• Sushma Somasekaran is convinced that clothes have the power to convey what a person may, at times, struggle to convey in just words. Which is why she believes in the importance of curating a look “as it is the first thing people notice about you”.
  • But ask Carnatic musician Sriranjani Santhanagopalan about the importance of planning an ensemble wear, and she says, “It shouldn’t be all-consuming in a way that it takes away from your music. But I always remind myself that, as a musician, it is important to engage the audience not only aurally but also visually.” For example, she says, “I tend to relate certain ragams , kritis and the poetry with certain colours. So, in many ways, the colour of my sari is inspired by the palette of the ragam that I intend to present that day. I always think of dark red and black when I think of the ragam Thodi, the colour pink when I think of ragam Kalyani and light blue when I think of the ragam Bilahari. This year, almost organically, the theme of my outfits is looking like fifty shades of pink.”