The year began with a double delight for fashion designer Vaishali Shadangule, known for her stunning “cording technique” with which she weaves charming tales. Her label Vaishali S was back at the Paris Haute Couture Week with ‘I am Nature’, a story of statement, drama and feminine elegance. Vaishali also launched her flagship store in Kala Ghoda, Mumbai, along with a home decor line. While the store bears the stamp of Vaishali’s aesthetics and her love for nature, the home accessories are pieces of art. Excerpts from a chat with Vaishali.
Congratulations on too many things! Let’s start with your Paris showing... you wowed as always! What are the elements of ‘I am Nature’?
My base elements are always two: inspired by nature and handlooms. The collection as usual is proudly made only with handwoven fabrics from across villages of India, and the inspiration behind each piece always comes directly from nature, whether more clearly pictorially or as a personal representation of the energy flow that I perceive from her.
Still heavily anchored to the tradition and heritage of our craftsmanship, this collection takes a longer stride into global language by shouting out more boldly. You still have my silhouettes magically crafted with my proprietary cording technique, but I have also worked in two more different directions. First, most of the garments are more easily wearable, thus making them conceptually accessible to more women. Then, I have made them more feminine and sometimes even boldly feminine. The idea is to come out more strongly, shouting: ‘I am a woman that loves handloom fabrics, and I stand for wearing them how I like and on all the occasions that I like.’ It is time that handloom takes the position it deserves, not only for the social missions it carries but also for its innate characteristics of durability, comfort, beauty and so on.
What does nature do for your mind?
Nature allows me to see things from a higher ground. I believe nature has all the world’s elements in it and it is one single flow of nature that takes different shapes. These are the different definitions that I also try to give to my garments and the way I find my expressions. That is why when I am in nature I feel connected and in deep understanding of what I create. I use my own language to give her voice. It makes me feel connected to a wider knowledge and beauty.
What we loved about the collection was its versatile game...
Oh, thanks for saying that, as this was one of my aims. It is clearly a couture collection, but very wearable also for more normal occasions. It is easy to wear and can be broken down and matched with simpler pieces. Handloom then gives it structural durability and that sense of an heirloom.
A glimpse of Vaishali S' flagship store in Kala Ghoda, Mumbai and her home decor line.
Who do you design for now vis-a-vis 20 years back when you started?
Beauty. I have always drawn keeping in mind the intention to create pieces of art, and that is why couture has always been my main playground.
Taking part in fashion weeks abroad has taught me what women and buyers need, and nowadays I always keep in mind those details that make the garment more understandable at least. The fact that the last collection is also more wearable, which was one of my targets, tells you that this facet has come into my process of creation. And that is why we are growing across the world.
How have you seen the sustainable dialogue grow over the years?
I have always been very focused on my mission (heritage and social) and its process (eco-friendly and zero-waste). Then suddenly everybody started calling these practices ‘sustainability’ and made them trendy. At first, I must tell you I got disturbed because knowing it from the inside, it was clear there was a lot of greenwashing and surfing the trend, but suddenly clients have started appreciating all this. Overall sensibility to these themes has grown multifold, and especially the younger generations are getting impacted, and the business too at large.
How do you create your stories?
I am on a seamless path of self-discovery through nature. Each collection is but a further step on the same path. The climax of creativity for me happens very close to the shows. At the end of each show, I am still in that wave of creation and I get the focus for the next collection there itself. It is normally a very abstract and philosophical concept that starts taking shape little by little in the months that follow.
Vaishali S at Paris Haute Couture Week 2024
What does Paris do to a creative soul?
Paris Haute Couture is that stage where you can give full steam to your creativity, so it is extremely important for a creative mind. That is where you feel (almost) free of doing what you want. At the same time, the competition there is at a maximum level with the top global couture brands, which means that utmost quality, refinement, and luxury are needed. This is something that Paris Haute Couture teaches you. So in one sense, it frees you from certain constraints, but it also sets certain standards.
What has your Haute Couture Week showcase lent to the brand?
The showcase during the Haute Couture Week gives a lot of visibility if you do a good job, which I think I did. It also sets a certain positioning for it, which is very important.
Your store looks so quaint. What’s the design philosophy?
Every single piece of furniture has been made by me by repurposing old doors and windows. Every corner has its meaning and story behind it. Every garment finds its very position within the store because they are part of the same source and expression.
Tell us about the home decor range you have started with.
Oh, it’s beautiful. Some pieces of furniture are in line with what was created for the store, and the whole line of accessories is but an extension of my garments collection, at least as a concept. All handwoven fabrics with beautiful hand textures, each piece embedding one of my philosophical developments of the past collections — from mushrooms as but a continuation of the circle of life, to mogara as a special extension of beauty, and so on.