Maison Audmi began as a desire to destigmatize the idea of the man in a dress. A combination of the Hindi words Aadmi (Man) and Aurat (Woman), the label is a tongue-in-cheek homage to androgyny in menswear.
Urvashi Lele
Noticing a shortage in the market for dresses available in the menswear section, Urvashi Lele established Maison Audmi to make beautiful clothes for the male body. The political climate over the past few years, seeing a lot of movement towards social change, the topic of erasing toxic masculinity got Urvashithinking about the cause of its existence in the first place. Lele began to notice the many restrictions placed on men when it came to their creative expression and decided to do something about it. Thus, Maison Audmi was born.
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Maison Audmi brings womenswear to menswear, therefore the garments embody the silhouettes traditionally found in womenswear.The designs bring romantic shapes and soft silhouettes to break the boundaries of traditional men’s fashion. Handcrafted in a cozy little atelier in South Mumbai, each garment is made using precision tailoring techniques used in bespoke menswear design. The handloom fabrics are sourced from artisanal weavers around India or sourced from dead stock suppliers to keep the process as sustainable as possible.
With a decade of experience working as an animator, Urvashi is a self-taught fashion designer who intends on using her design knowledge to create visually striking pieces of clothing. Lele has a BA Hons in CG Arts and Animation and has lived and worked in the UK in animation, fashion and theatre. In 2016, she moved to LA for her MFA in Animation from UCLA. “When I design, my goal is simple; to dress the male form in a beautiful garment. If it is socially acceptable to see a woman in trousers, I see no reason why it’s not okay for a man to wear a dress.” Urvashi works as an animator between Los Angeles and Mumbai for the past 10 years, and Maison Audmi marks her debut as a designer albeit in the fashion space. She was drawn to the field of animation due to her love for movement, and the same translates over to her love for fashion design. Urvashi stands enamoured by the fluidity and texture of fabric and the process of clothing the body. Life has always been a battle between fashion design and animation for the young entrepreneur. In fact, a lot of the sources of inspiration for her personal animated pieces come from the world of fashion. As time went on, she kept asking herself why she couldn’t do both and here she is, all set to present her labour of love, Maison Audmi to the world.
When asked as to why she believes that this is the perfect time to introduce India to a label like Maison Audmi, Urvashi affirms that, “With the Millenial and Gen Z generation being more vocal about important social issues, I think this is the right time for Maison Audmi to come into being. There is a greater demand for more acceptance and freedom of expression of gender and sexuality. Although the fashion industry is slow to change, the change is most certainly taking place.”
There is no single definition of the Maison Audmi man - He is someone who wears what he wants, whenever he wants, and pulls it off effortlessly. He is playful and loves to wear beautiful clothes that make him feel beautiful. He redefines masculinity whilst maintaining an air of strength and fearlessness.
Each Maison Audmi piece will be available on www.maisonaudmi.com in November 2021 by appointment only, with an emphasis on made to order pieces tailored to the client’s measurements. Look book requests and orders can be placed via social media (Instagram) and Whatsapp.
Contact : @maisonaudmi (Instagram) +91 9870296616
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