Fifth Dimension

Tarun Tahiliani never ceases to surprise. His latest venture, Ahilia Homes, is not just a fragment of his name, but also an extension of his design prowess.

- Nidhi Raj Singh

I vividly remember meeting designer Tarun Tahiliani for the first time in 2008. His tall frame loomed over me and most others waiting to interview him before his show at India Fashion Week. As an earnest (read: anxious) reporter for Fashion Design Council of India (it used to bring out Designer Mode magazine back then), I had a long list of questions. As we sat down for the interview in quietest possible corner of MSA in Ashoka Hotel, he asked me in his baritone voice: “Yes kid, what would you like to know?” Needless to say, I froze.

My piece was more about his persona grata than his collection.

I met Tarun on several occasions after that. More often than not, it was for a different reason, a new project, unlike the previous one and yet connected on a sublime level. He has dabbled into designing exquisite rugs and jewellery, offered patronage to antique Oslers and many things in between, while staying strong in Indian fashion fraternity.

And all this is only a follow up to setting up Ensemble in 1987 with his wife Sailaja —what can be touted as first-of-its-kind multi-designer store — and establishing his eponymous label. Most designers I talked to told me stories of his keen sense for fashion and a knack for discovering talent. Designer Ashish Soni, who is among those celebrating their two decades in Indian fashion, told me in an earlier interview about his first meeting with Tarun. “I was busy in my non-descript studio in Lajpat Nagar, when Tarun came looking for me after tracking me down from a store in Bangalore that retailed my menswear. He walked up the staircase and told me that he would like to stock my creations.” Like me, Ashish too, was speechless.