Women | LFW

Archana Rao, Designer. Likes Oren Lavie, exploring paper, is fascinated with buildings and structures, lives in Hyderabad..

What did you do today? I was just working on completing a project for most of the day, met up with a couple of friends over coffee and cheese cake, wrapped up the day by watching Paris, je’taime in bed.

Karishma Sanghvi. 20. FD student at Sophia College.

Alisha Netalkar. Possesses deafening screaming abilities.

Diva Dhawan. My blog was the subject for one of her college projects.

Pallavi Singh. In between shows.

Suhani Pittie. Accessory designer. 

Shruti Bheda. BLUR girl.

Karishma Shahani. Fashion & textile designer. Also sews, embroiders, cuts patterns. Likes Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Asif Avidan, Manish Arora, A Thousand Splendid Suns, Fun. Read more about her here.

If not a fashion designer, what do you think you’d be?
An anthropologist.

Shweta Dolli. 23. Miss India South ’11. Studied Math at college.

Rachel Bayros. Best person around.

Arshia Ahuja. If she was a kitchen utensil, she’d be a cheese grater.

Preeti Dhata. Radiohead.

Miss Universe India 2010.

Steven Wilson lover in Periwinkle glasses.

Tamara Moss in Rohit Bal. I really liked this show.

Bollywood.

Socialites.

Krishna Mukhi.  Works for Harper’s Bazaar. Hates florals.
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Women who work in fashion, interested in fashion, or just hanging out to have a good time.

Photographs taken over the last two years (2011-13) at Lakme Fashion Week in Mumbai.

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.

Pallavi Singh

Pallavi Singh, 23 year old fashion model…has a pug called Angel, loves Mickey Rourke & Kate Moss, likes Ray’s pizzas & salad, would like to walk for Karl Lagerfeld, has been listening to Brand New Me on repeat, and is mad excited about walking the runway at LFW in March.
Is wearing Huemn in this photo. 
Photographed at Lakme Fashion Week in August ’12.

People. In stuff. And space.

Nina Manuel in Pia Pauro. Styled by Gary Wallang.

Kavita Kharayat in Siddartha Tytler.

Tamara moss in Soumitra Mondal Summer 12. More photos from her show to follow.

Aki Narula in a self-made collar.

Santu Misra in Mickey ears.

Mathieu Gugumus in Bungalow 8 scarf.

Nikhil D in Shivan & Narresh.

Vinod Nair in an M&S jacket.

Nidhi Jacob in Eina Ahluwalia necklace.

Pasham Alwani in hiding.

Jahnavi Tampi in her Mother’s jacket from Lagos.

Pig stuck in a Lego heart.

Ruchika Sachdeva in Bodice.

Sheena in Blur necklace.

Isha Bhansali in clothes from streets of Janpath & Sarojini.

Shruti Thacker in Bodice.

Suhani Pittie in Suhani Pittie necklace.

Bhavna Sharma in Anand Kabra top and Prashant Verma pants.

Everybody. In the front row.

All photographs from Lakme Fashion Week Summer ’12 & August ’11.

Cigarettes in a tin box.

David Bowie in a tin can. I think I’m going to be in one soon.

The Light Within.

“This collection is a gentle reminder that even though living can sometimes leave you bleeding, there is a place you can go to for all your answers and your strength. Deep within you is a place of magic, a river of gold and bliss. Dip your hands in the river and you’ll have what you need. Strength, love, happiness, contentment; all the answers and reasons…”
-Forgotten Jewel by Eina Ahluwalia, Conceptual Jewellery Artist.

“A big neckpiece of many doors symbolizes that there are many doorways that open up to different answers, but the door to your inner self is the one that leads you to the light.

There is a human heart full of blood, pain, and hurt. And another heart full of gold with light running through its veins.

There is the eye. The Mind’s Eye watches, judges, & feeds the ego. The Heart’s Eye loves, trusts, & believes. The Soul’s Eye looks beyond, finds the lessons in the experiences, & searches for growth. There are monocles with all three eyes-a reminder that you decide which perspective you choose.”

“From the cracks with peeks of gold in the eggs, to the wide open doorways leading to the light, to the light beginning to flow through the veins- as we grow, so does the light. Until it bursts out of the body, no longer willing to be contained….”

Christina M Hanghal

Christina Hanghal.25. Fashion designer/stylist. Originally from Shillong..been in Bombay for 2 years. Was one of the Indian Project Runway winners in 2010. Shares her birthday with Christian Dior.

