Lovebirds’ summer collection spells fresh, minimal and cool. Amrita Khanna and Gursy Singh of the eight-year-old brand take The Telegraph through the mood board and their design language.

What is the origin of the name?

Amrita Khanna: I opened a vintage store in Hauz Khas Village, called Lovebirds. When Gursy and I met, we made a small collection and it just gave a meaning to that name. We didn’t change the name.

Gursy Singh: Now our narrative has changed to a lot about companionship and partnership and doing things together. It comes from the genesis of what we believe in. This is why we keep doing a lot of collaborations.

Summer is the inspiration for this collection...

Gursy: We sit together and think about what we want to do (before any collection). What is that the market and people need and what is it that we feel? Earlier, it used to come from a lot of travels and external stimulus, like architecture and travel, an art movement, but in the last couple of years because of Covid, we started looking inwards more. Last year, we did a collection which was based out of my home town Chandigarh, and this year it is a lot about the summer of India. It is a mood, nostalgia... when we as kids sat in the car and went to the mountains, sipped on fresh nimbu pani, just those lazy afternoons, the dog just lying on the porch....

We spend a lot of time on the colour stories deciding the colours and we have also started putting a lot of effort into bringing a fresh tone every time. We have always had that grey tone, Scandinavian colours and now we are bringing a bright neon or coral. So, we are trying to bring in more colours. We spend a lot of time on that, prints and silhouettes. We started making this collection in September last year.

Our summer collections are 70-80 per cent cotton and we also work with a lot of handwoven denims that are developed in Gujarat. We also work with linen, done in Bengal. This time we worked around knits in cotton.

We are loving the polkas!

Amrita: So, it was also that... bringing back the polkas.

Gursy: There was that emotion of going back home and this is why we wanted to bring in something from our old collection and we were very much known for dots, for at least two-three years. It was a demand from our clients and customers. They still come back and ask if we could have a particular silhouette in dots!

Who are the Lovebirds women?

Gursy: The Lovebirds woman is a contemporary, urban woman who is also independent and...

Big on comfort...

Gursy: And how! She is eclectic and someone who takes her comfort as a priority. She is so secure and confident that she doesn’t need to show her body. She is comfortable in a breezy dress and aware and well-travelled and conscious in her choices.

How has the brand evolved with the women also evolving?

Gursy: We believe in evolving, but we had a strong language from Day One. I take a strong creative protocol and don’t want to waver from the language that we have. So, it’s a lot about minimalism, ease and comfort, one size, oversize and also inclusivity. Our prints are usually those white lines. Geometric. We do a lot of lines and circles... graphic, architectural. I don’t come from a fashion background but a graphic design background. I always look at things in graphic ways.

There is a timeless, vintage appeal to all the collections...

Amrita: It speaks power. Good, powerful shoulders, baggy pants... a lot of the silhouettes are also inspired from that. I am a person who would wear something in the morning and continue with it in the evening, even if I have to go out. It makes sense for me when it is comfortable. We spend a lot of time in pattern-making. It has to go perfect on the body and you should also feel good in them.

Is there a plan to grow the brand more now?

Amrita: Absolutely. Now our plan is to grow globally and also in the Indian market. Mumbai comes next and we are making, creating and evolving all the time.

What have been the learnings?

Amrita: I just feel you have to come out of your comfort zone and push your boundaries. The last two years have been hard on everyone, but it’s also taught us so much more, going back to our family values and making sure we push ourselves.

Gursy: There is a big onus on the clothing industry and a lot of learning in sustainability. It’s a journey that one needs to go through. We are constantly learning how to make ourselves more responsible in fashion, clothing....

Amrita: Textiles, understanding more....

What do you think the focus will be for brands in the next couple of years?

Gursy: It’s extremely important to make things that last long. We can make less products, but every product has to be good quality and something that’s timeless. If we had to give a suggestion, it would be to stay away from the trends but make things that can live longer.

Pictures courtesy: Lovebirds

Amrita and Gursy’s summer memories and loves

Amrita: Both of us love travelling and exploring. We trek. I have grown up in small places in India. I spent about 10 years in Assam. Silks, textiles. My mother was always bringing fabrics home and cutting and stitching. My memories have always been around textiles, fabrics. Even for my dolls or my clothes or my brother’s clothes.

Gursy: My father used to take us to one hill station every year called Dalhousie (Himachal Pradesh) and we hated him for that (laughs), but it was a very beautiful place. Then the fan that would make such a noise....