Shireen Shahana on reimagining Indian craftsmanship through Izaki’s modern abayas

Fashion

To understand a garment by Shireen Shahana is to witness the meeting of heritage and grace. Her designs carry a quiet architecture – a carefully engineered drape, a perfectly placed seam, a silhouette that celebrates the feminine form with confidence and flow. This thoughtful approach has defined her namesake label in India since its launch 2013, where her Mughal inspired artistry quickly earned a loyal following. Now, from her Chennai studio, Shahana has extended her vision to Dubai with Izaki, a brand that translates the soul of Indian craftsmanship into the elegant language of abayas and mukha wars, designed for the modern Arab woman.

The foundation for this refined craft lies in an academic background far from the atelier. Shahana holds a degree in visual communications from Chennai’s Loyola College. “I have not done any course on design,” she states. “I guess destiny had different plans.” Her academic interest during school was biology, drawn to the detailed anatomical diagrams she loved to draw. This early training in precision and structure imprinted a mindset she now applies to clothing.

Shahana’s eventual career in fashion began in the most personal of spaces: her own wardrobe. As a teenager, she started designing for herself, as well as friends, and family. “I dress very differently. I don’t go by trend. I do my own stuff,” she explains. By twenty, this instinct crystallized into her label, Shireen Shahana. She became a designer forged by intuition and hands-on creation.

The concept for Izaki emerged during a visit to Dubai, where Shahana observed a fashion landscape that spoke to her. “I saw a fashion industry I identify myself with,” she recalls. “Izaki was born in my mind at that very moment.” She describes it as a gentle translation. Where her Indian wear explores the grandeur of the saree and lehenga, Izaki articulates that same artistry through the refined vocabulary of the abaya and the delicate filigree of the mukhawar. It is Indian soul meeting Arabic silhouette – Mughal-inspired embroidery minimised onto a cuff, traditional drapery reimagined into flowing modesty.

Every stitch for both labels is produced in India, within her two production units in the cities of Chennai and Kolkata. For Izaki, Shahana has kept the roll out of the line within the walls of the Chennai atelier. “It has to be under my nose, since it is a baby right now, it has to grow up.” Here, she oversees a process built on patented fabric compositions and the skilled hands of a long-standing team. “My master, my tailors, my karigars… they understand what I want.” This careful work takes time; a single, basic piece demands a full two weeks to complete by hand.

“I believe that if you are paying money. I have to give you the value of what you are paying. If you wear it today, you should be able to wear it after ten years”

This meticulous process is governed by a firm ethic of sustain ability, a principle that often challenges contemporary habits. She has turned away clients who request lower quality for one-time wear. “I don’t take that custom-made order,” she says. “I believe that if you are paying money. I have to give you the value of what you are paying. If you wear it today, you should be able to wear it after ten years.” In her philosophy, clothing is a lasting companion, meant to be worn, loved, and passed down. 

Her inspiration for the brand draws from deep historical roots, especially the artistic dialogue of the Silk Road. “For every design, the core usually stems from the Mughal times,” she explains. She speaks of Chinese silk and Mughal embroidery, seeing her work as a continuation of this exchange. While she admires contemporary Indian designers like Pero and Sabyasachi, her own creative process is intuitive and personal. “I sometimes dream about designs and wake up to sketch them out,” she shares. “It means I am always thinking of something new.” Shahana’s choice to establish Izaki in the UAE and the wider GCC required attentive observation.

“I have done my homework when it comes to positioning,” she notes. “I believe I have a product for everyone, but everything has my signature on it.” She learned to map the nuanced preferences of the region, from Dubai to Riyadh, offering everything from understated elegance to expressive detail. Validation in this new chapter comes through moments of cross cultural recognition, like when a Spanish woman at an exhibition told her, “I have never seen a piece like this.” For Shahana, such instances confirm that her language of crafted beauty communicates across borders. Her advice for emerging designers is distilled from her own path. “The first thing you need is patience,” she states. “You need tremendous strength to face challenges, and presence of mind.” She advocates for self-belief and discernment. “Do not listen to everyone. Listen to the people you value. But don’t listen to the whole world. Listen to yourself and your heart.” Shireen Shahana’s journey is built by little moments like a perfect drape in Chennai, a client’s trust, a stranger’s admiration in Dubai. With Izaki, she has begun a graceful dialogue between two rich sartorial traditions. She works with the patience of an artist and the eye of an architect, ensuring the enduring principles of her craft – beauty, integrity, longevity – and finding a new and resonant home.

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