As a kid she’d cut clothes to dress barbies up in outlandish garments, and make them walk on imaginary runways on the floor. Her first paid job was a month long housekeeping stint at home with her 4 sisters; she was about 10.

Likes strong chai, cigarettes, and snow. Hates restaurant meals. Blinks a lot. Her apartment turns in to a club post 1a.m. on the weekends. Will do anything to find the right window curtains…

New Shoes,Fleetwood Mac,& Grocery Shopping

Karuna Laungani. Junior fashion editor, Elle.

Karuna grew up in Bandra, Bombay; studied fashion design at Sophia college, worked at Zeba with Krsna Mehta, freelanced as a designer/stylist for some time..and has been working at Elle for the last 4 years.

…likes sea food & beach holidays; Young the Giant & Fleetwood Mac; fresh herbs & Russh; gardens & new shoes; apple cider & grocery shopping; smell of a new book, and discovering quirky finds in all kinds of markets. Dislikes Monday mornings & lack of space in Bombay.

What did you want to be when you were a kid?
Till the age of 10, I wanted to be an actress. I was a big fan of Madhuri, and I loved to dance so I would copy her steps….then slowly, things changed.

Designers you liked at LFW/Wills.
At LFW, Ruchika Sachdeva was my favourite. Very London street chic and yet sophisticated. I loved her androgynous separates…totally my style.
At Wills, I liked Ela by Joyjit. Amit Aggarwal. Loved Cue by Rohit Gandhi. And Sanchita Ajjampur.

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Any other favourites? Designers, models, photographers..
I constantly use Rajesh Pratap, Cue, A&T, Pankaj & Nidhi for shoots. I love Mathieu’s work forBungalow 8. Also Savio Jon, Dries Van Noten, & Marni.
Amongst models I like Rachel Bayros & Nidhi Sunil. I did a shoot with Nidhi in Jaisalmer and she was lovely. Also Natasha poly.
Amongst photographers: Tarun Vishwa. Mert & Marcus. Takay.

What do you love about your work?
The crazy people, the creative minds, and the maddening pace all leading to transform a small idea into something big and inspiring, and yes I would like to believe…life changing.
And hate…
A few big egos in the industry. We are all here to work so let’s not be a diva now.

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How much does your work affect your personal life?
I take my work home all the time. If something is not done, it’s always on my mind, and I have very little patience.

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What do you do on the weekends?
Cook, entertain my dog, sometimes shop, watch lots of films, and browse design blogs endlessly. And yes, have a marriage…

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An interesting film you watched recently?
Is the Lanvin fashion film counted?

Blogs you read..
Tons of them. coco+kelly. style bubble. decor8. inspired living. becauseimaddicted.

Markets you shop at..
Vintage stores in East london – you get real cheap bargains. I got this sequined blouse for 15 pounds; nobody believes me. Then I did 2 months’ shopping in 2 hours at Sarojini. I am a cheap skate when it comes to buying clothes.

Looking forward to?
I’ve styled the January cover, so that, and the resort story. Putting together any shoot is super exciting and nerve wracking…but absolutely love it.

Who’s on the cover?
*whispers in my ear*

Bodice

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Ruchika debuted here at LFW a year ago as one of the gen-next designers. This was her 2nd appearance here. I missed her show but I made up for it by shooting a few collection pieces on Nijhum. “Having created a buzz even before she showed, we had high expectations of the newbie designer and were happily, not disappointed. Right off the bat, Ruchika Sachdeva seemed to get it right; her mix of sexy, feminine fabrics…” See entire post+runway photos here.

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Ruchika Sachdeva, 24…wearing clothes from her collection.

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Last week I was at her store. It’s all ready. She thinks it isn’t. She sits in a little cabin with 1 desk and 4 chairs + cabinets with lot of papers & packaged food, an over head shelf with Wuthering Heights + other books, & a red phone on her desk…that lies disconnected..

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..and in a quiet corner inside the store..stands a Nappa-Dori umbrella…

Photo taken outside the store.

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Photos from Ruchika Sachdeva’s Fall/Winter 2011 collection at Lakme Fashion Week. Sketches by Frodo.

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Her label is called Bodice. She is retailing from Melange, Atosa, Fuel, and The Living Room in Bombay..and from her own studio/store(below Gunpowder) in Hauz Khas Village, Delhi.

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Still has to get signboards for her store.