Nazar  

Nazar - the name is synonymous with beautiful pieces in Lucknowi embroidery. Created with style and excellence, it caters to the woman who knows her mind. ‘Nazar’ is a venture started 10 years back by sisters Indu Abbot and Kamini Singh. They both have a great compatibility, which they feel is very important to start any venture.

It all started as a hobby and they started putting exhibitions at their residence and the very first one was at Hotel Vikram, the response was a total sellout. Slowly and steadily they started working in a proper way and improved their creations.

Both the sisters do the designing together and every piece takes 10 days, which is the minimum time to complete. Everything is made in white first and then they play with colours, which includes the dyeing and colour combinations.

According to Indu Abbot, "We study the market and price our creations affordably. People look for a good formal collection in cottons and that is what we specialize in. As we have no formal training, we make something which people miss in the market. That’s why we even make in XL and XXL sizes. The fabrics that we use are of best quality... crisp and transparent as they give a very good feel and fall very well. We are exporting Indo-western stuff a lot. I think it's best to specialize in one thing; you can’t be a jack-of-all-trades. People know Nazar with lucknowi. We don’t go and pick up products, we have our whole unit here and we design it up well. We have raised Nazar as a good brand name."

The product range includes sarees, suits, short kameez and kurtas. The kurtas start from Rs 850 onwards, suits are Rs 1550 and Rs 1850 and a good formal collection is between Rs 2500-3100 and for a good suit the maximum is Rs 3500. The cloth used is Voiles, Organdies, and chanderies with delicate embroideries in chikankari, cutwork, sequins, mukaish and jariwork.

The basic crowd buying from Nazar is the elite crowd as clients come from as far as Faridabad, Gurgoan and Noida. In summer Nazar puts up four exhibitions in cities like Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Calcutta and even Dubai. This time they plan to put up in Ludhiana and Jullendar. The response has been overwhelming which has encouraged them to do so many exhibitions quite regularly. The range has to planned months in advance, as 500- 600 suits are needed for variety.

Abbot further elaborates, “My clients feel that they get their money’s worth here; also they don’t have a problem selecting the stuff as they find what they want. As for location I have my boutique in Patel Nagar and it’s a central place. And also my residence is here so it's convenient as my children and family also need some of my time. I would like to open a branch is South Delhi as well, as I have many clients from there."

Now the Nazar team is into summer stuff. The place is full of crepes, zardozis and satin. So their major thrust are summer collections, but on personal request trousseaus can be done too. They are into cottons in a big way and it’s a vast line which itself takes up all the time. As for winter wear the basic fabrics used are crepes, georgettes, velvets and Lycra, which did very well. Another specialty is Lucknowi work on crepes, pure georgettes and leheriyas. They feel that lucknowi is evergreen which will never go out of fashion. An affordable range according to them is anywhere between Rs 2000-3100 which sells quickly. They are also exporting to USA and London, and planning to put up exhibitions abroad.

Indu personally feels that it’s very important for women these days to come up and be on their own. “Every person has a hidden talent which should come out. After working, you know what life is all about plus the respect you command. I love my work, it’s like an addiction to me. My family has been very supportive and encouraged me a lot. I have to travel a lot, but I enjoy it as you interact with new people and become worldly wise. I would advise every mother to try and make the best of her talent and let her daughter be independent.”

Text and Pics by Jyoti Narang