Makeover for Satya Paul

When growing up in the late '80s, Masaba Gupta often watched her mother, TV actor Neena Gupta, drape Satya Paul saris while going out. Fluid fabrics and bright colours were the brand's signature and it was this that, in a way, influenced Masaba's creativity. Today, the 24-year-old designer has been appointed the fashion director of Satya Paul with a two-year contract. "When I was approached by Genesis Colors about a month ago, I was ecstatic and shocked. In our industry, another designer has never been asked to head a different label," says Masaba, in a telephonic conversation from Mumbai.

Apart from this new profile, the designer will continue to work for her own brand, Masaba, which she set up in 2009. "I will not be handling the business angle; my job is to give Satya Paul a more contemporary look. I do not intend to tamper with the brand's USP; I only want to leave my stamp on it," she says. Though she refuses to divulge more details on the first Satya Paul collection that she will be designing, she does mention that "it will not bear the same motifs as Masaba since Satya Paul is a more sophisticated brand and such drastic changes may not be accepted".

On the development, Sanjay Kapoor, MD of Genesis Colors, says, "Masaba embodies the perfect Satya Paul woman — she's young, smart, confident, and stylish. Among the designers we were in talks with, Masaba's creative energy was closest to the Satya Paul brand". Interestingly, the new Satya Paul collection and the next Masaba range will both be out around the same time — in March-April 2013.

Apart from this, actor-model Lisa Ray, too, will also design a limited edition wedding sari collection for Satya Paul. The proceeds from the sale will go to India Innovation Research Centre (IIRC), a non-profit cancer research body that started the "Living with Cancer" initiative with Ray last year. "After my cancer treatment, I met the love of my life. Satya Paul helped me celebrate my wedding and this exciting new phase of my life with a beautiful sari. So I am partnering with Satya Paul to present a line of saris that express the shades and colours of my life today," said Ray in a statement.

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