Pre-Diwali parties are a grand affair with special themes, customised invites and elaborate cuisine
The ladies strut in their stilettos and designer gowns towards the entrance lit up with fragrant candles floating in huge pots filled with water, rose and marigold petals. Everything around, from cushion covers to extensive platter, has a touch of gold. While the gentlemen gather around a huge table with the goblet of wine in their hands, ladies wait for the big party to begin. This is no description of a pre-wedding bash or a house warming party. This can be a scene from any of the pre-Diwali parties happening in the city. The card parties that once used to be a small gathering just to have fun before everyone gets busy with festivities are now a grand affair with experts stepping in to decide on the theme of the show, customise invites and ‘design’ the food menu keeping in mind the gathering and the party theme. Neeti Banga, a NIFT faculty, who has been attending the bashes at her friend’s place says, “last year, Diwali was close to Halloween so I attended a Halloween theme party. This time we have planned a rooftop do with some interesting variations in teen patti game. Even the music and décor are as per the theme. Pre-Diwali parties take a lot of planning these days,” she says. While earlier, card parties were mostly about the game of teen patti, this time poker seems to be a favourite one. “Card parties have become the talk of the town, so everyone tries to add more variety in each element, be it the game, theme or music,” says Subhash Kapoor, a businessman.
The invites are planned much in advance. Pranshu Maheshwari of Inneriver-Design and Creative solutions has designed a few innovative invitation cards. He says, “We designed an invitation keeping in mind the suspense and curiosity of the game. The invite builds the intrigue of the guests by suggesting them that ‘the game has started.’ I designed an invite on behalf of the bosses/owners for their employees. The invite had the element of fun linked with fortune. Each invite had the stirrer with the play card icons which the employee was supposed to bring at the venue.”
Food is an essential part of any party and when thousands and lakhs of money is spent on the décor and invites, who cares spending a little more to get the cuisine that wins the hearts of the guests. You can invite chefs to cook at your home in case you are planning a party at your place. The experts design a special menu which is more about finger food and starters with interesting twists, like chicken chaat served in a martini glass. Karan and Sonam Talwar of Kitchen Kraft luxury Catering Company are a known name to arrange cuisine for Diwali card parties. They have launched a special patakha menu. Apart from Spanish tapas and Mexican delights, the duo offers Indian starters and main course prepared with a twist. Sample this. Olive bhel salad, Diwali wale cigar rolls and bakre ke nakhre. “People want to try something different so we work on dishes with a twist. We design the platter as per the theme. For instance, recently we did a party with a golden theme. We served food in gold-plated cutlery,” informs Sonam and says that in some parties they have even set up wood-fired ovens to prepare pizzas in an authentic way. The price ranges from Rs 1,800 to 3,000 or more per person, depending on the kind of variety in the menu.