Rain has been cascading in plumes, solely to pause simply earlier than the launch of designer Rahul Mishra’s largest maison in the nation, in Mumbai, at Kala Ghoda district. On his manner from Mumbai Airport to the brand new atelier, Rahul says that he had been on the lookout for the right house for his flagship outlet earlier than he chanced upon the City Ice, a nearly-80-year-old constructing, in Kala Ghoda. The sprawling 7,500 square-foot property, which served as an ice-storage facility in the 70s, will now home among the most beautiful collections by Rahul who grew to become the primary Indian designer to be invited to showcase on the Haute Couture Week in Paris in 2020.
The 7,500 square-foot property, which served as an ice-storage facility in the 70s, will now home among the most beautiful collections by Rahul
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Muse and museum
To breathe life into the naked shell, Mishra turned to Rooshad Shroff, whose follow is synonymous with Indian craftsmanship blended with a contemporary aesthetic. Rooshad has additionally designed the luxurious outposts of labels Louis Vuitton, Christian Louboutin and Kunal Rawal in Mumbai.
Interiors of the shop
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“I wanted to work with Rooshad. The idea was to create something that brought us together with a shared sense of purpose. This atelier became that meeting ground,” says Rahul. Rooshad’s idea, The Museum of Rahul Mishra, creates a gallery that stands robust as a lovely, significant setting, even with out the clothes. Finalising the idea was a seamless course of, Rahul laughs. It took him and his spouse and co-founder, Divya Mishra, simply quarter-hour to align with Rooshad’s imaginative and prescient. The retailer was established in practically two years and that is his label’s fifth outlet in India.
Rooshad approached the undertaking, not by imposing his signature model, however by considering the evolution of Rahul’s couture canon
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“How do you find a completely new retail language, which also remains unique to you,” asks Rahul. Rooshad approached the undertaking, not by imposing his signature model, however by considering the evolution of Rahul’s couture canon and contextualising it throughout the house. “That kind of versatility and the ability to adapt creatively is something I respect deeply,” says Rahul.
Immersive expertise
The house has been designed as a sequence of chambers that invite you to meander from one to the subsequent. “Every corner should create a new surprise or present an object of interest for people to keep discovering,” says Rahul. The journey begins in the primary chamber, on the atelier’s entrance — a meditative house that Rahul paradoxically describes as “cosmic chaos” to explain Nature in full bloom.
The house has been designed as a sequence of chambers
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From ground to ceiling, each inch of house is roofed by framed art work — watercolour sketches, muslin swatches, pressed flowers, and botanical embroideries. It’s a veritable scrapbook that invitations you to linger, even ponder over them.
From ground to ceiling, each inch of house is roofed by framed art work
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The internal sanctum, lastly ending on the couture chamber — a hovering, high-ceilinged vault — is the place suspended metallic birds elevate the gaze upwards, accentuating the vastness of the house.
The internal sanctum of the shop
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Reimagining expressions
The flagship combines the fragile trivialities of Rahul’s craftsmanship with Rooshad’s nuanced interpretation of it: elaborate embroidery, archival motifs, and layered storytelling. “It’s a celebration of craftsmanship,” says Rooshad. It is a sensorial, tactile exploration of various parts distilled from Mishra’s majestic trend universe. For occasion, the dragonflies from the Superheroes couture assortment are reimagined on marble inlay work. Three-dimensional bejewelled bugs from his couture are affixed to the wall. French knots from the material are scattered throughout wood panels.
The flagship combines the fragile trivialities of Rahul’s craftsmanship with Rooshad’s nuanced interpretation of it
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“You’ve seen these elements on the runway in Paris and across the world, but here they take on a different form. It’s about materiality, of seeing the same language translated into a new medium, giving it fresh life,” says Rahul, concerning the paradox of uniqueness juxtaposed with familiarity.
Rahul is introducing a brand new idea for purchasers to interact intimately in the creation of couture in significant methods
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Rahul is introducing a brand new idea for purchasers to interact intimately in the creation of couture in significant methods. With every objet d’artwork custom-created for the shop, folks can stroll in and level to a motif they love, and ask, ‘Can you design that for me?’. “A bride, for instance, might say, ‘This flower is special to me. Could you incorporate it into my dress?’; Or someone might choose a ladybird, considered a sign of luck in France, and ask for it to be embroidered into the garment,” says Rahul, your entire retailer performing as a listing for co-creation.
The retailer acts as a listing for co-creation
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Art’s sake
The Rahul Mishra Maison options couture and his prêt-à-porter label AFEW. Guests can even be capable of buy detailed artworks made by the artisans in the atelier utilizing his signature strategies. And it should retail his newest drop: couture baggage which can be already on the best way to buying a cult standing — a universe of minaudieres, saddle baggage, clutches, and extra. The retailer can even have an area for a grasp tailor. And for friends who search an added layer of privateness, there are VIP purchasing suites for an intimate couture expertise.
The Rahul Mishra Maison options couture and his prêt-à-porter label AFEW
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Towards the top of the atelier is a dramatic passageway, framed by his Parisian high fashion assortment on either side. A pool of sunshine cascading like water, or the falling of leaves, illuminates a placing silhouette in all gold from his Becoming Love assortment. For Rahul and Rooshad, the shop is a love letter to India’s unbelievable craftsmanship, a testomony to their enduring imaginative and prescient.
