Fashion has its own language and menswear designer Rohit Kamra’s style of work spells it prominently. When it comes to the revival of Jodhpur jackets and breeches on the Indian fashion scene, Rohit’s name is usually the first to crop up. After a remarkable journey of more than 12 years in the menswear fashion industry, 44-year-old Kamra who started his career by designing uniforms for Scindia’s Hotel (Usha Kiran Palace) staff in 2005 has come a long way and has plans to create a legacy that will be there forever. He recently launched stores in Mumbai and Pune with a view that every man can get a piece of the Maharaja life. TMM notes his vision and mission for the new-age men.
MUMBAI MAGIC
The new store in Mumbai is located near the Taj Mahal Hotel. As for the décor – it offers a mélange of easy luxury and the interiors have been done in reclaimed timber. I have always created trends that bring out the essence of the pink city Jaipur and inject new creative energy into timeless classics. With the new niche studio, I really look forward to designing for the men of the city, many of who come to our store in Jaipur for bespoke fittings. The idea is to push the envelope on menswear and present coveted embroideries, sculpted cuts in silhouettes, the techniques of ombres, lehariya, marble print and much more in a very masculine way. Every man can get a piece of the Maharaja life.
JAIPUR AND FASHION
Maharaja style had always been there, and when I started it was dying because people were bored of it. That gave me the scope to add spark to it. The introduction to colours and contemporary edge revived the style totally and as they say, rest is history. I can see the change of taste and moreover men have become more conscious about how they want to look and carry themselves, earlier it was lacking.
LEAP OF FAITH
(Laughs) I have a bad habit of doing what others are not doing and I think that habit has placed me where I am today. After watching fashion weeks for consecutive three years, I was sure that I can do better than others, so the fear of failure was never there. The necessity of life pushed me to live my dream and gradually it became the way of life.
DESIGN DEAL
When it comes to fashion designing, inspiration is a big term. But for me, inspiration comes from a different source. I observe a lot, right from economy to business world everything matters to me and they become my source of inspiration. That’s the reason 90% of my body of work is dedicated to what is market driven and 10% is to satisfy my creative instincts.
COLLABORATION CALL
Of course, I would love to collaborate, but at present, I am not prepared for it. To do that I need to have better control over the menswear market and more exclusive stores pan India. Moreover, the collaboration should have the perspective towards enhancing the menswear market in India than internal clashes of survival. The collaboration should be able to enhance the feel of ‘Rohit Karma’.
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