Column: Tongue in Check

Want the latest buzz on the gossip front? A peep into the lives of the rich and famous? A wind of Chennai’s best-kept secrets? Writer, activist, anchor, and queen bee Apsara Reddy fills you in with all that and then some in this column. Nithyananda’s fancy beach villa This controversial Swamyji, known as much for his mystique as he is known for the memes about him, loves to spend time in a three-storied beach house in Chennai’s exclusive Olive Beach on the ECR. Sources say a lot of his devotees maintain this home, which has some of the most luxurious amenities. Once in a while, he is spotted walking around the expansive verandah in the mornings. And sometimes, his lean frame is replaced by pleasant-looking female devotees having conversations and laughing on the verandah. Love-struck hotelier and suck-up socialiteThis hotelier, who is rumored to be passionately involved with his colleague, has a new love interest. The sharp-yet-mouthy gent is working his charms on a socialite, who is supposedly a fan of the southern spicy fare at his hotel. Little does he know that this curvaceous lady is sizing him up only to bag a loyalty card and some perks at the hotel… and is also simultaneously working out a similar arrangement with another hotelier in the vicinity!Her name is not Sheela, but she’s JawaanSlender, sloppy jawed yet soft-spoken, this wife of a publisher/financier is often spotted at lesser-known coffee spots. Always with a much-older gent close to his eighth decade on earth. She is often seen caressing his hand or sipping iced tea while he lovingly gazes into her eyes. She is expressive only up until the coffee shop has other guests filling up. Then, quickly she ups and leaves, allowing the charming grandpa to slowly find his walking stick and steadily rise up with a wide smile, thanks to a ‘cataract view’ of love and dating.Playing darts, dodging them too! This middle-aged fox is up to his tricks again. Married, with a beautiful family and all the wealth in the world, this Bugs Bunny-esque man leans the other way, we hear. Last heard, he was caught red-handed with his hair dresser. If only the wife had those scissors in her hand!Jet of the Jains While a few Chennai folks have private jets and there’s a lot of talk about who they travel with and how they travel, it seems jeweller Kishore Jain’s jet is one of the swankiest. With stunning interiors and some of the best cabin crew handpicked from international airlines, his jet is exclusively for family. No holidays and no on-air shenanigans. And a close source reveals that his in-flight Jain menu even includes specially flown in truffle oil for pasta garnish.Oh my, she is also Madraasi! Raised in Rome yet calls Chennai home, thanks to her being married here, designer Rehane was spotted along with hubby Yavar at a fancy diplomatic do recently. Looking smashing in red, she revealed a side of hers which was endearing as she repeated some Tamil words after her husband, who was conversing fluently in the language. Till date, Re has been regarded a stiff upper-lip kind of diva who is all about the Queen’s English.Her Tamil, though, is not as good as Thirukkural, but she sure is way better than some of the ‘kachori gangs’, who still say ‘Madraasi’ while referring to a dusky individual.(Views expressed above are the author’s own)