It's not about fast fashion
Back from the Wills India Fashion Week in Delhi, Sanchita Ajjampur heads directly to her Sanfab office in Bangalore’s New Bel Road.She plans to be in France in a couple of weeks on work, but has an IPL fashion show to supervise before that. One of her two daughters is in the midst of exams.There is also the family vacation in Greece coming up, to be planned right down to the last detail. And at some point she will have to touch base with the 38 stores she retails at abroad, and the 14 in India.‘‘It’s a lot,’’ laughs the easygoing Ajjampur. ‘‘But we women can multi-task.’’ The forty-something Sanchita Ajjampur moved from Milan to Bangalore six years ago.Her label Sanchita is for the modern woman, and has a cheeky, fun style that celebrates Indian craftsmanship but with a European sensibility.Born in India but raised in Vienna, Ajjampur has trained with fashion greats like Issey Miyake and Romeo Gigli. She also consults with international fashion houses Lanvin, Etro and Chloe.What keeps her in Bangalore? Her two pretty daughters and her factory, she explains. ‘‘I am a working mother and a single parent. I have my mom here to help me. That is why I came back to India. Family is important, and my kids are educated here because they need roots. So I make frequent short trips for work (especially to the studio in Paris that she visits every month). Also, I have to be based here because this is where my factory is.’’ Not one to worry about ‘‘rolling (her) sleeves up and getting dirty’’ Ajjampur is often seen in track pants as she goes about her work at what she refers to modestly as a ‘‘small-scale industry.’’ But she transforms into the perfect model for her clothes at parties — ‘‘I usually wear my designs or the clothes and accessories I do for Lanvin or the others.’’ About her company, she says, ‘‘We have a vertically integrated structure, with jersey, pattern making, embroidery, leather, and so on. It is easier to enhance things this way but I take only as many projects as I can handle. For instance, Galliano (British designer John Galliano) was interested in working with me, but we couldn’t take it up.’’ Having been associated with Etro for about nine years now and Lanvin for four, she says she knows exactly what they want from India. ‘‘I have worked with a lot of great designers, some of whom are no longer alive today, while some no longer own their companies,’’ she shrugs, before ratting off some names — Lacroix, Gaultier, Moschino, Armani.‘‘What I do with my consultancy and what I do in India are two different things, and require a different sensibility. For the former, we develop patterns, fabric and embroidery from scratch, and I do not get into merchandising (there are enough companies in India that do that),’’ she explains. ‘‘The latter is referenced by my nomadic style.’’ Ajjampur developed most of her contacts after graduating in Fashion at the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture Parisienne. Following this, she did her master’s at the Domus Academy, Milan.During the 80s, she visited India for her research with master weavers across India. Her studies introduced her to the arts, anthropology, sociology and so on. Growing up in Europe, she was also exposed to works by Oskar Schlemmer and Gustav Klimt and was influenced by the Vienna Secession.Whether it is for the clothing and accessories for Lanvin and Etro or for her label Sanchita, Ajjampur is particular about the quality of her research. ‘‘I don’t believe in fast fashion, there is no soul in that. Learning something quickly but superficially doesn’t work for me. Especially with the internet and all its information, I think it’s better to be a hermit sometimes. It allows you to do a bit of soul-searching,’’ she points out.In addition to art and culture – spring/summer 2010 was inspired by ancient Indian, French and Greek-Roman fables – Ajjampur says she borrows from food, flavours and texture. Like the line she showed at the recently concluded fashion week in New Delhi was the result of a family holiday in Burma last year. Interesting, isn’t it? The good news is that the designer likes to keep her clothing well-priced. At her store in Bangalore, everything is pret a porter (except for what she designs for her Bollywood clients) and prices start at Rs 1,200. She also has accessories like slippers and sandals, bags, belts, even books. Coming up soon is a book of fables for kids ‘‘authentically written and inspired by actual stories,’’ an extension of her research for her latest show. ‘‘We have included unisex T-shirts, which work very well in Japan, she says.