KH Radharaman, the force behind The House of Angadi and all its verticals, is a man on a mission. After branching into women’s pret with the launch of his label Alamelu back in 2020, the textile revivalist and designer, is set to unveil his new bespoke menswear line. The launch will be marked by a special event hosted by fashion consultant Prasad Bidapa. While the store has been retailing menswear since 2020, this is their first foray into made-to-order garments for men. We caught up with the textile visionary ahead of the launch. Excerpts:
What steered you towards expanding into bespoke menswear?
We observed that many gentlemen visiting our stores were very happy with the fabrics and cuts, but they wanted more customised fits. This was one of the factors we took into consideration. Also, since most of the textiles we use are woven in-house and patented, we thought it made all the more sense to offer the service. So essentially, it evolved from our customers’ needs.
What can one expect from the collection?
The entire collection has two parts — bespoke and ready-to-wear. The ready-to-wear collection has casual and formal shirts, kurtas, jackets and dhotis, while the bespoke is
primarily geared towards bridal and occasion wear.
Tell us about the fabrics and techniques used.
We have used exquisite fabrics like a crisp cotton Italian fabric and patented Angadi fabric for some of our shirts. We also have handwoven linen, hand tie-dyed and hand-printed textiles like shibori and ajrakh. Brocades, silks and silk-wool blends are also heavily used, especially for the bespoke garments.
Take us through the different silhouettes one can look forward to.
We have created some beautiful achkan and bundi jackets, apart from ready-to-wear dhotis, trousers with elasticated waists, pleated trousers and kurtas.
What are some of the other highlights of the collection?
One of our signatures is the range of Advaya (their luxury designer label) silk shirts, made from one of our archived weaves which we created many years ago to export. It features the vintage paisley print. Apart from this, we also have some accessories such as pocket squares and cufflinks.
Price on request. At the stores in Jayanagar and Sadashivnagar
Email: rashmirajagopal@newindianexpress.com
Twitter: @rushmeee