HT Brunch Cover Story: Million-Dollar style

A 23-year-old is having an intense argument with his parents at their Pali Hill, Mumbai, home.

“You are doing so well as a model; you love films. So become an actor, nah. Why do you want to be a tailor?” asks the mother.

“I do love films, ma,” counters the son. “But I’d much rather turn actors into style icons than turn actor myself.”

Silence descends. The son can see that his turn of phrase – one he has practised endlessly before the mirror for just this occasion – has his parents impressed. He gets his way. But there’s a rider. “Alright, then,” sighs the father, “We will allow you to set up a small tailoring unit. Provided…” The son looks up. His smile evaporates.

“… Provided you set it up in your own bedroom.”

“Agreed!” cries the son even before his dad finishes his sentence. The year is 1990. And the son Manish Malhotra. Now, one of India’s most iconic fashion designers.

A room of his own

This year, Manish completes 30 years of costume styling and 15 years of his couture label. These are glorious milestones, but Malhotra, who turned 54 on Dec 5, does not care much for glory. “For me it’s been 30 years of hard work and non-stop running around,” he laughs. “But also a time I have enjoyed thoroughly. A big part of my journey has been my willingness to work without the fear of failure or criticism.”

In the bedroom he had been consigned to, Manish sketched, sourced fabric and networked, designed back-up costumes and outfits for junior dancers in song sequences. “My big break came when director David Dhawan asked me to design outfits for actress Juhi Chawla for Swarg. I had to make three outfits in two days. I don’t remember sleeping or eating for those two days, but I delivered the order on time.”

“A big part of my journey has been my willingness to work without the fear of failure or criticism”—Manish Malhotra

Designing for the reigning queen of Bollywood, Sridevi, in Gumrah (1992), and then acing it with the two blockbusters of 1995, Rangeela and Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, catapulted Malhotra to the very top. Rangeela also got him his first Filmfare award. His close friendship with director Karan Johar made Manish more involved in the making of films that he was a part of.

“Unlike other costume designers of that era, I would be involved in deciding the entire look of the heroine. I started the trend of shopping abroad for the costumes for my films, and I would, at times, completely deconstruct an outfit and make it into something totally different,” says Malhotra, who did just that for the red pants worn by Kareena Kapoor in the You Are My Soniya song for Johar’s Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001).

His insistence on ensuring continuity in the on-screen look at a time when no one objected to a heroine having short hair in one scene and a long braid in the next, drew Sridevi to him. He considers her association with him as his lucky charm. “There’s been no one in the film industry I respected and loved as much as her,” says Manish. The actress’s sudden death in 2018 left him devastated. “It is difficult still to talk of her in the past tense.”

Strength to strength

The fact that Sridevi’s daughters as well as almost all successful young actresses wear Manish’s creations speaks of how easily he transcends generational boundaries. “Manish’s? I thought so,” is often the first remark made as a greeting at film parties.

Many leading ladies wholeheartedly credit Malhotra for redefining their entire look, including Urmila Matondkar for Rangeela (1995), Karisma Kapoor for Raja Hindustani (1996) and Shilpa Shetty for Dhadkan (2000). “Karisma was initially worried about giving up the trademark Kapoor family blue eyes for hazel contacts, but I told her that her character needed warmth. Her look in Raja Hindustani eventually became iconic,” says Manish.

“There’s been no one in the film industry I respected and loved as much as Sridevi”—Manish Malhotra

In 2005, Manish launched the fashion label Manish Malhotra, which now offers bridal, couture and menswear through three massive stores in Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad. The 9,000sqft Delhi store has brides and bridegrooms thronging for clothes, jewellery and make-up, and more than 35 couture designers have now opened shop around Malhotra’s flagship outlet, which almost acts as the area’s landmark.

Manish calls the birth of his fashion line “a natural progression triggered by chance”. “In 1999, my friends Yash and Avanti Birla offered to partner with me to open a flagship store – Reverie by Manish Malhotra – in South Bombay. It was an offer I couldn’t refuse.”

By 2014, the Manish Malhotra label had become one of the few Indian luxury houses to cross an annual turnover of ₹1 billion. The designer, meanwhile, acquired international celebrities from Naomi Campbell to Hillary Clinton as clients.

In 2018, industrialists Mukesh and Nita Ambani invited Malhotra to curate and design the multi-event sangeet celebrations for the marriage of their daughter Isha with business tycoon Anand Piramal. “It was a challenge at an unreal level. But it was also most exciting and fulfilling for the creative person in me. I took it as a project to highlight the true grandeur of India and its glorious culture,” says Manish.

Manish is looking at making films now – an industry where he got everything
(
Shivamm Paathak
)

“Next? I’ll make films. It’s about time. Cinema is where I got everything. And to it i will give my everything” —Manish Malhotra

After that, Manish formally entered the make-up market with a tie up with the European beauty label Myglamm; had a home décor collaboration with interior designer Seetu Kohli; and launched Manish Malhotra jewellery with Raniwala 1881.

Full circle

Today, the designer finds joy in philanthropy. As part of his association with the Mijwan Welfare Society run by actress Shabana Azmi, Malhotra has adopted a village where women get employment while learning and sustaining the art of traditional chikankari embroidery. “It’s pure joy,” emphasises Manish.

The year 2020 for Malhotra, just as for everyone else, has been about learning to cope with tough times. “I couldn’t imagine how a virus could bring our lives to a standstill. Once I accepted the reality of it, my mind started working overtime to ensure the safety and well-being of my work family – the kaarigars, store employees, office staff. Then I focused on my health, introspected, went back to my sketch book, made digital films, wrote portions of my upcoming memoir – but most important, spent time with my loved ones. It has been therapeutic,” he says.

What’s next?

“Films. I’ll make films. It’s about time. Cinema is where I got everything. And to it I will give my everything.”

Sonal Kalra is the Managing Editor – Entertainment and Lifestyle at Hindustan Times

From HT Brunch, December 6, 2020