When I launched French Press Global, I imagined a magazine. What arrived is this: close to 100 guests flown in from across the country, 2 nights and 3 days at Ananta Spa & Resort, Ajabgarh, and Issue 6 unveiled in the Aravalli Hills with Aakash Ranison on the cover.
Aakash earns this cover because he rebuilt the most reproduced image on earth from reclaimed bottle caps, then carried the cap itself to the National Green Tribunal. I am immensely proud of him.
This issue is about restoration, and the evidence it demands: fashion that tallies its own offcuts, a jewellery house that found its future in its own vault, a tiger reserve asked who else came home, and a sequence of dates laid out so the reader can judge for themselves.
Tastemakers' Table, now in its 7th edition, has grown into an intellectual property of real consequence for the magazine. Maison French Press, our brand architecture arm, grows alongside it. The 2 teams stay separate by design, so the magazine keeps its editorial integrity and the company keeps its commercial footing.
Golden Hour at the poolside belongs to Sahil Kochhar and ISVARI India. Sahil was my first account, and the courage to build something of my own arrived with him. Staging this show with my co-founder of sorts, in the heart of the Aravallis, moves me deeply.
My heartfelt thanks to Akash Puri for making this happen, and to Ashutosh Goyal, our gracious host and now our client. To Vedica, BMW Excellence Club, ISVARI India and Diageo India, thank you for believing in an idea of this scale.
To my team: promoting Riya Tyagi to Chief Operating Officer and Riya Modi to Editor-at-Large of French Press Global is the finest decision I have made. Saumya Gupta now leads communications at Maison French Press. Muskan, Kunchika, Reema, Shrawani, Koteshwar & Ashok Bhaiyya: you carry this every single day. May we return here year after year.
