A fresh-faced Medha Rana of Friday Night Plan on Netflix was in town to shoot a special lookbook for Chikky Goenka’s upcoming ‘For the love of festive flair’ by Styleograph. The young actress who shifted to Mumbai three years back, from Delhi, right after her graduation, chatted with t2 exclusively on style and how she braved the pandemic pangs.
Do you take a lot of effort to dress up or are you the more carefree kind?
Honestly, I used to enjoy dressing up earlier, but ever since I moved to Bombay and started working in the industry, I have lost that interest and effort that I used to put into dressing up. Now, I wear anything that is comfortable. We dress up so much for shoots that on days you are not shooting, you just don’t care (laughs).
What are your festive times like?
My whole family, we’ve never been big on festivals, but Holi and Diwali are two festivals that we try to be at home. Growing up, we would have holidays on these days and we would do things together. My dad's in the Army and in the Army fraternity, we celebrate all festivals. So, I have grown up celebrating all festivals as a community. At home, we do our puja and then sit at home and play games. We have nice food and dance (laughs).
Medha looked dewy cool in this sequinned sari by Surily G. "Blue is one of my favourite colours. I felt very myself in all three of the outfits and ready for festivities and we did some really interesting jewellery as well," said Medha
What’s your festive fashion like?
Since I don’t wear ethnic on a daily basis, if there is a puja, I’ll put on a nice bindi and dupatta and I generally take stuff from my mom’s wardrobe. I don’t really indulge in buying a lot of things.
Your style is casual. Has it always been like that?
It honestly has. You can call it basic or casual, but I like things minimalistic and I like to be myself. I don’t really experiment much when it comes to make-up and hair.
Do you have wardrobe staples?
I am obsessed with denims and have a lot of denim in my wardrobe. I love jeans, denim shorts and denim jackets. Recently, I have gotten into cute denim tube dresses and tube tops. I love a nice crisp white shirt or a nice white ganjee and I am also a lot into sneakers. I have four-five pairs of statement sneakers that could go with anything, formal or casual or semi-formal.
Do you have any fashion icons?
I love how Hollywood actresses in the early ‘90s dressed up, like Julia Roberts, in basic clothes, but had a sense of elevated fashion in them... denims, turtlenecks. I really like Anne Hathaway and her style. She is simple, elegant and wears statement pieces and carries them off with a lot of grace. I also enjoy a lot of layering.
This layered look from Payal Singhal spelt easy charm. “This embroidered skirt and choli set with an organza overlay is just the kind of playful occasion wear we enjoy creating. It’s modern, it’s sexy and it’s fun; great for a Mehndi or a beachside wedding,” said Payal
You moved to Mumbai in the middle of the pandemic. Was coping in a new city under trying circumstances difficult and has it made you stronger?
It was just before Covid in fact. Coping was very difficult. I moved to the city with a lot of dreams and aspirations and was really looking forward to starting my work life there and finally giving a chance to my bachpan ka sapna, but everything came to a standstill once Covid happened. And, it happened in every industry... there was no work happening in Bollywood for a year. That was challenging and demotivating in many ways. It made me question and re-question myself.... The first year was crazy, but luckily, I had my family with me. My mom was staying with me and I think that kept me sane throughout Covid. I kept doing acting and dance classes to keep myself busy so that I don’t end up losing my mind. I kept auditioning back to back and that’s how I cracked my first project (London Files) and then things started feeling better and I felt more confident.
Chikky Goenka
What: For the love of festive flair by Styleograph
Where: Kolkata Centre for Creativity
When: September 22-23; 11am-7pm
Showcasing: Payal Singhal, Mayuur Gitrotra and Surily G
Designer speak: “We are very excited to come to Calcutta and Chikky and I have been talking and discussing this since a while now. So finally we are going to be in the City of Joy! We are bringing our latest collections Madhaniya and Amoli, a signature Mayyur Girotra style, and I’m excited to see people’s reaction to it,” said Mayyur.
Payal Singhal is coming to town with ‘Modern Mughals’. “With it, we dip into the wardrobe of India’s erstwhile royalty, and reimagine their ensembles with a playful, present-day twist. The mood board goes back to the Mughal era, as we reinterpret old-world silhouettes with a new-age nod. Exactly what our brand is best known for. The line is a return to my cherished palette of dusty, muted pastels. We’ve also actively revisited our archives to reinterpret our bestsellers from over the years. Apart from this, we will also be bringing our house’s bestsellers, weddingwear and festive must-haves,” said Payal. Surily DP Goel will be in Calcutta with her “festive collections of contemporary fusion wear embellished with our signature style”.
Style curator speak: “’For the love of festive flair’ is meant to evoke the sense of enthusiasm, playfulness, and excitement that comes with festivities. It’s that time of the year when Indians go all out with food, fashion and celebrations. Keeping this emotion in mind we have a mini curation of occasion Indian wear. In today’s time from destination weddings to vacations, everything’s a celebration, and you want to be immaculately dressed. Keeping that in mind, we’ll have some interesting resort wear, and destination wedding ensembles from Surily G. Surily has completed 20 years in the industry and from styling movies to successfully running a brand, she’s come a long way. This is her first-ever showcase in Calcutta, which makes her presence even more exciting. Payal Singhal has made her way to almost every woman’s wardrobe by mixing a fresh sensibility with old-school embroideries. I love her play with silhouettes, and she’s always one to look out for if you want to enjoy some distinct Indian looks. Mayyur Girotra, on the other hand, rests atop the other end of the spectrum with a complete Indian vibe. Think colours, traditional silhouettes like ghararas, Anarkalis, saris, lehngas but with a twist. I love the vividness of his work, and his debut in Calcutta is personally very exciting to me,” said Chikky Goenka.