/ F2Squared: Vikram Phadnis

by Anokhi Admin

F2Squared: Vikram Phadnis

Jun 25, 2013

A fusion of film and fashion

“Flamboyant is my definition of fashion; high on style quotient with an element of ‘bling’ that can turn any girl-next-door into a fashion diva.” Vikram Phadnis, self-taught designer to the stars – and man after my own heart – had me at flamboyant. Actually, he had me with his flashy, kaleidoscope-of-colour fashions, his penchant for all things ‘bling’ and his ardent refusal to be pigeon-holed into anything. With a “work is worship” philosophy, Phadnis’s clothing – when not featured in big-screen Bollywood blockbusters – can be found hanging in the closets of India’s red-carpet royalty: Salman Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, John Abraham, Priyanka- Chopra, Vidya Balan, Sushmita Sen, Akshay Kumar, Malaika Arora… the star-studded list is exhaustive.

A perfectly coiffed mop of black hair atop his conventionally handsome face, the 5’7” choreographer-cum-designer is a lesson in perseverance. Despite having no formal education in design, Phadnis has managed to tailor a solid fashion career with little more than raw talent and an innate drive to succeed – a respectable feat when one takes into account the inherent difficulty of breaking into the industry. “Creativity is inborn and doesn’t require any certification,” says the charming costumier of his school-less success. Retailing from his flagship boutique in Mumbai, Phadnis’s garments can be found all over the globe in Durban, Chicago, Jackson Heights, Dubai, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

Starting out as a choreographer, 42-year-old Phadnis seamlessly—it seems—fashioned himself into one of India’s most sought-after clothing designers. Showing at Lakme Fashion Week, India Bridal Week, South African Fashion Week and Dubai Fashion Week, the Indian designer’s recent S/S 2011 collection was a visually pleasing, voguish victory of style and culture. “My style has a huge influence of fusion wear; all of my designs have a touch of my Indian heritage and always will,” says Phadnis – and the influence is easy to see; his latest collection saw a slew of svelte models swathed in flaming fuchsias, emerald greens, golds, blacks, reds and oranges swirling down the catwalk in a vibrant rainbow of contemporary beaded silk saris and skirts. A blend of east meets India with multi-coloured douppioni silk, organza, chiffon and charmeuse, his Asian-inspired design detailing saw Mandarin collars and Chinese brocades worked in to his modern interpretation of traditional Indian wear. “Whenever I do a collection, I give it 100 per cent. I think constant evolving of the mind inspires me to do different kinds of clothes in fashion. I just go by my instinct,” he says of his motivation.

With a natural knack for styling, Phadnis is Bollywood’s go-to costumier, and from the mountain of movies he has worked on, it’s clear that one of his greatest passions lies in the art of dressing. Having worked on more than 30 feature films including My Bollywood Bride, God Tussi Great Ho and Salaam-E-Ishq, India’s booming film industry has seen an outpouring of love for the designer; a feeling he wholly reciprocates: “I love designing for films and stars because to some extent, they influence our society,” he says. “Costume designing is very interesting and is challenging enough in terms of maintaining the balance between look, style and comfort.” Among his favourite women to design for, Phadnis cites Bollywood beauties Salman Khan, Priyanka Chopra and Sushmita Sen. Having styled his fair share of females, Phadnis has a sage piece of advice for devout, trenddevouring fashion-followers: “Don’t follow fashion blindly, see what suits your personality; you’ll feel more confident that way.” The most rewarding part of Phadnis’s work, he says, is the creative satisfaction he derives from it, explaining that it’s his cultivated individuality that separates him from other clothiers and couturiers: “Every designer has his or her own individual style. Likewise, I have mine.” With over 17 years in the industry, the veteran clothier is explicit when it comes to realizing and reaching his full potential. “We stop progressing when we start limiting ourselves,” he says. “Everyone has ups and downs and so did I, but my obstacles have helped me to grow and overcome [them]. It’s difficult to achieve [success], but not impossible.” Rumour has it that after many years of designing garments for the film industry, a directorial debut might be next on the docket for the acclaimed fashion guru. His nothing-is-impossible philosophy means that Phadnis’s future plans are relatively vague, merely stating that we can expect “a lot more.” And for Bollywood’s ace designer, nothing should be ruled out.

BY JACQUELINE PARRISH / PUBLISHED: THE LIVE BEAUTIFUL ISSUE, MARCH 2011
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF VIKRAM PHADNIS