Not only is Atsu different in his distinct Naga (charming) looks but his work stands out among the plethora of blings and repetitive work. When I first heard of him, it was in 2007–he was making his debut at the Lakme Fashion Week. And I proudly cheered  for Atsu just as I did when Esther Jamir walked down the ramp in 2004 for Lakme Fashion Week, the first Naga model to get on the big stage. It didn’t help that she is related from my mother’s side of the family–My parents sat through the entire Fashion Week on FTV just to get a glimpse of Esther. (BTW, she is making her foray into Bollywood with “My Friend Hitler” where she plays a rock artist)

Then there was Imcha Imchen at Lakme Fashion Week Spring Summer 2010 –he was one of the Gennext designers. He stood out with his use of organic silks and cottons with vegetable dyes- influenced by the Naga traditional attire -most of them were made by the Naga local weavers. It was a big hit with the vegans. And I remember writing to every fashion blog I knew about Imcha.–not that he needed my ‘PR skills’ but I just wanted to show off our little Naga boy Also it didn’t help that he was my friend’s friend’s brother. You see all Nagas are interconnected somehow or the other and I’m pretty sure–one of our readers is a sibling, cousin, classmate or village-mate of the super talented Atsu Sekhose. Let us know if you are

Atsu Sekhose

Atsu Sekhose is an Alumni of National Institute of Fashion Technology, Delhi. He interned with Tarun Tahiliani and briefly with Zara and every time I walk into Zara I think of him–In an interview with rediff.com, he said that he has been deeply influenced by the fashion scene in Nagaland and his mother who loved Vogue and his sister who loved dressing up. Tell me one Naga who doesn’t? We’d rather be dead than caught wearing unfashionable clothes and be stamped ‘bosti’  :D Atsu has showcased his work from Spring Summer 2009 through Autumn Winter 2011.

After the fashion week, I remember seeing a tweet from Rhea Kapoor “Love Atsu” and everyone including Sonam Kapoor went into a frenzy. A lot of them had asked “WHAT is Atsu?” But today, we will hear no such questions, because Atsu has become a huge name making us very very proud. Maybe if I run into any of the Bollywood biggies, I’d save the trouble of they warming up to me and just introduce myself as Atsu’s cousin. :D.

Some of his work we love:

We see a lot of celebrities wear his clothes now but what got me all excited was when Sonam Kapoor wore this amazing black gown from his Autumn Winter 2011 collection at an event. Only she could have done justice to it which she did.

Pernia Qureshi is a Fashion Stylist–She did the styling in Aisha and at the movie promotions for the girls. She has been spotted not once but twice in Atsu. And trust me, she is one of the best dressed in the country. All the more merit for Sekhose.

Pernia Qureshi and Sonam Kapoor in Atsu

And here’s Aishwarya Rai in Vogue India wearing Atsu Sekhose-Although Ms. Rai can be quite a disaster when not styled by a stylist, for magazine photoshoots and red carpet (lately) appearances she looks every bit the diva that she is. Loving her in this red number.

Photo Credit: bollycurry, vogue.in, google images, rediff