Honeymooners looking for flattering beachwear, young mothers looking for matching mommy-and-me pieces and 50-year-olds looking for age-appropriate, yet stylish, swimsuits are all part of Siya Nemani’s portfolio - and she loves every minute of it.
Having started her label, Kai Resortwear, in August 2016, after she personally noticed the large gap in the market of swimwear that was made for, as she calls it, “real indian women.”
“Not everyone is built like a model, so a lot of the brands out there don’t fit right,” says Nemani, adding that her creations are made with the average Indian body type in mind, and comes with in-built bras and a penchant for high waists - which perfectly covers the biggest problem area for women, their waists.
Her raw material comes straight from Italy, a fabric called Malaga that’s 80% Polyamide and20% Elastane, that’s UV protective and offers the perfect fit.
Although Kai retails at stores across the country, like Como Collective in Goa and Lulu and Sky in Delhi, as well as on sites like aza.com and beachcompany.com, Nemani prefers to cater to customers one-on-one at her studio in Mumbai. “I love the mommy-and-me matching swimsuits, they’re adorable, and a majority of my clients are women between 30 and 50, who don’t find what they’re looking for in stores,” she explains.
Her latest collection is all about “abstract prints and bright colours”, she says, and they come in styles ranging from the bikini to risqué bandeaus, super-modest maxsuits, and today’s “in” thing, the monokini. “I just got back from a tradeshow in LA and monokinis were everywhere,” insists Siya. Well, good for the average Indian woman, we say.
Kai will be retailing at Maalgaadi in Chennai from today. Prices for swimwear start from ₹7,000 onwards.
