Sustainable fashion label Madippu debuts a collection in shades of gold and cream

City-based designer Meenakshi N launches her online label Madippu, incorporating creams and golds into her maiden collection 
Madippu-Onam_1_
Madippu-Onam_1_

At 23, Meenakshi N is the founder and creative director of Madippu, an online label which takes inspiration from just about everything — from the drape of her mothers’ sari to a refrigerator; and translates them into breezy ensembles with contemporary elements. 


Starting young
The fine-arts graduate began her label when she was still in college, and initially worked on a line of six designs, in bright colours which were inspired by spring. “I haven’t experimented with too many embellishments because it is not very sustainable. I plan on experimenting with Taant or ornate Kashmiri embroidery soon,” says Meenakshi, who works predominantly with handloom and hand-processed fabrics, especially cottons. They are primarily sourced from Islampur, Jaipur and Kanchipuram. Currently, Meenakshi is working out of her own house with tailors on contract basis. For her line, she has over 35-40 pieces ready, in about 12-15 designs. 

Fashion for a cause
The colour palette of the current Onam collection is white and gold, and is a tribute to the recent floods in Kerala. A highlight of the collection is their sharara suits, made from traditional handloom fabrics in white and gold. “I took the traditional North Indian silhouette and merged it with traditional colours and concept of the  South,” says Meenakshi, who creates contemporary skater dresses, boxy shirts, sleeveless tunics and long kurtas, among other things. “My designs can be worn on both on an everyday basis and for an event. It depends on how you style the piece!” 

The photographs are taken by Rajkumar Raghavan and Swathi Prabhakaran, and are shots in a flux of nature and industrial settings, where the model embraces the scorching summer sun and unkempt girl-next-door hair. This represents the ethos of Madippu as well, as a common theme through her designs is bohemian minimalism. “The silhouettes should complement the person, and it is a little conflicting to me when there’s too much happening in terms of colours and texture of the designs,” she says. Earlier, she has worked extensively with ikat, mangalagiri, two-shaded fabrics and Chettinad cottons. The young designer, has vibrant plans for her upcoming festive edit, where one can expect gold detailing and block prints and in flamboyant shades.

Starting from Rs.700.

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