Shallow and useless, ageist, sexist, elitist, even weightist, these are some of fashion’s favourite battles. But then there are ones like the strictly non-glamorous Mulleavy sisters who can design the brilliant ballerina costumes for Black Swan, you are forced to consider the deeper roots of fashion. Something we saw so clearly when we
spoke to designer duo Shivan-Narresh, who at an average age of 25 are the most prominent resort wear labels in the country and quietly encouraging more and more women to swim with confidence.
Starting from NIFT, Delhi, to winning the prestigious Mittel Modo Swimwear Awards while still being students, to the Indian showcase at Lakme Fashion Week three seasons ago, their design journey might not have been long but has certainly gone far. “After we showed at Mari De Moda in Italy, a lot of Middle Eastern, Russian and Indian women told us that ours was the only line that catered to the cuts and texture according to their body shape and not the standard European or Brazilian,” Narresh said, adding that it was the push they needed to retail in India, where the area was almost unexplored.
“Our lifestyle, the comfort of wearing clothes and the attitude is completely resort and we were surprised to see that no one has ventured here before,” he remarked about the void of authentic swimwear.
Despite the coastal advantage and sea line, ladies would rather swim in sarongs, suits, even T-shirts or give up swimming altogether, as wearing the same cut and label as their daughters was not acceptable to all. “Resort wear in India goes much beyond fashion, into a whole new area of body image and confidence. The standard swimsuits don’t hide the flaws of a mature body or exaggerate the areas that should be,” he said.
“As we got more involved and heard from so many women about how they finally found a brand that would allow them to wear swimsuits and still be flattering to their bodies, the satisfaction and sense of achievement was way beyond designing any average or occasional fashion garment. And that makes us love our work even more,” he told us with a smile.