The Duchess of Cambridge is the new fashion icon and designers like Anita Dongre have been given a huge boost, as have other Indian designers with outlets in London. Fashion writers in the UK have been listing some of the best Indian designers to keep an eye out for and among those mentioned are Saloni, founded by Saloni Lodha in 2011. Her vibrant styles are available at Harrods, Selfridges, Net a Porter and Matches Fashion, with the focus on whimsical summer dresses and occasionwear. Manish Arora can't be left out of the list and his designs are available in boutiques like Farfetch. Vineet Bahl is another popular Indian designer whose designs are available on The Outnet and Net a Porter. Jodhpur-born Anamika Khanna's designs are also attracting the bridal market here, though they are currently only available in one UK store, Aashni + Co.
Witches Brooms in Prisons
British prisons could soon see some strange sights like witches waving wands or others in ceremonial robes reading tarot cards. Ministry of Justice officials have updated and produced a 104-page guide entitled Faith and Pastoral Care for Prisoners, advising prison staff on how to help inmates of different faiths including witches and pagans. Some pagans who use tarot cards for meditation and guidance will be given the facility under the supervision of a chaplain. But the line is drawn at naked pagan worship. Recent figures show pagan worshippers in prisons outnumber Hindus and Jews. The guidance also contains information about other faiths like Mormons who like cocoa and Rastafarians who should be allowed to play the drums. The guide says that adherents of the Baha'i faith need to recite the phrase "Allah-u-Abha" 95 times a day and Zoroastrians worship communally in a "fire temple". Talk about being politically correct!
Labouring Times
The political climate is hotting up, much like predictions for the weather. While the Europe referendum is seeing a deepening divide within political parties, economic experts and media, the London mayoral elections this week has seen a heated and at times vicious and racist campaign between Labour's Sadiq Khan and Conservative Zac Goldsmith. Now, we have the added sting of anti- Semitism. The former mayor of London, Ken Livingstone's comment that Hitler supported Zionism and refused to apologise for it has put his party in an uncomfortable spot. Livingstone made the comment while supporting another Labour MP Naz Shah who had posted anti-Semetic comments on her facebook page. Finally, it seems, after a lot of pressure within the party, its leader Jeremy Corbyn (known to be a close ally of Red Ken) suspended the two from the party and has ordered an investigation by the party into Livingstone's comments.