Nidhi Munim can’t get over the brilliance of lycra. She discovered her comfort in its malleability as an undergraduate student in NIFT, Kolkata, went on to specialise in swimwear and resort wear with ITC Wills Lifestyle and later, designer Anamika Khanna, and finally launched her eponymous swimwear label that’s now a household name in the Indian market. “When all you do is work with one fabric your whole life, you can go crazy in your creativity with it!” she gushes. And with five years of exploring lyrca’s many moods, Nidhi says, she’s still only just begun mastering the material.
Her latest experiments in lycra manifest in her Spring-Summer line themed ‘Monochrome’. An active sportswear collection with confident, bright colours that leap at you through unconventional colour-blocking and definitive prints, it also features thoughtful detailing in the zippers, contrast piping and pleat patterns. ‘Monochrome’, so far, has first paid tribute to deforestation, in a series that uses black and white ‘forest prints’ such as coconut and banana leaves.
The collection now moves forward with a tribute to 175 years of photography through swimwear that plays only with black and white. “I depend on photographers to understand my brand and represent what I stand for through their pictures. So this ‘Tribute to photography’ collection is my way of showing gratitude,” she says. Working with just two colours has been strangely liberating, she adds, for the forced boundaries have brought a certain direction and focus to her work.
When Nidhi first began working with swimwear, she recalls her pieces as “very boutique-ey”, quite revealing, and tailor-made to the Western body. Time and experience have brought with it a refreshed understanding of the Indian woman’s physique and psychology, and her designs have subsequently morphed. “The Indian market took me by surprise in its wide acceptance of swimwear; it’s an under-explored niche here,” says Nidhi. She quickly realised that her market required a design aesthetic that was “more conservative, yet emphasised attitude and elegance”, and catered to large and extra-large sizes as well. Her audience now ranges from college students who pick up pieces for Rs. 500 upward and older women who pay in the thousands. “Everyone, these days, takes off on international vacations and is extremely conscious of how they look on holiday; so they want that exact beachwear piece in which they’re comfortable, as well as look great in.” Her swimwear has thus branched into surfwear and scuba-diving pieces that cater particularly to these globe-trotting women.
Nidhi’s pieces come with soft drapes that lend dynamism to the swimwear in their dancing lines and flowing silhouettes. “I’d advise people to team their swimwear up with such ombre drapes and chunky, one-piece statement jewellery, like a solo gold cuff. The key is not to overdo it!” Nidhi will bring on the bling, though, in her forthcoming Diwali collection, which is a resort wedding line that’s festive in its colours and loud in its embellishments of gemstones, pearls and rubies.
Also in the pipeline is a line of mastectomy swimwear, both to raise awareness about breast cancer, as well as to give survivors swimwear that celebrates their bodies.
