Rahul Mishra: The Inventor’s Tale

Rahul Mishra is much more than a designer; he is a humanist with an intriguing, almost sublime perspective on fashion. As he continues to shun commercialisation, he tells L’Officiel how the likes of Gandhi, Buddha and Bucky Fuller shaped his ideology.

“I still feel I am dreaming. I hold my trophy from time to time, just to know if it is really happening to me,” Rahul Mishra grins. Riding high on the Woolmark International Prize 2014 at the Milan Fashion Week, Rahul now joins the league of previous winners Karl Lagerfeld and Yves Saint Laurent. A worldwide competition, it had 48 participating designers competing from 20 nations. Only five reached the final: ffiXXed (Asia); Christopher Esber (Australia); Sibling (Europe), Rahul Mishra (India and Middle East); and Joseph (Altuzarra, USA). “Joseph from Altuzarra and his mom were extremely helpful and encouraging. Even though we were competitors, there was no unpleasantness. His mom was spectacular backstage, giving me advice on how to handle foreign retailers. It was amazing to see such camaraderie even though many people from India had warned me that Westerners are racial and dismissive. I faced none of that. In fact, Joseph was the first one to come and congratulate me after I won,” he says.

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An esteemed panel, including Angelica Cheung, (Editor-at-Large Vogue China); Colette Garnsey (Director Australian Wool Innovation); Franca Sozzani (Editor-in-Chief of Vogue Italia); Frida Giannini (Creative Director, Gucci); Tim Blanks (Editor-at-Large Style.com); Alexa Chung (model, fashion commentator) and Colin McDowell (mentor to designers), gave Rahul a thumbs up for creating a mood board with just six garments. And the rewards don’t end at the AU$100,000 prize, Rahul will also get a front row retail space at Saks Fifth Avenue, Harvey Nichols, 10 Corso Como, among numerous other stores across the globe. “When we were unknown designers, we got pushed to a corner in big stores and then shunted out, when we don’t sell. Who cares if we weren’t visible to shoppers? But now I will showcase next to Dries Van Noten and Dolce & Gabbana. How cool is that? Life does come a full circle,” he says.

Milan maketh the man

Milan has proved to be a lucky charm for Rahul, who was born in a non-descript village Malhousi (82 km away from Kanpur), where the tin roof at his school would collapse with incessant rains and students had to huddle next to the wall for shelter. After graduating from Kanpur University on the insistence of his father, who wanted him to become an IAS officer, engineer or doctor, (none of which interested him) Rahul won the Fiesta Italiana Talent hunt, which catapulted him to a Fulbright scholarship at Istituto Marangoni, Milan for his innovative reversible Kerala Mundu. “In a flash, from Rs 7 per month, which was my school fees, I went to a college with state-of-the-art computers, a burgeoning library, expensive-looking canteen; my fees jumped to several lakh a month,” he laughs. Few know that Rahul never completed his course. He dropped out, ran away from home and came to live with his older sister in New Delhi, much to the disappointment of his father. He then applied for the National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad.

The wife is always right

“I come from a humble background. My father was in government service, so we didn’t grow up with much. When I went to Milan I realised I couldn’t study there and my heart was so restless, seeking infinite experiences. I would take classes which were not in my course, people thought I was chasing beautiful girls, but it was quite the opposite. I would have left NID too, if it wasn’t for Divya, my junior, now wife, who coerced me to finish it. Before marriage I used to rag her, after marriage I get ragged unremittingly,” he smiles.

Divya is Rahul’s worst critic and keeps him balanced. “She is the most difficult person to please. In my office no one is scared of me, but when Divya ma’am (pun intended) walks in, everyone starts looking busy. She is not inveigled by praise or criticism. Even these interns from School of Fashion Technology (SOFT), Pune, who are interning with us, listen only to her. I teach fashion design at Pune, and I tell students to leave their attitudes and smartphones outside my class. What I teach them is not on Google,” he beams.

