Nikasha is a purist and whether it is colour or volume she likes to court intensity rather than affectation
By Asmita Aggarwal
You would never expect a trained psychoanalyst from the famed Tavistock Institute to ever be caught in the world of warp and weft. But Nikasha Tawadey is a sweet anomaly in a world where fabrics, colours, and proportions, call the shots. Studying for five years at the Freudian school of thought that requires 
intense dedication, which then expects 15 years of disciplined practice, Nikasha realised pretty quickly that maths and sciences werent her game, it was psychology. But what I have observed in my life is that the path that is destined for you, will find you, somehow, she chortles.
Thats just what happened when serendipity played a part in the diversion. She met good friend Niharika Khan (of The Dirty Picture stylist fame) ten years ago who complimented her on her sense of style and asked her to send a small line for her boutique Purple Porcupine. It got sold out and Niharika wanted another line very soon, which set the ball rolling, she says.
Though there were many slips, she was to start a line with Abu Jani-Sandeep Khosla, which didnt take off, so she decided to go solo in 2006. Motivated by Suzy Menkes encouraging words on her collection, she travelled to Shanghai and New York Fashion Week honing her skills. Marriage took her from Mumbai to Singapore, and she packed her bags and now shuttles between the two, moving her business to Delhi, where he parents live. She has found her groove here, also what she would like to do—-from colours which remain her forte (jamuni, sindoori, santari to gajri) she is not in the business of making constricted clothes, rather they are bohemian, free-spirited and easy.
Why should I make an LBD for that we have a Donna Karan? I would rather make a draped dhoti skirt, with a Kutchi embroidered peplum top, worn over a Kantha bomber, thats India for me. My clothes are India-inspired not Indian, she confides.
Quoting Karl Lagerfeld, Nikasha says that India has been a recurring metaphor in his collection, even though he has never been here, as it may, as she says, colour his vision of the country. Nikasha believes in sensuality rather than overt sexuality, so modern for her can be a simple ombre dyed, chiffon sari, where just the potency of the colour hits the ball out of the park. It doesnt have to be laden with embroidery or embellishments to prove a point; austerity is cool, she confesses.
Good at conceptualisation, what remains a challenge for Nikasha is layering and texurisation, and this she owes to her own personality traits. I am quite direct, there arent many layers to me, just like my clothes, she laughs.
Maybe thats why her aut-winter 2015 line for AIFW is inspired by an Anglo-Indian, ginger-haired lady she met (she was half Irish-French-Indian) and she wore her platforms, corduroy bell bottoms and clanky jewellery. For me she was super interesting and through my line, I pay homage to Ruby with her kimonos and turbans, a bit like Lou Lou, who was Yves Saint Laurents muse, she adds.
Aspiring to retain the brands purity, and not doing tuxedos, gowns or short dresses, Nikashas line will stay in the eco-system that it belongs to, forever.