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'I chose the colour pink and I looked like a doll in it.'
'I worked on the pink gown single-handed and it took me one month...'
Who is Nancy Tyagi? Suddenly, everyone -- and not just in the world of high fashion -- wants to know.
The famed red carpet at the French Riviera town is a far cry from the streets of Nancy's village, Barnawa, in Uttar Pradesh. Since her outing at the Cannes Film Festival -- where she modelled outfits she had stitched herself -- the 23 year old has seen her Instagram followers jump from 700,000 to over two million.
Trending on social media and making headlines in the mainstream press, Nancy has the likes of actor-fashionista Sonam Kapoor asking her to design for them.
Cannes almost didn't happen, says Nancy, who came to Delhi in 2020 to prepare for the civil services entrance exam but couldn't go through with it because of financial constraints.
Invited to the prestigious festival as a fashion influencer, she was initially too scared and refused to go.
"But my team convinced me and when I went there, it felt like it was the best decision of my life.
"Even until I was in the car by the red carpet, I was scared. But as soon as I stepped out, I felt totally different," she says.
"I gave many poses. They went viral and the audience loved it. I am very grateful to them. I don't have the words to thank them for their love and support.
"I felt very nice. The fact that I was one of the influencers who were in Cannes is amazing. And I'm happy that our country is progressing," says the young designer.
Overwhelmed by the attention, she says she now wants to make a costume for Sonam Kapoor.
The actor, known for her versatile fashion choices, praised Nancy's Cannes outfits and even shared an Instagram story asking when she would make one for her.
"Sonam Kapoor first posted my video in her Instagram story and later she also loved both of my Cannes looks, but she loved the sari look the most.
"She asked me to make her an outfit too in her Instagram story. It's a huge thing for me that a fashion diva like her has asked me. I will definitely make an outfit for her in the future," Nancy says.
Before her appearance at Cannes, not many had heard of Nancy Tyagi. Then she grabbed the attention of shutterbugs with her outfits, competing for attention with the who's who of the global showbiz and glamour world. And there is seemingly no looking back.
Besides her followers on her Instagram account, which is filled with her impressive DIY videos and clips of how she creates outfits from scratch, she also has a million followers on YouTube.
For her Cannes foray, Nancy designed four garments which took her two months to put together.
She created her first look, a beautiful 20 kg pink gown with frills, made with 1,000 metres of fabric in 30 days.
In the month that followed, she made the other three.
"For my first Cannes look, I thought of making the outfit in orange or black. Then I dropped the idea because all the photographers there wear black and it would seem like I am one of them. As for orange, I thought it won't look good in the summer. But I didn't know that it would be cold in France.
"I chose the colour pink and I looked like a doll in it. Manu (her younger brother) also told me to choose pink.
"I made four outfits which took me two months to make. I worked on the first look -- the pink gown -- single-handed and it took me one month... It was difficult," she says.
For the second look, she wore an intricate hand-embroidered lavender saree with a full-sleeved backless blouse, matching veil and a long train.
"When I got to know that I am going to Cannes, the first thought that crossed my mind was what to make and how. I thought that because I am going from India, the sari must be one of my outfits.
"I gave my sari a Western touch and the audience liked it a lot. It was my best decision to wear a sari and I think people loved it even more than my first outfit," she says.
Her third look for the film festival, which ran through May 14-May 25, was an all-black ensemble comprising a corset, a tailed skirt and a stole.
Nancy's fourth Cannes outfit -- a white and blue printed pant-suit -- was made using sustainable fabric.
"I made this look from sustainable fabric and it's 100 per cent organic cotton. I kept this outfit quite simple; I didn't give it much of that red carpet vibe. I will create more looks that will be made from sustainable fabric."
Given her newfound fame, would she like to become an actor?
"No, I don't want to become an actor as I don't know much about acting.
"I was making clothes for myself till now but now I want to make them for everyone. And I don't want to recreate looks anymore; I want to make my own designs," she says.
The fashion influencer -- who is still a one-woman operation -- says her 17-year-old brother has been the guiding force in her life.
"I ask my brother for the designs. He gives me the ideas and designs and then I make the outfit.
"Sometimes, when I feel uncomfortable in some outfits, Manu suggests I should do this and that and I always listen to him.
"This time too, from designs to the colour of the outfits, everything was my brother's idea.
"My tastes change frequently. I like something initially but then, after some time, I start hating it. At that time, I regret it and think that I should have listened to my brother."
Recalling her move from her village to Delhi, she says the pandemic struck and that put paid to her plans to study further.
"At the time of lockdown, everything was closed and when I went to Mukherjee Nagar (in north Delhi) for coaching (for the civil services entrance exam), they told me to buy the books and go home and that coaching would reopen after the lockdown.
"But my mother lost her job during the lockdown and running the house became difficult.
"We thought that we would not have enough money left for the coaching so we bought a camera and started making videos."
Sometimes, her brother Manu's fees had to be sacrificed to fund the videos.
Her father, who runs a transport service in their village, also helped.
Four years later, all that hard work has paid off. And Nancy Tyagi is well on her way to walk the red carpet towards more fame.
Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff.com
Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com
