When he had to choose between interiors and fashion, Siddharth Shashankan picked the latter.
“And I have never regretted it,” says the Chennai-based designer who recently showcased his collections at the Indonesia Fashion Week in Jakarta.
A graduate of the Raffles Design Institute, Singapore, he also has a degree in Fashion Design from Northumbria University, U.K. “I’m a Keralite who did his schooling in Delhi and now lives in Chennai,” he laughs.
Siddharth moved to the city in 2007, and launched his studio, Hangar Atelier, in 2009. Why Hangar and not hanger? “It was just a word that had stuck with me for a long time. When I was hunting for names, I thought I could live with this and so I just used it,” he says.
Siddharth is no stranger to global runways; the Indonesia Fashion Week was his third international show.
His debut show was held at the Red Dot Design Museum Singapore in 2013 as a charity fundraiser event. The same year, he also showcased a collection at the Mercedes Benz – Stylo Asia Fashion Week in Kuala Lumpur.
“For my latest collection, Aggrandize, I predominantly used silks, crepes and satins. Otherwise I prefer using georgettes and cotton-based fabrics; otherwise I use silks only when a customer requests for it,” he says. The collection features embellished dhoti pants, crop tops, bustiers and tunics and long, easy-flowing skirts in dark maroons, navy blues and olive greens.
While he also has a retail collection called Clipse, which is his foray into ready-to-wear ensembles for women, he prefers doing high-end customised orders and bespoke clothing for both men and women. Siddharth’s design aesthetic, according to him, is very classy and minimal. “The silhouettes I do are meant to be classic so that they never go out of style.
There are a lot of cuts and detailed work that goes into each piece, and although it might look simple at first glance, it is meant for those who can discern the amount of work that goes into creating the garment,” he explains.
Hangar Atelier is located at 77/7 Gulmohar Avenue, Velachery Road, Guindy. Tel: 91765 55566
