By Radhika Gupta
ABRAHAM & THAKORE is one of India’s most successful and respected design resources for fashion and accessories as well as textile products for the home. This design label was initially established by David Abraham and Rakesh Thakore, graduates of the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad who were later joined by Kevin Nigli, a design graduate of NIFT, New Delhi. David Abraham is the Creative director of ABRAHAM & THAKORE. In a candid interview, the Singapore born designer tells LBBD’s Radhika Gupta that he is constantly in search of the simplest way to express complex design ideas and drawing on his multi-culturism, social influences and innate knowledge about design, he brings a unique concept to Indian fashion.
David Abraham {Left} and Rakesh Thakore {Right}
Radhika | How do you find a balance between being Indian and working with traditional fabrics, without being classified as ethnic by a western audience?
David | Ethnicity is a tough word for me. I think we need to reposition ourselves in a space where we can critique popular culture from a vantage point within. I believe the sophisticated global consumer looks everywhere in the World for fashion, as she does for quality cinema, good literature and exceptional music.
Radhika | Season after season do you feel you have to reinvent your brand ?
David | Yes and no. While we propose new styles, colour and fabrics each season, we work very much within the spirit and the vocabulary of ourbrand. We see it as a progression of ideas.
Radhika | How much influence does fashion have in India today?
David | Enormous influence! We are witnessing social change as never before in our history, and fashion is a barometer of this constant upheaval. We just need to look at what young people on the streets, in the malls and in the bazaars are wearing.
Radhika | What is the direction you wish fashion to go to in India ?
David | I hope that fashion in India will always acknowledge our unique culture and our clothing traditions. But, on the other hand, I believe it is important that Indian fashion develops a contemporary global voice.
Radhika | What do you make of the India obsession with big luxury brands?
David | Luxury brands are markers of status. They are effective signposts in a society where status is in a flux and where aspiration fuels consumer demand.
Radhika | Your advice to a current student at a Design School..
David | Develop an independent point of view, and always be open to change.
ABRAHAM & THAKORE is available at | DLF Emporio {Vasant Kunj}, Ensemble {Santushti}, Evoluzione {Seven Style Mile}, Ogaan {Khan Market}, Moon River {Defense Colony}
