Chicory Chai

A student of National Institute of Fashion Technology, India with a Master’s degree from the Creative Academy, Milan, Italy, Himani worked under the mentorship of Mr. Giampiero Bodino, the Creative Director of Compagnie Financière Richemont SA, Genève and the founder of his fine jewellery label, Giampiero Bodino. While she has worked with esteemed international names like Cartier, Ralph Lauren, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Piaget & Mont Blanc, she has remained true to her roots. Her curiosity and attachment to the Indian arts & crafts show through her work for UNDP, FICCI and MMTC, India.
Her work symbolizes the ‘raw’ and ‘rustic’, the inevitable essence of the unpretentious rural living. Her designs talk of effortless laidback luxury for the tamed urban souls awaiting emancipation. In her work, one often sees references to her ancestral town in southern Maharashtra, which she talks of as the Golden Ages of her life – climbing trees, milking buffaloes, making dung cakes, ploughing fields and sowing memories.
Chicory Chai was founded in 2013 with a sole intention of telling these stories as an ode to the roots she is so attached to. It’s her way of guarding that legacy, far away from it.
Among many accolades, Himani has been the semi-finalist for Vogue India Fashion Fund 2015. She is currently based out of Gurgaon – NCR, India. She loves history, antiques, food & horses, with the same significance.