The Gandhi effect

NID gave a young Rahul everything he needed to know about design. Also, Gujarat is a craft-rich region, which left an indelible mark on his ideology. “Gujarat is the land of Mahatma Gandhi and my NID professor, MP Ranjan, was the greatest teacher ever. As I was a physics graduate, he turned my doubts, fears and apprehensions into magical ideas,” says Rahul. It was this philosophy that changed the way he looked at design—which he adamantly believes is not meant simply for consumption, but also participation and sustainability. Hence, everything in his factory is handmade and handloom-based—like Gandhiji’s salt revolution and spinning khadi on the charkha. “I never wanted to ‘just’ design garments, I wanted to tell a story, what went behind making those garments. So, the focus is not just a beautiful asymmetrical dress, but how it has managed to give employment to several weavers, contributed to the environment and empowered craftsmen. Plus, merino wool is a biodegradable textile, it doesn’t involve killing of animals; I am a vegetarian, I don’t use mosquito repellant at home, I prefer sleeping under a net,” he flashes a Communist smiles.

Design as an empowerment tool

What won the hearts of judges in Milan was the fabulous combination of the warp (silk- 15%) and weft (merino wool-85%), which was woven in Chanderi, Madhya Pradesh, traditionally known for its luscious fabric. Based on Buddha’s lotus flower theory, intermingled with Dutch graphic artist Maurits Cornelis Escher’s and American architect Buckminster Fuller’s credo, it was a line that would look like Play Doh, but turned out far from that. Being a science graduate, Rahul was consumed by the theory of geometry and the hexagon which is the mother of all shapes—you can get a triangle, square and rectangle out of it, which formed the backs of his dresses. Globally fashion has gone back to the basics, the root of everything now is wearability and not theatrics. “I was looking at design as a tool for empowerment, my weaver who lives in Kolkata, is a class four dropout, but now he drives a car, has built a home in his village, sends his daughters to college… that is the power of design. It is what makes me want to create poetry in clothes, looking at the future,” he admits. Fuller created a dome of the future without any pillars, he had said something that stuck with Rahul, “A designer is an emerging synthesis of artist, inventor, mechanic, objective economist and evolutionary strategist.” Fuller’s ideas to help humanity moved him. “I was mesmerized by this Massachusetts-born 20th century futurist and his doctrine of ‘more for less’. Giving back to those who do not have the same opportunities as us, is what design enables us to do,” he adds.

All about innovation

The ‘tailor’ tag was something Rahul’s traditional father didn’t quite appreciate, so he would tell relatives that “my son is doing design engineering”, but it was his paternal uncle Sadanand, who believed in him and impelled Rahul to excel. “The unfortunate part is that he died a month before I won the coveted award. He was my hero and I wanted him to share my happiness. But I know that his blessings are with me,” he says. His uncle would tell Rahul to look at a problem objectively and not get annihilated by it; and that’s why he managed to get a line together which was produced in Chanderi; assembled and designed in his Noida factory in Delhi and thanks to What’s App, Apple computers and email, technology made it so much simpler to co-ordinate, he says. “We used to watch 3 Idiots together and when I saw Phunsukh Wangru, I identified with the character. When I meet Vidhu Vinod Chopra or Raju Hirani I will ask, ‘Why didn’t you make such a film sooner?’ It is a game changer for those who think success is all about winning and wealth,” Rahul confesses.

Tim Blanks, with his arm around Rahul’s shoulder, told him he could never imagine India could do something so beautiful and look beyond orange and fuchsia. “Tim told me, ‘I saw a different India in your line, Rahul.’ While Alexa said my story moved her. What can be more rewarding than international giants understanding the real truth of India. It made me very proud of my country,” he says.

As he walks up to the door you can’t help but notice the sole of his chappals coming off, and as he excitedly shows you his sketch, he says, “When you look at a sketch and feel like crying, you know it’s the right one. I became a designer not to make money, I don’t own a house or a fancy car, I am here to follow what Gandhiji did 70 years back, start the Swadeshi movement, where what is Indian is beautiful,” he concludes.

From the April 2014 issue of L’Officiel India.