Face Off

She is successful in business and love 8212; happily married to school sweetheart Nimesh Arora.

quot;Tresorie was a concept I always had in my mind. It was this vision I had 8212; of a quaint store where people could come and pick up nice things.quot;

Actually, Sonali didn8217;t always have life charted out. At one time she wanted to become a doctor and even studied medicine for a while. After a while, she realised she wanted to do something creative.

quot;I worked one summer in my dad8217;s office and it was only after that, that I thought of design.quot; So medical journals were abandoned for a fashion design course at SNDT.

This Raheja daughter won the Smirnoff International Fashion Award SIFA two years ago, from India. Her collection used a lot of leather and was very well received in the SIFA finals, in South Africa, where she came fourth.

Sonali has just come out with a range of clothes for men and women. Like her debut collection, it uses leather very innovatively and is mainly in neutral colours. quot;It is an Indo-West line and each outfit has a matching handbag.quot;

It is the only way forward for Indian fashion, believes Sonali. quot;This is a natural outcome of the times. You cannot expect people to jump straight from ethnicwear to western clothes. Fusion is the happy medium. And besides, we should hold on to our Indianness. After all, there is nothing more elegant than a sari.quot;

Hold yourhorses. Everything you could ever want is available in this multi-level store in Bandra. Apart from Indian designers like Rohit Bal and Manju amp; Bobby Grover, there is a pret line of affordable, trendy, western wear. There is also a whole floor dedicated to menswear. And on the ground level there is a home accessories department. Next on the anvil is a floor dedicated to furniture, linen and framing. Tresorie is really an all-in-one store.

For her, simplicity is chic. The store8217;s interiors, hand-picked by her, are all cream. quot;I am quite a boring dresser. I prefer classic, simple clothes.quot;

Due to unseasonal rains, the fashion show which was to be held at Raheja House, was called off. But another one is on the cards soon.

Being a Raheja daughter meant that she was already the owner of a 7,000 sqft property, where Tresorie is housed today. But 8212; quot;I am not apologetic about itquot; 8212; having a well-located property is not all that it takes to make a success. She worked on the concept for two years before she set shop. quot;This was just an old office block earlier. It was not easy to turn it into a store.quot;

Not much. But Sonali is more of a home bird anyway. quot;I have never enjoyed pubbing.quot; Her hobbies include interior design and writing poetry. She loves to read 8212; particularly anything written by Robin Cook. She also devours magazines like Newsweek and Time. quot;I also really enjoy watching BBC and Discovery.quot; And when she is in the bath, she listens to Channel V and MTV. quot;I never get the time to record my own tapes.quot;

quot;I need a cup of coffee.quot;

quot;Let8217;s go pub hopping.quot;