Diva'ni is an Indian fashion luxury brand - collaboration between Yash Raj Films - arguably Indian cinema's biggest and most loved name, and KBSH Pvt. Ltd. - one of the largest and independent heritage fashion brands based out of New Delhi. Diva'ni is possibly the world's first clothing brand scripted by cinema and directed by fashion. The brand recently made inroads in Pakistan, with its flagship store opening doors to the city of Lahore. Aiming to get into the business of fashion, BR Research met with the brand's Creative Director - Sanya Dhir who was visiting Lahore for the launch of Diva'ni flagship store at MM Alam Road. Following are the edited excerpts.

<B>BR Research: Tell us about yourself? And what is Diva'ni?</B>

<B>Sanya Dhir:</B>I head Diva'ni as the creative director. Formally, I have been trained in fashion luxury retail and fashion marketing. I am from the fourth generation in a family where fashion and designing runs in the blood. What lead me to Diva'ni? Well, there is a very stereotypical attachment in relation to traditional and ethnic wear back in India. In 2007, the entire realisation was that the 'Sarree' in India was very stereotyped; the consumption, requirement and the thought process suddenly changed where Sarree became modern, chic and trendy. It was this sudden change in the newer generation that actually led me to join the family business first, which then led me to meeting Aditya Chopra and formulating Diva'ni. Since I co-own the brand, I have been with Diva'ni from the time it was formed. The project was formally launched in 2013 in India.

Diva'ni is a business venture of KBSH Pvt. Ltd., which is the fabric manufacturer, and Yah Yash Raj Films Pvt. Ltd. So, in terms of business venture, it comes from two legends for over 60 years in their fraternities, which gives the brand a strong backbone.

Diva'ni is probably also the only brand in the world that is a fine mix of cinema and fashion. When we talk about cinema, it doesn't mean that we are selling something that you see an actress wearing in a Bollywood movie; what we offer is a very fine mix of perception and reality. Cinema is all about elusions, perceptions and the dream-like zone, and that is what Diva'ni's essence is ie to transfer you to such a world where your dreams can come true.

As a bride, you go through so many visions, thoughts and dilemmas when you are choosing the outfit. We as a brand don't look at this as a sales opportunity, but more as an experience-to-consume journey. This is what a cinema-inspired brand really means; it doesn't mean that we are selling only Bollywood clothing. The brand's underlying vision is about this inbuilt desire to look better every day; we are catering to that desire by converting it into reality.

Hence, in essence we don't typically work on a sale-model but a model that is experience oriented. The brand is 100 percent customisable - we offer bespoke customisation in our best possible capacity because we believe that we sell ensembles and clothing that are a reflection of the client. Also at Diva'ni you are catered for in a similar way whether you come in for luxury prêt or highest bridal couture. I would stress that Personalization and experience-oriented consumption is our key.

<B>BRR: Diva'ni has been in India for three years now. How are you doing there?</B>

<B>SD:</B> In India, we cater to a very large inspirational audience. Typically, it's a mix of HNIs, and a mix of upper middle to upper class. That makes three zones that we cater to, as we also have a regular retail division in India. It has been three years, and we have a solid base of clients not only in India, but also abroad as Delhi is a metropolitan hub with a lot of influx of international audiences. In three years, our entire experience has been phenomenal especially when we are the kind of brand that plays the underdog in most of its marketing strategies even when we do celebrity wardrobe or personalised celebrity wardrobes; we don't go around making a propaganda out of it, as the market we cater to does not want that kind of attention. The brand's craft aspect is also very strong. And when you are a serious brand, playing short lived gimmicks doesn't really take you up. Plus, when the association of the brand is so authentic, you don't need those kinds of spills.

We are working very closely on our four verticals: retail, couture, in-film styling and personalised celebrity wardrobes. All of them are catered by individual teams. These four verticals are parallel to each other, but they are not really dependent on one another; If I have created something for the films, it may or may not be a part of the retail or couture, and vice versa. The films work on the visions of how the directors want the designing to happen. Actually the craft and film work is intertwined, and a lay person tends to get a feeling that maybe what I see in Yash Raj Films is what I will see in a Diva'ni store.

<B>BRR: What made you decided to enter Pakistani market?</B>

<B>SD:</B> I keep telling everyone that the 200 million population is a good enough reason to come to Pakistan. I know there are dilemmas attached to being an Indian brand coming to Pakistan on both sides, but I think its high time we move past that and take that big step, because the people, the culture, the traditions, the appreciation for art and craft, the heritage and history are all so similar. I think there are all the more reasons to be here that are much more beautiful in their existence than looking at the red tape or to the wrong side of it. This is my seventh trip to Pakistan, and I fall in love with Lahore even more.

Also, form the market point of view, there is a huge potential; the culture itself is the core reason why you would be here, because we are into traditional and occasion wear, which is also what people here are fanatic about.

<B>BRR: Entering Pakistan; is it yours first out-of-country store?</B>

<B>SD:</B> Actually, we work very closely with markets in London, Dubai and Singapore, but we have not ended up opening a standalone store as of now at any of these locations. Yes, our Lahore store is our first international standalone store and that too in the couture category. In fact, the India couture store is still under process, and the Pakistan couture store has gone up already!

We are bringing couture, in-film styling and celebrity wardrobe to Pakistan as of now. I would really like to style celebrities here, and also be a part of films here. Since it is a couture format, we will only have luxury prêt from the retail division.

<B>BRR: Any plans to move to other cities like Karachi?</B>

<B>SD:</B> We were actually in a predicament whether to come to Lahore or Karachi first when setting to launch Diva'ni in Pakistan. Karachi to me is very close to how Mumbai is, and Lahore is more like Delhi. With the kind of response that we are hoping for, Karachi is definitely on our radar and so is Islamabad in the future.

<B>BRR: How will the pricing work?</B>

<B>SD:</B> The only difference in the pricing is the currency conversion rate. There is no inflation in prices. We work backwards with our production to ensure that there is something for everyone who comes in to be a Diva'ni bride or have a Diva'ni ensemble.