Anokhi Fashion Lifestyle Entertaiment

Though fixating on the biggest names in fashion is convenient (and, arguably, fashionable), it makes it easy to miss the somewhat-hidden jewels who have yet to reach their full potential. There’s Gaurav Gupta, who enrolled in fashion school almost by accident because he didn’t want to study business, and Felix Bendish, who did study business but then realized his true calling was fashion. Then there’s New York-based Rehna Pendse and Ahmedabad, India-based Yogesh Chaudhary, who also have fascinating stories. These young designers — who often focus on sustainable design — are ones to watch, and we predict even brighter futures than their already-luminous presence.

Rehna Pendse

With only 24 pieces for her clothing line Cuffe Parade, Rehna Pendse leaves no room for questions when it comes to why she designs. Though Cuffe Parade is named after the Mumbai neighbourhood where the designer grew up before relocating to the United States, the name may be the only trace of India in the label. Instead, Pendse endeavours to dress serious young women with a European sense of fashion, which New York designers are all too familiar with — the career-driven maven. “I think of this very strong, confident female who likes to make a statement without showing too much; [the collection] is sophisticated and stylish without being overbearing.” Pendse holds a degree from New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology and worked for various fashion houses, including Calvin Klein, before launching Rehna Pendse New York in February. Cuffe Parade, which Pendse hopes to expand into a lifestyle brand, is fabricated by a group of female manufacturers in India using sustainable fabrics such as raw silks, silk organza and silk charmeuse. “So besides the fashion of the collection, there’s a lot of heart to it. When you’re putting your money into a piece, it is also sustainable and it’s for a good cause: it’s the full circle.” Pendse’s Spring 2012 collection will showcase during fashion week in New York. Her garments retail online on rehnapendse.com, as well as in select New York boutiques.

Yogesh Chaudhary

Based in one of India’s fastest growing cities, Ahmedabad, Yogesh Chaudhary’s maxim is sustainable design. This motto is visible in Chaudhary’s garments; they evoke images of futuristic tribes, perhaps following a global-warming apocalypse where man is forced to return to the basics. But Chaudhary is designing for the present, advocating a sustainable process in fashion from manufacturing to the disposal of garments. The former Punya Shiv menswear head designer is a firm believer in reducing fashion’s carbon footprint. In 2010, Chaudhary collaborated with fellow Indian designer Manas Barve to create Loops, which won at the Montana World of Wearable Art Awards Show. The piece was made using a seamless knitting technique in which panels of fabric are interlaced to one another using only the fabric itself, without glues or thread. To Chaudhary, Loops is “a garment that demonstrates an organic sense of wholeness.” This year, Chaudhary and Barve have entered the competition again, this time with a piece called Juxta. Chaudhary has also won the Van Heusen Emerging Designers of the Year contest. The 24-year-old attended the National Institute of Design in India for a master’s degree in apparel design and is working on his Spring/Summer 2012 collection. The young designer hopes to dress burlesque model Dita Von Teese someday. It’s anyone’s guess whether the normally lingerie-clad ex-girlfriend of Marilyn Manson will slip into one of Chaudhary’s more modest designs, though both ambition and creativity are on his side.

Gaurav Gupta

This 32-year-old has already made a name for himself. Born and raised in New Delhi, Gupta’s graduate collection from the Central Saint Martins institute in London was awarded The Future of Couture trophy at Altaroma couture fashion week in Rome. After working around the globe in Italy, Japan, Turkey and Russia, as well as his native India, and with the likes of Stella McCartney, Gupta launched his own collection. The debut of the Gaurav Gupta brand at India Fashion Week brought the designer immediate recognition through several awards. After establishing his ready-to-wear line of saris and lengas in India, Gupta ventured into the world of haute couture in 2010 while further modernizing traditional Indian garments with a keen eye for form. The result is a stunning medley of gowns that recall India from décolleté to bottom hem while remaining intrinsically border-blind: Gupta’s designs look equally stunning on Hollywood starlets as they do on Bollywood actresses. “Culture has to move and evolve, it has to talk about what is right now and what is relevant,” says Gupta. “Indian wear was getting boring because people have been wearing the same thing for the past 5,000 years.” Gupta plans to showcase his latest work at this year’s New York and London fashion weeks for the first time. He also revealed he has begun collaborating on a perfume to accompany the Gaurav Gupta brand.

Felix Bendish

Though he was interested in fashion from a young age, Felix Bendish earned a bachelor’s degree in commerce before realizing he could not ignore his true calling. He went on to study fashion design and, later, established his label, Felix Bendish, in 2001. “My forte is mostly in embroideries,” he says. “My biggest role in creating design is through blending fabrics like silk georgette, crepes and chiffons with other materials like beads, crystals or stones.” Bendish’s collections include traditional Indian wear featuring dazzling colours and embroidery. Bendish’s passion for handcrafting and embroidery does not stop with garments; the designer also creates a range of accessories including headbands, scarves, neckpieces and brooches. It’s no surprise that Bendish’s rich-looking garments have been worn in Bollywood films by the likes of Riya Send and Ashmit Patel. Bendish’s latest collection focused on silks blended with glass beads and beautiful embroideries. Available in Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Japan, Bendish and his international collaborations include designers based in the United States, United Kingdom, Japan and Iraq. When he is not designing, Bendish teaches college-level fashion design in Mumbai.


BY ZHINA JALALI / PUBLISHED IN THE FASHION, STYLE & HOLIDAY ISSUE, OCTOBER 2011