Mumbai-based designer Nachiket Barve is an internationally acclaimed name with award-winning offerings to the world of fashion and design. Last year saw him bag the National Film Award for Best Costume Design for the film Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior. Passionately working with Indian textiles and the crafts of our country, the designer has achieved global recognition and is a Bolly favourite too, dressing up the likes of the Bachchans, Sonam Kapoor Ahuja and Janhvi Kapoor. The Telegraph caught up with the designer at The India Story in December for a chat on his design journey and achieving new heights:
What was the highlight of your showcase at The India Story this year?
For me, being at TIS was about showing the whole range of what we do as a brand. As a brand, we have always tried to be very timeless and very inclusive. There was some of my runway couture, some luxury pret which we do for the everyday category, some of the festive wear and a smattering of gowns and jumpsuits that we do for the cocktails and parties. Also, for the first time, we got a small collection of my menswear.
The collection was a balance between a riot of colours and a very dark colour palette…
As a brand, we are very much into silhouettes that have enough opportunities. I don’t think we cater to a very narrow kind of client pool. There is something for everyone. There are clothes for everyone for different occasions. It is not that we are doing one thing at one time.
We know that you like visiting Calcutta. What do you like best about the city?
I love the people. I love the warmth with which people greet. The clients we meet, the host. There is such a sense of warmth and affability in Calcutta which I think is so wonderful. As a city, it is absolutely amazing and the food is amazing here.
You have been coming to the city for a long time. How do you look at the fashion sensibility of the people here over the years?
I have been coming here for a long time. I think the city has undergone a transformation. My clients’ tastes have evolved. I think it is a very well-exposed and very well-travelled kind of clientele now. They are really looking for the best fashion in the world.
The label is exploring a lot at present in terms of silhouette styles and the label’s motto has been to remain timeless. How do you strike the balance between the classic appeal while working on modern silhouettes?
As a label, we have always been timeless. For me, it is very important to have the kind of stuff that expresses Indian craftsmanship but in a more modern way. Clothes that make my clients feel good. We customise a lot. It is about making fashion more joyful, more accessible and more beautiful for people. We cater to a clientele with a very understated sensibility; there is something for day and something for evening and there are clothes for people with concentration and glamour.
We have seen your work inspired by nature or your travels. What is inspiring your work at present?
I think life inspires me. People who are interesting… books, films. Living it to the fullest.
2022 has been a big year for you as a costume designer. What do you enjoy most about this vertical of your work?
What I enjoy there is being able to tell stories and tell them and create them in a universe which is unique. To create it for the character and not an actor and to be able to establish a new visual language in Indian cinema. Maybe we are looking at retelling history or that story in a visual format which will be defined for generations. Fifty years down the line they are going to look at how Chhatrapati Shivaji looked on screen or how Tanaji was. These are templates to fulfil and I love doing this research. To be able to kind of look at all of that is something I tremendously enjoy.
How do you look at this achievement? Does it redefine your responsibility in the work you do?
I have always said that this award is not for me but for all the karigars who worked on this film. Everybody who was involved in costume-making and literally hundreds of people. I feel proud to bring that kind of attention to the craft and that kind of attention to handmade and modern luxury which is present in India and to be able to communicate that on a big screen. It also, therefore, makes me feel responsible; it is being able to do justice to this massive role that you have to play in this ethos… being the catalyst. Those saris became bestsellers when the film came out. We are really influencing those in that sense. And I am proud to be able to do that in the forefront of this job and the opportunity that comes with it in this job and the audience being appreciative of what goes into all of these…
You explore the world of designing through a variety of work. Does one experience enrich the other or is there ever a clash?
As a designer, I feel very restless and always hunting for things that are exciting and can give me stimulation. Whether it is a film or a brand collaboration or whether it is something I am doing for a high-street label or a person wearing the clothes, I feel you need to be really able to kind of bring justice to what you are doing. Also, the more opportunities the better the work you end up with.
Post-pandemic is there a specific way you are trying to redefine the design aesthetic of the label?
After two years of Covid, we are very busy now. The way people are looking at luxury travel, weddings or festivities, it has been a very busy month for the label. I am looking for some high-street collaborations and a bunch of films. I think it has really become refined in that sense. People want something that is very high quality and well-made. They seem to enjoy that and I love creating that, refining the sensibility and always taking it up a notch.
