While shopping for her wedding in 2014, Jessel Taank faced the demanding task of looking for South Asian-designed clothes in U.S. retailers.
“There are two ways of buying Indian clothes [in the U.S. and England],” Taank exclusively told WWD. “One is you sort of go to one or two shops here in New York or there’s one or two shops in London. It’s like a very concentrated retail footprint, where you can buy something, and it’s extortionate because there is no other competition. Or you go to India, and that’s what I ended up doing.”
On Monday, more than nine years after marrying her former roommate Pavit Randhawa in New York, the founder of public relations firm The Know is launching a new endeavor, Oushq — a “culturally rich retail platform” that aims to take South Asian fashion to the mainstream.
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“It really is about giving the gift of South Asian fashion to a larger audience,” said Taank, who is of British Indian descent. “South Asian fashion is very, very much underrepresented. I think European fashion, American fashion and, even to some degree, British fashion have such a strong presence in the world today. And you’re not really getting a sense of what fashion is coming out of India or the Middle East because there’s no exposure and there’s no brand awareness as such,” Taank said.
Aiming to provide a similar retail experience as Farfetch, Net-a-porter, Matches and other luxury platforms, Oushq (pronounced ooshk) focuses on South Asian designers, adhering to standardized sizing and eliminating the need for custom pieces — although custom services will also be available.
Taank wants to show Americans that South Asian fashion can be more than extravagant bridal gowns and saris. “So many designers are not doing that, and that is what I’m bringing to the platform. It’s really this fusion element that people have not done before,” she explained. Zara Umrigar, Abhishek Sharma, Papa Don’t Preach, Rocky Star, Aisha Rao, Shehla Chatoor and Alpana Neeraj are the first designers to join the project.
Fashion victim
Fans of Bravo’s “The Real Housewives of New York” got a first glimpse of Oushq on season 14 of the show, where Taank went from being an experienced publicist to a public persona. In one of the episodes, she took viewers inside a creative photoshoot for the new project at Jenna Lyons’ apartment.
Taank and Lyons also starred in one of the most memeable scenes of the season, when the former J.Crew president and creative director accused Taank of being a “fashion victim” for mixing an Alexander Wang logo jacket with a Balenciaga logo bag. “In my defense, I was on a vacation. I didn’t have that many handbags with me,” Taank said. “I see why she said that because it was a lot of just logos happening at once.”
For Taank, a fashion victim is someone who embraces logomania with no criteria. “You’re showing everyone that you are wearing Gucci or Louis Vuitton and you’re putting it all together and it’s one hot, big fashion mess. Also, I think being a fashion victim is not knowing how to style yourself in a way that feels cohesive. You’re just wearing the brand because of the brand without understanding how the piece of pieces work coherently.”
Redemption arc
In “RHONY,” Taank went from villain to fan favorite in a matter of a few episodes, ending the season with praise from everyone from “SNL’s” Bowen Yang to Julia Fox. “I never went into the show thinking that I would be pegged as a villain,” she said, adding that the editors did a “good job” with her arc. “People had such strong reactions toward me and then, by the end of it, it was like I was redeemed. I found redemption.”
Taank, who grew up in London and was “never fully invested” in watching “Housewives,” confessed she was expecting more “Sex and the City” and less reality show drama when she started filming the show.
“I would do it again, because I feel like now I sort of have a little bit more experience into what it actually is, to be really transparent,” she said, while also acknowledging the love she received from her newly gained gay fan base. “It’s so funny that somehow I just had become a gay favorite. And I’d like to hear about it. But it’s wild because I just don’t know what it was. Maybe it was my humor or something. But I’m on the right side of history and the people that are my fans are literally the best type.”
The househusband
Whether planning his trip to Vietnam or sharing his thoughts about the other housewives in “RHONY,” Taank’s husband ended up stealing the show. “When we did our casting video, producers wanted to meet Pavit after. When they met him, they were enamored by him. He’s so funny and he’s very unassuming,” she revealed. “After that video, I said, ‘You’re gonna be the star of the show.’” She wasn’t wrong.
Although she is excited for people to see more of her husband in the next season, Taank jokes Randhawa did not help her with the Oushq launch. “He’s bloody useless,” she laughed.
“He’s more of like the business head. I’m more of the creative head. I definitely run things by him. Whether he gives me an answer that’s helpful isn’t a whole other question, but he’s very strategic in the way that he does things. And so I will ask him, ‘Does this make sense from a business standpoint? Do you think that this is something we should invest in?’ He is very helpful in that regard, but otherwise? No. It’s my project. I’m doing it. I’m funding it myself. It’s all pretty much my baby,” she said.
On Friday, Taank announced Sasha Jairam as Oushq’s creative director. Jairam is an accomplished Indian fashion and celebrity photographer, who was featured in magazines across the U.K., Greece and India. To learn more Oushq, visit oushq.com.