When we attended the mesmerizing Vogue wedding show, we met one half of Bollywood’s favourite designer duo Shantanu & Nilkhil. What followed was a sweet conversation to decode the making of this awesome brand.
Shantanu: I am Shantanu, one half of the brand Shantanu and Nikhil. We are known to do contemporary clothing for the contemporary bride. Empowerment to the brides of today
What is your latest collection about?
This time the collection “true to what we do” has a muse as the contemporary woman who is a little bit more intense than in the previous season of Shantanu and Nikhil. She’s fiercer than before. So she is away from that demur romance to a more fierce romance and the romance part is there but it’s fiercer and decadent is the flavor.
We are going with rather different view of emerald greens, navy blues, greys, blacks and golds, with a hint of red. So it is almost as decadent as it can be. Silhouettes are kind of elegantly sexy, but at the same time it’s fitted and structured from the top. It’s the bride that wants to make her wedding carnival look like it is hers. So pretty much everything from the colors to the silhouettes
So we see in India brides are much more traditional over contemporary. How do you fuse the two together to make sure your bride gets the best of both the worlds?
India has always been vintage in form and appeal. It always has been, coming in through mostly surfaces and embroideries are high on nostalgic. So we do keep our textures and surfaces alive through the Indian heritage. But the silhouettes are extremely dramatic and pretty much let the person know that she has to wear it for one of her functions. They prefer the dramatic silhouettes our bride our the cocktail bride knows she can don our creation on two functions. They know they want to wear a Shantanu & Nikhil on a sangeet. She might end up wearing traditionals on her wedding day. The brides have that clarity, which keeps us extremely focused.
You send women emopower men. How?
I have an immense respect for women, in fact most of our work force is women. They hold key positions and they are the real power behind our Shantanu and Nikhil brand.
What colours are in this wedding season?
A little bit of masculitnity to the colors is what will be in. From indigo blues to deep greens will help women stand out. Brand Shantanu and Nikhil never does reds and fuschia and we try to make our colours bold. Much like our brides!
What was the muse for this collection?
This season has a strong Spanish influence. From bull fighting to matador you will see a lot of Spanish styling.
One Bollywood actress you would love to dress up as a Bride?
Deepika for sure. Alia Bhat is a definitely a Shantanu & Nikhil bride. She is independent and knows what she wants.
