Adding to the excitement of sudden wave of “self-made quarantine-borne chefs” on social media, IndiLuxe, the vertical of Tata CLiQ Luxury that highlights and offers works of several Indian luxury and premium, kickstarted its gourmet food category with the very exciting and creatively charged collaboration with 10 of India’s most celebrated designers, on 1 July.
Called “The Apron Project 2020’, the collection celebrates the partnership of IndiLuxe with renowned contemporary designers right from Anavila, AntarAgni, Doodlage, Jodi Life and sustainable brand Ka-sha to Khanijo, Nappa Dori, Padmaja, Payal Singhal and, lastly, Urvashi Kaur.
The designers have projected their own aesthetics and design sensibilities over these aprons, reflecting their own creative language in terms of aesthetics, craft and materials used.
Expressing IndiLuxe’s excitement about the project, Rina Shah, Business Head, IndiLuxe, talked about the powerful synergy between the art of designing and of cooking and mentioned how each of these designs is a “true embodiment of the designer’s aesthetic sense,” further adding, “We are excited to have collaborated with these exceptional designers who have created pieces of art. Each of these designers have their own unique design sensibilities which resonates and brings out contemporary India either in form of prints, recycled fabrics, zero waste concept, embroidery or simple tailoring genius. With the launch of the Apron Project, I look forward to our valued, discerning customers embracing and encouraging their inner chef, and cherishing our aprons.”
Payal Singhal’s idea behind the apron was the wish to create something that sparked joy and hope. Fun prints and dainty frills hence came together in a vintage-inspired silhouette, the ruffles adding a touch of whimsy and femininity. “The process of this project has made me appreciate the inner chef in all of us. ‘Exploration’ is also a theme common between food and design; I believe both go hand in hand when discovering a place,” she avers.
“Nothing beats the complex flavours and varied varieties of Indian food we can experience in our country. During the quarantine, it was nice to go back to creating something, to be motivated to make something new. As we engage a lot more in our kitchens now, one might as well dress up and cook,” says Karuna Laungani, Jodi. The inspiration for them was derived from wanting to create something joyous for cooking, an activity which brought solace and joy to many during the lockdown.
Gautam Sinha, Nappa Dori, said “The way complex meals can be created with the help of simple tools at one’s disposal, in a similar manner, the Nappa Dori apron can be looked at as one of those simple yet essential tools.” For Gaurav Khanijo, the inspiration was derived from wanting to create an ‘all age-appropriate’ apron, one which would be wearable for a teenager or a 60-year-old alike while on the other hand, Antar-Agni’s Ujjwal Dubey championed functionality for the daily-wearer through his apron.
Anavila’s take on the project was a natural linen apron lined with soft mulmul and detailed with hand-made lace, floral piping and khatwa handwork. “Both cooking and design are creative pursuits – a visionary and experimentative mind can create something special each time, using the same ingredients. Not to forget that a beautifully presented product leads to enormous satisfaction in both cases,” says Anavila.
The works of these designers along with the other contributors of the “The Apron Project 2020: are exclusively available on the online app and webpage of IndiLuxe and only 10 pieces of each apron design will be available for purchase.
The launch was to highlight IndiLuxe’s recent release of gourmet delights including from artisanal chocolates and single origin coffees to organic foods, and is aimed to uphold IndiLuxe’s vision to aid its patrons to discover/explore/live the ‘Exquisite Everyday’. This category launch comes at a time when India, in lockdown, is discovering its inner chef.