Known for his contemporary themes and modern storytelling, Narendra Kumar or ‘Nari’ has been one of India’s leading fashion designers since 2000. From working on films like Fashion, Aladdin and No Smoking to styling celebs like Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Akshay Kumar, John Abraham and Priyanka Chopra, among others, Narendra has made quite a name for himself. The designer recently showcased collections from the newly launched brand Ura Street at the Bangalore Fashion Week.
“The inspiration for the collection came from India’s Gen Z population. We wanted to reach them in a way that they see style through streetwear. The name of the brand is Ura Street and we showcased four of its subbrands. One was a Varsity-based streetwear brand. Another was a Skater, a West Coast America-based streetwear brand. The third one was a Japanese manga, anime-based streetwear. The fourth one was called Humande, which is more about recycled pieces,” begins Narendra.
The four sub-brands are completely different from each other but cater to the same audience. They are all sharply focused on a culture. The culture of streetwear in varsity is about fraternities and sororities. The skater culture is about the west coast and skating as that’s where streetwear in the US started. Then we have streetwear culture in Japan, which started in Ura-Harajuku and the last collection is all about recycling and sustainability.
Talking about the colour palette for the collection, Narendra reveals, “The colour palette is more pop, denim and largely bright. The varsities are brighter, whereas Kool Beans, which is another brand, is more subdued.”
When asked if there are any motifs that are particular to this collection, the designer says, “The varsities were invented in the US. So there are different motifs for each of them. Each culture has its own story and its own heritage. We are looking at that heritage through our own lens.”
“We hope to reach out to more Gen Z audiences over the next two or three years. We are thinking in steps and hopefully, we will get larger,” Narendra says, signing off.
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