The second edit from Shantnu Nikhil Cricket Club, a new label from S&N by Shantnu & Nikhil that was launched in Calcutta last year, is sporty, chic and so cool and it can totally take you from work to party. We caught up with the Mehra brothers — Shantnu and Nikhil — on the new collection featuring Harmanpreet Kaur, their favourite cricketers and more.
The second collection starts where you left off the first edit...
We started working on the second edition as soon as we saw the overwhelming response our first drop garnered. Not just customers but ace cricketers like Hardik Pandya and sports enthusiasts like Shahid Kapoor were supportive of the drop. This only inspired us to further work harder and present a second edition which shatters its own record.
Why cricket? Is this a personal favourite?
As a sport, it has united people amongst all biases and odds. There is an emotional connect that cricket holds and it keeps deepening with each match, each new player that steps onto the ground. We wanted to bring in this emotional nostalgia with the fashion force. SNCC makes cricket more than a conversation starter — it is a lifestyle choice that people consciously think about. Cricket in itself comes with a rich history and is a game which has roots in fashion. Earlier the audience used to dress impeccably to attend matches, regardless of the sport. During the late 90s, fashion was all about relaxed fits and street-casual with a dash of glamour in it. Shantnu & Nikhil, as a brand, always carried that regality of vintage in its essence and that is what we are bringing back with Shantnu Nikhil Cricket Club. As designers, it’s our duty to evoke expression via the art we master in. Fashion has always been a part of sports; we’ve just steered away from the conventional route of sportswear and ventured into a direction none of the Indian designers has taken yet.
It’s very international and Gen Z too. What kind of buyer profile do you have in mind? The menswear particularly looks sharp. Who is a Shantnu Nikhil Cricket Club man?
SNCC is an aspirational lifestyle experience that has the power to influence the way people will dress and live life through sport and the love of it. It’s a culture we are empowering, where cricket is not just looked at as a part of conversations but also celebrated as a lifestyle. SNCC is for the new urban go-getters who have absorbed the core values of cricket and understand that it is much more than a sport.
This totally looks like an extension of how Nikhil dresses. So, is this an extension of your personalities?
Every design house mirrors the aesthetic of the creator behind it. We as well learn from our own experiences and travels and take them as inspiration. Both of us are avid sports enthusiasts, be it cricket, tennis or golf. We still try to find time to practise amidst our hectic schedule. Like we’ve always said SNCC, is truly a product of that core memory and will always be an extension of us.
Womenswear is a cool mix of structure and fluidity. How did you marry the Shantnu Nikhil Cricket Club aesthetics to womenswear?
The signature Shantnu Nikhil cricket club aesthetics are the newly developed crests, the gingham print, and the use of sporty fabrics reinvented to be used in lifestyle apparel. Our womenswear categories amalgamate these aesthetics beautifully with the help of custom silhouettes that we have reimagined for SNCC. With SNCC second edition, we aimed to keep the elements as gender agnostic as possible. Sports sees no gender and it empowers everyone equally. With the intent of giving an ode to the sport, it only seemed fit that our design language also narrates the same.
Collaborating with Harmanpreet Kaur was a great idea. What did she bring to the table?
To represent the latest drop from Shantnu Nikhil Cricket Club, the Maison has Harmanpreet Kaur — the captain of the Indian women’s cricket team. She represents the grit, sheer passion and humility a great sportsperson exhibits. We started SNCC with the motive of making cricket a conversation, as well as applaud our leading stars in the game. Harmanpreet, despite all odds, has showcased her undefying determination towards the game. With SNCC, the brand applauds the pathbreaking cricketer and unveils her glamorous side like never seen before.
Who are your favourite cricketers? If Shantnu Nikhil Cricket Club was a physical entity, which cricketers would you sign?
Definitely all the icons like Kapil Dev, Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Yuvraj Singh. And, our new era of cricketers like Shubman Gill, Harmanpreet Kaur!
What can we expect from the label in the future?
We only plan to scale SNCC to greater heights with constant re-imagination. We cannot wait to show our third edition already!