Indeewari Yapa Abeywardena Designing For The Modern Woman
By Sadhana Senanayake
INDI by Indi, is a dynamic fashion house run by Indeewari Yapa Abeywardena. It has a designer section that targets red carpet and special events.
There are also sub labels within the brand, such as iBRIDE by INDI, which does for bridal wear for the entire family, KIDi by INDI for the mum and their little fashionistas, and PETi by INDI a maternity line. “Every woman is or can be an INDI woman,” says Indi, “We design for all ages, sizes, and for all walks of life.”
Indi comes from a historical political family, but she says, “I had no interest whatsoever in politics!” On how she decided to follow the path of a fashion designer, Indi says, “Over past years I came to realise that good fashion design will probably never be equated with a cure for a disease or a solution for world hunger, however, the most important thing is that fashion can make a person feel better.
It is not something purely superficial; as appearance can have profound effects personally and to the world at large, so I wanted people to look beautiful.”
Her most recent collection was showcased at Colombo Fashion Week 2015 called “Silk Road Folk”. It was a mythical, ethereal collection, and Indi explains that the concept was to take traditional folkloric textiles and reinterpret them into modern designs.
“For the collection, I used textured prints and embroidery to create that vintage feel and to show the influence of Japanese furnishing.”
As the name suggests, the inspiration behind the collection comes from the Silk Road, but she also drew inspiration from Japanese folklore and 1920’s women empowerment movement.”.
Like any good designer, Indi follows a particular design aesthetic and sticks to it, “It is very important to have a set of principles that come through in your work.” She says, “As an old school fashion designer with new conceptual ideas, my aesthetic also moulds according to what the client wants.
For her next move, Indi is now getting ready for Colombo Fashion Week Resort Wear and a few other shows along the way. “I hope to expand iBRIDE by INDI, and personally expand my creativeness and explore administration side of Sri Lankan Fashion Industry more, to help develop the industry for the future.”
