Sparkling Through Bangkok – Local Indian Designers

Hi guys! 

My name is Tejale Bellani and I am a local blogger here in Bangkok under the Instagram handle @tejalebellz. 

I started my Instagram blog around 2 years ago but I was not really sure about the direction I wanted to go in. I had always thought about the approach of becoming a lifestyle blogger and recording everything and anything around me. However, earlier this year, I realised that I wanted to use my Instagram platform to support small and local businesses in the country. My end goal is to become a one stop shop for all local businesses. Ideally, I’d like consumers can easily navigate through my page to find things they may need and know exactly where and when to access them from. 

As a little girl in, I still remember watching the cheesy Bollywood romantic movies (which I still kinda love, haha) and being completely in awe of the gorgeous jewellery and outfits that the actors and actresses wore during festivities.

Living in Bangkok my whole life meant we were always attending weddings functions and parties within our beautiful community. Whenever I would travel to India with my family as a child, I would always admire the different types of Indian outfits and the specific details on each one of them. Each part of India has its own unique style and fashion based on their climate, geographical location, and cultural values. Indian outfits can be extremely versatile in many ways – nowadays we are automatically drawn towards the different embodies and work we see on different outfits. Some examples are thread work, mirror work, beaded work, funky prints, hanging tassels and so much more!

As I said before, living in Bangkok means you always need to be ready with at least one Indian outfit, if not two. It is always wedding season in our city, so one must always have something they can easily pull out from their wardrobe. One of the many perks of living here is the wide variety and access to our local Indian designers in the city. I am so excited to share some of my local favourite designers that I have worn and worked with. You never know, they may come in extremely handy for you when thinking about what you want to wear to your next wedding function and prepare yourself to stand out from the rest of the crowd. 

Design by Simmi

Anjali Thakral 

Kiyaara

Kiyaara is also another brand of which I have very recently come across when we had collaborated. Her pieces are very elegant, and I would say they surely cater to the traditional aspects of Indian clothing which I adore! Despite her outfits being on the traditional side, I still found them very playful and easy, unlike many other traditional outfits which don’t leave any space for comfort or to change them around. I wore a beige lengha with a simple beige crop top and a pink cape jacket to put it all together. What I loved about the outfit is that there was no need of a dupatta and having the cape there gave a very flowy and feminine feel to the overall outfit. 

Pavni

Pavni is surely one of the first ever Indian designers I have known about here in Bangkok. She is known for effortlessly fusing traditional Indian elements with modern influences – something I truly LOVE about her and her brand. Her clients are addicted to her perfect fit, and her ability to create pieces that look fresh even ten years later - no easy feat in this age of fast fashion. I have worn Pavni for multiple events; my favorite outfit which was made for me was a printed pair of pants with a crop top– the colors were so funky and bold and I must say it was something I was not sure about but I know I can always trust Pavni as she will always make sure I feel my best in anything she designs for me. Another of many outfits I have worn from Pavni is a simple bright yellow gown with a sexy cut on the left-hand side and an embroidery patch on the left shoulder. This gown was so simple but so classy, it received so many compliments, and once again I trusted Pavni and she made me look phenomenal in something I would have never ever picked out by myself!

Sumedha Seghal Design

Sumedha Seghal Design reflects who she is a young, confident, daring and sassy woman. She takes inspiration from both the west and the east to create unique designs that she hopes to make her clients feel confident and daring when they're wearing her outfits. What I admire about her brand is her elegance in every outfit, but also the chance she takes to experiment with different styles and colors that I have never seen before. Just like this, I wore a printed crop top lengha set – the lengha had leaves printed on it (something I would not usually opt for by myself); and the crop top was a stunning halter sequence crop top in red with frills at the bottom. Again, something very new and fun for me to experiment with – an outfit that received a lot of compliments!

Thank you so much for reading my post and I hope you got an insight to our wonderfully talented local Indian designers here in Bangkok! I am honored to have this platform to share my views on our local Indian designers. If you would like to know more, please feel free to reach out. If you are interested in knowing how I am running my initiative to #supportlocalbusinesses, then please feel free to reach out and get in touch with me. I am happy to help support in any way I can – big or small – it doesn’t matter. Get in touch with me for product reviews, collaborations and to help spread the word about your local businesses.

Be sure to check out my Instagram page too! 

Instagram @tejalebellz