Into the world of Sabyasachi Mukherjee

Vintage store

The first thing Sabyasachi Mukherjee requested his public relations team before giving them mandate to represent the fashion designer was to make him “invisible”.

It would have been an easier task considering the fact that he is reticent and likes to do his work quietly. But quite is unfortunately not the word one associates with Mukherjee whose love for vintage, aesthetics and handmade has created buzz around the globe and made him the revivalist who is repetitive.

But he doesn’t feel the need to get rid of the accusation because Kolkata-based designer believes “that is the best a brand can do” to create an identity of its own. “It is not a hindrance at all... it is a big asset. The brand is the signature and the handwriting has to be creative,” he tells Metrolife.

The imprints of his philosophy and ideas reflect in the flagship store in the capital which recently opened at One Style Mile in south Delhi. Just like his brand aesthetics, sensibilities of the store exude old world charm and nostalgia. Spread over 13,500 sq ft, the heritage monument with grand staircase is divided by two wings that house Mukherjee’s collection. But real moment comes when the visitor enters the store and is virtually transported into a bygone era whose glimpse one gets in films or photographs.

There are paintings mounted on the wall that mostly come from the Sabyasachi Art Foundation, monochromatic photographs of couples and school children sitting for their mandatory group picture and painted ceramic plates, along with beautiful and detailed Tanjore paintings. They all come from his collection, but he doesn’t consider himself as an art collector. “I really don’t collect art, I collect curios. My definition of art is a bit debatable. What other people consider junk, I consider art. I am a collector and I keep collecting things that don’t make sense. Anything that excites me, visually as a designer, I pick it up. It inspires you to make better things and I like to surround myself with things like old furniture or marble,” he adds.

Block-printed chintz make for beautiful curtains and an enviable collection of ittar bottles lend fragrance to the surroundings. Huge wall mirrors make one look dwarf, but they also hint at the purpose they serve: to look deeply into intricate design of the garment once they are on the body so that one experiences the magic of living in an era that was royal.
His love for lithographs and oleographs is evident at the store and so is his love for Raja Ravi Varma. “All these paintings have something in common.They exude old world charm and there is a sense of strange serenity on the divine faces of these goddesses,”
he says.

Mukherjee wants his stores to be a window into his living room. “I am a non-social person and nobody has seen inside of my house, so I layout the stores like they are my living rooms. So the idea is that if you come into my store, you come into my house.”
“If your stores don’t have that feeling of nostalgia, I would rather not like to have a store,” he adds.

The store houses woman’s bridal wear. jewellery, ready-to-wear, saris and kurtas, along with trunks and luggage. There is also a separate floor for menswear.