<p>Shivan Bhatia and Narresh Kukreja, designers and founders of the fashion label Shivan & Narresh, were in the city recently to create ‘Chivas Studio - The Blend’, a visually immersive experience of the four notes of Chivas (luxury blended Scotch whisky brand).</p>.<p>They created four curated installations, styling them with fabric. “Each corner in the installation has a unique flavour — creamy, fruity, floral and citrus — and the location is spatially designed according to this,” Narresh told Metrolife.</p>.<p>The label Shivan & Narresh focuses on resort and beachwear. So why did they take up something so different? </p>.<p>“We are now designing celebrations. We did a wedding in Vietnam recently. It’s a step forward from the swim and resort wear that our label stands for,” the 33-year-old designer said.</p>.<p>He added, “Even though travel is in the DNA of the category, the product has to be very destination wedding-centric.”</p>.<p>The duo created India’s first luxury beachwear brand. But their journey wasn’t a smooth sail. Narresh explains why.</p>.<p>“Indian mills didn’t make swimsuit fabric, so we didn’t have easy access to the raw material. The labour we hired didn’t know how to stitch a bathing suit. Retailers didn’t know how to sell a bathing suit. If you just hang two swimsuits between ten lehengas and sarees, it doesn’t sell,” he laughed.</p>.<p>The main hurdle wasn’t any of this, he said. It was the women themselves. “Culturally, we are told to wear many layers of clothing; and for women to feel confident about their body type and love themselves for who they are was their biggest challenge. Only the swimsuit falls into the self-love category which none of the fashion brands in India stands for,” he said.</p>.<p>Shivan and Narresh are planning to venture into mainstream couture.</p>.<p>This August, they will be presenting their first couture collection and start taking appointments.</p>
<p>Shivan Bhatia and Narresh Kukreja, designers and founders of the fashion label Shivan & Narresh, were in the city recently to create ‘Chivas Studio - The Blend’, a visually immersive experience of the four notes of Chivas (luxury blended Scotch whisky brand).</p>.<p>They created four curated installations, styling them with fabric. “Each corner in the installation has a unique flavour — creamy, fruity, floral and citrus — and the location is spatially designed according to this,” Narresh told Metrolife.</p>.<p>The label Shivan & Narresh focuses on resort and beachwear. So why did they take up something so different? </p>.<p>“We are now designing celebrations. We did a wedding in Vietnam recently. It’s a step forward from the swim and resort wear that our label stands for,” the 33-year-old designer said.</p>.<p>He added, “Even though travel is in the DNA of the category, the product has to be very destination wedding-centric.”</p>.<p>The duo created India’s first luxury beachwear brand. But their journey wasn’t a smooth sail. Narresh explains why.</p>.<p>“Indian mills didn’t make swimsuit fabric, so we didn’t have easy access to the raw material. The labour we hired didn’t know how to stitch a bathing suit. Retailers didn’t know how to sell a bathing suit. If you just hang two swimsuits between ten lehengas and sarees, it doesn’t sell,” he laughed.</p>.<p>The main hurdle wasn’t any of this, he said. It was the women themselves. “Culturally, we are told to wear many layers of clothing; and for women to feel confident about their body type and love themselves for who they are was their biggest challenge. Only the swimsuit falls into the self-love category which none of the fashion brands in India stands for,” he said.</p>.<p>Shivan and Narresh are planning to venture into mainstream couture.</p>.<p>This August, they will be presenting their first couture collection and start taking appointments.</p>
