Author: NNI Editor

Actor Ananya Panday with designer Rohit Bal on the ramp during the grand finale of Lakme Fashion Week, in New Delhi. Bal passed way on Friday, Nov 1, 2024, after suffering a heart attack, at Aashlok Hospital in New Delhi | Photo Credit: PTI The recent passing of legendary fashion designer Rohit Bal has sent shockwaves through both the entertainment and fashion industries. From Bollywood actors like Sonam Kapoor and Ananya Panday to designer Manish Malhotra, many took to social media to pay their respects to Rohit Bal, affectionately known as ‘Gudda’ by his admirers.Sonam Kapoor wrote, “Dear gudda l…

As India gears up to scale up manufacturing, German specialty chemicals major LANXESS has announced the opening of its India Application Development Center (IADC) at Thane, Mumbai to provide India centric solutions to its industrial customers.With this the company is now eying to double its revenue from India in a few years. The center, taking up an entire floor at LANXESS House, serves as a hub for two businesses with capacity for future expansion. The centre was on Tuesday inaugurated by Matthias Zachert, Chairman of the Board of Management of LANXESS AG.“India is a critical growth region for LANXESS, offering immense opportunities…

(Left to right) Jemimah Rodrigues, Shreyanka Patil, Shafali Verma, Radha Yadav sporting Qua’s pre-fall collection | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement The founders of the brand Qua, Rupanshi Agarwal and Dr Divya Agarwal, call their pre-fall collection ‘modern armour’. The fits are designed for the contemporary Indian woman, they say, who often has to strike a balance between her professional and personal lives.The collection was created with the intention of giving continuity to the wardrobe, says Rupanshi, who is also the CEO of Qua. “We have created separates that can be mixed and matched; paired with older collections. These are pieces…

Jitin Prasada | Photo Credit: ANI The governmentis formulating strategies to ensure that the interests of exporters and people are protected, Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry and Electronics and Information Technology Jitin Prasada said on Tuesday.“You get up in the morning, and you see a tweet and the whole world is shocked… that’s the way the world has become,” he said at the EEPC India National Awards ceremony. “There could be hiccups. Times have changed. There are your issues with regard to how we will be navigating ourselves with the new regime changes in other parts of…

Ratika Kaul | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement India has always been fascinated by gold. We have worn, invested and treasured this metal over centuries. In its chinks, lie the sentimental value of being passed down for generations in the forms of bangles, chains, earrings, and coins. “We are so keen on gold jewellery not just because it looks good, but also because of the energy it carries,” says Chennai-based jewellery designer Ratika Kaul. This Kashmiri who has been settled in Chennai for 28 years, has recently launched iterations of a traditional gold ornament from the northernmost part of the country…

Insurance regulator IRDAI permitted life and health insurers to get a one-time mandate facility through Unified Payments Interface (UPI) from prospective health and life insurance customers. “This service is useful where the customer prefers to authorise a block on the funds without immediate debits” even while facilitating, through such a mandate, smoother processing of the transaction leading to issue of the policy, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India said in a circular on Tuesday. Fixing March 1, 2025 as deadline for insurers to go live and offer the facility, which will be known as Bima Applications Supported by Blocked…

The assignment you have been dreading for a year is here. Couturier Rohit Bal’s obituary. He died on Diwali, November 1, 2024, at 63. His mortal remains — buried under flowers at Delhi’s Lodhi Crematorium with the face laid bare for last respects before the pyre was lit — looked irrevocably frozen in time. Love and death pulsed in the air. The palpable love of his family and friends, provoked into exultation by the Grim Reaper’s arrival.Deep down, you had worried for a couple of years that you may have to write this, unless you quit the fulltime job of…

DFS Secretary M.Nagaraju and others at the launch of LIC’s Smart Pension Plan in Delhi.  | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement State-owned Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has rolled out a Smart Pension Plan offering a range of annuity options for single as well as joint life type of annuities. A non-par, non linked, individual/group, the product’s features include single premium, immediate annuity plan; liquidity options for partial or full withdrawal as per the terms; and incentive for existing policyholder and nominee or beneficiary of the deceased policyholder by way of enhanced annuity rate. The minimum purchase price is ₹1 lakh…

Nazara Collection by Arpita Mehta | Photo Credit: Special Arrangements Nazara, Arpita Mehta’s latest bridal couture collection, is a tribute to India’s cultural heritage blended. The collection, inspired by the Northeast of India and Gujarat, blends contemporary silhouettes with luxurious design: not surprisingly Arpita’s clientele includes celebrities such as Isha Ambani, Ananya Panday, Alia Bhatt, Suhana Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan. The collection, showcased the in Guwahati (Assam) for the first time, has been inspired by the flora and fauna of the region; reflected in the vibrant floral 3D motifs. The Nature-inspired patterns come alive with traditional embroidery techniques like…

The Labour Force Participation Rate was 39.6% for people of all ages. Representational file image. | Photo Credit: Reuters The unemployment rate in the urban areas of the country was 6.4% for the period of October to December 2024 for persons of age 15 years and above, according to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation in New Delhi on Tuesday (February 18, 2025). For male, the the unemployment rate was 5.8% during the period, while for female it was 8.1%.Last year, during the same quarter, unemployment rate for ages above 15…