At 24 she’s the creative head of one of the best known fashion houses in India. She “follows cricket like a hawk and takes walks on the beach with her mother and her dog”. And Masaba Gupta’s offbeat designs reflect her simple life — with lipsticks and taps.
“I feel inspiration is very random and I don’t know if you can actually sit down and say ‘Oh I’m inspired by nature or by marine life or whatever’,” Gupta told tabloid! last week. “Inspiration could be an experience you’ve had or a book you’ve read or a person you’ve met. My whole Satya Paul line is based on a story. It keeps changing because so many things keep happening to you on a day-to-day basis. It’s actually everywhere.”
Gupta will showcase her latest collection at Numaish Summer Show on Saturday in Dubai, her favourite city. Along with her trademark design of calligraphy from Indian languages and tribal figures, this time she’s incorporating lace in bright neon colours, but in “very wearable pret” way, she said.
Everyone who wears saris has to have at least one Masaba in her collection else it’ll not be complete. This is the extent of success she’s achieved in the short period of three years in the industry, yet she shies away from creating a bridal line.
“If I do make a [bridal] collection, I know it’ll be very toned down, very different to what is available, because there are a lot of women out there who don’t like bling,” she said. “I would use cool, light colours with subtle embroidery such as Kashmiri work or Lucknowi Chikankari.
“The sari is our national costume, a symbol of our identity. It has been designed keeping in mind the Indian woman’s body shape and worn in so many different ways in the last hundreds of years. What I find intriguing is the sari can be worn in so many different ways, over jeans or comfortably over a traditional Indian petticoat and we try and make our saris as youthful and easy to wear as possible. Young women do find it intimidating to wear a sari and rather pick a dress. So, my aim is to make it less heavy and keep the sari a casual yet smart garment”.
It’s been since a year and a half that she’s the creative director of Satya Paul, one of the earliest names that made a place for itself in the international fashion market. With young and talented designers such as her, the Indian fashion industry is definitely going places.
“It’s a great period for Indian fashion but at the same time it’s a very worrying because I see there are way too many designers who are apeing senior designers and are being given the opportunity to showcase. I think it’s not right that you do a collection that looks like an Anamika Khanna or a Sabya (Sabyasachi). It’s not fair because they have worked in the industry for 20-25 years and then you, a new kid on the block, who probably has a few connections or a bunch of stars wearing your clothes, step in. If we need to be recognised in the world of fashion globally we need to really filter the real designers from the fakes. Yet, at the same time, it’s nice to see a lot more people interested in fashion, a lot more people holding fashion shows and going the whole mile and creating their labels and stuff.”
Speaking of opportunities, Gupta with her celebrity parents — she’s the daughter of Indian actress Neena Gupta and veteran cricketer Sir Vivian Richards — would have found it easy to make her way through the industry.
“It definitely helped. But you cannot forget that I went through the process any design student who wanted to show at a fashion week would go through. I too was scrutinised by a 13-14 member jury who actually break down your entire look to find why you should be there. That’s the fashion week I know. It’s a period that was so hard to be in, where you have to be one of 500-600 entries each season — of which six are picked.
“For me it was easier because I knew who to ask the correct kind of advice. Plus there was a lot of curiosity about me being me before I became anything, which helped. People were interested to find out who I was. They may think I’m a product of celebrity parents. But you can only survive a season or two with something like this or if some celebrities wore my clothes. By the third show you have to get up and prove this is what I do and this is why I’m different and this why I should be here”.
A dancer, singer and tennis player, Gupta explored many creative avenues before finding success in fashion. She feels, at the subconscious level, they could all be related.
“In some way or another every creative field is connected. With dance I learnt to channelise my emotions and felt a huge energy where I was dancing and I feel the same energy when I’m doing a show. When it came to music it was a lot more about discipline and focus and research. When I do a show I always know what artist or tracks I’m going to play, even before I’ve created the collection.”
Though Gupta may have received her creative skills from her mother, who she feels always had a “unique” sense of style, Gupta feels it’s her father she is most like.
“He has this great insight about life, career and relationships that he gives through one liners and quotes. I’m actually exactly like my dad and have very little from my mother. He’s taught me to focus and to never let anyone bully you — as a kid I was bullied all the time. He taught me to stand up and fight while others would always tell me to let it go. That’s one life lesson I’ve learnt from him.
“I really appreciate the fact that my mother never hid the truth from me as a child. I must have been 10-11 when I got to know the reality but she’d warned me that people will speak. She helped me go through the whole process as naturally as I had to and that it is empowering to me, because even today people say things to me [about the way I was born] and it doesn’t make a difference. Why? Because I’m wired differently. I was always raised to believe that — for women especially — the only way to be empowered and emancipated is to be successful and good at your work.”
Box: Don’t miss it
Numaish Summer Show will be held at The Address Dubai Mall on Saturday, April 26 from 10am to 9pm. Along with Masaba Gupta, Indian designers Gaurang and Purvi Doshi, Farah Sanjana and Anushree Reddy will also showcase their works. For more information call 055-4537000.
Box: Quote/unquote
The only time I wish I was a man is because I wanted to play cricket. But I’ve never aspired to be a cricketer. I’ve aspired to be a sportsperson because I have a tremendous amount of respect for the mental stability, physical strength and discipline you need to be a sportsperson. It’s the hardest job I know. And I kind of wanted to carry the legacy [of my father] forward.
Box: Social media and fashion
Today, you almost don’t need to be in a newspaper to be known, as was the case in the past. I think social media is the strongest in terms of marketing for a brand, because it lets you convey your message the way you want to. It helps you show people this is what I do and this is the brand and aesthetic and these are the people wearing it. I think it’s a great tool, especially Instagram. We have people coming in and showing us pictures on Instagram that this is what we want to buy. So it’s a great way to connect with customers all over the world who want to own or aspire to own a Masaba.
