Ashley Radjarame - No Place Like Home

Amid Puducherry's ochre walls and slow living, model of the moment Ashley Radjarame dons dreamy florals and tactile fashion. And it is here, far from the flashing lights of fashion's greatest runways that she feels right at home, finds AKANKSHA KAMATH.

- Akanksha Kamath

Twenty-three-year-old Ashley Radjarame’s gliding walk on the runway, thick dark hair and broad, brush-stroke eyebrows have won her a top spot in all the golden ticket shows at fashion weeks. We’ve seen her poured into a gossamer sheer white dress at Jacquemus, in black and silver armour at Louis Vuitton Cruise, feline and serious in all-black at Prada and, away from the strobe lights of the catwalk, in thrifted and forgotten fashion from charity shops and Vinted—her favourite places to collect off-duty looks.

Yet, Radjarame, aka ‘that Prada girl’ (she started her career hand-picked to walk the Prada spring/summer 2020 show), has never stepped into clothes made by an Indian designer—until this cover shoot in her hometown of Puducherry, where she returns every year to holiday with her family. Her favourite from a rack of Rahul Mishra, Falguni Shane Peacock, Bloni and Huemn? A tiered Amit Aggarwal A-line gown with flowers affixed to its front, to match the grapevine-plaited hair of three women passing by at a local bus station. “This dress was so pretty; big and colourful, it really represents India to the T,” she says of the couture confection. “I don’t know enough about Indian fashion, but I am here to learn,” she reveals candidly. Her trip to the city is never complete without a visit to the local sari shop, where she stocks up on a few silk saris for special occasions and festivals back in France.