Wedding guest style: “My formula for dressing up for weddings has changed a lot this year. I’ve been investing in a lot of tie-up, full-length maxi dresses. Even though it’s a western silhouette, I make it a little Indian by pairing it with Indian jewellery and accessories. Like this rust outfit that I’m wearing in the image below—it’s a plain slip dress with a tiny, scanty scarf. I wore it with really beautiful Anita Dongre jewellery. Another time for a friend’s wedding in Bahrain, I wore a very simple printed cotton co-ord set with some jewellery. I feel that it’s so much simpler and it looks different. I prefer monotone outfits because you can change the look completely with different jewellery.”
Dealing with dress codes: “Dress codes can make it easier as long as the brief or theme is not super specific. I don’t usually shop for a dress code and always try finding something that I already have in my wardrobe which can work for the theme by accessorising differently. Or even if I pick up something, I won’t spend too much on something I can’t repeat. It has to have repeat value. And no one’s crazy enough to not let you enter if you’re not following the theme. So, I don’t give it too much thought.”
Favourite designers: I don’t have favourites as such, but I will always love Arpita Mehta. Her stuff is timeless. I love Anamika Khanna because her stuff has range—it can pass off as Western, Indo-Western, or Indian depending on how you style it. I bought a couple of dresses from Aroka that I’ve been wearing with chunky jewels, and I also love Simone Handcrafted for really beautiful and delicate work. I recently bought a bedazzled sari from Itrh. I feel like that’s a must to have in your Indianwear wardrobe—it’s such a statement piece.
Destination wedding trick: “I genuinely hate packing because my work also requires so much packing and unpacking all the time. It can take me six hours to pack for a two-day wedding, but I do like to keep everything in its place. I make a big jewellery box that I carry. I genuinely don’t have a hack other than the packing list my friends have made. Oh, and I also love sharing clothes with my friend Naheed—we are constantly wearing each other’s clothes. Having a friend who’s exactly the same size as you is the best thing ever.”
