Ria Kamat

Ria Kamat. 22. Jr. Fashion Stylist with Marie Claire. Works on the fashion pages of the magazine but is happiest at a shoot. Lives in Bombay. Studied at LCF. Large chunk of her childhood went in trying to dress like Spice Girls followed by Kate Winslet from Titanic phase(keyword:stockings). Admires Caroline Issa’s style. Has over watched Juno. Is listening to Bloom & Get Lucky over and over, one after another. Likes Huemn, Bodice, Shift, The Lumineers, Passion Pit, singing along to ABBA, Palace of Illusions, vodka…

Childhood
I was born in Mumbai. I am one of those people who has very distinct memories of my childhood right from the age of 4. Snippets of meaningless conversations, dreams, the way I felt about things…I remember majority of it. As all the kids in my building were boys, growing up around them had a strong influence on me. I was definitely not a girly girl and always dreamt of being a teenage mutant ninja turtle (the red one). I feel like a lot of my real ‘growing up’ took place when I moved to a boarding Sahyadri school which was essentially on a hill in the middle of no where. There was no encouragement of competition…education was everything that happened outside the classroom, friends were family, and teachers were friends. Technology was a foreign term, so every weekend I would write letters to my parents on inland letters. Life was like a little bubble with no connection to reality. I owe everything that I am to that time of my not so long life (so far).

How long were you in London for, what did you study, and where did you work?

I moved to london right after I turned 18. I lived there for 4 years. In my first year I did a diploma course that gave me the opportunity to understand all the different aspects of the fashion industry. I then did my BA degree in Fashion Styling and Photography where I majored in Styling.

While in London I did anything and everything I could and didn’t get a penny for it. I interned at Vogue india in both their London and Mumbai offices. I also worked on a film for Lilly Allen’s vintage store that she opened with her sister Sarah. I assisted the creative director of the film so my job was to build the sets, like physically build them. So I helped source all the material for the sets and then build it…from tiling a floor to building walls. I assisted a lot of freelance stylists in London on commissioned shoots that they were doing for magazines. I did apply for a job as a sales girl at Miss Sixty and I even got it. I worked there for a day and then fractured my foot so that was pretty much the end of my sales career.

What do you miss the most about London?
The parks! I love a good picnic at the park.

Where do you hangout in Bombay?
Uhhh currently at the Marie Claire office. I don’t really have one place. I enjoy eating out at places where the space is as important as the food. I like The Pantry, Kala Ghoda Cafe, Cafe Zoe, The Barking Deer.

Do you find any similarities between London & Bombay?
Yes. Everyone is trying to be someone. In Bombay there are so many young people who are trying to find their calling and achieve their goals. It’s the same in London. And all these people are young…really young.

Himanshu Singh

“Being an army kid, I grew up travelling around India — Delhi, Calcutta, Agartala, Shimla, Baroda, Ahmedabad, Pune (to name a few). I studied photography and film from Symbiosis, Pune. I juggle between commercial photography, theatre, and modelling.”

Fashion It intrigues me. I think it’s worth studying and observing on a day-to-day basis. Fashion habits can reveal so much about an individual or a society.

Style icons Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen, Margiela, Formichetti and Gaga, The Beatles, Annie Leibovitz, Andy Warhol. Why? Because they have all realized the potential of fashion and have communicated heavily through it.

Favorite film: Ordinary People

Bombay Bombay is elusive. It comforts me as much as it vexes me. I continue being here doing my thing and I think I like that.

Himanshu Singh. Lives and works in Bombay. Likes Glen Hansard and the Ballet Men. Photographed in Lower Parel, Bombay in April 2013.

Pranav Misra

Pranav Kirti Misra, 28(much older in his head). Designer at Huemn, models occasionally, writes poetry. Originally from Lucknow, lives & works in Delhi. Likes Marilyn Manson, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Dastik, Gareth Pugh, Ricardo Tisci, Like A Flower In The Rain by Bukowski, Ghalib. Would like to date Adele. Can have conversations with himself for days…

So..is it weird, talking to yourself?
Not at all.

It was a Sunday yesterday. What did you do?
I did not go to the gym.

Other than making clothes and modelling, is there anything else you’d like to do?
Yes. I want to fly. I want to act in theatre. I want to hold seminars in schools and colleges and talk about random subjects for hours. I want to write, sing, entertain people, make people laugh…

How often do you go back to Lucknow and how is it like?
Once a year. In Lucknow, life is simple, there is more air to breathe, and more time to think. But in Delhi, you miss on a lot in just a blink.

Photographed at Hyatt, Bombay during Lakme Fashion Week in August last year.

Vibhash Sharma

Vibhash Sharma Phurailatpam, 20-something designer. From “the land of Jewels” Imphal. Lives & works in Delhi. Usually stitches his own clothes. Likes Margiela, Yohji, Modern Menswear by Hywel Davies, Singju, Oo-ty, rice, Ramen, boiled corn, smoked chicken Maggi, Notebook on cities & clothes, Amelie, Makoto Shinkai, Kurosawa, Lykke Li, Alex Turner… Has a thing for white shoes, paints them sometimes. Is listening to Princess Chelsea on repeat. Obsessed with post-its and tea. Loves Nutella.

