After studying at the American College in London, Sonya Battla studied fashion design from the UK’s famous Central Saint Martin’s. In 1999, she officially opened up an outlet in Zamzama, where she stayed for almost 15 years until recently, when she relocated her studio on E-Street. “I was contemplating it for a while. In recent times, Zamzama lanes have become so crowded and there is always a parking issue. Here, the neighbourhood is excellent; there is Xanders, N-Pro and Peng. Not that I am complaining about my former neighbourhood, it had its own charm, but frankly speaking, the place got overcrowded,” says Battla.
“Zamzama office was a small office. I used to take less number of bridal orders because I couldn’t handle my clients there. This, however, is a beautiful store and will have a beautiful story to tell,” she continues.
The studio, housing casual wear on the ground floor and formal wear on the first floor, is squeezed between Xanders and Nabila’s N-Pro. It has a very subtle, spiritual feel to it with a crème coloured floor and the same shade walls, contrasting perfectly with what she offers — from scarves to kurtis, long skirts to bridals. “I tried to have a spiritual ‘Zen’ appeal for my studio, even though people said that I can’t have fashion and spirituality under one roof; however, I very well managed. You can be modern, yet simple.”
Over the passage of time, Battla has set a certain pattern, she puts up solo shows every once in a while and then completely disappears from the mainstream. “I do shows where I am invited and not the ones I have to pay for,” she says. The designer feels that there is an eruption of designers in the country and because of that, she’d rather stick to her working module silently and focus on bringing finesse to her collection.
“Last year, the Alchemy Show I did at Southbank Centre in London is really what I enjoy doing,” she adds. “This was where we discussed how South Asia is fast becoming a copy market; that kind of nexus is important to connect and talk about.” You need to get up and leave a stamp on the world market; that is essential.”
There isn’t just one person who can be called Battla’s true muse or inspiration, she looks up to many. “My mother and yes, most definitely my dadi, though I never got to meet her. They are not fashion victims, they dress up as they like to.” Besides that, she looks up to Simone de Beauvior and really appreciates her writing style. From film, she finds Brigitte Bardot and Sharon Tate inspiring. She has immense respect for business woman Jacqueline Novagratz from Acumen Fund and from Pakistan, former journalist and current diplomat Maleeha Lodhi holds the spot.
One person she always greatly admired was her Dean at Central Saint Martin’s, Louise Wilson, who has, thus far, been the greatest inspiration for her. “Back in school, as she disciplined us, she told us she never wanted fashion to be a mockery of entertainment,” recalls Battla.
Her next venture in line is launching an e-store. “I want to target the global market. Some of my stuff can compete with Zara, so why not purchase my shirt online instead?” she says.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 4th, 2014.
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