Society hostess and luxury consultant Nisha Jamvwal travelled to Chennai and, on Monday, hosted a tea party at the Taj Connemara for her friends and acquaintances in that city. The Taj Connemara, named after Lady Connemara, dates back to 1854 and is the oldest heritage hotel in South India, best known for its afternoon tea. Says Nisha: “Chennai drew me to it because I did my internship in architecture in that city years ago and I have some very, very dear friends there with whom I was keen to celebrate.” The guest list included well-known fertility specialist and actress Rekha’s niece Priya Selvaraj, former advertising professional and hostess Minnie Menon, social worker Lily Malhan, entrepreneurs Vimmi Deepak and Kiran Rao as well as Kapil and Kashmira Chitale of the architecture firm where Nisha did her internship. Nisha says that her afternoon teas are immaculately planned and the one in Chennai was modelled along the lines of the best afternoon tea sessions in England. As she says: “When visiting London, attending the afternoon tea ceremonies at Claridge’s, The Ritz, The Savoy, Brown’s Tea Tox or Rosewood has always been a happy part of my itinerary. I take a lot of pointers from there when organising afternoon tea sessions in India.” Nisha then proceeds to inform us that there’s an etiquette associated with afternoon tea that the more genteel sort follow. It covers everything from the correct way to reply to the invitation, the appropriate colours to dress in for the event (pastels), the sort of handbag a lady must carry (delicate, not a hold-all), the way scones should be eaten (broken with the fingers and not with a knife and fork) and the manner in which the tea ought to be stirred. Reminds us of a charming old-world sophistication when women were ladies and men were really chivalrous!