'People are more receptive to fashion now'

She is one of the first designers who introduced street elements to the Indian audience through her collections, the memorable one being “High on Chai” that sold the very idea of India with a steaming hot cup of tea in print. The colours were bold and bright and resonated well with Nida Mahmood’s philosophy of capturing India’s soul through her clothes. It was this very collection that made her “kitsch queen”.

The queen never required any stars to pull in crowd or trade queries at the fashion week, but the Delhi-based designer ensured she wasn’t swept away by these overwhelming accolades and continued challenging her creative pursuits. She has delved into art and made installations; designed costumes for a kids musical; is designing interiors of a restaurant and has just finished working on the costumes and sets of an upcoming Bollywood film.

“I am not just a fashion designer. It is interesting to explore because you are applying yourself in different directions. There is a continuous need to be versatile and be able to understand requirements of a particular project,” Mahmood tells Metrolife.

“And while working on it you bring in your own aesthetics on the table,” she adds.Fashion has a tendency to stereotype a designer, and a designer too has a tendency to slip into the comfort zone and continue producing what he or she knows the best. However, surprising it may seem, but Mahmood has been quietly working with weavers in Andhra Pradesh for the past two years. This is for her new handloom line – a drastic shift from her pop-culture
design years.

“Everybody is looking for a new idea. And I personally feel that if we don’t explore our vast repositories of handlooms... it would be a pity,” she emphasises.

In subtle tones of grey, white and browns, Mahmood has stressed on keeping the basic style “classic”, but is introducing flock printing (a technique where short fabrics are applied on an adhesive-surface)and embroidery to give the fabric a modern twist.

“I haven’t changed the base, but have added many layers to it. That tweaking was important because as a designer I have to do some value addition and at the same time I had to ensure the classic charm of the weave isn’t lost,” she points out, adding she has changed warp and weft of the fabric to introduce design elements.

Over the eight years she has been in the industry, Mahmood has managed to create a niche for herself. Be it her signature whites or quirky designs, or influence of ubiquitous street culture, her designs carry a distinctive mark that makes it easy to identify the label Nida Mahmood. “When I had started, it wasn’t cool to pick up Indian influences. Now things have changed.”

At the same time, a lot has changed in the Indian fashion industry, thanks to social media as it has given a platform to young designers to promote their brand. Also, the digital space has offered opportunities to designers to test new waters.

“Things have become a lot easier now because of social media. People have also become more receptive because they are exposed to fashion,” she says.

“Branded clothes have become affordable and because of online retail space, designer clothes are also priced decently that they no more pinch. It is a lot easier now,” she adds.