I love no-fuss, feminine clothes that have a sexy edge to them. Style has everything to with attitude and I like to feel all-woman.

[Above: Slinky black dress, by Versace; black heels by Sergio Rossi; pearl earrings and bracelet, at Minawala.Make-up by Mallika Bhat]

When Rita Dhody went on her first week-long retreat to an ashram at Ganeshpuri, she arrived in her usual nonchalant style, accompanied by three pieces of Louis Vuitton luggage, an exercise mat and her favourite dumb-bells. “There was this sweet woman with a small suitcase who I was sharing the room with and here I was, looking like I was taking off on a luxury cruise!” Her full-throated laughter rings out at the embarrassing memory. Dhody’s 43-year-old, gym-toned body and glowing skin are reflective of her belief in “wanting to be fit not just to look great but wanting to be fit to feel whole.” And Dhody is feeling ‘whole’ again after an intense spiritual search that has led to her present state of peace and contentment. Shakti, seva, sadhana, pepper the conversation of one who adopts yogic postures at sunrise, chants quietly to herself, weight trains regularly and meditates every day “to still the mind”.

Back from a summer jaunt spent cheering the Grand Prix ‘bravehearts’ in Monte Carlo, along with close friend, Valentina Nayar (the legal arm of the Arun Nayar-Elizabeth Hurley tangle) and from London, with fashion victims – daughters, Aneesa (20) and Nadine(14) – Dhody is looking forward to her new acquisition, an incoming doctorate in naturopathy from the Clayton College of Natural Health, USA, achieved through gruelling hours of study in her book-cluttered bedroom and hands on practical training with noted skin expert, Dr Jamuna Pai. Dhody hopes to use her experience at voluntary welfare camps and knowledge of alternative medicine to elevate the lot of children with special needs. "I have simplified my life," she says, remembering times when life was not so easy.