The turning points of my life actually been momentous events that have altered my perspective on life. The first in a long list of milestones was designing outfits for Celina Jaitley, who was then a finalist at the Miss Universe contest in 2001. It was an international platform to showcase my creativity.

In the same year, I was also the recipient of the Femina-British Council Designer of India Award, which earned me an internship in Salisbury near London with fashion designer Georgina Von Etzdorf. It was a one-of-itsexperience for me and I learnt a lot about labour management and the intricacies of extracting the best from one’s team. As a typical Indian child, I had lived a sheltered life and so going out there and getting hands-on training helped me break out of my shell.

The subsequent year was an eventful one too. At the Lakme India Fashion Week 2002, I presented my collection titled Kashgar Bazaar, which critics commented ashousehold name. This wasncredible feeling since I hailed from a strictly non-fashion background.

My international career got a fillip in 2004 when I retailed my collection at Browns in London. Close at the heels of my faesigning success was my foray into Bollywood as costume designer for Black. I consider this to be a significant milestone since before this I was dabbling in a different medium.

Apart from this, reading the book The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini proved to be a life- altering moment. Before reading this book, I was almost an escapist. The book helped me develop a spiritual bent of mind and improved sensibilities as a human being and a designer.

(As told to Susmita Saha)