Surbhi Sethi is Founder & Co-blogger at HeadTilt. Follow and tweet her @HeadTilt1.
Tomorrow is the big day, with the shopping extravaganza Savoir Faire returning to Delhi at the Hyatt Regency! Prestigious designer Rohit Bal lets us in on the inspiration behind his ever-so-grand works of design and gives a thrilling insight into his exclusive collection “UNTITLED” for the event tomorrow.
How long have you been associated with the Savoir Faire?
Rohit Bal: I think since the last three years, and it has been an incredible association. I feel extremely privileged and very fortunate to have met the lovely Gauri Bajoria because she does Savoir Faire with a great sense of elegance. It is a celebration of elegance and celebration of style. So I am extremely happy to be a part of this.
Have you designed any particular collection for the Faire?
RB: Yes actually for the Faire, we’ve done a collection which has a lot of block-printing and lot of gold-leaf printing. It is very elegant and very understated. There is not much embellishment and it is all very organic and very easy and summery. And it very very feminine. And so we’ve used very washed out colors and ivories and we’ve done some incredibly fine hand-crafted shibori, which is tie-dye, like bandhani. We’ve done lot of indigo dye and we’ve done our own motifs in shibori. I’m very excited about that. The fabrics are all very organic, very pure, from chanderis to matka silks to mulmuls, which I always do, so it’s a very elegant and extremely understated collection like all of my collections.
What is the one thing that people should really watch out for in your collection?
RB: I think this time it is really going to be the gold-leaf printing. We haven’t used khari which is what you normally use. We’ve actually used the real gold leaf. And I think the colors and the block-printing that we’ve done is really something that I am very happy about. That’s what I feel people should look forward to. And also the Shibori which I think is kind of taking shibori to a different level. I think we are trying to do that and I am hoping that we’ve done it. These are the two things that people should look out for.
What is your biggest source of inspiration? Is there any trend that you’re particularly inspired by this season?
RB: To be honest, my biggest source of inspiration has always been architecture. I get extremely inspired by architecture. And this inspiration is not really confined to any geographical boundaries. It is very global. So whether it is the Taj Mahal or it is the Alhambra or it is architecture done by Goudi for instance, it is an amalgamation of all forms of architecture, but my favorite still remains the Mughal architecture from the fouth & fifth century AD. So I’ve come to realize that the exclusive architecture, Mughal, pre-Mughal, even till now, steeped in tradition, and art forms that go into architecture have been my greatest inspiration.
Could you list out some of your favorite designers for us, both Indian and International?
RB: Amongst the ones that I really really like in India, and I think that is more relevant, is my all-time favorite which is Anamika Khanna, who I think is most incredible and talented, with beautiful sensibility. She is pretty much on top of my list. Then I also really admire and respect these fine subtle nuances and this fine subtlety of a designer like Rajesh Pratap Singh, who I think has got an incredible amount of sensitivity in his designs. Then I like this designer called Amit Arora, who has done some spectacular work.. and these are the three that come to my mind immediately.
Anyone amongst the international designers?
RB: There are many but I think, and this might sound a bit cliché, but I still feel that as far as I am concerned, and the sheer drama and the sheer opulence of design, I think I would definitely day John Galliano and Alexander McQueen. So I think between both of them, I think they are really talented and really gifted and I think their interpretation of fashion is a gift to the world.
If you had to give some quick advice to an aspiring fashion designer, what would that be?
RB: The most important advice I’ll give a fashion designer is to try to stick to what they really really believe in and not try to do what other people are doing. Try to do what your own instinct tells you to do. Live your life according to what you really are. And your design philosophy should be your own, and follow it through. Don’t try to be somebody else. You need to do fashion according to what you think it is. So it has to be you, it has to be an expression of your personality, and of who you are. So BE YOURSELF!
And lastly, if you had to describe the Savoir Faire in just one word, what would that be?
RB: I would just say, splendid! Sumptuous and splendid. Those are two words. But splendid is good.
Savoir Faire takes place tomorrow Feb 13th at the Hyatt Regency Delhi in Bhikaji Cama Place. The event is on from 11am-8:30pm
For more information check out their Facebook Page: Savoir Faire
Stay tuned to this space for pictures from the exclusive Savoir Faire pre-party that happend over the weekend, and for live coverage of the event tomorrow!
Surbhi Sethi is Founder & Co-blogger at HeadTilt. Follow and tweet her @HeadTilt1.