PROFILE
Summer of 1999, Sabyasachi Mukherjee graduated from the National Institute of Fashion Technology, India with three major awards. Four months later, Sabyasachi started his eponymous label which began with a workforce of just three persons. Over the years, he has successfully built a clothing brand which has a very strong social perspective. Quick to understand the demands of the Indian market, Sabyasachi has created a brand that has represented a comfort zone to global Indians and remained undestroyed through major socio-economical-political changes.
Early 2001, Sabyasachi won the Femina British Council’s most outstanding young Designer of India award, which took him to London for an internship with Georgina Von Etzdorf, an eclectic designer based in Salisbury. Returning home with edgier ideas, Sabyasachi started retailing at all major stores in India.
In 2002, Sabyasachi participated at the India Fashion Week where his debut collection earned him rave reviews from the national and international press. On a cover by Women's Wear Daily, considered the most coveted international trade magazine, he was reckoned as the future of Indian fashion.
Sabyasachi's design philosophy is very simple and clear- 'Personalized imperfection of the human hand'. Deserts, gypsies, prostitutes, antique textiles and cultural traditions of his home town, Kolkata have been a lifelong inspiration for this designer who believes that “clothes should just be an extension of one's intellect”. He uses unusual fabrics, texturing and detailing, 'fusion' of styles, 'patch-worked' with gorgeous embellishments in a vibrant diverse color palette to make the feeling of going back to the ‘soul'. His creations evoke images of ancient and medieval ages. He describes his own collections as 'an International styling with an Indian soul’. In his designs, he tries to maintain a non commercial balance in an extremely aggressive, commercial and competitive industry. His collection is for people who prefer to walk a path less traveled and who definitely believe that slowing down is not equivalent to dropping out.
He pioneered the use of Indian textiles, albeit in a modern context. His unique contribution has been the use of indigenous methods like bandhani, gota work, block printing, hand dyeing etc in construction of modern silhouettes.
Spring of 2003, Sabyasachi made his debut on the international ramp, with the ‘grand winner award’ at the Mercedes Benz New Asia Fashion week in Singapore, which paved his way to a workshop in Paris by Jean Paul Gaultier and AzzedineAlaia.
His collection ‘Kora’ at the Lakme India Fashion Week 2003 won him laudatory reviews where he used unbleached and hand woven fabrics with Kantha and other hand embroideries. He was declared the best Designer of India at the MTV Lycra style awards and won the ‘Society’ Achievers award for the best new Indian designer.
In 2004, Sabyasachi took a step ahead with Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week and The Miami Fashion Week of America with a bohemian take on Indian textiles and his collection was called ‘The Frog Princess’. With this, Sabyasachi arrived on the global fashion scene with
a bang. His significant achievements included his coveted showing in Browns earning him a retail place at the tiny London store voted by Vogue as the best shopping destination in the world, thereby establishing himself as one of the most promising young designers for years to come.
He forayed into films by designing costumes for Sanjay LeelaBhansali's landmark film: ‘Black’, which earned him critical acclaim along with the National Award in 2005 for the best costume designer for a feature film. Since then, he has designed for other Bollywood movies such as ‘Babul’ and ‘LaagaChunari Mein Daag’, ‘Raavan’, ‘Guzarish’ and ‘Paa’, ‘No one killed Jessica’ and ‘Kahaani’. He is the youngest board member of the National Museum of Indian Cinema.
He earned the distinction of being the only Indian designer to be invited to showcase at the Milan Fashion week 2004 facilitated by Indo-Italian Chamber Of Commerce. Along with accolades, he was also voted by Asia Inc. a Singapore based Business magazine as one of the ten most influential Indians in Asia, alongside AishwariyaRai, Priyanka Gandhi, Sabeer Bhatia…et el. His Spring Summer 05 Collection, ‘The Nair Sisters’ was inspired by hand block printing, embroideries, bagru prints and the extensive use of cotton and other hand woven fabrics. The collection found itself in the racks of Browns & Selfridges in London, and has been featured in the UK Vogue hot list, establishing his presence on the
international fashion arena. He was requested to showcase his collections at the prestigious Oxford University Annual black tie charity dinner fashion show.
Sabyasachi’s debut Spring Summer 07 collection at New York Fashion Week in 2006 earned him critical acclaim and his label started selling worldwide in territories ranging from Moscow to Hong Kong. The essence of this collection was based on folklore, glamour, simplicity, modern architecture and intricate detailing. There is a marked influence of paintings from the seventeenth and eighteenth century painters like Bruegel, Claude Monet and others. He has beautifully used dark jeweled colors with muted shades accentuated with subtle texturing and indigenous embroidery. He is the only Indian designer to be a part of all three leading fashion weeks such as New York, Milan and London fashion Week.
