An alumnus of the National Institute of Fashion TechnologyDelhi, designer Manish Tripathi is carving new paths with his illustrious achievements. Owing to his extensive knowledge and sharp acumen for fashion textiles, he has successfully established himself as the national advisor to the ministry of textiles for India Handloom Brand.

Tripathi started labels antarDESI and Naveli, that has created a go to destination for made-to- measure and bespoke services.

He is now venturing into an online space with a new-age concept DesignMee that offers customised and luxury fashion by leveraging the digital and the offline retail channel.

Located in the limelight of designer hub at Delhi, antarDESI has established its identity for men’s made-to- measure services. The design philosophy strives at achieving a perfect concoction of creativity, technicality, workmanship, passion, and practicality.

A high-end clothing label in womenswear that brings together years of dexterity and innovative silhouettes, Naveli is designed for bold and fierce women, who believe in creating a statement with their style.

The brand encompasses a versatile and grand collection of lehengas, sarees, salwar-kameez and special occasion pieces and ensembles. Each piece is intimately hand-crafted, and is an epitome of spirituality, femininity and festivity.

Tripathi has designed apparels for popular names in film industry, sports celebrities, bureaucrats, diplomats, events such as Cannes, and political stalwarts. Committed towards the cause of social upliftment of the handloom and handicraft industry of India, he has been working with weavers community to revive the hand weaved fabrics.

Excerpts:

Q What inspired you to come up with antarDESI and Naveli?

I was looking for a motivated vent for my creativity as a sketch artist, which would be recognised and eventually become my identity. Fashion has always fascinated me and when I completed my school I wanted to get into NIFT to hone my skills as a designer. It wasn’t just an inspiration, but a deliberate and calculated decision to come-up with antarDESI and Naveli.

Q How do you think the fusion of Indian and western silhouettes are influencing today’s designing?

Amalgamation of the two has always been interesting and the contemporary designs we see on ramp are a fine example of the same. Today people, both designers and consumers, are willing to be experimental with their style. This gives designers the flexibility and scope to keep trying new ways to find the right concoction of Indian and western silhouettes.

Q Who, according to you, are the best dressed people globally?

It has to be Karl Lagerfeld, Saif Ali Khan, and Sonam Kapoor.

Q What do think has been the biggest change in the Indian fashion industry?

Indian fashion industry is relatively fresh and I think the introduction of Fashion Weeks has been one of the greatest moments. Besides that the recent interest and growth of handloom in the mainstream fashion has been one of the best things that has happened.

Q What was the most defining moment of your career?

Designing for the movie Life ki to lag gayi and meeting the Royal family of Qatar and opportunity to design for them were two things that were happening almost simultaneously at one point in my career. That would have been the most defining moment in my career so far.

Q Many corporate players are keen on collaborating with designers. What’s your say? It is interesting to see the interest of corporates in fashion industry, but it is not a surprise considering the scale and growth prospects, especially in India. The underserved audience are in the fore of most fashion businesses in the country.

Q Your upcoming projects?

I am coming up with a luxury customised and bespoke fashion e-commerce brand DesignMee, which will establish itself as a one stop destination for all fashion enthusiasts.