Bangalore's Fashion Wizard

Q: When did you know you were going to be a fashion designer?
When I was 14-15 years old I became fascinated with clothes in school. It was an obsession actually. When you have an interest it develops and then you figure you may as well make a career out of it. I enjoyed designing, I loved clothes. That's basically what it was. That's how it started.

Q: Who influenced you? International Fashion Designers?
Yeah well I love international designers. I used to follow what used to happen to them when I was young. So I had the interest in fashion. I liked a lot of their work at that time. I used to follow a lot of their work then, although a lot of them are so different now. The only ones who were big then as well as now were like Versace, at the stage of getting recognition. By and large now the big names are the same, except for the new ones obviously. The old names have always been there.

Q: What sets you apart from the others?
I think everyone has their own style. I don't think there are any two people who design the same way. It's like two people who sing the same type of song but they're still different. Like you have 20 boy bands in the world but they're all slightly different from each other. In fashion everyone has their own style and my clothes are quite different from a lot of people.

Q: What would you say is distinctly a Manoviraj Khosla?
I don't think there is anything very distinct because fashion changes and your style keeps changing. It also depends if I'm doing Sportswear, evening-wear or Indian clothes. Their style keeps varying accordingly. I used to do a lot of raunchy stuff but I've toned that down a hell of a lot. I have to finally start selling also (laughs).

Q: Describe any recent trends and innovations in the Fashion Industry internationally as well as in India.
Internationally, the trends of fashion are changing all the time. The hot new thing internationally is the mixing of colours that do not match. It's like you know black and white matches and grey and black matches. What's really in now is coordinating colours that don't match like turquoise and orange and purple and beige. Prints are in, spots are in and polkas are in. That's the new look. In India kurtha lengths have gone back to what the 70s look was. You saw the old Hindi movies with the fitted churidar kurtas, that's coming back. Especially the short ones for the women.

Q: How do you think fashion bridges the urban-rural divide?
It does because there is so much influence in Indian fashion that does come from rural India. You see the Gurjars, the various other tribes, the Rajasthanis , village women and the way that they dress and the things that they do to their clothes. Their prints, their embroidery styles, their accessories, their embellishments. Everything is a part of fashion. It's just that we glamourise it, make it look more hip but that's where it actually comes from.

Q: So it is helping?
It is. I mean you don't expect rural India to go into fashion because of the price and the awareness. If they only knew that what they do is what we turn into fashion. They set the trend to a large extent. That's where tradition comes from, Indian clothes come from tradition and you just act on that tradition and work on that and modernize it and change the look of it but the basic lesson is coming down from tradition. So it's an important part of our culture.

Q: What about Fashion and the Net? Are they a match made in heaven?
Well, I don't know how many people are buying fashion on the Internet. Especially expensive stuff . I think people who want to buy expensive clothes and live in the city would just go out and buy it. I can imagine if someone lives way out in Rural India or in a small town and doesn't have access to clothes and has a lot of money, then it would probably work on the Net. It won't work in Bombay, Delhi and here because people would much rather go to a store and try on the outfit and decide if they like it and see so many other outfits at the same time. Internationally it would work. For example, NRIs who want to buy Indian clothes, for them it makes sense. They just buy it on the Net because it's not available anywhere. It's a great thing but I'm not coming across it because the people I deal with live in towns and have access to stores and would much rather just go to the designer and buy clothes.

Q: What about up and coming young Fashion designers?
Lots of them and what's nice is that a lot of them come from different parts of the country. I just gave NIFT interviews for their admissions in Delhi and some of the students I came across were from villages in Bihar, UP etc . and they want to become fashion designers. What do they know about fashion? It's amazing how they know so much about the whole world. I see a spark in them. They may not know fancy words or the top ten designers but they know clothes sense, their traditions and Indian culture. It's fabulous that they want to get into fashion.

Q: Do you have any advice for them?
The problem with a lot of aspiring fashion designers today is that their top reason for wanting to be one is because they want to lead a glamorous life. You don't get into fashion design because you want to lead a glamorous life. They should get it out of their heads that fashion designers are only partying and having fun. We do party a lot but we are also professionals. Look at the number of fashion designers coming out today, it's huge. The ones who are serious should join a school like NIFT because that's the only professional fashion institute in the country.

Q: How does the average Indian combine Western, ethnic and fusion in order to be truly fashionable? Is there a balance?
There is a balance to an extent. For men if a man is wearing a suit, it's a suit but you could have a different cut and wrap a shawl around it. Women's wear has a very Indo-Western mix. I do Indian clothes for women where the kurtas look like long evening dresses. That is a mix because it's very evening, chic, sexy and sleek and at the same time there is a churidar underneath and dupatha on top. And it works brilliant.

Q: Is it important for you to dress well personally?
I don't think it's important for me to dress well. I dress the way I dress because I want to dress that way. A lot of designers all over the world will dress as shabbily as possible. There are a huge number of designers who come on to the show in torn jeans. I can't understand if they are trying to make a statement, but that's their style.

Q: Is that your style?
I do wear torn jeans. I dress according to what is in. If grunge is in then I'll dress grunge, but if it's not I won't. My dress reflects fashion as what's happening in fashion reflects my design which in turn reflects on the way I dress. It basically boils down to what is in. If today short-fitted shirts are in I'll wear them. Tomorrow if they are out then I won't wear them.

Q: Do you wear your own designs?
99% of the time I don't. I'd rather sell it and make money (laughs).

