Meet the Founders – and Designers – Behind South Asian New York Fashion Week

POPSUGAR: What makes South Asian fashion stand out? Can you speak on the artistry and why it deserves more attention on a global scale?

Shipra Sharma: We’ve all seen these heavy-beaded crystal work outfits at South Asian weddings, but I think a lot of the simpler embroidery and printing styles don’t get as much credit in the world like block printing, phulkari embroidery, and hand printing, each specific to the region it originated from.

Hetal Patel: With block printing, the actual symbols or the actual shapes that they will use differs between the indigenous tribes.

South Asian fashion isn’t just the decked-out bridal wear or what’s shown in Bollywood movies; there’s space for understated pieces. The most important thing about holding a platform like this is recognizing that there are so many different genres: there’s leisure wear, there’s everyday wear, there’s resort wear, etc.

People are finally recognizing that every region has very different prints, art, fabric, culture, living style, even like a simple drape. We learned this with the Untitle by Nikita Shah presentation and sari draping demo. She made a very good point that even the way that you drape a simple cotton sari will differ region by region.

PS: We know that Indo-Western or Indo-fusion wear merges the worlds of traditional South Asian styling or textiles with a more modern approach to design. What is your take on Indo-fusion or Indo-Western wear?

SS: You see people taking their mom’s saris, lehengas, and suits and creating blazers and jackets and other outfits that they will wear on a day-to-day basis.

HP: Several of the designers in our season two lineup exemplify this and are pushing the envelope, including Maison Tai, Babougie, and Svarini. They are taking these fabrics, and they’re creating the silhouette that truly is Indo-fusion, whether it’s incorporating different block prints and utilizing pleats, slits, and innovative cuts or using the corset as an inspiration. I think everyone is moving towards a different definition of what Indo-Western is, that it’s not just taking a lehenga, putting on a T-shirt, and wearing some jhumkas [a type of earring style].

PS: Why did you decide to start SANYFW?

SS: South Asian fashion has been an integral part of the overall fashion community for literally centuries; we were colonized for our fabrics, our jewels, our textiles, and our embroidery were also stolen and used as inspiration for the monarchs in Europe, back in the day. We’ve been around, and we have been pioneers in the fashion industry as a whole.

We lost our credit for centuries, but it’s time to really take back that narrative, and it’s important to start educating folks on the origin of their own textiles and their own garments. We really wanted to use this as a platform to educate the global community on what South Asian fashion is and its impact across the world.

HP: I want to see more South Asian designers at online retailers or department stores or have their own fashion houses in SoHo or on Fifth Avenue. It’s traditionally known that people of color get less investor dollars and less investments for their ideas, and that’s across every industry, not just fashion.

SS: It extends beyond design; there’s a business side to it, a financial side to it, a logistics and supply-chain side to it, an environmental side to it. We’re building our South Asian Fashion Council, and we’re able to provide these new designers with the resources, mentorship – a whole business breakdown on how to grow your brand, establish your brand, and keep your brand alive and these changing markets.

We just want to show the world that our designers are capable of creating really innovative designs, and they’re here to stay. You don’t only have to be a European luxury design home to be a luxury designer.

PS: What’s it like working together?

SS: We have the same love for fashion. We came into this as peers and colleagues, and we have grown to be best friends. We keep it real; we’re able to teach each other things that we don’t know. We’re each other’s calm in the storm.

HP: We’re also 99.9 percent of the time on the same wavelength. There’s a lot of times when I’m thinking something and Shipra has already thought it and said it out loud. If there’s anything that I don’t understand or I’m weak at or just need help with, I have that emotional support. To have someone be your business partner but also to be your friend and your support and your guide in life, I’ve been very fortunate that I have that.

PS: What are some of the challenges you faced while building out SANYFW?

HP: The biggest challenge has been to get the support and get your community to invest in your initiative and in your ideas. To get that level of production, and to bring that quality that is very similar to what is equivalent to New York Fashion Week, that was a big struggle, because we have to really convince a lot of the community members that this is the way to do it. This is the path forward. We self-funded our first and second season with the help of our parents.

SS: With South Asian communities across the globe, we are predominantly very hyper-focused on certain careers and just certain trajectories of your career path. The arts, media, fashion, and culture-based careers are not given as much importance, but these fields are actually modes of change for each generation. They’re vehicles that help you set trends, that helps elevate these communities that actually bring in resources to your community.

PS: What have you learned while creating and executing SANYFW?

HP: We’ve learned that you don’t take criticism from somebody you wouldn’t take advice from. We really have learned to channel out the white noise and focus on the issues that we can fix.

SS: We have a board of advisers that became the subject-matter experts of our different verticals, whether it’s production, styling, media, finance, public relations, overall business strategy, and marketing. Having that community and network to rely on when things get hard has definitely been the best thing that’s come about all of our challenges, and it’s taught us that you’re really not alone.

Keep scrolling to see the designers featured at South Asian New York Fashion Week.

SS: Raas by Shreya Patel uses a bandhani tie-dye-style print. It’s a very traditional print, but it’s used in outfits that you could wear anywhere. I could definitely rock one of those dresses out to brunch or out with my friends.

HP: It’s almost like her second inning in life. For most of her life, she’s looked for a family, and now she’s finally doing what she wants. I’m very happy that this platform has been able to highlight that you don’t have to be a certain age; you can fulfill your dreams at any age.

HP: Maison Tai by Sandeep Tupili uses old Kanjivaram silk saris that are an important part of his culture, and he upcycles them into these modern silhouettes. For example, a light lavender-color boxy suit – that’s something that I can see myself wearing all the time, even to work or going out to brunch. I think he’s done a really good job of taking something that’s core to his cultural identity and bringing it into this modern platform.

SS: Akriti by Shakun is a Punjab-based designer. They’re using this type of embroidery, called phulkari, [which is] threadwork on cotton or silk fabric. It’s passed down from generation to generation so mothers and grandmothers – ever since they were little girls – start weaving these phulkari garments, and they get passed down as heirloom pieces.

Akriti uses phulkari fabric that has been upcycled; it’s like hundreds-of-year-old fabric that is upcycled into these beautiful new-age, bridal designs. From the quality of fabric that that brand uses to the creativity, all of it is such a great testament to Punjabi culture.

HP: Svarini [was founded] by Sheel Yerneni, who’s a Telugu designer. She’s done a very similar job where she takes brocade and silks that are very important to the identity of South India, and she’s made these very beautiful European, romantic Italian silhouettes that you can wear as resort wear when you’re on vacation. That’s something that we don’t really see South Indian or just South Asian designers doing in this market.

HP: Pakistani designer Madiha Dhanani has her label Jamil by MD. She uses this crystal beadwork that’s very prominent in Pakistani fashion and makes these beautiful jumpsuits, capes, and everyday wear. It’s very glamorous, but at the same time, it’s very minimal. I can see not just Pakistani Americans but everyone and every community identifying with that style.

SS: Babougie uses silk, which is a very traditional South Asian fabric. It is something that screams luxury in the South Asian world. She uses the designs and printing that are core to her Pakistani heritage and culture to create Western outfits like loungewear sets and dresses that anyone can wear.

It is a great example of Indo-fusion because you’re taking these elements of your culture but you’re implementing them in a way that is original and creative, really pushing the envelope on design work.

SS: Aks by Aks Mathur, a handbag designer, creates innovative style handbags that are handprinted as well. They’re just so cool and such great high-fashion pieces. His collection is just a work of art, and I really want the rest of the world to see it.