Nisha's Mumbai: Nisha JamVwal Captures The City's Blend Of Spirituality, Style And Social Life

Stardom meets spirituality

When Juhi Chawla calls, people come. And not only because half of Mumbai — and perhaps more — is so hung up on Bollywood. Yes, that’s part of it, I’m sure. But I’ve always found Juhi to be genuinely warm, grounded and wonderfully bubbly. There is something very endearing about her.

And then add to that the growing appeal of Mataji, who is fast catching Mumbai’s imagination and spreading her devotional wings across an eclectically mixed audience. Most people are naturally drawn to spirituality after experiencing loss, uncertainty or anguish — that’s hardly surprising. But her modern-day pravachans have an appeal that cuts across generations.

I find her rhetoric relatable and contextual to the quagmire many of us find ourselves navigating today. I’m certainly and constantly dodging troughs of Kalyug. Judging by the crowds, I’m clearly not alone.

I’m currently in an exploratory space spiritually, and I’m rather enjoying it. These gatherings of mine bring together an eclectic audience. Film stars beside industrialists, young professionals beside grandparents, and nobody seems terribly interested in who is who. For those few hours everyone is another spiritual seeker trying to make a little more sense of life with all its machinations.

Mataji, for those uninitiated, is an MIT and Harvard alumna — and yet she wears her formidable academic credentials and graceful saris with spiritual ease. It definitely explains why she speaks as comfortably about modern trials and challenges and how to navigate 21st Centuary perils as she does about ancient history and spiritual wisdom. Her stories about the Gods of the Indian Pantheon have me spellbound and I can’t help wait for some miracles to happen with all this devotional interaction I’m having with her! After all we’re in this physical state where some great blessings may not hurt isn’t it?

Juhi herself drifted through the gathering exactly as she always does—without the fuss that often accompanies celebrity. She has somehow managed to remain recognisably the same Juhi despite her movie career, which is perhaps rarer than fame itself.

Tea, memories, unfiltered opinions

When you grow into your life in a Mumbai housing society with a chosen group of friends, they gradually begin to feel almost like siblings. You can say almost anything, share family drama, triumphs, disappointments and milestones, and watch one another’s lives unfold over decades.

That was exactly the feeling at the afternoon tea hosted by ex-actor Reena Wadhwa. We first met soon after I moved back to India and into an ivory tower by the sea in South Mumbai. We were eight of us who seemed to gel and met frequently over tea sessions and we’ve celebrated Holi, Diwali, Karva Chauth, birthdays, endless cups of tea and countless conversations together- ever since! That’s twenty five odd years!

Many of the original gang have now migrated to Mumbai’s glamorous new towers across the city, but every now and then we reunite to relive old memories. Isn’t that the story of Mumbai itself? First everyone lived in a building. Then everyone moved into different new age towers. The addresses became different, but thankfully the friendships survived the upgrades.

Reena — who has also brought luxury fashion brands Gucci and YSL to India — is meticulous by nature, and that came across in every detail of the lavishly laid-out tea.

I worked my way through several cups of English Breakfast tea sitting opposite her wall-sized mixed-media work by Jitish Kallat. Between admiring the artwork, refilling teacups and pretending I wasn’t reaching for another helping of cranberry cheese which I’d singularly demolished , the afternoon slipped by almost unnoticed.

And what, you might ask, occupied eight opinionated women from three in the afternoon until almost seven?

The question posed was wonderfully combustible:“If you knew your close friend’s husband was having an affair, would you tell her?” What followed was everyone there getting in vociferous views over each other.

Everyone interrupted everyone else. Several of us attempted to speak louder to get a word in edgewise. Opinions flew across the room faster than the sandwiches. It was gloriously chaotic — rather like Parliament, only with better tea.

No consensus was reached. Half the room believed honesty should prevail. The other half believed self-preservation was the wiser option. Thankfully, nobody confessed to having first-hand experience!

Celebrations and monsoon cheer

After many anxious days of worrying about delayed rains and water shortages, the monsoon has finally arrived — and I’m sincerely hoping I’m not tempting fate by saying so.

I will say, however say that the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has acquired quite a reputation for weather forecasts that don’t mostly materialise as predicted. Maybe it’s time they tried forecasting the opposite!

Thankfully, the torrential rain has done nothing to dampen Mumbai’s indomitable spirit.

Birthday celebrations continue unabated.

Mumbai has a remarkable relationship with the monsoon. We complain about it before it arrives, complain while it pours like it has this week and become strangely nostalgic the moment the sun comes out again.

Vibhuti Desai hosted a lovely dance celebration for her best friend Salina Vasvani at the newly refreshed House of Akina in Bandra. The Bingo game meticulously planned was chaotic and fun!

Akina seems to have quickly found its footing as one of Bandra’s celebration addresses, with almost every week producing another dance birthday, launch or celebration with very loud music where one can hardly hear oneself think!

Meanwhile, a senior Diageo executive, Abanti Shankarnaryan, now associated with the Mahindra Group, hosted an intimate musical wedding celebration for her daughter. The high point there was the guests taking to the Mike and singing nostalgic cinema songs. The live music had eventually dissolved into a full-fledged sing-song session, Indians rarely require much encouragement before talented singers reache for a microphone sportingly . Abanti was a fun and fabulous host and enjoyed her daughter’s wedding to the hilt.

Both gatherings were thronged with friends arriving cheerfully despite the rain to celebrate the birthday girl and the beautiful bride.

Fashion, fun and festivities

White Crow at Jio World Plaza hosted a lively afternoon introducing guests like me to the label’s couture sections . White Crow at Jio World Drive has reinvented itself into one of those concept stores where fashion, books, coffee, design objects and luxury labels all happily coexist. It is almost impossible to pop in for ten minutes without staying considerably longer.

Truth be told, while the clothes were beautiful, I probably spent more time enjoying the roulette table than studying the garments — despite not winning a thing! The guessing games were equally entertaining about brands and their pricing! The competitive streak amongst perfectly civilised ladies surfaced surprisingly quickly once prizes were involved. Suddenly everyone became extraordinarily knowledgeable about luxury brands and price tags.

Sometimes I wonder whether Mumbai social life should qualify as an endurance sport. One minute you’re discussing spirituality, the next you’re debating infidelity over tea, followed by dancing at birthdays and finally trying your luck at a roulette wheel before disappearing into yet another wedding.

That, in many ways, is Mumbai which is one moment drenched in rain, the next dressed for a celebration. We complain endlessly about the traffic, the weather and the noise—yet somehow none of us would willingly trade this wonderfully exhausting city for another.

And while Mumbai continues celebrating life with its usual panache and studied casual style , I quietly hope that the wars across the world end make way for long awaited and prayed for peace.

May life’s celebrations continue for a very long time.

Write to Nisha JamVwal at indiapheonix@gmail.com

Published on: Thursday, July 09, 2026, 06:41 PM IST