate with Apple and Onion Marmalade, Vegetable Tortellini with Oregano and Garlic Butter, Chilled Watermelon and Cranberry Soup, which although sounded strange, was delicious, and to finish, Rawas with Bhavnagri Cream.

Subsequently Chef John Crouch took centre stage in the Courtyard where he emonstrated Cumbrian Cuisine. What is that, you might wonder. Well, Cumbria is a quaint, modest Lake District of England and Chef Crouch spends half a year there and the other half in India. Demonstrating a cuisine, which almost no one had ever heard of would be a tough proposition for many but for gregarious Chef Crouch, it was rather easy.

And after almost two-and-a-half days of educating visitors on what to eat, it was time for the gorgeous Rukhsana Eisa to lay out a seven course meal and demonstrate, how and with which cutlery to eat the meal. Starting with the basics, Rukhsana good-naturedly warned everybody to lay out the napkin before the waiter offered to do so. And then came out the sparkling spoons, forks, knives and the various kinds of plates to be used for a seven course meal. Next came a lesson on the variety of glasses, how to hold them and which alcohol should be served appropriately in which glass.

And finally it was time for the event that everyone had been waiting for since the beginning of the UpperCrust Show 2006. The annual grape crushing event was attended by hordes of people crowded in and around the courtyard where a large wooden vat was placed. It was Chateau Indage, who made it all possible by pouring in 1000 kgs of grapes in the vat. This grand event was stomp-started by Farzana Contractor, who stepped into the vat first. �The grapes under my feet feel like rubber marbles, although very squishy,� said Farzana Contractor raising a toast to all around. And while the young and old stomped away on the grapes, a quiz was held and bottles of Chateau Indage were given out to those who gave the correct answers. The very pleasant and gracious Nita Ambani, too, made a visit at this fun filled event and was invited to judge the best stall on the first floor. The first prize went to United Spirits, the second to Best Food and Wines, the third to Shisha and Manav�s Marvels clinched the consolation prize. �I congratulate Farzana Contractor and her team for having put up such a wonderful show,� said Nita. After the crowd got a practical lesson on one aspect of wine making, Clive Castelino of Chateau Indage made a very remarkable presentation on what wine and Chateau Indage was all about. And with that, the curtain came down on a spirited and exiting UpperCrust Show 2006. A good time, no � a great time, was had by all!

A �Fantasie� Of A Chocolate Show
Chocolatier Zeba Kohli gave the UpperCrust Show 2006 something to lick about!

If you�re a chocoholic, you�d have loved to be present at the UpperCrust 2006 Fantasie Chocolate Fashion Show, conceived by Farzana Contractor and presented by Zeba Kohli. The much awaited fashion show saw huge crowds, with everyone jostling for space to get the best view. After all, where else would you get to see topnotch models all covered in chocolate! Choreographed by Marc Robinson, with designs by Lascelles Symons and Zeba Kohli, it had models walking the ramp in jeans teamed up with innovative bustiers, corsets and corsages covered in, what else but, chocolate! With accessories like bangles, earrings, necklaces, rings and belts all made out of various types of chocolate � white, dark, coffee and mint, the models looked absolutely succulent.

And with bits of chocolates falling on the ramp, amused front rowers had a blast, picking up the chocolates to eat. But it was the show stopper that took everyone�s breath away. The lovely Simone Singh, looking gorgeous in a pale yellow dress and matching handbag with bits of chocolate stitched on it, walked the ramp looking as if she�d been doing it all her life. So how did this show happen? �When I wanted something unique for the UpperCrust Show, I called my friend Zeba and said, how about a chocolate show? She jumped at the idea in nervous excitment and went about executing the idea with great zeal and passion,� said Farzana Contractor, editor, UpperCrust.

But if you think the fashion show was a breeze to put up, you�re quite off the mark. For three weeks prior D-day, Zeba, Lascelles and Marc, along with their team brainstormed for hours so that it all went smoothly. And in the end, it all just fell into place.

Farzana continued, �Most people had never seen anything like the chocolate fashion show before and found the concept really amazing.� Designer Lascelles Symons said, �When Zeba called me and explained the concept to me, it sounded so interesting. The pure excitement of working with raw materials, which I�ve never worked with before, was an exhilarating challenge in itself. Chocolate as you know dries up as soon as it touches air. So although it was tough, I loved the creative freedom Zeba gave me.� With models like Tapur and Tupur Chatterjee walking the ramp wearing chocolate coloured bustiers, the crowd oohed and aahed at the designs (and the models, of course) as the models themselves bit into the chocolate accessories they were wearing, much to the delight of the men present in the audience.

�The show was such a welcome break from the usual mundane fashion shows that usually take place. I�m used to doing wild and wacky stuff but this was the yummiest show I�ve ever done. For days before the main day, we�d all sit together and discuss what was to be made when, what each model would wear, the music that would best suit it and, of course, the lighting was the main area, which we had to look into. We had to take into consideration all issues to avoid any fiascos,� said show director Marc Robinson.

According to Zeba, �What more could I ask for in Fantasie�s seventh decade than an opportunity to unveil the new �Luxur Line� at the UpperCrust Show which is clearly India�s biggest food and wine event. I�m beholden to Farzana Contractor. We put the entire show together in less than three weeks. How Lascelles and I created the outfits is a trade secret and let�s just say it wasn�t easy! But each outfit complete with the accessories took more than 12 hours to make because we had to embellish the bustiers as well. And I was very wary about wardrobe malfunctions till the day of the fittings. But once I saw that everything was scrupulously taken care of, I breathed easy!�

�I�m not really a chocolate eater and I definitely ate more chocolates during the fashion show than I have ever eaten in my entire life! Every time I�d get some chocolate on my fingers while creating an outfit, I�d invariably lick it off! But it was an experience that I�ll never forget; it was fun and things were very chilled out during fittings. Zeba was the only one who was stressing throughout! But I knew we had something with which we couldn�t really go wrong,� said Symons.

�If getting the models to wear the outfits was tough, it was fabulous getting the outfits off! We had just one fitting prior to the event and it went as smoothly as the show itself. I had a great time choreographing the event; it was by far the yummiest I�ve ever done!� said Robinson. And the reactions and bouquets that started pouring in as soon as the curtains fell down haven�t stopped till date. �People were so astounded that a show could be delicious and sensational at the same time. We tried to make the show as tongue-in-cheek as possible because I believe that life is a delicious bottle of bubbly that should be enjoyed and indulged in. I wanted to treat everyone to a visual feast that would be great on the palate too. And while all the accessories were eaten up by the models and guests after the show, most of the clothes disintegrated, while some which remained just need a bit of a touch up,� says Zeba.

The astonishing part is that Zeba and Lascelles have been inundated with calls to make similar clothing from women. �I�ve had a lot of brides-to-be and women organising bachelorette parties asking me to create clothes akin to the ones they saw at the show! I�d never even thought of doing anything like this before and I think this is totally Zeba�s department because I work with cloth not chocolate!� says Symons with a laugh.

�I was an emotional as well as a euphoric wreck till the last day of the show. And I know I couldn�t have done it without Farzana, Lascelles, Marc, my models � especially Tupur and Tapur, Simone Singh who reached the venue an hour before the event because of a delayed flight, Vinod Advani, who was the emcee for the evening, Viraf Pocha who did the lighting and music, and Mehera Kolah who did the makeup and hair. It was entirely a team effort and the show wouldn�t have gone so effortlessly even if one of them was missing. It�s amazing that everything just fell into place, I guess it was the masterstroke of God!� says Zeba.