Don’t think I’m a feature film director: Designer Tarun Tahiliani `

By Natalia Ningthoujam

New Delhi, July 22 (IANS) Tarun Tahiliani, one of India's favourite bridal designers, has made a whole series of "very nice short vignette films" on fashion but says he doesn't see himself going behind the camera to helm a feature film.

In 2015, model-actress Lisa Haydon featured in the designer's two-minute-long film showcasing his creations. Tahiliani, whose designs have been sported by Bollywood actresses like Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Sonam Kapoor and Deepika Padukone, went on to do more short films. Any plans of directing a feature film?

"No, I don't think I am a feature film director, and my other interests include painting, architecture, interiors... so, there is no reason why I should add one more vertical to this. However, I will work with terrific directors who can understand my vision and empower them to make wonderful films for my communication," the designer, son of former Indian Navy chief, Admiral R.H. Tahiliani, told IANS.

Did he feel like following in his father's footsteps and joining the Indian Navy?

"I am very glad I took up fashion designing because I always sketched. It was something I was naturally born to do. Joining the Indian Navy was never really an option for me. I might have jumped off a ship or torpedoed myself," he said with a laugh.

That's lucky for fashionistas who have been slipping into his bejewelled garments for three decades now.

"I have been in the industry for almost 30 years, yes, but my own eponymous label was begun really seriously in 1995 when we launched the Tarun Tahiliani brand at a wonderful show at the Dorchester in London.

"We will do a 30th year celebration for Ensemble, the retail brand and Tarun Tahiliani will do a big celebration for their 25th year at a location I've already found. We are still going to make plans, but to make it a meaningful plan, not just another party. We are all kind of bored of that," he said.

He is now all set for the India Couture Week show in collaboration with Swarovski.

"The show on 26th July will, of course, have wonderful music and a beautiful set, but I think after a long time we have a very strong bridal and couture show -- of weightless garments that feel like the stars of the firmament," said Tahiliani.

"It goes from a lighter range into the classic couture pieces. I think the workmanship this year is extraordinary. We've had over a thousand people working on the collection and I'm really looking forward to seeing it," he added.

One often spots the sparkling Swarovski crystal-studded garments in his collection; how is it different this time?

"When one looks into the night sky in the wild, there reveals itself a layered universe, of twinkling celestial bodies, in suspended animation, winking, twinkling and revealing universes of layering, lightness, light described in light years and suspended animation," he said.

"These are analogies that more and more describe couture dresses around the world, known as much for their feathery lightness as well as the gravity-defining construction.

"How can one think of the night sky full of stars winking and muted sparkle without jumping at once in one's mind's eye to the use of crystals from Swarovski crystal, the finesse of the coloured crystal," he added.

While each couture collection may be connected to the previous, they also bring with them a refinement that hasn't been seen before, he promised.

"In contrast to our previous collection, the pieces have a more vibrant colour palette. We have also experimented with silhouettes by adding more jackets and capes that create a mystical harmony of the modern and the traditional. A finer workmanship adorns panelled kurtas that beautifully contour the body of the wearer," he explained.

Should the fashion week attendees expect any Bollywood face sporting his best from the collection?

"I have always maintained that the creations must be the star of the collection. However, it is actually for the press that we need to have stars and because that has happened, it does excite some of our clients too, especially in Delhi, where they don't get to see the stars that often," Tahiliani explained.

"I would only put a star as somebody who I think represents the brand and has the requisite poise. Obviously, Sonam Kapoor is always a great favourite because she loves fashion and in the younger department I think that Shraddha Kapoor or Alia Bhatt would be terrific, and, of course, Deepika Padukone and Katrina Kaif are always wonderful and have been models with me and also great campaign girls," he added.

(Natalia Ningthoujam can be contacted at natalia.n@ians.in)