His recent collections project India in a new light to the west which in turn would help Indian textiles and tourism in a big way. His clothes are found in countries far and wide like U.S.A, Kuwait, UAE, Switzerland, Russia, Greece, Germany and U.K amongst others. Sabyasachi believes that the unique positioning of Indian designers is due to the exclusivity of his homeland with its rich history and culture. He believes that Indian designers bring a flavor to the west that is no longer perceived as only exotic but also a rich blend of
individuality and sensitivity.
He has also designed Bed/Bath lines for Bombay Dyeing which has been well received by all. In 2007, Sabyasachi was invited to participate at the New York Fashion Week which is considered to be one of the most prestigious fashion events of the world. He was also invited to showcase his collections at the London Fashion Week, Bridal Asia 07 apart from the Lakme India Fashion Week and the Vogue Launch event in India. His “Sanctuary” collection showcased at Lakme Fashion Week Fall Winter 08 received positive reviews from the renowned fashion editor of the International Herald Tribune –
Ms Suzy Menkes.
In 2008, he launched a line of jewelry exclusively designed by him in association with the GAJA brand. He launched his exclusive menswear collection featuring Sherwanis, Kurtas and Headgear at the Lakme Fashion Week Spring Summer 09 Grand Finale show. He has been developing textiles from Dastkar in Andhra Pradesh, BerozgharMahiliSamiti in Bihar, TantubaySamitiFulia and Kotpad in Orissa. Over the past two years he has also been involved in reviving cotton Benarasisarees in pure khadi and vegetable hand block prints from Bagru, Rajasthan.
In 2009, Sabyasachi opened his first flagship store at Kolkata. Sabyasachi sells out of five flagship stores and is a part of various multi designer stores in India. His future plans are to start an Indian inspired kidswear brand and to establish a contemporary clothing brand for mass India that completely employs and thrives on weavers and artisans at a grass root level. Sabyasachi aspires to grow a ‘people tree’ enterprise that encompasses Indian tradition, culture, and history and converts it into an intellectually and aesthetically aspirational global super brand. In 2011, he was selected as ‘Designer of the Year’ by ELLE magazine. Sabyasachi’s collections have featured in an exclusive exhibition ‘Inspired By India’ curated by Janice Blackburn for Sotheby’s in May 2012.
STORES
USA
Piyali Ganguly
PiaKaGhar
12159 Page Mill Road,
Los Altos Hills,
CA-94022
Phone:650-353-0599
Email: pia@piakaghar.com
www.piakaghar.com
Komal Anand
The Grand Trunk
38695-Adcock Drive,
Fremont--94536
Phone:510-742-0999
Email: tdmkomalsodhi@yahoo.com
www.thegrandtrunk.com
Triloki Batra
THE MALL AT OAK TREE
1710, Oak Tree Road,
Edison, New Jersey- 08820
Ph : 732-762-4455
e-mail : OCL999@AOL.COM
DUBAI
Rohini Gehani
RIVAAGE
PO Box 114870
Dubai, UAE
Ph : +9714 3412433
Mob : +97150 656 5298
Fax : +9714 3412430
e-mail : rohini@rivaage.com
LONDON
Surinder Saggu
PHULKARI LONDON
189 Ilford Lane
Ilford
Essex
IG1 2RU
Ph : 0044 203 538 3066
Aashni & Co.
47 Ledbury Road, London W11 2AA
Tel: +(44) 207 985 0155
email: info@aashniandco.com
www.aashniandco.com
INDIA
FLAGSHIP STORES
Kolkata
SABYASACHI
P- 545 Lake Road
Kolkata- 700029
Ph: (033) 40648239
Mobile: 9830005953
Email id:sabyasachiretail.kolkata@gmail.com
Bridal Store
80/ 1 & 2 Topsia Road
Kolkata – 700046
Ph: (033) 22852381
Mobile: 9830881375, 9836043953
Email: sabyasachibridalkol@gmail.com
New Delhi
Carma
H-5/11, Mehrauli Road,
New Delhi- 110030
Ph: (011) 26644352
Mobile: 9810311155
Email:sabyasachi.carma@gmail.com
Mumbai
Portfolio
52, 56, Dr. V.B. Gandhi Marg
KalaGhoda
Mumbai- 400023
Ph: (022) 22623335
Mobile: 9322263359
Email:sabyasachi.mumbai@gmail.com
Sabyasachi by Sabyasachi
3rd Floor, Upadrastha House,
48, Dr V.B. Gandhi Marg
Kalaghoda Fort
Mumbai- 400023
Ph: (022) 22623365
Mobile: 9323263359
Email: sabyasachibysabyasachi@gmail.com
Hyderabad
Sabyasachi Hyderabad
Plot No. 14, Road No. 10
Banjara Hills
Hyderabad - 500034
Ph: (040) 66565156
Mobile: 9885687700
e-mail: sabyasachi@elahe.co.in
OTHER STORES
Kolkata
85 Lansdowne
85 B, Sarat Bose Road
Kolkata - 700026
Ph: (033) 24862136
Email: 85lansdowne@gmail.com
Mumbai
Aza: Altamount
21, Altamount Road
Mumbai-400023
Ph: (022) 23530212, (022) 23517616
Mobile:9867451199
Email: altamount@azafashions.com
Aza:Juhu
Shishir,15-A Juhu Tara Road
Mumbai-400049
Ph: (022) 26610091, (022) 26610092
Mobile:9833951198
Email: juhu@azafashions.com
Aza: Men
3 ,Cornelian
104 August Kranti Marg
Kepm's Korner
Mumbai-400036
Ph: (022) 23821161, (022) 23821163
Mobile:9987188850
Email:merchandising@azamen.com
Ensemble
Great Western Building
130/132 1st Floor Shahid Singh Marg
Mumbai-400023
Ph: (022) 22845167/5118/3227, (022) 22872882, (022) 22843227.
