WEAVING FLORAL DREAMS

Gauri and Nainika Karan, founders and designers of Gauri & Nainika label have been pushing the envelope of Indian contemporary wear with their floral designs that are frequently spotted on the red carpet. The designer duo talks to RALAN KITHAN about the birth of their design sensibilities, finding inspiration in Europe, and the evolving fashion landscape in India.

-  RALAN KITHAN

Gouri and Nainita Faran

How do you describe your journey ever since you launched Gauri & Nainika label?

Gauri: We launched our label in 2004 and next year marks the 20th anniversary. It’s been a very exciting journey, and we’ve been growing organically over the years. The brand is matured as have we. We love what we do and it has been constantly exciting.

Your designs are very feminine and often incorporate a lot of florals. Where do you seek inspiration?

Gauri: We’ve grown up with our parents being very involved with gardening. One of our biggest inspirations has been the movie My Fair Lady. Now, we both love gardening, and that also influences us.

Nainika: We’ve done floral prints that are inspired by so many things like paintings of Monet, our mother’s garden, photographs that we’ve taken, or old botanical illustrations. In one collection, we completely focussed on how bougainvillea grows, and we did a lot of 3D appliqué and texturisation. In 2010, we did a collection that incorporated gigantic 3D roses.

What sparked your interest in the European design philosophy?