Thursday, November 20, 2008

A Little About Nisha JamVwal by Nisha JamVwal








About Nisha By Nisha

I am an interior Architect and a columnist who established my brand in interior Design and then diversified into Fashion.



I am not a person who has lived my life to any preformatted rules. I am a prolific designer- the quintessential aesthete who has expressed my creativity in multiple forms.
My brand spans Interiors and Lifestyle along with Fashion- couture and prêt and Art. I have written books and articles ,designed the Jaipore Airport Lounge, done a thirty six episode Television Show on Star One with celebrities entitled "Home Shanti Home' where I visited the homes of film actors and politicians and artists and chatted with them intertwining their homes into the conversation. Also a show called 'Meri Saheli' where I sat in a different space of a home and gave some highlights on DIY and refurbishment with a modest budget.



Each experiment and every vignette in my life has been a step in my journey of growth and self-discovery, a kaleidoscopic part of life that enriches the fabric of my existence. There have been many hits and some bloopers, but hey, whats life without the roller coaster ups and downs which make us grow as individuals. Without these, life would be a meaningless transition from the womb to the tomb.



Career and work have been a priority. When I expanded my brand I did it with a desire to bring issues into the forefront with the peg of glamour, to bring about change in our society.

I almost cannot see a space or fabric or canvas without my mind and vision clicking with ideas to enhance it to its paramount potential aesthetic function in accordance with my vision -The creative impetus is for me a river that overflows to sustain varied fields along the way. Sometimes there is an upsurge of ideas; I find it difficult to keep pace with my mind.


Interior Architecture

Recreating interior spaces remains an abiding passion, nearly a twitch, a profession I qualified for in the US. Ever since I was a child I remember recreating a space mentally, or if I was allowed by friends then doing it in reality.


Whether it was Jaipore Airport Lobby, Lounge and Bar or friend Lisa's home which I painted from ceiling to skirting, it has been an extention of who I am and what I love. It has never been a job but a journey of love.


I don't want to compartmentalize life into boxes, into `musts' and `must not's this and not that…whatever, or into narrow career paths defined by the need for so-called specialisation that to me looks like confinement that beckons me to break free, just in the manner I urge to dismantle unnecessary walls in my interiors that seem to suffocate spaces into poky little areas.


Fashion: a diversification not only of brand 'Nisha JamVwal' but my creative journey....
....I am flowing with the current that has taken expression in different media, interiors, writing, art, craft and couture. When I return after a hard long day of work and most definitely play, the world at last recedes into stillness by a tranquil sea view. There is little intrusion. I take up the brush with a go at my canvas on my easel. It all flows into each other. It is all Art!


My Clothes Label

Creating clothes in fact makes for less birth pangs, it is the most natural extension of my personal love for style, color, fluidity. Ever since I can remember, I've seen clothes as expression of my 'self' … something that would stand me apart and providentially early travels around lent exposure and an international aspect.

I see my clothes as an experimental adventure created for the woman who does not conform to accepted norms of age, size and `beauty´, whose youth is in her mind-set and zest for life. I endeavour to give a youthful prêt line for the free spirited woman who boldly strides over barriers, of narrow traditionalism, preconceived confining notions of feminine, masculine, ´right´ or ´proper'.

Being A Page Three Personna

I am often known as a page three personna. I work hard but Play hard too and if that is the byproduct then I go along with the flow. It is however a personal preference that I am normally not too fond of the appendage 'socialite'; I have not used a last name, not my family success, not any famous person to piggy back to success. being on the board of institutions, judging at the panel of Design institutes, writing columns and books on traditional craft has been the path through determination, drive, education and entrepreneurship.

..........the ability I have always had to dream and most importantly to admire and celebrate the achievements and successes of my peers takes me through life's every rapid or pitfall - enthusing me only more toward achieving my dreams.

I don't lack a touch of narcissism, the love for fame and fortune, but to try and use anyone else's star dust is not my way, nor short cuts. That is not my idea of achievement. I am an idealist.

My raison d'être is my creative journey and my love for the arts, before I could write I could paint. My parents allowed me to paint, scribble and draw on the walls of their very beautiful home, a home strewn with art and antiques; they encouraged every artistic inclination of mine, to make models in three dimensions, to make castles in the beach of sand, to build Lego homes , to write poetry. Museums and bookshops held precedence over shops and purchases. Consumerism was not a priority, but experiences and travels and conversations with my parents built the fabric of my childhood.

Craft and Its Role In My Life

I work at saving our traditional craft in India, my association with the late craft activist Roshan Kalapesi was for me the start of a long passionate journey deep into the exotic world of Indian craft, its unique beauty and my romance with the handiwork of the Indian Craftsman.

Like the very fabric of life, it grew and took on a greater meaning as my world view of it increased, to learn the intricacies, the livelihood; the angst of our crafts and the masters who create inimitable masterpieces is to enter a world of artistic awakening. It started in a small way with my work to aid the traditional craftspersons of India, and have received focus and thrust with the beliefs of doyen of Indian craft and my hero, the late Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay.

It is my belief that craft and traditional arts are the ambassadors of peace and secularism within our country as well as to the world. It is the oldest communication tool between our civilizations and the other ancient civilizations. I do believe that we are severely neglecting it and if we do not wake up it is in fear of dying out with the Paramparik karagirs or traditional families of craftsmen turning to technology as means of a more lucrative livelihood.

My Love for India

I realize that to be part of making India into the 'superstar in the world' scenario, one must stop denigrating the government and instead become part of India's new age of growth, if possible a motivator of the growth and metamorphosis of this country. 'Doing our bit for our motherland', 'giving back to the society one takes from' - these are not lofty sound bites to impress; they are a reality that has intertwined itself into the fabric of my life, in some ways since I was a teenager, but even more so in the last few years.

I may acquiesce to help and aid the governing machinery one day by working with them, in order to augment the efforts of our governing bodies to take this country into the new age successfully.

It is frustrating to see our poor infrastructure in comparison to other countries, to see disorganization, the corruption we face in everyday life in India, sluggish growth and improvement (if any ) in the infrastructure of Bombay especially, and I want to be part of a more aggressive change in our basic infrastructural changes. We have a desperate urge to see and augment change in our country


2 comments:

  1. Hi Nisha-I am really impressed by what you and your achievements...and do share your views...we all think same and do hope, we will be able to make a difference...And we wish you all the best on your dreams...

    I added you on facebook..I had heard of you from my wife, who knew you well...

    Take care and all the best..

    Sudesh Menon

    ReplyDelete
  2. thank you Sudesh, and I feel if all of us who feel this way can get together we can make a difference to India, to the way its moving into the next phase, with a strong world presence.

    ReplyDelete

Nisha JamVwal Roller Coaster Called Life