Raw Silk Green

Raw Silk Green. Seven-year-old.

Rituvu: Kolkata’s Hemanta (pre-winter) or Vasanta (Spring)

"This piece was a left behind from an ethnic wear set. I love its texture, weave and colour. I did not want a tailor cutting it mercilessly, so I have been sitting on it for a while." – Debarati Roy

They say looks can be deceiving. And a living example is this lady with tattoos and angular features. She comes across as a rough-and-tough taskmaster. But delve and you will unearth her fiercely-guarded, soft heart. Over a cup of dark, really dark coffee, she soulfully (and rather unexpectedly) converses about Hindu Gods, occult practices and alternative fashion. No wonder then that her clothing style is ever-evolving. “Like an amoeba… which is so like me,” she says. On a work day you will see her pirouetting in a cotton top teamed with a sari and by the evening slipping into her distressed denims and plaid shirt, with boots. “I like taking risks,” she says about her style and life. The Kolkata-based language training academy that she started on a shoestring budget says all. It pushes her to travel over 25 days in a month, sometimes at the drop of a hat. “I do this (travel) with my saris, pants, shirts, tees and chunky jewellery that I NEVER forget stuffed wildly into an always-ready-to-go weekender,” she says joyously.

"Thank you so much for this. I love the handmade detail. And like the sari bag it came in." – Debarati Roy