Email: ensembleindia@gmail.com
Mogra
25, Skyzone Level One,
High Street,
Phoenix,S.B. MArg, Lower Parel (W),
Mumbai- 400013
Ph: (022) 24960808/09
Email: mograindia@yahoo.com
Fuel
KantilalKaria& Co.
c/o Fuel The Fashion Store
Chowpatty View Building
539, Sandhurst Bridge Road
Chowpatty Opera House
Mumbai – 400007
Email: info@fuelthestore.com
New Delhi
Carma Arts & Crafts Pvt. Ltd.
19/48 MalchaMarg Shopping Complex
Diplomatic Enclave
New Delhi – 110021
Ph: (011) 41666065/ 66
Email: carma_91@hotmail.com, carma@carma.co.in
Aza: Crescent
G-12, Ground Floor
The Crescent at the Qutubh, Lado Sarai
NewDelhi-110030
Ph: (011) 29521926, (011) 29521927
Mobile:9310578433
Email:crescent@azafashions.com
Aza: MG
219,Upper Ground Floor
The Gallery on MG road
Village Sultanpur
New Delhi - 110030
Ph: (011) 40505400, (011) 4050540001
Mobile:9311978433
Email:gurgaon@azafahions.com
Aza: South Ex
F-48 Eros,Ground Floor
South Extension Part 1
New Delhi - 110049
Ph: (011) 43237878
Mobile:9310178433
Email:southex@azafashions.com
Ensemble
1043/D-6, Ward no. 8
Mehrauli, Mehta Chowk
NEW DELHI - 110030
Ph: (011) 26645490
Email: ensemble_newdelhi@yahoo.co.in
Ogaan India Pvt Ltd
H-2, HauzKhas Village
New Delhi - 110066
Phone: (011) 26853849, 26967595, 26520205
Email: aashti.b@gmail.com, shagun.khanna@ogaan.com
Chennai
Evoluzione
30, Khader Nawaz Khan Road
Nungambakkam
Chennai - 600006
Ph: (044) 28333627
Email: info@evoluzionestyle.com, shilpa@evoluzionestyle.com
Bangalore
Evoluzione
No. 14, VittalMallya road
Embassy classic, ground floor
Bangalore - 560001
Ph: (080) 41121088 /89
Email: sunil@evoluzionestyle.com
Contact Person: Sujata/ Sunil
Collage
21/1, Wood Street, Ashok Nagar
Bangalore – 560025
Ph: 08025566818/ 819
Email: collageshop@gmail.com
Ahmedabad
Elan Couture Pvt Ltd
2 A, Hill Plaza
Opposite Sears Tower
GulbaiTekra
Ahmedabad - 380015
Ph: (079) 26569699
Email: shodhan@usa.net, elanstore@gmail.com
Hyderabad
Elahe
476 Milestone
Road No.10, Banjara Hills
Hyderabad - 500034
Ph: (040) 23350130
Mobile : 9885687700
Email: elahe@elahe.in
Pune
Rudraksh 201
Varsha 104, Anand Park
Next to Kirloskar House
Above Providore and Just Antiquities
Pune - 411007
Ph: (020) 25882255
Email: tanvee@studiorudraksh.com, rasikawakalkar@gmail.com
Ludhiana
Aza : Ludhiana
G-11/12, Ground Floor,MBD Neopolis
Ferozepur Road,Punjab
Ludhiana -141004
Ph: (01614) 637878, (01614) 637872
Mobile: 9780809161
Email: ludhiana@azafashion.com
Jaipur
Mirangi
A-3, 1st Floor,
Bhawani Singh Marg
Next to Reliance Fresh, C - Scheme
Jaipur-302005
Email: miraangijaipur@gmail.com, alpaghelani@gmail.com
