Embracing Playful Glamour: AiSPi's Couture Update

To merge the boundaries of two worlds – the east and the west – and become a true expression of the highest level of fashion, this was the simple goal which propelled AiSPi to collaborate with India’s leading couture designer, Manish Malhotra. AiSPi’s founder and travel enthusiast, Aisha Saraf Kothari, says that “fashion is an expression of a personality and this collaboration will lay the foundation for bringing together two very different yet complimenting worlds and their cultures.”

Rediscovering Couture: The eastern side of things

When we hear the word ‘Couture,’ we may think it is the highest quality of clothing fitted to perfection, and we might get reminded of cities like Paris or Milan and luxury brands who have their origins rooted there. While all of these statements are valid, we are disregarding a very important player in the fashion industry: the eastern couture designers. What could truly be more ground-breaking than familiarizing the world with eastern couture and bringing a unique twist with pairing fun western accessories?

East vs West: What Differs?

Manish Malhotra is an Indian couture designer and thus is very different from people’s initial perception of couture, which leans more toward western fashion houses. We asked Aisha how these two concepts of couture differ. Aisha says, “The main difference I often spot between Indian and western couture is that the former relies more on handwork, embellishments, embroidery, and craftsmanship versus the latter relies more on tailoring, fits, and materials.”

Aisha believes that couture in India is often taken for granted. She says, “The word couture means ‘tailored to oneself,’ and almost all Indian households have grown up with it. Each house has their own tailor; this is a luxury that each girl is spoiled with and often takes for granted.” Aisha entrusts Manish Malhotra’s understanding of the global world to glue together this east-west style affair alongside AiSPi curated designers.

“We have chosen to work with an Indian couture brand simply due to the knowledge and understanding Manish possesses regarding fashion in the east and the west. Manish Malhotra has had a very global outlook from the very onset, and when it comes to fashion, he is eternal, he is timeless, and he understands every body type.” This makes him the perfect collaborator to achieve AiSPi’s goal

East Meets West

AiSPi chose to pair its accessories with Indian silhouettes in an attempt to break boundaries. In the words of Aisha, “The fun that’s being added to the Manish Malhotra outfits is our desire to break boundaries, break rules. Fashion transcends boundaries, and it shouldn’t be curtailed by where we come from but rather from our experiences.”

This attempt will eventually lead to AiSPi’s clients being comfortable in who they are but also not afraid to be daring with their choices.

Written by Kirthi Anand

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