11 Questions with Nida Mahmood - Designer Interview Series
Interview by Rajeshwari Agrawal & Sukiran Singh
Conducted by Rajeshwari Agrawal
Edited by Sukiran Singh
Rajeshwari: Do you think in general India is taking a step forward to modernization or rather doing a moonwalk?
Nida: It is a very interesting phase India is in. We are making a leap towards modernization in every sphere. Be it technology or fashion. We are in very exciting times. India is the center of attention world wide. Both in terms of potential direct investments or in terms of inspiration for design.
R: Do you represent the modern India and how?
N: Brand Nida Mahmood represents modern India in more ways than one. The brand ideology revolves around India and it's dinner nuances. The core of design for us is tritely inspired by India. We are cool quirky non preachy representation of modern India. Our brand ideology stems from the roots of who we are as people and what moves us as Indians.
R: Where do you place yourself a revolutionary, an observer or a passer by?
N: The brand is certainly revolutionary. With my first show High in Chai in 2009 we changed the game in several ways. The traditional sari got a brand new face lift. I draped the sari over jeans as a statement of the modern Indian woman. The idea caught on and several others followed suite. Indian fashion ramp had never seen anything anti fashion before High on Chai. I got chai sellers, bangle sellers, balloon Wala etc on the ramp. It complement revolutionised the way fashion started being approached in terms of packaging the show. Earlier only the finale shows had ramp drama. Post this show a lot changed for the better.
R: Ever wondered if your designs hold a social significance? If not would you want them to invoke change? ( Talking about in the lines of Coco Chanel and Mary Quant, who changed the complete silhouette of their times to free women .)
N: My brand stands for a revolution. We as a brand are very socially relevant. Design for us is not just making pretty looking clothes. We pick up socially relevant ideas and weave dreams around them. Things that connect to is as people. For eg. We did a collection inspired by film poster art. We set up a corpus for artists and created a line of clothing and products which our artists created with design intervention from us. We gave back most of the earnings to the corpus. The purpose was to try and make a difference to the community of poster artists.
R: What is your inspiration for getting an inspiration and when the inspiration strikes, what do you first do?
N: There is never a pattern. Any thing can be inspiring. There is no cheat sheet for a creating process.
R: Do you think travels open minds?
N: Of-course. Travel opens the world to a person. When you see other cultures, talk to people of different kinds our perspective evolves and our approach to things changes. It becomes more well rounded and well healed.
R: Do your roots matter to you and how much they influence your design process?
N: My entire design philosophy revolves around redefining the roots and making them more acceptable in totals context. It is supreme importance to be rooted because that defines who we are and no one can have an identity without their roots.
R: Can you call yourself a true artist? And what do you think is more important sharing ideas or making money ?
N: I'm a complete artist in every way. While it is very important to earn ones bread and butter it is also extremely important to know how to balance the art of living a creatively inclined life which is enriching and rewarding ones belief systems.
R: Have you ever designed something only for yourself and not give a F* about the world ? ( The world being money, perceptions and society)
N: I do that all the time. I would like to put it slightly differently though. I believe if one follows ones heart in a creative process and is true to ones heart without the pressure of social acceptance one comes out with best results. I endorse this view. I always design what I believe in. Not just this, every season I create 2 avant-garde garments apart from the wearable line just to quench my own creative thirst. These garments are My expression only for myself. I'm glad people have noticed what i do and appreciate it.
R: Is money a restriction for working in India ?
N: Any business grows if there is a good flow of money. Her in India we unfortunately don't have too many investors wanting to invest in the fashion businesses on a personal scale. But things seem to be changing.
R: Tell us in short about your latest collection.
N: My new line Junglee Billee is inspired by feisty women in various eras in different fields who have created a substantial mark for them selves like the iconic singer Gauhar Jaan from 1940s. The flavor is Art Nouveau. Colors soft and feminine.