How was growing up in Imphal like? 
Secluded. I was in my own world except for the occasional family gatherings. Growing up I got to witness a lot of bandhs/blockades, riots…

What’s the best/worst thing about Imphal?
The food, the cycle-rickshaw rides, Paona Bazaar, theatre, and of course the art & culture. // Insurgency, roads, power cuts.

Where do you buy your clothes from?
Saro, Paharganj, and when I’m in my home town, I shop from Ima market and Paona bazaar(or Paona international Market). Depends on how rich I am at that point of time.

It’s your birthday today and you just woke up. What did you do last night?
Dolly, Bini, and Smriti got me some lemon tart so I cut that because I didn’t wanna cut a cake.  A lot of unexpected people called me. I made milk tea for everyone at some point. My sister sent me an invisible pen because I like pens. There is a torch on the cap of the pen so when you put the light on you can read what you have written. She also sent an annoying card which had something sarcastic written with the same pen. Dolly and others also got me Oreo biscuits. Small stuff which I like. We were up till 6am..just sitting around..listening to music and singing Hiding Tonight.

Photographed on his way to work in Hauz Khas Village sometime in 2012.

Stephen Lotha

Stephen Lotha. 29. Fashion stylist for Cosmopolitan India. Belongs to the Lotha tribe. Grew up in Dimapur. Lives in Delhi. Likes Guo Pei, Kris Van Assche, Sonia Rykiel, The Way we Wore, ACNE, Lana Del Rey, Keane, As Good As It Gets, Jessica Chastain…

Are you an optimist? Very much. I could’ve been a good pessimist but then I wouldn’t be happy.

How important is fashion to you?
I enjoy fashion. It makes me happy. I don’t mind people forming opinions about me because of what I wear. I care a lot about what I put on my back. I feel naked in denim and t-shirts alone. I feel the world is my prom and I need to dress up.

You studied English Literature at Loyola. How was it? And how did you get into fashion?
It made me speak better English. My feminist professor adored me. Nice people…that city. However, studying there was just to make my mom happy with a college degree. Fresh out of college I wanted to be independent so I took a job at a call center. Worked there for 3 years. Then one day Carol wanted me to style her portfolio. I helped her. A make-up artist called Chandni Singh liked my work and helped in spreading the word. It moved from there.

What’s the best and worst thing about Dimapur?
I like the fact that alcohol is cheap there. Also, the fashion for sure…the flea markets, and the quality pork. Worst: Well the roads are only meant for cows.

How often do you go back? Any favourite hangouts?  I go back once in a year or two. Hang out mostly at cousins’ places or occasionally at some bars. I love Dimapur but I could live without going back ever.

What do you think of fashion in Dimapur?
Fashion is ‘the all’ for Dimapurians. We thrive on it. Ask anyone. It’s fashion before food and air. I used to love it before people became richer. Now it’s a little vulgar with everybody acting too uptight and dropping brand names.

You told me you grew up dreaming about making clothes..
Yes. Since I was 9ish. I used to sketch gowns and shoes all over my books and mom used to thrash me. Once mom collected all my sketches in a huge bag and handed it to my principal. I got 10 blows on my back. My grades were not too good either. She wanted me to do/become something else.

How was your childhood like?
Adventurous, really. I saw things that I wasn’t supposed to see. It wasn’t all gas balloons and butterflies, and hence it made me search for wonderful things beyond. The television was a box of magic and it made me giddy(not that we owned one). Back then I felt I should be on tv and make people love me.

Things like?
Mom and I used to live in a house made for poultry. Two years. We would lie in bed and see the stars from the holes in the roof. It was fascinating..but not during the rains.
I stayed in an orphanage for a year. Mom was poor. The place gave me free food and stay but made all of us work like crazy. I used to pull a cart carrying pig feed up to like 5 kilometres in Dimapur. I was 9. I know what is embarrassment, shame, what it feels like to be hungry, broke, and hopeless.

Any happy memories?
Well maybe the sundays when we were served meat for dinner. And mom visiting me once in a while. I used to cry when she’d leave.

What keeps you going?
Comic books. Strawberry ice-cream. My dreams of living in an Andy Warhol inspired house one day and a lot of money to buy good stuff pushes me. And on a trying day, a sincere prayer.

—
Photographed in Delhi & Dimapur.

Natasha Ramachandran

Natasha Ramachandran. 22. Fashion model. Half Tamil/half Bengali. Likes oversized clothes, Haider Ackermann, Di Caprio, Thom Yorke, & The Black Keys. Has been listening to Alt-J’s Fitzpleasure on repeat. Has a thing for Bradley Cooper. Wanted to be a journalist as a kid. Has a degree in fashion design from NIFT. Thinks she’s a loud person.

Has been in Bombay for about 8 months. Likes the pace of Bombay. Hangs out mostly at The Bagel Shop.

