Sharbari Dutta: Designing on her own terms

Kolkata-based men’s designer, Sharbari Dutta can be

definitely  termed an industry pioneer and veteran for very many reasons. The first being she is at the threshold of completing two decades of designer menswear. Not surprisingly, her client list is the ultimate Indian male celebrity line up. From the master of Indian art, MF Hussain, to masterblaster Sachin Tendulkar, Leander Paes, Sourav Ganguly, Ismail Merchant, Kapil Dev and Akshay Kumar. Her clothes were also a part of the trousseau of Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai.
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Dutta says designing for men gives her a sense of contentment and now, her name is synonymous with men’s fashion. Dutta is soon to be felicitated as a Revivalist Designer Be Yu Awards. She says awards are an inspiration for creative people but they don’t determine their creativity. Her own creative inspiration is folk and tribal art.

Whilst designers are retailing through personal boutiques and multi-label designer outlets, Duta pioneer still flies solo and her clothes cannot be found in any outlet, in India or overseas. Dutta says she has never retailed out of any particular place from the beginning. She is happier to work out of her studio. She still works alone in her studio with no help. Hence, the rush or need to send consignments or collections has never affected her. She likes to work at her own pace and every design that she painstakingly handcraft is exclusive. As she says, “In a way, I just don’t sell the outfit, I also sell the design and there’s no fear of duplication.” No wonder she has the leading gentlemen of India kitted out in her garb.