You could say it was style at its very best. The Style Bazaar, an annual exhibition at Fort, had one of the finest lifestyle products that money can buy. It was quite evident that the exhibition, organized by Perveez Aggarwal and her daughter Vanita Bhandari, had some great products for sale. In its 4th season this year, the exhibition showcased a variety of gift articles, gourmet food stuff, handicrafts, home and fashion accessories, jewellery, lifestyle products and even more. Needless to say, the exhibition attracted some of the most discerning of buyers. Spotted doing the rounds were Indu Jain and Simone Tata, amongst others.

“I make it a point not to overlap products so that people can enjoy the variety,” informed Vanita. This year, there were 32 women participants all over Mumbai. “Women are very creative and their creativity needs to be explored. This is good opportunity for them to showcase their products,” said Perveez Aggarwal. “In a way, such events help advance women’s status in India and attempt to make them independent entrepreneurs,” she added. “These embroideries are done by embroidery workers in Bengal who have set up their own workshops in the villages,” said Shaheen Aggarwal, Perveez’s daughter-in-law.

Other than private entrepreneurs there were also different NGOs who participated in the exhibition like Women’s India Trust, Shraddha, Maharashtra State Women’s Council, The Ismailia Helping Society and Om Creations Trust. PETA too promoted awareness for cruelty towards animals through T-shirts and of course, there was also the Tsunami Donation Relief stall, who collections would be directed to the Times Foundation.

Parizaad Khan

IT’s going to be a women’s only space. Perveez Aggarwal and Vanita Bhandari like it that way. Their annual exhibition for women entrepreneurs, Style Bazaar, is in its fourth year and the classy mother-daughter due are gung-ho about giving women a platform to be financially independent.

“I saw that financial stability was one women’s issue which hadn’t been fully tapped,” says Aggarwal, who’s involved with several women’s organizations.

They seem to be the right ambassadors for women’s entrepreneurship. Aggarwal started an embroidery business nine years ago when an impoverished tailor came nicking at her door for work. Today her exquisite saris, skirts, stoles and kurtis, in the traditional Parsi gara style, are in great demand.