Ep-8 Anita and Yash Dongre: Why Fashion is About Empathy Across Generations

After 31 successful years of costuming leading Bollywood stars and 16 years as a fashion designer, Manish Malhotra is ready for his directorial debut. The finale of Shop Talk captures how the pandemic inspired Malhotra to sift through his personal and professional thoughts, cementing his plans towards fashion film production, direction for the big screen and streamlining his business. Malhotra, who changed how India dresses with his iconic saris and covetable bridalwear, shares the matrix behind creating his signature looks and why a close connect with the buyer matters.

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This episode of Shop Talk features a conversation with the 38 year old Pabiben Rabari, an embroidery artisan and crafts entrepreneur from Bhadroi village of Kutch, Gujarat. From embroidering since she was seven to make ends meet, to sharing the stage with actor Amitabh Bachchan on Kaun Banega Crorepati, and now becoming the face of an award-winning crafts gift box—Pabiben has come a long way. In this episode, she offers her take on collective growth, on product innovation and the importance of recognition in the life of an artisan. Kaarigar Clinic’s Nilesh Priyadarshi and AIACA’s Anjali Bhatnagar join in to unravel the case study of a unique crafts curation ‘The Local Gift Box’, also the winner of AIACA’s The Most Creative Marketing Strategy Award this year.    

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Does great personal style contribute to the making of a successful fashion enterprise? Should one buy vintage fashion for the love of it or to be more mindful? Shefalee Vasudev joins stylist, fashion entrepreneur and classical dancer Pernia Qureshi to address these questions. Qureshi is known to have uniquely mixed her personal style and entrepreneurial choices, having created and curated e-commerce platforms Pernia’s Pop-up Store and recently, the pre-loved fashion marketplace Saritoria. The episode delves into the finer details of both selling and buying fashion in the digital era – using technology for consumer mapping and acing the tools of presentation to spark emotions, besides dressing for self-expression regardless of age. Saachi Bahl, founder of sustainability focussed retail platform Saahra adds to the conversation as she talks about rising consumer awareness and curating and sustaining a conscious closet.

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Acclaimed fashion stylist Ekta Rajani in conversation with Shefalee Vasudev underlines the evolving contours of fashion in India in this edition of Shop Talk. Rajani offers insights on the influence of a stylist, who is pivotal to the fashion industry, while she emphasises on the importance of individuality and confidence as cornerstones of being stylish today, from dressing to evoke power to prioritising comfort. The former fashion director at Harper’s Bazaar India and Grazia, Rajani also offers a fresh perspective on styling old clothes in newer ways—reclaiming the ‘fun’ inherent in fashion.

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Episode 9: Why Silver is Having a Golden Moment

This episode of Shop Talk offers insights from two jewellery mavericks—Tarang Arora, creative director, Amrapali Jewels and Bhavya Ramesh, founder of her eponymous brand—on the qualities that make silver a leader in the contemporary jewellery market. A second generation jeweller, Tarang credits the metal’s malleability, affordability and viability for design innovation that in turn adds to sales, as well as its popularity that extends from making a statement on social media to being a destination wedding favourite. Meanwhile, Bhavya shares her thoughts on why silver speaks to consumers across markets and why it is the metal of choice for her bold designs that are framed by ideas of diversity. Tune in!    

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Shefalee Vasudev speaks with mother-son duo, Anita and Yash Dongre, who are at the helm of one of India’s most successful fashion businesses, The House of Anita Dongre. Talking points include the 25 years old company’s family to firm transition, its commercial success rooted in empathy and a sharp reading of customer preferences, spread across a robust portfolio of daily wear to bridal labels. Yash Dongre, credited for taking the brand to a global audience as its business head speaks about building store experience and customer connection, besides the motivation behind joining his family business. The talk also includes notes from an Anita Dongre bride, who joins the episode to share her buying experience. 

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JJ Valaya, one of India’s senior most couturiers is known to celebrate maximalism in his opulent and detailed lehngas and sherwanis, while his journey of over three decades mirrors the growth and evolution of Indian fashion itself. In the latest episode of Shop Talk, Valaya offers insight on his design process that includes the layering of intricately detailed embroideries, as he explains that ‘timelessness’ will always be an innate part of his craft. The couturier further argues that though the pandemic may have shrunk the Indian wedding market, the sartorial extravaganza will remain intact.

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In the sixth episode of Shop Talk, Shefalee Vasudev is joined by celebrity makeup artist and influencer Shraddha Naik and Darpan Sanghvi, co-founder of MyGlamm, one of India’s fastest growing makeup brands. Together they discuss why lipsticks continue to rule even as the consumer remains masked, the therapeutic shades of the product during the lockdown and how conscious beauty is a game-changer in the industry. Naik also shares if the red lipstick is as popular as it used to be, the mantra behind creating beauty content that engages, while Sanghvi reveals the key behind a successful beauty business. 

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Mumbai-based designer Payal Singhal’s occasion and bridalwear creations accentuated through prints and bohemian details are functional and fun in equal parts. In the fifth episode of Shop Talk, Singhal talks about the evolution of her more than two decades old eponymous brand, its customer-led innovations and socially relevant messaging and product lines. In a layered conversation with Shefalee Vasudev, she opens up about media projecting body positivity while fashion consumers continue to obsess over body size and how the Indian fashion industry can become more inclusive. Creative director of multi-brand retailer Aza, Aparna Badlani, also a customer of Singhal’s designs, joins in and offers advice on styling versatile outfits for a global consumer.

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In this episode of Shop Talk, Shantanu and Nikhil Mehra, founders of the fashion brand Shantanu & Nikhil, chat about reimagining masculinity in Indian fashion by bringing forth ideas of androgyny, military-chic, nationalism and nostalgia. The duo open up about strategies and the inspiration behind creating celebration menswear without making it ceremonial, while strengthening the brand through thoughtful association with Bollywood and sports celebrities. The episode also includes wearable lessons by Mumbai-based stylist Vinita Makhija—be it the obsession with black or the art of looking (and feeling) glamorous. 

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