Menswear Designer Shagun Agarwal knew she wanted to be a designer by the time she was 15 years old. Even at a tender age, she would draw images of garments and dress up her dolls in the most exclusive ways!
Ever since she started designing two decades ago, the Kolkata-based Menswear designer, Shagun Agarwal has drawn inspiration from the informed Indian woman — someone who is well travelled and fiercely independent.
On Being An Entrepreneur
“Back in the ’90s, ‘fashion design’ wasn’t considered a real profession in India. I hail from a conservative family and so I was allowed to set up my first ‘studio’ in a room in my house, where I designed for friends and family with limited resources. I believe that evolution is retrospective.
After 22 years in the fashion business it is the little things that stand out for me, things that have marked me both as an individual and an entrepreneur.
Conditioned with the beautiful mindset from her parents that one should do something in their lives which places them in a position to employ more people, Shagun knew she could materialise her vision and passions only when she starts with her own studio. She launched her own label in 1999 and has been winning hearts since then.”
On Overcoming Challenges
“I think one of the greatest challenges I faced was in staying true to my core beliefs and also changing the status quo. I have always held that men, women and animals deserve the same respect. Moreover, I gave it all up to raise my children, trying to balance work and home perfectly. Playing all these different roles—from full-time mom to businesswoman—I learnt how important each facet is in a woman’s life and how one needs to define what “having it all” means during these different stages.”
Today, Shagun, through her Menswear label, Darshika Menswear has developed a unique style of her own, reflecting the ancient traditions of Indian craftsmanship in a contemporary vocabulary. She has successfully matured into creative styling, translating textures and embellishments into refreshingly new and unexpectedly contemporary silhouettes.
Moreover, Shagun has kept the style quotient just right and not gone overboard with cuts, yet adding her distinctive cue to the silhouettes. The stylishly royal clothes at label, ‘Darshika Menswear’ give a whole new definition to menswear in India.
Image Courtesy Darshika Menswear
This article was shared with Prittle Prattle News as a Press Release.
