These are dinner plates one may not want to eat out of.
They look more suited to a cabinet that displays exotic memorabilia collected over the years. And in the centre of the plate is Rocky Star’s signature gold insignia that proudly reads ‘R’.
This is the designer’s first venture into creating homeware, accents and furniture as part of a collaboration with home décor brand Bent Chair. “Have you seen the chandelier I designed?” he asks, adding, “It’s one of my favourite pieces.”
Made out of dark carved wood with tints of gold, the Anthropod-themed light is dramatic, as are the sofas and chairs with baroque and botanical prints. They almost transport one to the sets of Moulin Rouge! It is every bit as theatrical. No wonder Rocky says, “My pieces are decorative. If you have a simple space, just get two of these chairs and they will enhance the setting.”
Testing waters
Rocky, who was in the city recently for the launch of this collection at the Bent Chair boutique on Chamiers Road, says that he wanted to translate his creativity into different departments.
Rocky S homeware collection on display at Bent Chair
“I always had the inspiration of having my own line of furniture. As a designer, I didn’t want to restrict myself to doing just clothes. Furniture was the next best thing I could translate my creations into. This collaboration sees my custom style coming into the home space.”
To begin with, he says, it was a lot of hard work for the team at Bent Chair to understand his sensibility, and for him to learn to be practical in terms of design. Pricing is important, he learnt. It takes around eight to nine months to create a line.
The collection started with two lines: Botanicals and Baroque. They then kept introducing a new one every season and now it includes Maya, Anthropod, Verdant and Scarlet as well. Cushions, coasters, cabinets, tables and crockery are all a part of the collection. “It’s a complete 360 degree offering. When a person wants a Rocky S home, he should have everything,” he smiles.
On the fashion front he says he busy with the upcoming London Fashion Week (LFW), scheduled to take place in September. His collection for LFW is called Indian Summer, and includes home-grown craft forms. “I’ve worked with artisans from Kolkata, Gujarat and Rajasthan for this. It’s a contemporary universal line,” he says.
And what about styling for movies? He was a part of the Rajinikanth film 2.0 . “It took a lot out of me,” he says. Rocky worked with Rajinikanth to give him a dapper robot look. “I’m taking a break right now [from films] to focus on my brand,” he concludes.
