Saroj Jalan loves to visualise and design the perfect dress for a bride-to-be. Traditional with a touch of the contemporary, her bridal lehengas and saris are elegantly crafted. She works with zardozi, zari, sequins, badla, stones, japani cut-dana, jerkann and pearls to come up with gorgeous bridalwear.
Saroj entered the fashion world about a decade ago. Born in Bangladesh and brought up in Kolkata, fashion was something she was always interested in. In 2007, she took her first steps in the fashion world. Initially, she worked from home but in the year 2013, she launched her first store in Kolkata.
Saroj says, “Since childhood, I have been interested in fashion and I always wanted to do something on my own so that people would recognise me. Earning money was secondary. My family, especially my husband, encouraged me a lot. It is because of my husband’s support that I decided to pursue a masters’ degree in fashion designing from NIFT and have reached where I am today.”
Saroj initially started with the sari and, in the beginning, she used to make four to five saris. One day, a client came to her and requested her to design his daughter’s wedding lehenga. She recounts, “I didn’t know what to say at that moment but after he repeatedly requested me, I had to take the order. Then, I slowly developed the confidence to design lehengas.”
Saroj’s main aim is to design the perfect dress for a bride-to-be; she also reveals that it’s the bride’s happiness that inspires her to create such designs.
“When I design a particular bridal outfit, I visualise the bride-to-be and how she should look on her big day,” she says.
Saroj’s entire collection is handmade, with the production being done in-house. She uses the best of fabrics and takes the utmost care to ensure the quality of the finished product. Initially, she had two artisans and one masterji working for her; today, she has 150 artisans.
Recently, Saroj launched ‘The White Mughals’ collection, which is a blend of Nizam ardour and British triumph. The collection is a mixed bag of silk and velvets with work like darning-filling stitches, zardozi, salma, dabaka and mukaish, among others. The outfits have breeches, cuffs, collars, gathered skirt and puffed sleeves with the silhouettes inspired by the beautiful Nizam Court highlighted by the pastel shades of rose, pink, and olive green and vibrant reds.
Saroj’s showstoppers
- Waluscha De Sousa, who made her debut in Hindi films opposite Shah Rukh Khan in Fan, made a stunning showstopper for Saroj’s bridal collection, “The Royal Harmony.”
- Radhika Apte turned showstopper for Saroj’s “Gulzar collection” at a fashion week winter, Festive 2016. The collection incorporated the mystic beauty of Mother Nature in a vivacious spectrum of colours.
Shabiha Nur Khatoon, OP
