The Descendants

Are the Aswanis India’s most stylish family? For the first time ever, Vogue gets PRIYA ASWANI, KARIMA BURMAN and ALIYA MODI, the daughter and grand-daughters of society grand dame Indira Aswani, to come together in a family portrait.

- Priyanka Khanna

For many years, at 5pm sharp, regulars at the racecourse in Mumbai have been accustomed to the sight of Indira Aswani, dressed in pristine whites, on her evening stroll, an activity to which she credits her ageless beauty. “I wake up at 5.30am for my satsang, and every evening, wherever I am in the world, I walk for an hour,” she tells me over a cup of coffee in her light-filled apartment in south Mumbai.

In her chiffon and shadow-work saris, heirloom jewellery (“nothing too strong, nothing too dazzling”), with never a hair out of place, for many she’s a sophisticate of an old Bombay— a lost time where elegance ruled and flying under the radar was the norm.

But in the Aswani home, little has changed.

“I can never get over how even a glass of water or a plate of fruit is served,” designer Tarun Tahiliani tells me. (In case you were wondering, in a beautifully cut tumbler on a silver salver dusted with rose petals.) For Indira Aswani and her children (Minal, Kavita, Divya, Ravi and Priya), this is just a way of life.

“It’s a very strong heritage of style. It’s easy; they throw things together. They all stand out for their beautiful simplicity. It’s good instruction by example,” adds Tahiliani.

Echoing him, Indira says, “My daughters, in particular, have noticed and learned over the years.”

“For me, they don’t make them like her anymore,” says Tahiliani, a longtime friend who became acquainted with the family through the sales of French chiffon saris that Indira’s secretary would hold. “I met Minal on a flight. I didn’t know who she was but she had such presence—simply dressed in a light shirt, blue jeans, scarf and wedding band—except for the 10 suitcases, which were quite the giveaway!” he says, laughing.