Shaina is one of the young designers in the fashion industry with a F.I.T New York graduate degree under her hat. She caters to the quality conscious women of India and the young executives of the corporate world. At her boutique 'Golden Thimble', she stocks affordable, classy, sarees.

Shaina is an unusual name. What does it mean?
Thank you. It’s a made-up name and has no meaning.

Political Science is not remotely connected to fashion designing. How did you make the shift? I completed my high school in Vancouver, went on to graduate in Political Science from Xavier’s with every intention of doing law. And then strangely I branched out into fashion. I think it's because my mom's been in the trade for 30 years, so I've grown up seeing tailors and embroiderers. But at that time I used to always think of fashion as a career for 'dumb-blondes' - there was no mental stimulation. As I got more interested in it I went ahead and got a degree from F.I.T. (New York). How did you think of reinventing the age-old saree? I am truly fascinated by the saree. It is the only garment that can be draped in 17 different styles and each one looks different from the other.

You would be amazed to know that the saree is the only outfit, which makes a thin person look voluptuous and a fat person look thinner, if draped correctly with soft fabrics. Most people don’t know the potential of six yards of fabric.

Is formal training a must for fashion designers?
Professional training is a must in today’s world. Or else you will be left far, far behind. The knowledge of fabric, silhouette, sketching techniques, etc is utmost important. One more thing, the Indian ethic wear market is totally saturated. Branch out in to children’s wear, men’s wear, accessories, etc.

What is the best training ground in India to become a fashion designer?
The courses at SNDT and NIFT are quite competitive.

What do you love most about being a fashion designer?
Fashion is one line, which has tremendous creative stimulation and one gets a lot of mental satisfaction when your creations are appreciated.

What is your fashion philosophy?
I am a very conservative designer. I don't want to experiment every single day, and come up with things like shell caps as blouse bustiers. It's just not me. Also, I've never believed that the more flesh you show, the more expensive the garment should be. My fashion philosophy is simple - wearable, designer clothing for the Indian woman, at affordable prices.

Not all of us have a body like Naomi Campbell. We have our reservations in terms of height, figure and complexion. That's why it's a bigger challenge to dress the average Indian woman rather than a model.

What would you term as your career highlights?
I think they're yet to come. But in a sense breaking into the Indian ready-to-wear market can be considered one of them. Also, I have done shows abroad in New York, Colombo, London, which I feel have catered to an appreciative NRI market.

Do you have any specific clientele that you design for? I love signing for women like Shobha De and Anuradha Mahindra. I also design for Anjali Mendes, Malvika Sanghvi, Dolly Thakore, Sathya Saran and business houses like Birlas and Ambanis. But why only women’s clothing? The reason I haven’t really adventured too far into men's clothing is because men come and buy one kurta after half-an-hour, whereas women will pick up five outfits in the same time. Plus, I'm truly in love with the sari. Shaina, how do you keep yourself updated on fashion on a daily basis? I keep myself updated by reading a lot of international fashion magazines, travelling and of course surfing the net. What do you do when not working out designs? I like reading biographies, autobiographies, exercising and travelling the most. Who is your source of inspiration in the field of designing? It's only Shahab Durazi.

Future plans? I'd like to take on the political system and get politicians to wear smarter clothes. Just like film stars have their own personal designers, why can't our politicians? - Nivedita Jayaram Pawar