#DesignDecember with fashion designer Nikhil Thampi

With the festivities just around the corner, hold your trinkets close and your mistletoe closer. We are celebrating the festive season with a bang! For #DesignDecember, we delved deeper into understanding what design means to the people of design. From the runway to the hallway, the core fundamental of design as an expression has seeped right into the heart of everyone who celebrates its notes. Perhaps the greatest and most notable similarity between interior and fashion design is that they are both the means by which an individual can express him or herself freely, which loosely translates into – liberation. “A freedom to express myself” echoes celebrity fashion designer, Nikhil Thampi design philosophy.

From couture to the couch, Nikhil introduces us into his starry world. “I am a student of psychology but I have dabbled in the various field of arts. While fashion was a field that was my comfort zone, taking the plunge into the field of interior design was in my top to-do list” he says. Glamorous, urban and sharp geometry illustrates Thampi’s silhouettes. Earlier this year, he forayed into interior design with his bespoke collection of furniture with Jaipur-based Hermosa Design Studio. The three-floored flamboyant store displays the signature collection emulating clean lines— think suede sofas with gilded metal or a cupboard bearing the brand’s logo that also doubles as a door handle. “A minimal yet impactful design drove the entire collaboration.”On being quipped on the one design principle that has been with since the beginning of his career, he says, “ I am not technically sound on designing. I have learned everything on the job. My principle is very instinctive. I had no formal training and because I had no rules to swear by, it was easier to break them. I have no inhibitions when it comes to design.” The reflection of which is his slick red carpet gowns and daring pantsuits.

When his design allied from apparel to decor, he began to look for inspirations, gathering techniques, which Nikhil explains is the need of the millennium. “I’m well-versed with what’s happening globally. I religiously follow trends, styles on digital platforms. I’m very inspired by the works of the award-winning architect, Zaha Hadid. The bold lines, curvatures, evokes a trickling sense of excitement! That’s the aspirational value – I work hard to emulate the body of work that she has created.”A trickling sense of impulse led us to ask his #DecemberDefinition