EXECUTIVE FASHION
Clothes Maketh The Exec
At work, and at play, we are likely to see a better-looking 2003.

Would you consider wearing a deep-blaze shirt to your next board meeting? No. Well, some of India's best-known designers think you should. The white or powder-blue shirt, they point out, may well be on its way out-at least temporarily. "We'll definitely see more of this in the coming year," says designer J.J. Valaya, who swears that whites and blues have already started making way for bolder colours in most exec wardrobes. A splash of colour will definitely brighten up regulation gray, blue, or black suits. If you wear the right tie, adds fashion consultant Prasad Bidappa. "Daffy is out," he says. "If you wear daffy stuff you need to have your head examined." Save that Stuart Little tie, though. Women execs will continue to spend 2003 looking for the perfect western suit; yes, we're aware there are many claimants, but few live up to the promise. The saree could make a come-back and 2002's innovation, lycra slacks worn with a short tunic, is here to stay. And oh yes, remember Friday dressing? Well, that's out..

-Abha Bakaya

TOYS 2003
We Can't Wait
Some cool thingamajigs are on their way to shelves in 2003.

MULTIFUNCTIONAL DIGITAL EGG
This pendant size digital playground made by SuperCam CyberTech is armed with eight video games, takes still and video-pics, and plays fm. Don't worry, it's haploid.

SHARP PERSONAL VIDEO PLAYER
It fits into your palm, records TV shows or movies onto removable media cards in mpeg-4 format, stores them, and lets you view them when you are ready.

TG262 PORTABLE LIE DETECTOR
The TG262 analyses voices, over the phone and in person and displays a Truth/Lie result immediately.

TABLET PC
Your wait to meet the future of the laptop computer ends here. You can take notes on it, use it like a conventional laptop, and, best of all, lug it around like a old-fashioned notebook. There have been several Tablet PC launches already. We like them all.

TALKING TOOTH
This molar implant converts data from a mobile phone, radio, or computer into vibrations that reach the inner ear.
Result: it's as hush-hush as you can get.

SEGWAY HUMAN TRANSPORTER
Chances are, you won't see too many of these in India. Still, if you happen to work for a company with a huge campus, picking up one isn't such a bad idea.

UNDERWATER JET-SKI
It looks like a steering wheel, but actually is the lightest, most efficient propeller for divers, yet. Needless to say, please use this only underwater

DIGISETTE DUO E-CASSETTE
It looks like a cassette but is actually a hi-tech audio player. Use its high-speed USB connection to download files onto it, tote it like a MP3 player or, here comes the nub, insert it into any ordinary cassette player and listen to the music play.

FITNESS
Fit In '02; Fitter In '03
I've got it all worked out for 2003. And size 31 jeans are very much part of it.

I'll tell you what I did all of 2002 and why I'm not going to do any of that-well, make that a lot of that-in 2003. In 2002, I put in four days a week of intensive gym workouts-20-25 minutes of cardio, followed by 40-45 minutes of serious weight training. I ate four or five small meals a day, controlling the carbohydrate and being generous with the protein. And I began supplementing my diet with doses of L-carnitine. I cut down on alcohol-to about three glasses of beer a week.

And while I followed this regimen, I saw the results and I see them now as I stand in front of my bathroom mirror in the buff. The love-handles at the waist have gone without a trace, I'm less jowly around the face and, though the six pack isn't a reality yet, you could certainly call my mid-section a four-pack. What's more, my 32W 501s need a belt these days. So why am I not going to do what I did last year? Because our bodies get used to routine. The clever among the fitness conscious know that and keep varying their workout schedules.

I could, in 2003, do that, but I've chosen a different path. And here's why. As most of you trendy readers are aware, muscle mass is out and lean is in. And as any frequent lifter knows, too much lifting is always equal to bulkier muscles. So here's my new regimen for 2003: More cardio, loads of stretching and just a 20-minute weight training schedule that goes easy on the weights. The only thing that will remain pretty much the same will be my diet, although the mega pack of L-Carnitine that resides on my fridge top is going to go out the window. Instead, I'll have added glasses of green tea, rich in catechin polyphenols, chemicals that act both as an antioxidant and as a metabolism booster. Next year, I hope the stores stock 501s in odd sizes. I'll be looking for 31s.

-Muscles Mani

Working Out: Worth its weight in gold

WORKOUT
Is This The Best Gym In India Or What?
Mumbai's gym rats can now work out in the fabled Gold's Gym.

Its first gym opened in 1965 in Venice, California, better known as Muscle Beach. Since then Gold's has been recognised as the home of serious workouts. And expanded too. At last count to 650 locations in 35 countries. Including the most recent one in Mumbai. Expect no frills at Gold's Gym. And if you're not serious about gymming, Gold's ain't for you. For, at its 14,000 square feet Napean Sea Road branch, everything is about working out: 29 treadmills, cardiovascular workout equipment, weights, Smiths, Lewises, instructors trained in Venice, the works. Added attraction for glitz seekers: Gold's first branch is where a large part of the documentary, 'Pumping Iron', starring Arnold Schwarznegger was shot.

-Shilpa Nayak

Nightclubs: The hottest destination ofor the young and hip

NOCTURNALIA
Cities of the night
Nationwide nightclubbing became an obsession with the smart set. Expect the trend to accelerate in 2003.

Mumbai has always been party-town, and Bangalore has a profusion of pubs trying to do the night club scene, but 2002 saw Delhi and Kolkata catch up. Chennai's Park Sheraton boasts a nightclub too, Dublin, but there is not much that can be said about nightlife (what was that again?) in the city. To let-me-flaunt-my-wealth-in-your-face Delhi must go the credit for infusing life into a dormant business. Pubs, nightclubs, and bars proliferated. And the trend caught on in other cities too. The year also saw the emergence of the pub-nightclub brand. ITC's hotel chain launched its nightclub Dublin nationally, across three centres, and stand-alone successes such as Mumbai's Athena and Velocity, and Bangalore's Opium are wasting no time in going national. The business is as formulatic as it gets-get the music, the liquor, and the crowd management scene right and you're set for life. Not too many of the smaller pubs and nightclubs will live through 2003-already, a third of Delhi's new nightspots have shut shop, or soon will. But with several big launches planned for early 2003-Athena in Bangalore's Leela and Indage's la-inspired bar in Mumbai-the party looks set to continue into the foreseeable future. Hic calix!

-Abha Bakaya

HOTSPOTS
Nightclubbing
A snapshot of the hottest nightclubs in the country.

Delhi/ Ssteel
Delhi's most happening spot circa December 2002 had several things going for it: A warehouse feel, the city's longest single-piece bar counter, 35 Vodkas, 75 whiskies, and 30 beers, a wooden dance floor, and a VIP enclosure (remember, this is Delhi) that boasts its own exclusive bar.

Mumbai/Athena
Drive up to the elegantly lit-up Athena, hand your car to the attendant, glance at the celebs lining up to get in behind you (losers!), drift through the champagne and cigar lounge, the restaurant, the Buddah lounge, sample any of the 180 wines on offer...and wake up.

Bangalore/Opium
With DJs flown in from London and Spain, glamour evenings, masked balls, karaoke nights (stay away), and costume parties, Opium is hi-tech Bangalore's nightclub #1. It's biggest appeal for the city's smart set: it is not in Mumbai or Delhi.

Kolkata/Tantra
Hot pink and peacock green interiors, a dance floor, and loads of space to circulate-what more could you ask for from a nightclub? Well, there's Bodhi bar, a nook upstairs where people who want to sample fine wines and cigars can.