‘Believing in one culture doesn’t mean not being able to honor others’: Designer Sahil Kochhar in Israel-India fashion exchange

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Talking about the relationship that the two countries share, Israeli Ambassador to India, Mr. Naor Gilon said indianexpress.com Starting from defense to agriculture, the two countries have established cooperation in diverse fields.

He added: “We hope this project will open the door to future possibilities and cooperation between the people of Israel and India in its diverse fields. culture, fashion and lifestyle. Showcasing Indian designs inspired by the Israeli landscape led to this beautiful project, which further cemented the close friendship and growing partnership between the two nations. we. “

High-fashion collection showcasing Israel’s rich landscape (PR material)

From doing a fashion show – ‘Amidi’ – for underprivileged children, to creating murals of three Indo-Jewish actors to honor them and to empower women , the two countries have done a lot on the cultural front. With many cultural events and exhibitions underway, countries are aiming to further strengthen cultural ties.

In an interview with indianexpress.comdesigners Sahil Kochhar (SK) and Orly Goldschmidt (OG), Head of Public Diplomacy, Israeli Embassy in India, spoke about the campaign, high fashion collection and rich culture of India and Israel.

Excerpt:

How do you define ‘India’ when it comes to fashion? Do you think it has established itself globally?

SK: I don’t think there is any specific definition of India; The country is very diverse in that sense. It has many ethnicities coexisting all the time. Even arts and crafts differ from north to south. From the finest fabrics, the best in embroidery, to the best techniques today, we are making a name for ourselves globally and I am sure we will be much better in the years to come.

What led to the conception of this initiative?

OG: The most important thing for me is to show Israel from a different perspective than those who cannot afford to visit this country. Also, the idea is to make it appealing to young people, so that they can come and see Israel because it has so much to offer, the world doesn’t know about it yet.

SK: The whole initiative – ‘Yachad‘- means to come together and aims to promote both cultures, especially local artists and local talent, which is very important, along with celebrating 30 years of a long relationship between the two countries.

This initiative is called ‘Yachad’ which means come together and it aims to promote both cultures (Source: PR material)

How, through your design sensibilities, have you brought in the best of both cultures as part of the project?

SK: OLDulture does not seek boundaries, it goes beyond them. It’s like art, you can enjoy your own but you can also appreciate the other at the same time. Both countries have rich cultures, strong cultural identities and beliefs that cannot be fainted. With this collection, we are never competing but complementing each other. Because if you believe in one culture, that doesn’t mean you can’t celebrate another.

Tell us about the models you’ve photographed in the gallery.

SK: Our idea was not to capture a beautiful scene in the background with a model in the foreground. The only way to bring justice to the campaign is to find real talent from the locals there. The models you see are local talent from all over Israel, including the young generation of different social classes, athletes, artists, surfers and the country’s parkour community.

How is this collection different from your previous collections?

SK: IIf you look closely at the artwork and textures, the landscape will be reflected there. For the first time, we went beyond the floral pattern which we usually do and also tried to bring in some landscape features. Even the textures, especially in the prints for menswear, are inspired by the Israeli landscape. We’ve also maintained our brand identity as we’re known for the signature piping and silhouette we’ve managed to make.

Athletes, artists, surfers and people from the country’s parkour community, have become models for haute couture collections (Source: PR handouts)

On what basis are sites decided?

SK: When I started researching Israel, one thing I learned was that the country has so much to offer and I couldn’t resist exploring more. I wanted to stretch the shoot and cover as much as I could, but we had limited time. During the course of the project, I realized that every place in Israel has cultural importance. I discovered how many communities coexist here with each place having to tell a story. Even the Dead Sea, where we photographed extensively, has great cultural significance.

The couture collection is a blend of modern and traditional silhouettes (Source: PR handouts)

But how did you package the project?

SK: I met Orly at a fashion show, where she told me that with India and Israel celebrating 30 years of diplomatic relations, they wanted to do something. She was very impressed with our Operation Gulmarg and there we talked about many things and the seeds of this partnership were sown. This collection and campaign is very special to me because it represents two beautiful cultures coming together.

OG: I I’ve been very fortunate to always work with people who care about what they do and put their hearts into it. And that’s what I love about Sahil. Anything from his hand will turn out to be the most perfect thing ever.

So Orly, what do you like most about Indian culture?

OG: It is very difficult to define Indian culture because I think that I have not been able to see, witness and understand it in its entirety. But I love your food, I love the way people are coming up and we can talk about anything. But I just say it feels like home for me.

The initiative has further strengthened the close friendship and growing partnership between our two nations (Source: PR handout)

Do you find any similarities between the two cultures, in terms of fashion, food and people?

SK: In terms of fashion, making techniques bridesmaid dress pretty similar to how we do things in India. Culturally, families get together for dinners and evenings, and our love of food makes us quite similar. Both countries are quite young, as we are constantly making advances in technology and the people in both places are very warm and hospitable.

OG: Both countries are ruled by the same people and they also have a very long interesting history that still affects us in many ways establishing an interesting connection between Israel and India.

Any concluding comments?

OG: The role of culture is to blur political boundaries, people with similar passions or interests will work together no matter what their political views. People are brought closer together through culture, fashion and art.

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