Healing is messy. And as we all know there isn’t a singular, set way to heal. Each person has to find their own method, in their own time. While India is still struggling to fight the second Covid wave, cities and towns have slowly opened up to return to some sort of normalcy. Things may appear to be stabilising but we are far from healing and tiding through this trauma.
And that is what is going to take us a long time. When we started putting together this issue, we were all tightly wound up in our homes (once again) and the only thing that each of us wondered was, “How do we get through this again? Is there something we can hold on to or turn to for solace?” While no one had a clear answer to that, we decided to put together an edition that would show different ways to heal. This issue is not ‘a guide to heal’ but an amalgamation of those little things that can sometimes make a big impact on one’s mental, emotional, social, physical and spiritual well-being. Be it colours and fashion, art and poetry, or spices and beauty rituals—this issue is all about trying to feel good.
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And the ‘feel good’ factor brings me to another very special element in this issue—our cover star Kim Jisoo. Sometime last year in October-November when my deputy editor Sonali Shah and I were discussing K-Dramas and K-Pop (FYI, she knows EVERYTHING about them!) “and” I clearly recall how we thought it would be a good idea for ELLE India to feature one of the Korean superstars. Little did we know that the Universe was listening to us then, and cut to June 2021, we would be able to collaborate with Dior and YG Entertainment to give shape to what one would call India’s first Korean superstar cover collaboration with any magazine. Given the circumstances, this wasn’t an easy thing to pull off but I would like to thank Anurag Tyagi (Dior India) and Lagardère for making this happen. For the uninformed, Jisoo is one of the members of BLACKPINK, a very popular Korean music band and also Dior’s new brand ambassador. With a 41.7 million fan-following on Instagram, I would say she is a superstar with a heart of a very grounded, beautiful girl. This one’s for all the BLINKS (BLACKPINK’s ever-adoring fanbase) in India.
The issue also has fashion designer Pranay Baidya writing about the legendary Satyajit Ray, his film Charulata and the influence it continues to have on him even after so many years. We also have the Indian Women’s Cricket team talking to us about their selection for the Commonwealth Games 2022, and PV Sindhu about her participation in the upcoming Tokyo Olympics. Do read our fashion story where Abu Jani-Sandeep Khosla, Anamika Khanna, Raghavendra Rathore, Anita Dongre and Shantanu-Nikhil walk us down the memory lane reminiscing their first collections. Last but not the least, Gucci celebrates its 100th anniversary this year and to celebrate the occasion, we revisit some landmark moments and collections that continue to hold a special place in our hearts. I’ve always been a fan of Alessandro Michele’s maximalist sensibilities and cerebral sexiness, and given how the brand has evolved under his creative leadership, I am looking forward to being surprised once again. I hope you enjoy reading this issue as much as we have enjoyed putting it together.
Until the next one… Stay safe and stay happy.
Find the latest issue on stands now or download your digital copy.
