‘Knock on my doors; I keep myself open to ideas’

Ace designer Amit Aggarwal joined hands with architect Nuru Karim for the 16th edition of the Blenders Pride Glassware Fashion Tour. And, for sure, the show was a hit. In an exclusive interview with The Pioneer, the oracle Amit Aggarwal, takes us through his journey and also explains why sustainability can’t be learned from a chapter in a book.

Amartya Smaran

The glitz and glamour of the 16th edition of Blenders Pride Glassware Fashion Tour recently added to the city’s vibrancy. Carrying forward the 15-year-old legacy and grandeur of the fashion tour, well-renowned fashion designer Amit Aggarwal and ace architect Nuru Karim joined hands with a singular goal: to promote “sustainable fashion.”
The stylish and gentle designer set aside some of his valuable time to sit down for an exclusive chat with The Pioneer. During this, Amit Aggarwal spoke about his formative years with great humility and underscored why sustainability can’t be learned from a chapter in a book.

Going forward, the craftsman shared his thoughts on the wonderful set that the team designed for the 16th edition of Blenders Pride Glassware Fashion Tour, the wide range of collections that were on display, and gave his take on how the recent phenomenon of Metaverse could possibly contribute to a sustainable future.

Amit Aggarwal hails from an educated middle-class family. When he first shared his desire to get into the fashion industry, Amit’s parents were naturally surprised, as they had no idea about the industry.

“The entire process of designing clothes has always been ingrained in my system right from the beginning. I don’t really know what the root of it is, but probably seeing my mom’s first-ever embroidered saree, which she wore for her wedding, ignited that passion somewhere. Since then, I have been determined to take it up as a profession. Later I moved to New Delhi to do my studies and graduated from the National Institute of Fashion Technology in 1999, and then I worked on a couple of projects internationally,” recalled Amit.

The best work of a creator stems from a powerful source of inspiration. Artists from different fields have their own peculiar ways of finding inspiration for their work. However, it is not always easy to get inspired. Here’s Amit’s take on the topic of an artist’s struggle to look for inspiration: “There is definitely no button that I can press and get instant inspiration. I do feel that it can knock on my door at any given point, provided I keep myself open to ideas. Sometimes, the stress of life can take over and shut us off, but if one keeps themselves open to ideas, inspiration is right around the corner.”

Speaking of his association with the Blenders Pride Glassware and the exotic set that was erected for the event, the couturier shared, “It has been fantastic collaborating with the Blenders Pride Glassware Fashion Tour. Associations like these enable and create a platform for the fashion industry to reach a larger audience and become more laser-focused. Our association with them has only gone from being good to probably the best. I haven’t done a show in the city for six years, so it feels really exciting to be back. One thing that I’d like to talk about is the set. A lot of shows, of course, make a typical runway, but what we have created almost feels like creating an otherworldly experience. We have created this island, which is out of the future but completely made out of sustainable materials. It added a perfect backdrop for the clothes that were on display.” Sustainability has taken centre stage globally, with Mother Earth bearing the brunt of what human beings have been mindlessly doing for the past many years.

Amit thinks that sustainability is not a concept that one can learn from a textbook. “I don’t think sustainability is a chapter that you can learn from a book. Having seen my parents be extremely conscious about their lives, it kind of seeped into the way I lead my life. For me, the core idea of sustainability is being conscious of yourself. The way you lead your life might one day translate into making this world a better place. The choice of material or the type of people we work with is on the surface, but the deep-rooted existence of sustainability stems from “self-happiness”.” “Being kind and taking care of yourself as well as the surroundings around you is the key,” said the NIFT graduate.

The creator of innumerable fashion pieces seemed visibly excited about the collection and turned into a child, explaining about the Metaverse-themed exhibits. He said, “It mixes couture with some hazy styles. There is also a wide range of colours; we go from no colour to a celebration of every single colour that a mind can conceive and see. Going from nothing to an absolute feeling of wonder, joy, and tomorrow is the essence of what the show stands for. Interestingly, the tour combines a beautiful exhibit of wonderful T-shirts that have been created by some of the best creators in the country. Around sixty creators have each made an iconic T-shirt for this collaboration, which people can buy on the metaverse.” As we all know, the metaverse blurs the boundaries of time, existence, and space that we live in. It is available for everyone to indulge in the experience. “We literally created a black hole that radiated into multiple layers. It is almost like you are entering the metaverse of Doctor Strange. Whatever people say, I’d like to believe that the metaverse will also make life more sustainable in many ways by eliminating the need to constantly create or have an existing space. The future looks interesting with what Metaverse has to offer,” concluded Amit Aggarwal.