Book Review: The Style Diary of a Bollywood Diva by Kareena Kapoor, Rochelle Pinto

Title: The Style Diary of a Bollywood Diva

Author: Kareena Kapoor with Rochelle Pinto

Publisher: Shobhaa De Books (Penguin India)

Pages: 288

Price: Rs 699

Genre: Non Fiction / Style / Fashion / Bollywood

Rating: 7/10

Format: Paperback (Royal)

Kareena Kapoor, though not really a trend-setter, is almost always well-dressed. I noticed her experimental and interesting styling during the promotions of ‘Heroine’. Earlier, her Manish Malhotra dresses and saris were fashionable but they never stood out. To her credit, she did spark media frenzy for Size Zero because it was too drastic and shocking, considering she was chubby earlier.

The book has high production value (like a coffee table book) with lots of glossy pictures, although I am not such a huge fan of the cover page image of the lady (it looks ghostly/ pallid and not diva-esque). The font size on the back cover is also too big. But the book makes up with lots of gorgeous pictures – old and new, published and unpublished, glamorous and simple. The book also has a lot of doodled drawings which render the feel of a diary. The pages are in shades of pink.

The book has Kareena’s distinct voice and personality – unapologetic, undiplomatic and straightforward. It reminds so much of that line from Jab We Met, which translates to – “I am my biggest fan” and Kareena Kapoor is! It comes out very clearly in this book as well as in all her interviews. She has always been extremely confident, even as a newcomer. The book is chatty, conversational and confiding.

When I first read about this book, I was curious because it was something new. I don’t remember any other Bollywood actress writing about her style secrets. Which girl wouldn't want to know the style secrets of a Bollywood heroine who lives a life of glamour and style, and who is spoilt for choices?

I would say I have mixed views about this book, and whenever I feel that way, I jot down ‘what worked for me’ and ‘what did not’, to be fair to the book and to give an indication to the potential readers on what to expect.

WHAT I LIKED

> Tonnes of fabulous pictures – beautiful, glamorous and many from personal collection
> Neatly organized into 4 sections:

1. Body Basics – Growing up years, Size Zero, diet plan, workouts, Yoga asanas, exercising while you travel, food, etc. 
2. Fashion Fabulous – her favourite looks from films and how to get them, personal favourites / style, fashion tips, different kinds of clothing, favourite brands and shopping destinations
3. Beauty Truths – Hair care / skin care / personal beauty tips and tricks, everyday maintenance and grooming, make up, understanding your best profile to look good in pictures 
4. Man Power – snippets from her love life, making your relationship work, dressing and grooming your man and gifting right to your love

> Snippets from personal life like how she plans her travel, her favourites, her growing up years, her relationships, creating looks for her films, preparing for big events, etc. 

WHAT I DID NOT LIKE

> Repetitiveness, like her favourite destination is Gstaad, she is a winter person, blessed with good skin and so on and so forth

> Exaggeration about sparking trends on how her looks from movies and public events were copied soon after. As far as I am aware, Kareena can take credit for Size zero frenzy and Long kurta with Patiala from the movie Jab We Met (which also was Imtiaz’s idea)

> Digressions from the book’s main topic like planning your wedding (!); detailed information on various types of everything – inner wear, Indian dresses, gowns, shoes, bags; dressing for office (!). 

> A lot of common style and fashion tips 
> Dilution of the main focus of the book : Trying to tell us the behind-the-scene story on Kareena Kapoor’s styling, and her tricks and tips; and also trying to be a fashion guide to a normal girl. The book should have focused on Kareena’s style and her favourites, and not attempt to bring out her ‘normal girl’ side, because there are no parallels between her lifestyle and a normal young girl’s. We cannot buy those brands or designer wears (forget about custom-made) neither can we shop on Net-a-Porter.

Frankly, I don’t know what I was expecting from this book because largely a star is as stylish as her stylist (her stylist, by the way, is Tanya Ghavri).

This book will certainly appeal to Kareena Kapoor's fans. The fashion and style enthusiasts may only end up pointing out the abundance of common information and tips in the book. 

All these fashion gyaan surely made me curious about fashion. I am not too much into fashion and latest trends but surprisingly I follow some fashion blogs, so of late I have started distinguishing designers and new trends. So, yes, this book made me excited about fashion because she is around my age. And celebrity or not, if you don’t experiment now then when? 

Here's an excerpt from the book.

Review Book courtesy: Penguin India
Image source: Amazon

Superscribed!

I have subscribed myself to 5 magazines!

Femina: I have been subscribed to Femina for 3 years now, and I totally love the magazine. It is amazing how many things they put into each issue. I especially love those special issues where they feature Femina through the years. Since Femina has been around so many years, it gives glimpse into the changing fashion, evolving social trends and most importantly, women. No other women's magazine even comes close to Femina! I got this for 50% on 3 years subscription, certainly a good deal, since I know I am going to read it forever! I would have gone for 5 years, if there were such a deal. (Image source: Pinkvilla)

 

BBC Good Homes: It is one of the best interior magazines around, featuring awesome knick-knacks for homes and superb ‘real’ homes. I have bought a lot of stuff after finding it in this magazine and found inspiration for my own home. I got this for 50% off on subscription for 1 year. I am certainly going to renew my subscription for 3 years atleast. (Image source: BBC Good Homes)

Living etc: Another fabulous interiors magazine, brought into India by Images group. Got the deal for 40% discount and also 4 free back issues. I think these kind of magazines should offer free back issues on their own, because these are not really news items or celeb dates which will go obsolete in a week. These are trends, which remain for a while! (Image source: Images Group)

Outlook: I have subscribed this quite recently, and my subscription hasn’t started yet but I got a great combo deal of Outlook and People for Rs 2999 for 3 years. I think it is fabulous and there are some subscription gifts as well. Outlook is really the best general magazine around right now. India Today has lost its shine long time back, while I do like some issues of “The Week” but “Outlook” is the best in the category. (Image source: Outlook)

People: I had read international editions of PEOPLE long back with Jennifer Aniston on the cover. I read the first Indian edition one year back and loved it. Since I am a big one on celebrity fashion and news, I lapped it up. What makes it stand out is, it is not about the scandals and trashy news-bites, it is about celeb lives, fashion, events, new movies and even books. I buy a lot of books, after findig it here. It is certainly not in the genre of Filmfare  and the ilk. (Image source: People)

And well, I love each one of them……………….! I was just about to subscribe for Outlook Money, but who am I kidding, I am not into finance so much. But for those who are, it is a great personal finance magazine. I love the way it is able to connect to a common man.



Other than above, I sometimes also buy “Better Homes and Gardens”, “Good Housekeeping” and “Ideal Homes and Gardens”. All these interior magazines are increasingly becoming similar-looking but I love peeping into beautiful homes for inspiration. So, be it!

for the PEOPLE

Few months back, I chanced upon PEOPLE magazine. I was completely bowled over by it. In fact, I would go on to say that PEOPLE is the best celebrity magazine in India right now. It does not have trashy celebrity gossip, and unnecessary interviews on crazy hookups that are purely for publicity stunts. All the film magazines have become trashy right now, they do not have any content. Same filmstars, same questions. How much can one read about Kareena Kapoor and Katrina Kaif really. Every time they have a release, they are back on Covers. Agh!

But PEOPLE has exclusive pics, fashion and celebrities from all walks of life. It is surely interesting.

I wanted to subscribe, but the Offer was not that lucrative. My local vendor gave me much better offer and I sort of subscribed it. If you are into celebrity magazines, this is the best on stands. Go Grab it!

People magazine can be subscribed from this link.

Image courtesy: Pinkvilla.com