Q: Where do you see yourself in the battle between technology and nature today?
I see myself as an observer. I'm not really into technology and I'm not into nature, at least not professionally. I love technology. Everybody loves technology. If it wasn't for technology we wouldn't be doing half the things we do today. I love nature because it's beautiful. It's not as if I take an active part in technology or the development of it or nature for that matter. I don't go around saving trees, I'd much rather people didn't cut them but I wouldn't go around beating people up if they did.

Q: What about technological innovation in Fashion?
Fabrics have advanced and developed a hundredfold in the last five years. I would never use the fabrics of five years ago today because they are so much more advanced now. Earlier people would use natural fabrics like cotton and silk but today people are moving into man-made fabrics and synthetics in a big way because they feel so good. It's not like how people used to look at polyester ten years ago, very tacky. Polyester is different today. Synthetics are being used all the time and feel so good. There have been fabulous developments in hardiness, texture, stretch etc. Lycra has come in now.

Q: Are you involved in the preservation of nature?
No. Nature does inspire me as the feeling that this is just such a beautiful world. I'm a city person and can't live out in the boonies forever. I need a hectic life. I get bored otherwise. If I was sitting out in the middle of nature alone I don't think I'd be a very happy person.

Q: How do you relax from your hectic schedule?
Party at night .My biggest form of relaxation is going out, getting away from work. Something has to happen between work and work. Even if it means just going over to a friend's place, watching a movie, going out to dinner or going to a pub or dancing till five o'clock in the morning. Then you enjoy work as too much of work is monotonous. I keep traveling a lot but I love Bangalore. The attitude of Bangalore is nice. It's got good fun people and still has that small town mentality which makes people friendly.

Q: Any other hobbies or interests?
I play golf, I swim, I play squash. I used to ride but don't anymore. I also learn yoga three times a week in the evening for an hour.

Q: Does Religion play an important part in your life?
I'm not religious but it's there. I don't believe it or disbelieve it but it's there and I choose not to question it.

Q: Do you like reading books?
I hate reading. I can't understand why I need to read a story. It doesn't excite me.I read newspapers and magazines but books I find terribly boring. If there's a great story I'll pick up the movie and finish it off in two hours. Where is the time to read books? Today you have the Internet so if you have the time you surf, watch TV or I play with my daughter. Most people who read books do so in the evening but I get into bed by early morning so you can imagine.

Q: What's your daughter's name and how old is she?
Her name's Ahana and she's five. I spend time with her before she goes to school and after I get back from work at night. I often read her bedtime stories.

Q: What measures do you think would make Bangalore a better city? What should the government and people do towards this?
Firstly, cancel this stupid 11 o'clock ban. It's so immature and childish to say that people must go home at eleven at night. I'm 33 years old and if I want to stay out late and have a drink then what is your problem? If there's a bar that wants to serve you and you want to be served then where does the cop come in? It's none of his business you know. To say that it's a law and order problem is bullshit, that means they're not capable of handling the situation. It's like saying tomorrow to stop traffic problems we're going to remove cars from the road. That's not the solution. The solution is to tackle it by letting people do what they want to do. No one is doing anything illegal by wanting to dance. If you and I are going to dance at night we shouldn't have to worry about the cops raiding the place because we're dancing. It's so stupid and backward. It's only Bangalore. Even in a city like Delhi which is so bureaucratic they allow bars to be open till one. Calcutta discos have licenses till 5 in the morning. Why does Bangalore close at 11 0'clock at night. In today's day and age how do you get anywhere at nine and ten o'clock. I come home from work at eight o'clock.
I want to spend an hour with my daughter and I hang out with her while she has her dinner and we play. She goes to bed at 9:30 and I go to get ready at 9:45. Which means I can't get out of the house till 10:30. By the time I get to a pub it's 10:45 and time for the last order! It's so stupid. The government just has to relax these antiquated laws.

Q: What do you think about corruption?
Corruption is everywhere not just in Bangalore. The whole Indian system has to tackle it. It's an Indian mentality problem. Sometimes Indians have to find the easy way out, that's just the way we are. That's a national issue and has been around for donkey's years.

Q: What about in your industry?
In my industry not really, there isn't much corruption. There's really no room for corruption. It happens more on a government level.

Q: How will Bangalore keep up its reputation of The Garden City?
You still have more trees here than in other places. Look at Bombay which is a concrete jungle. They need greener spaces but where is the space in Bangalore? Where is the space to grow? You need development and therefore trees are going to be cut down. The Garden City image is going to go over the years. Unless important places like Lalbagh and Cubbon Park are left alone and preserved and protected. Unless you have a breathing space in the city things are going to be terrible.

Q: Have you had any winning moments in your life?
I've just done everything step by step by step and not leapt. Done everything one by one by one… The higher you climb the bigger your fall is going to be. You have to be careful how you're climbing as you don't want that fall to come and go boom! I wouldn't say that there have been any real winning moments in my life but at the same time I'd say that everything is a winning moment in my life because I've had a great time till now so obviously everything's been right. I went to the disco last night and it was a winning moment because I had a good time. Going to a party tomorrow night will be a winning moment because I expect to have fun. As long as I'm having fun and not doing it at anyone else's expense I think it's just fine.

Q: Is there a motto that drives you?
Yeah. Happiness is a journey not a destination. Don't wait to get happy, just keep being happy.

Q: Last question, what's your star sign and when's your birthday?
Pisces. February 25th.