Designer Aprita Mehta, who is known for her young, refreshing, easy and modern take on traditional silhouettes, has carved her niche for herself in the mercurial fashion industry. She has dressed some of the biggest names in Bollywood including Madhuri Dixit, Shilpa Shetty Kundra, Malaika Arora, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, and Deepika Padukone. It has been over a decade with a flagship store in Mumbai that sells everything vibrant, boho, and sexy from Arpita Mehta. She is known for her hand-embroidered mirror work juxtaposed with vibrant colours.
But this time, the designer has stepped out of her comfort zone and has worked with sequins for her latest summer holiday collection. The effortless luxury wear was on the showcase at the recently concluded Lakme Fashion Week x FDCI in Mumbai. Presented in collaboration with Dyson the line dedicated to women, had easy-breezy capes, sequin pant-suits, dresses, crops, cuts, and skirts in a colour palette of pink, greens, pestles, and pinks to brighter pops like orange and yellow paired with effortless hairstyles — soft waves, beach curls, curly blowouts and ponytails complementing Arpita's dream vacation collection. Shanaya Kapoor in a yellow sequin saree and tube blows turned the showstopper for Arpita Mehta.
The designer, who recently married fellow designer Kunal Rawal, looked beautiful in her white pants-suit from a Dubai-based brand when she squeezed in an interview with FPJ. She talks about her journey that started as a school kid when she would draw clothes on the back of books and spend hours with second-hand fashion magazines. Excerpts:
Holiday collection by Arpita Mehta |
Holiday collection by Arpita Mehta |
Shanaya Kapoor in as showstopper for Arpita Mehta's Holiday collection at LFW |
It's been 13 years since you started your journey as a designer. In retrospect, do you think you could have done something else if not fashion designing?
I don't think so. As a child, I was more inclined towards creativity than any other direction. I was excellent at sketching and drawing nature and figures. I used to draw clothes on the back of my course books. I used to wonder if maybe I could become a fashion designer. I used to buy fashion magazines from raddiwalas and get so excited seeing the designs and clothes. That's when I figured out I want to be a fashion designer. At that time there were very few design colleges so I studied science for two years and I did very well in that so I was confused if I wanted to do engineering or medicine. I gave both the entries and I passed. And the third thing I did was to give the entrance exam for a fashion design course at SNDT college and I topped that. I felt it was a sign that I had to do fashion design. End of the day I knew I would do good and put in my best efforts to succeed. My parents were very supportive but not the extended family. They believed in the conventional idea of becoming a doctor or an engineer. I didn't care much about anyone. And after that, there was no turning back. I knew this is what I wanted to do and how to do it was not clear to me. But here I am, happy with my decision.
The present summer holiday collection is vibrant and quintessential to your label. Where do you draw the inspiration from?
It's always very random. There's no specific point of inspiration. Sometimes, it's a flower, a beautifully done outhouse or anything that attracts me. I think it depends on the mood. The things that you see and feel excited about. But most of the time I am drawn towards things inspired by nature and that I think very literally translates into my collection.
And how does Dyson fit into this?
The ethos that I have for my effortless summer collection is the same as Dyson. As a hair care brand, it has always fostered effortless hair styling which aligns perfectly with the vision of my collection and the aesthetic I intended to create for this collection.
How has fashion evolved over the years?
Fashion has seen a big shift in the last five years. People have started taking fashion seriously. They don't see it as a frivolous thing anymore. They see this as a legit industry with legit business and a legit profession. It has come a long way. Earlier, you had to convince people to believe in fashion and style and believe in good clothing. Now it's accepted. It's a miracle.
Kunal Rawal and Arpita Mehta |
Tara Sutaria in Arpita Mehta collection |
What are your views on sustainability in fashion and clothing?
I feel saving fabric and purchasing production and the waste that comes out of it when you create something from it is all given to a fashion house. But we also encourage our clients to buy a quality outfit that they could use multiple times over buying 10 outfits which you would throw away after three washes. So our vision of sustainability is also to invest in good quality clothing that you can also keep with yourself for many years and use it again and again. It's like multi-utility stuff which is also a very strong aspect of sustainability.
How do you encourage zero-waste in your collections?
Absolute zero waste is not possible but the intent is there to create a garment from every bit that's given to you, even the leftovers from other garments. And at the same time make it aesthetically pleasing. It's not just the garment made out of that process but also creativity that meets this intention, that's when you create something unique and sustainable.
Your views on inclusivity in fashion.
We started in an inclusive way. We are catering to women of all shapes and sizes every day in all of our silhouettes. From our bridal to fusion to pret-line, we are catering to all sizes of women. To me, it's amazing because somewhere in our head we are even apprehensive if it will look good or not but when they wear it, it looks amazing.
Kiara Advani in Arpita Mehta collection |
When we talk about fashion designers, there are very few couturiers who rule the board. Is there a gap that in the last two decades no one has made it to that list?
The ones who have been ruling the industry for three decades are the ones who have been extremely consistent with what they do. They have been working nonstop. They believe in their brand and they are growing their brand. That genre of designers is always going to be there. But with our industry growing, there's always room for many more. At the end of the day, if your work is good, you will be around.
Do you think celebrity influence kind of adds to a designer's popularity?
To a certain extent, it does! Because celebrities not only influence fashion but also the entire country in every way. It's not only fashion but cinema that is a very big influence on people in India at every level and every category.
What is your fashion philosophy?
For me, it's very important that whatever you have on your body makes you feel comfortable. It's not about how expensive or inexpensive clothes are but the agenda is what you wear has to make you feel on top of the world. And that's what we try to create with my label.
Sonakshi Sinha in Arpita Mehta collection |
Five things every woman should have in her wardrobe?
A Very well cut blazer with power shoulders
A nice white shirt
Mirror Work gold jacket
A pair of nice gold heels
A Ruffle Saree
A fashion faux pas everyone should avoid?
Over styling. When it comes to fashion you have to go with your personality and not ape what you have seen somewhere. It may look great on someone else but may not on you.
Gen z is all about over-styling.
As a brand, we want to cater to everyone, including Gen Z as well as my grandmother.