Is signed up with Next Models, London.

Photographed at Lakme Fashion Week in Bombay.

A Good Girl is Hard to Find

You were a fat kid. How was growing up like?
I had a very happy childhood but that didn’t necessarily make me a happy child.  There were nicknames that stuck with me till the end of school… because of how fat and scary I was. And even now I am called by those names…by a few. No one expected me to be an athlete.  I wanted to be one…badly. But I couldn’t get myself to do anything about it. Most of my clothes were from the boys section.  I dunno if that’s what made me part tomboyish in school. There were days I couldn’t even recognize I was a girl…until I had to urinate.  I had really short hair. In fact, just to make a point…I have always had short hair…my whole life. I am proud of that. I don’t have too many things to be proud of. I was the strongest person in my class during my fat days..the big bully guys were scared of me too…in a funny way, mostly. We would arm wrestle in class and I’d win against everyone. I even beat two seniors at arm wrestling. And the glory of winning caught on…it made me feel good. And I stuck with that image myself apart from everyone else.

What bothers you?
All that poppycock about how faith can move a mountain.  Why can’t it just remove the damn mountain? And word play really bothers me.

What do you do?
I think shallow thoughts. In my free time I develop a complex. I like to quote Buddha in any heated discussion I am not involved in. One can’t go wrong quoting him under any circumstance. Sometimes I make up quotes and give him credit for it. People listen.
Basically, I’m jobless.

What else do you do in your free time?
I try and keep my eyes open for really long, without blinking…until they start watering. And then I think of something sad and pretend like I am crying about it. I like to eat a lot of biscuits. I like to moisturize random parts of my body. Like, if it’s my leg…I only moisturize my calf…not the entire leg.

Tell me about your tattoo.
It says “His Lucid Dream Forever Young.” Let’s not get into what it means. I was 19. It made sense to me.

Where do you think the world is going?
It should be going to some place really angry.  The world isn’t angry enough…too many ugly things happen because the world is not angry enough to do anything about it.

What’s your favourite book?
None in particular. All the old ones. Because they smell nice.

What are you listening to these days?
Golden heart – Mark Knopfler – A Night in London

Tell me something that’s important to you.
I am like any normal girl my age, I think. I go out…get a few drinks with my friends…eat…smoke cigarettes…dance like a retard…throw up sometimes…get horny…go to sleep. But if in the middle of a Pitbull song where I am shaking my rear against a wall with my hands doing their own thing in the air, and everything paused because of some divine intervention and I had to choose to do something else, it’d be to sit in my room alone. Or be alone…anywhere. Solitude. When I realize I can no longer have it…and I have let too many people in to kick them out instantly or easily, I go bat shit crazy on them. The more I socialize and get out and fall in love and make friends, the more my appetite for being alone grows. Looking back at the question, I see I have deviated from the point.

What are you going to do now?
I’m going to get my cycle fixed.

–
Anila DJ. Studied Mass Communication. Currently unemployed. Turned 23 this month. Lives in Bangalore. Photographed in Versova, Bombay.

Butool Jamal

Butool Jamal. Fashion features writer, ELLE India. Can read faster than the speed of light, wishes to be a melancholic character from a Murakami novel, and is overly dependent on IMDB.

How was your childhood like?
I grew up in many different cities – Bombay, Madras, London, Delhi – my parents shifted base almost every three years because my father is a hotelier. We always came back to Bombay though somehow. I used to hate moving but now I actually feel restless after a couple of years in the same place, like it’s time to move on!

How did you get involved in fashion?
I studied history in college but even then I was involved in fashion societies or I did costumes for theatre productions. When I came to Bombay I knew I wanted to get into fashion somehow. I interned at Vogue for three months, then ELLE, and fortunately they let me stick around!

Describe your work at ELLE as a fashion features writer?
The great thing about working at ELLE is that you get to do so much more than what your regular job description would require. While I write and edit text for the fashion-related pages – designer interviews, fashion news, shoots – I also get to write about other things like film, art, or music, and interview/meet interesting(sometimes crazy) people.

What’s the best thing about Bombay?
That even at 3a.m. there’s somebody on the road.

Favourite book.
This list could be endless but Tender is the Night by Scott Fitzgerald or The 13 and a 1/2 Lives of Captain Bluebear by Walter Moers(who doesn’t want to read about an intellectual bear adopted by mini pirates?)

Worst vice.
I’m very slow and I refuse to be rushed.

Favourite sound.
A cat purring like an engine.

Favourite websites.
Flavorwire, Longform.org, and fashion blogs – The Sartorialist, Park & Cube, Lahlah is Here.

Favourite labels.
Pero by Aneeth Arora, The Bungalow by Mathieu Gugumus.

Something that only you can do and nobody else you know can?
Read faster than the speed of light. Or just very fast.

Worst fashion secret.
Most of my wardrobe is borrowed/second hand from my two aunts.

—

Photographed in Bombay during Lakme Fashion Week in August ’12.