Answering the question “Where are you from?” has always been a tricky one for me. If, like me, you are a citizen of mixed Indian and, through the paternal line, European ancestry and have grown up in Kolkata, there is no simple answer. It’s often difficult to explain your origins to people who have never been in a similar situation. Unless your answer is a straightforward home address, you’ll likely have to end up explaining your life story to someone who only wanted to place you in a geographical box to find common interests. The same holds for Nadir Nahdi, a 30-year-old Londoner of Yemeni-Indonesian-Kenyan-Pakistani descent. He tells me he has never quite felt like he belonged. “I wasn’t enough of anything to feel anything,” Nahdi says. This is why he created BENI, a cultural space and YouTube channel that celebrates people just like him.
Nahdi informs me that he creates cultural products and experiences for a generation growing up in the West with multiple identities – one culture at home, a different one outside. “I explore how they navigate this space, and I create experiences for these people through products and content, primarily video. I intend to show we don’t have to decide to be one culture or the other. We can be all of them and create something new.”
NEW ROLE, NEW RULE
As the first Indian woman to win two Michelin stars and a new mother, chef Garima Arora shares her recipe to a well-rounded life full of flavours, tradition, and ambition
HUMBLE HERITAGE
India’s multicultural facets and diverse approach to food, fashion, and life has inspired many, and this brand is paying the ultimate tribute to the country
CLEAN SLATE
What are the beauty secrets of Gen Z representative Khushi Kapoor, the firstever ambassador of a much-loved Korean beauty brand?
PORE PERFECTION
What is oil gritting and why is everyone talking about it?
ELEVATING QUIET LUXURY
This Italian fashion house is consistent in its efforts to make subdued luxury look cool
A LOVE LIKE THIS
After a picturesque show that got everyone talking, Amrita Khanna and Gursi Singh of Lovebirds speak about their new collection
SOME KIND OF BRILLIANCE
How do you detail a sparkling four-decade long career journey in a half-hour chat? By uncovering the things that matter the most: A passion for design, a love for gemstones, and a dream of wanderlust. In what is probably her 40th visit to the country for Bulgari’s A Roman Holi gala), Lucia Silvestri, Bulgari’s Creative Director, talks to Grazia about the things that she holds closest
STRAIGHT-TALKING
Going beyond being a nod to tradition, embracing our heritage is an exploration of timeless craft, details Monica Shah of luxury label JADE
Label ALERT
This month, form and fabric shape different philosophies on dressing
YOUNG CONNOISSEURS
Meet Rudritara Shroff, the 16-year-old who brought together revered names in Indian art to create artworks that aid neonatal growth