Don’t want to alienate elder people: Masaba on youth friendly brand

By Nivedita

Mumbai, Aug 17 (IANS) Masaba Gupta's designs are perhaps more relatable to the young crowd, given the edgy and quirky look. The designer agrees, but says she makes sure not to consider a certain age group in mind while making collections.

"We are a very youth friendly brand, but we don't want to alienate people who are elder; so we are constantly doing a range of silhouettes that women -- right from 18-year-old to 50-year-old -- can wear. The idea is to be able to be an age-versatile brand and not alienate young people or old people," Masaba told IANS.

She spoke on the sidelines of the ongoing Lakme Fashion Week (LFW) Winter/Festive 2017 where she showed her bridal collection inspired by Himalayan Orchard Pure.

"There is a clear sensibility in mind that anything that is slightly arty has also to be commercially viable. The blend of commercial and art is the first thing that I think whenever I make a collection. What are the prints that I am going to do, what are the colours that I am going to do, are the things that I think of.

"Colours are synonymous to what I do. I try to bridge the gap between luxury and comfort," she said.

When asked if she was satisfied with the final output that was presented on ramp, especially when the collection was out of a tie-up, the designer said: "Absolutely. I feel that as a designer, it's a bad thing to be satisfied, but it came together the way I imagined it to be. When I am doing something with another brand, I feel that they both sort of marry seamlessly.

"It's one of those things when someone reaches out to you and hears about the product... That's when you really know whether it's a satisfactory experience. Clothes are the best expressions for a product to really put itself in a visual form; so I would say, yeah I think I am satisfied," she said.

Also one of the interesting things about her collection was the use of a moon motif in her garments and many wondered if it had anything to do with the Pakistani flag.

When asked, Masaba told IANS: "If you see it closely, it's actually a crescent moon and has a lotus with it. The only thing is that when we started the show, we had all white garments with moon embellished in white itself; so I think it came from the fact that the Himalayas are so pristine and pure.

"I don't think it reminds you of the Pakistani flag," added the daughter of veteran actress Neena Gupta.

(The writer's trip is at the invitation of LFW organisers. Nivedita can be contacted at nivedita.s@ians.in)