mid-day 38th anniversary: Model Mehr Jessia remembers India’s initial stylist

Rohit Khosla with models during a shoot

It wouldn’t be unnoticed to contend he started it all, generally given no one knew what being a conform engineer meant when Rohit Khosla wanted to be one. The story of a conform pattern attention in this nation is inextricably related with a expansion of his possess career.

A immature male from Delhi, lerned in England and New York, returned to spin presumably India’s initial stylist, operative on campaigns for promotion and mantle houses. On a side, he’d make a panoply he wanted to create, those that spoke of a contemporary cultured nonetheless Indian in spirit. Setting adult studio in Delhi’s Friends Colony meant that a Rohit Khosla tag was finally probable to put out into a market. But his aberration went over his talent and success. It had to do with building a village — of likeminded designers, free-spirited models and photographers with an avant-guarde proceed during a time when conform photography didn’t exist.

Mehr Jessia Rampal initial met him during an airport, and went on to combine with him on their initial plan for weave residence Vimal. The partnership would spin into a loyalty that’s still remembered by a companionship nonetheless Khosla upheld divided in 1994 after battling cancer.

“For me as a designer, operative with Mehr Jessia is truly inspirational. we see her as my muse! Her picture lingers in my mind when conceptualizing constantly. Our minds work in a same direction, we know any other instinctively but carrying to verbalize — and it shows…” Khosla would write about her in Rohit Khosla: Vanguard, a book published after his genocide by sister Rohini.
Jessia Rampal remembers a designer, artiste, friend, and all that he did for fledgling Indian conform in a ’90s.

Mehr and Madhu Sapre indication panoply from a Wild Side collection (1992) desirous by a jungle and noted by skintight silhouettes

Before and after Rohit
Before Rohit launched his career, a Indian conform landscape depended on darjis duplicating designs from a West. Back then, a defining picture of Indian conform was a detailed ghagra choli accumulation of Indian wear. He arrived in 1986 with an evocative arrogance that desirous a Indian pattern companionship to find a voice. And he wasn’t fearful to startle people.

I remember conference gasps in a assembly when a song blared and we walked a ramp in a bra-inspired choli. He had this ability to change Western wear and Indianness. He built a repute on artistic taste, and was desirous by a virginity of textiles and strange ideas, rising a transformation in Indian women’s conform in a 1990s.

Rohit didn’t have an iota of selfishness. He speedy associate designers like Tarun Tahiliani to set adult one of a city’s initial engineer boutiques, in 1987. He helped out with a choreography, styling and even song preference for a store’s in-house shows. He would insist on gripping a concentration on a panoply instead of indulge in theatrics.

Mehr wears a origination in silk crepe de chine with distinguished hand-painting from Rohit Khosla’s The Last Collection (1994). ALL PICS COURTESY © PRABUDDHA DASGUPTA; Published in Vanguard, The Ultimate Classic On Indian Fashion by Rohit Khosla; India Book House Limited

First impressions
I was watchful to house a moody from Delhi to Mumbai after a show. It was 4 in a morning, and we was sitting on a building of a terminal, disposition opposite a post — tired, exhausted and desirous to get on board. Rohit arrived, and a common crony done a introduction. He stood there impeccably dressed while there we sat, intoxicated with rumpled hair. we looked adult during him and thought, I’ve never seen a some-more beautiful male in my life. He asked me either we was giveaway to work on a Vimal campaign. we trafficked with him to Sri Lanka, Kashmir and Ahmedabad for a shoot, and we fast became tighten friends.

This was a fantastic group to work with — photographer Prabuddha Dasgupta and stylists Rohit and Simi Garewal.
Rohit was India’s initial stylist. Our operative organisation continued with a Garden Vareli fire along with indication Shyamoli Varma.

Designer and muse
I don’t consider we deliberately worked towards a ‘designer and muse’ status. It’s a media that slotted us thus. They tangible a relationship.

We were really close, yes. We are innate a day apart; he, on Nov 29, and I, on Nov 30. We spent a lot of off-duty time together, chilling during his Delhi home, articulate over home-cooked Punjabi khaana, and generally bitching about a world. we had my initial Tiramisu with him.

We used to travel in together during Ghungroo, one of Delhi’s many sought after nightclubs, and roughly fundamentally heads would turn. He had an observable magnetism. If we favourite any of his designs, we brave not tell him, since he would unfailingly present it to me after a uncover with, ‘Mehr, this is for you’.

I urge for Rohit each morning and evening. we can’t contend that we skip him because, honestly, we feel his participation around me.

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