SANCHITA

LIFE STYLE
Nil SeNgel-Corbaz

For centuries sari has been the most elegant dress for Hindu-indian women. With the bindhi on the forehead and all that beautiful jewelry they wear, literally from head to toe (hair accessories to toe rings), plus those beautiful fresh f lowers they attach to the back of the hair that one can smell the scent from several meters, indian women are by far the most feminine i have ever seen. When i arrived at bangalore in 2004 the elegance of indian women was what impressed me the most. especially when they are in sari; which to carry properly, you have no choice but stand straight up and move gracefully. Yes, most may be living in poverty; yes, most may be sleeping on the streets; yes, the luckier ones may thankfully have a roof over their heads even if its in the slums, however all indian women will have saris and jewelry for different occasions, though the value and quality may also widely differ. in india, i was happy to see a nation still resisting the western effect in many ways and trying to preserve its identity. and i still think in this whole growing globalization mania its nice and important to keep our differences: Since they also form the cultural diversity and richness which not only us but also the future generations will benefit from as part of the world heritage. However on the other hand, change is unavoidable when the man and woman equal-

ly have taken new roles in corporate life. Family routines have also changed. Same stands for india. The working woman can no more spend ages on draping a sari when she must rush in the morning, first to drop her child to kindergarten/school and then to work. Moreover, many has to do all the commuting on a motorbike as often seen in todays india. So let sari aside, even the regular, daily kurta-pijama or salwar, and a dupatta, may become difficult to handle and even dangerous to wear. Therefore, especially with the expansion of the middle class and the increase in purchasing power of indians in general, the taste of fashion has also changed in parallel. This has wide opened plenty of new doors to the fashion designers of our generation. globalization hasnt been that bad in that sense. While the west has brought its technology, discipline and easy to wear style in to the big global fashion pot, new era indian designers like Sanchita ajjampur have brought their vast cultural heritage, creativity and sensitivity into this rich and colorful spectrum of the world fashion that we also luckily have access today. Sanchita, an attractive woman, a regular of the best dressed people lists in india every year, is a famous fashion designer dressing world citizens in 38 stores worldwide, through showrooms in india, Milan, Paris and Dsseldorf. it is a challenge, but let me try and recap for you here, her rich resume : born in Mumbai and then moved to europe at the age of three, she speaks english, French, german, italian and colloquial indian languages. Following her education in Vienna and the UK, she studied art in Paris and earned her Fashion degree at the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture Parisienne. rounded off her studies in Milan, specializing in fashion and industry, and received her Masters Degree in Fashion and Technology from Domus academy. asha Sarabhai, issey Miyake, Martand Singh, Pupul Jayakar, romeo gigli Moschino, aspesi, Cassoli, iceberg, blumarine, gucci, Diesel, armani are some of the brands she did projects, worked for or was associated with in the past. - Not bad ! She has collaborated on industrial applied design projects for alessi home ware, Swatch watches, glass Design mirrors and Slamp lamps. She was the design consultant for a range of apparel projection clothing images for Milans la Scala opera House. She has also exhibited her applied art embellished works in Venice, rome, New York and Chicago with the artists arianna Caroli and the late John Drake Moore. in partnership with her brother, an economics and finance specialist she founded sanfab in bangalore in 2002. sanfab fuses craftsmanship, innovation and technology to produce high-quality jerseys, light wovens and leather accessories. in this context, she is also a design consultant to the brands etro, gucci, aspesi and Marni in italy, McQueen in london, and lanvin and louis Vuitton in Paris, for which labels sanfab produces.

The brand sanchita was launched in 2005 with the first f lagship store at leela galleria, in bangalore, a luxurious shopping mall attached to bangalores most reputable and high-end 5 star hotel. Sanchita has won prestigious fashion awards in 2009, the Cosmopolitan; Fun Fearless Female of Fashion (best Womens Wear Designer) and the Marie Claire Made in india Fashion awards best Designer Western Wear Prt. in 2010, Sanchita was awarded the Most Creative Debutant Designer at the Van Heusen Mens india Fashion Week, shortly after she started designing for men also. The first time i met Sanchita was at my daughters kindergarten. She was just another mother for me. So down to earth and even shy, i had never thought of her as a celebrity but yes, she was one. i remember the fashion show she had in the hotel i mentioned above. Wow! That was an event! long before the models could walk the ramp it was a police chief of bangalore testing it! ask why?. Somehow, some birds had told the police that at the show there would be some nudity. What do you expect when part of the collection is swimwear !!! in a metropole like bangalore the police had nothing else to take care of one of a kind, fashion police, go figure ! after almost an hour of discussion and convincing (of some other fashion perhaps) all the police officers had left the scene so we could enjoy her latest collection. art and creativity will always have resistance, unfortunately from those who fear the enlightenment and changes the art will bring, to say the least... Some certain minds will even take it to an extent like demolishing peace statues in some 3rd world countries, if you know what i mean Thats part of what i like in Sanchita... She is more about style than fashion trends. Daring, brave, bold ! She does her own research and development and has travelled the globe to study its ancient arts and crafts, especially in india, where she learnt about spinning, weaving, dyeing, finishing techniques and wooden frame embroidery. in addition, she is a specialist in textiles and applied materials, which she also designs and patents.