Ashdeen Lilaowala is bridging centuries of craftsmanship with contemporary style and making slow, meaningful fashion relevant again.
By Alfea Jamal | Travel+Leisure Asia
Photo Credit: Ashdeen Lilaowala
Delicate, detailed, and deeply symbolic, Parsi Gara embroidery is more than just a textile tradition—it’s a visual language that tells stories of migration, memory, and meaning. Leading its revival is designer Ashdeen Lilaowala, who, through his eponymous brand, is bringing this intricate art form into the spotlight of global fashion.
Excerpts From The Interview With Ashdeen Lilaowala
T+L India: You’ve dedicated much of your career to the revival of Gara, a craft with such intricate symbolism. What do you believe is the most important story or message embedded within the motifs and designs of Gara that we should all be paying attention to today?
Photo Credit: Ashdeen Lilaowala
Ashdeen Lilaowala: The recurring visual vocabulary of Parsi Gara embroidery shows a deep reverence for nature, which is also one of the main tenets of Zoroastrianism. In the Zoroastrian faith, it’s considered one of mankind’s foremost duties to honour the seven creations—sky, water, earth, plants, animals, man, and fire. This bountifulness of nature is also at the heart of the craft. And this message is very relevant today.
T+L India: In your work, you merge ancient craft with contemporary style. How do you ensure that the spirit and artistry of Gara is not diluted when adapting it for today’s fashion landscape, where trends often prioritise speed over tradition?
Ashdeen Lilaowala: At Ashdeen, we enjoy the challenge of pushing the Parsi Gara tradition in new directions while making sure we stick to the basic framework. This has taken years of research into how the Gara has evolved over the years with the myriad geographical and cultural influences it has imbibed.
T+L India: The Parsi Gara embroidery is often seen as a symbol of cultural heritage. In your opinion, what does this craft tell us about the Parsi community’s history and its ongoing relationship with India’s broader cultural landscape?
Photo Credit: Ashdeen Lilaowala
Ashdeen Lilaowala: Parsi Gara embroidery is an important strand in the Indian embroidery repertoire. The aesthetic is an amalgamation of Persian, European, Chinese, Japanese, and Indian textile traditions. The evolution of the craft mirrors that of the small but impactful Parsi community.
T+L India: Your travels across Iran, India, and China gave you a unique perspective on Gara’s origins. How has this cross-cultural exploration influenced not only the garments you create but also your approach to design and craftsmanship?
Ashdeen Lilaowala: After graduating, I travelled across India, China, and Iran with the UNESCO Parzor foundation, documenting the Gara. I had the chance to interact with people’s personal collections in these geographies. The exercise has helped me understand the core essence of the Gara, and as much as I innovate with the craft, I don’t waver from its core. Also, more than a designer, I see myself as a keeper of stories.
T+L India: Gara embroidery is inherently slow, meticulous, and labour-intensive. In an era where fast fashion dominates the market, how do you convince a new generation of consumers that true craftsmanship, like Gara, is worth investing in—both in terms of time and value?
Photo Credit: Ashdeen Lilaowala
Ashdeen Lilaowala: There’s definitely a renewed interest in traditional textiles and techniques among a new generation of consumers, and designers like me, who are primarily textile designers and researchers, are more than happy to service this trend. Social media and our travelling exhibitions in India and across the globe have helped us educate and engage people on our traditional textiles, on karigars, on how long something takes, and what its intrinsic value is.
T+L India: You’ve mentioned that Gara is not just a technique, but a visual language. Can you elaborate on how you’ve seen the aesthetic of Gara evolve in recent years, and what new meanings or interpretations you believe it holds for today’s wearers?
Ashdeen Lilaowala: Over centuries, motifs, forms, and ideas have travelled across diverse geographies—Persia, Europe, China and the Far East, and India—culminating in this beautiful aesthetic of Parsi Gara that has mesmerised generations. Recent years have seen a resurgence in traditional textiles and techniques among consumers across India and overseas. There’s a growing awareness and love for the Parsi Gara among textile and sari enthusiasts across generations. It’s only fitting that Parsi Garas are passed down the generations and treasured as heirlooms.
T+L India: As someone who has successfully built a brand around a niche craft, what role do you think luxury and craft play in preserving cultural traditions?
Ashdeen Lilaowala: Is there a tension between accessibility and exclusivity, and how do you navigate that? Luxury and craft do play a role in preserving cultural traditions. There will always be a tension between accessibility and exclusivity. But fashion and textiles will always also trickle down the value chain. For instance, there are markets for both hand-done and machine-done Parsi Gara embroidery.
T+L India: Although Gara embroidery has traditionally been associated with the Parsi community, your clientele now spans various backgrounds. How has this shift in customer base influenced the perception of Gara beyond the Parsi community?
Photo Credit: Ashdeen Lilaowala
Ashdeen Lilaowala: It is known that the Parsi community is a small one. The Parsi Gara craft, as a result, is niche and only practised by a handful of people, which makes it important to actively document and conserve the craft, even as it constantly evolves.
Today, for instance, even among Parsis, the Gara is relegated to occasion wear and worn only for weddings, navjotes (Zoroastrian initiation ceremony) and other celebrations. So our effort remains the same across our audience, and it’s to open people’s minds and show them the possibilities of everything that the Gara could be. We’ve been fortunate to have so many non-Parsis interested and invested in this craft over the years.
T+L India: In today’s globalised world, many traditional crafts risk losing their authenticity. How do you ensure that Parsi Gara remains deeply rooted in its cultural and historical significance, even as it gains international recognition?
Ashdeen Lilaowala: It’s important to keep telling the stories again and again. The Parsi Gara is a living tradition. Every time we take it to international shores, we make it a point to provide context, whether it’s through fashion shows, exhibitions, events or collaborations.
T+L India: Looking ahead, what is your vision for the future of Gara and other traditional Indian crafts in the global fashion industry?
Ashdeen Lilaowala: How do you see your brand contributing to the evolution of these crafts in the coming years? All eyes are on India at the moment. We are finally being seen as innovators, design leaders, and a crucial market, as opposed to a source for cheap labour. Through demand, markets also shape the aesthetic sensibility of the time. India’s time is now. I find it thrilling to be part of the next frontier of the Gara, incorporating new nuances every season, telling new stories, and sparking new conversations.